Happy New Year, everyone! 2017 has now arrived!

With a new year comes new music, and what better way to lead it off than with a single from Maryland’s finest MC, Substantial. With anticipation growing for his upcoming 4th LP, The Past Is Always Present In The Future, which will be released digitally on Jan. 6 (the day before his birthday, mind you), Sub has dropped a lead-off single for the masses – an ode to his home state entitled “Made In Maryland”.

The track features fellow Marylanders DJ Jav on the 1s and 2s, and of course, yours truly providing melodic vocals to season the background with extra flavor. Substantial hasn’t done an ode to the great state of MD since “Home Sweet Home”, the late, great DJ Deckstream-produced track from his debut LP “To This Union A Sun Was Born” – that was in 2000; basically, this was long overdue.

“Made In Maryland”, appropriately produced by Maryland’s favorite producer Oddisee, has a grit to it that captures the struggle that one could possibly encounter when traveling through the Free Line State. Believe me, there’s more to it than pretty trees, the Chesapeake Bay, and CrabFest. But, as Tonedeff put it: “Shit so hard, I’m about to move there!”

Come take a ride  with us, then cop The Past Is Always Present In The Future on Jan. 6. Available on Bandcamp and SoundCloud.