OpenCall Discovers Music: GAO THE ARSONIST

Hanna Kantor

Poetic rap by Gao The Arsonist

We’re not sharing rap music very often but Gao The Arsonist touched us deeply with his latest track ‘Dead Leaves’. UK-based Alternative Hip Hop artist and producer utilizes a meshed variety of sounds and styles to convey his often vulnerable, introspective thoughts.

Gao influences include the insidious, calculated flow and razor-sharp pen of a younger Earl Sweatshirt, along with a repertoire of manic cadences spanning from J.I.D to Danny Brown.

Female vocals you can hear in the song were delivered by his girlfriend Sal. 

“I struggle telling stories that aren’t my own. I hadn’t successfully finished a love song since the emo ship sunk, and was slowly sinking in the LA dating quicksand…emotionless, clinging to songs about nostalgia and regret, never about love…most certainly not promising someone they would never be alone.”