For years, SD has quietly been one of the most talented of the GBE affiliates, and his debut album Truly Blessed lives up to that promise. It's immediately one of the strongest rap releases out of Chicago in 2014—a year where some have wondered, with Chief Keef and other rappers quickly signed in 2012's drill boom failing to live up to major label expectations, if the drill subgenre is already past its prime. Though SD has distanced himself from the term "drill," and from Keef himself at times, Truly Blessed makes a strong case that Chicago street rap is far from old news. He's got a clear gift for songwriting, the production is experimental and expertly mixed, and he bounces seamlessly from hard, murderous tracks to buoyant bop sounds. And in the wake of Keef being dropped from Interscope, it's hard not to view this as the major label Chicago rap album everyone wanted all along (and it's been doing numbers, too: released only five days ago, it's currently #3 on Audiomack's popular albums chart, topped only by Migos and Rich Gang). Truly Blessed is for sale on iTunes now, but you can stream it below, as well as SD's gorgeous "Circles" video.
