After leaving the southern California's uplifting rap group Dream Junkies in 2016 with fellow artists Ruslan and Beleaf, John Givez slowed down his music output significantly. He resurfaced in 2019 with a few singles and is now back with a new collection of self-produced songs with a little assistance from grammy-award winning producer T-minus and newcomer Vray. Weighing in at 13 songs, Tha Collection Tape, Vol. 1 is a mental dump of flashbacks ("'09 Freestyle"), party songs ("Cross Fade"), and slow jams for the late nights ("Backstroke").
There are multiple quotables throughout the project ("I don't chase the money/I slow dance then it come right to me and we hold hands") and the ease of Givez' flow over the beats reassures his decision to return to the booth was correct. In an email, he explained the motivation behind the project: “Specifically, I bet on myself. I made these songs, beats and all to prove something to myself. Greatness. Now I just want to collect.”
Photo: Sergey Kolivayko