Devontee has been representing Toronto's island-influenced style and slang for years with tracks like "Bless" and "Bare Tings" even as others, like Drake ("Blem"), claim credit for putting the city and its blend of slang on the map. Now, though, Devontée is set to receive the credit he deserves with his first album Head Gone, where he shows just how deep his Toronto and island roots run. He says: "the term Head Gone stems from my Jamaican father's reggae/dancehall influence," an influence that shows on several tracks on the album. He features a true Toronto OG, Kardinal Offishall, on the song "Real Rudebwoy," but switches up the style song-by-song to keep it fresh, even tapping into a Swae-Lee falsetto on "Fross."
It's worth mentioning that Devontée's path to a full-length project is hilariously star-studded with NBA players:
The first song I recorded was "Wild West" in New York City's Quad Studios, and I recorded "Overthinking" and "Haunted" in my cousins Ayesha & Stephen Curry's pool house. I recorded "Bless" with Kevin Durant at his house in Oakland (and ended up mixing & mastering the whole album there) and I recorded and produced "Growing Crazy" and "Real Rudebwoy" the same weekend at OVO 40's studio in Toronto. Thankfully, listeners get to hear a whole range of influences from my family, friends and peers on here."
Is this Devontée's big break? Decide for yourself and stream the full album below: