The first time I read about Robertito Chong, also known as Chongui, was back in late 2015 through the Puerto Rico Indie article “Los 15 discos del 2015” (The 15 albums of 2015). Like previous years, I was looking for new artists to bless my ears with, and finding Chongui was yet another gem. Immediately after reading the article I listened to the rapper’s, HIPOGLUCEMIA and watched the fantastic video for the infectious Recluso produced single, “Rescate.” Afterwards, I knew that Chongui was definitely an artist to look out for. He perfectly blended political themes, introspection, childhood, and energetic fun music to classic lyricism. Thus, I was quick to look him up in all the streaming services, namely Soundcloud, where I was able to find the aforementioned project as well as his earlier projects primerasgrabaciones and the enrolando versos EP. As the years went by, Chongui would eventually work on his line of clothing, which features his iconic Banana logo, and release a series of songs across 2016 and 2017, which he would compile in his latest full-length project, Chonguisworld. In this compilation, the artist continues to display his energetic personality while demonstrating his lyrical skills in a diverse landscape of beats which range from classic boom-bap and trap to more Latin music influenced sounds.
(cover for Chonguisworld by CHEBAUZ)
While HIPOGLUCEMIA had a balance of party songs, introspective tracks, and storytelling tunes, the latest Robertito Chong project features the artist having fun and providing a few inspirational songs. For example, in “Primer Cheque,” the rapper celebrates the fact that he got his first check for doing what he loves: music. He raps about how he never really wanted money, but how proud he is that he can actually do so by just doing what he loves and tells others to follow their dreams despite the problems that may arise. Meanwhile, in the song “Zuania Velez”, Chongui pokes fun at the Puerto Rican internet celebrity Zuania Velez whose rise to fame was due to a song where she would constantly say, “Robertito no quiero na’ contigo.” While Velez’s message was not directed to Chongui, he takes the opportunity to have some fun with the subject, creating a hilarious tune with a story about his relationship with her and her ex-boyfriend Jovani Vazquez. Furthermore, Chongui continues to have fun with the hilarious trap track “Mundo Kripi,” where he raps about how he had a dream that marijuana was legal in Puerto Rico and how disappointed he was to find out it wasn’t the truth. In the end, the song turns into a funny critique at the fact that this drug wasn’t legal for a long time. Meanwhile, on an even lighter tone in the track “Hola”, Chongui raps about love by telling the “true story” of how he met his girlfriend.
(picture of Robertito Chong as found on his Facebook page)
While Chonguisworld may seem like a project about having fun, it also displays Robertito Chong’s ability to jump into a variety of beats. In the first track, “Yo Los Mato”, “Zuania Velez”, and “Hola”, Chongui shows his lyricism over classic boom-bap influenced beats. Meanwhile, with “Mundo Kripi” and “1992,” he is able to easily blend into a trap soundscape. Then at the end, with “Seguimos Fumando,” Chongui demonstrates that he can also work with more acoustic guitar influenced sounds.
(art for the single “Yo Los Mato”)
With Chonguisworld, Robertito Chong continues to show his growth as a young artist, displaying his lyrical skills as well as his ability to take on any type of beat adjusting his flow to each of them, and what makes it all even better is that he’s having fun and keeping his energetic personality all throughout. While the songs in this project had been released all around 2016 and 2017, it is great to have them as a compilation. Bringing them together makes them feel fresh once again. In sum, Chongui continues to show his greatness. Now I await for his new line of clothing and, hopefully, some collaborations with Fico Rodz, Mike Rodz, and/or PJ Sin Suela.
Find Chonguisworld on Soundcloud and Spotify