TALINWYA

Talin Ghai Cooper, better known as Talinwya, is a Los Angeles-based rapper who has been steadily gaining traction but hasn't blown up yet. Why is that?

Known for his spectacular flow and distinctive voice, Talin consistently releases beats to his sizable audience (now over 60000 monthly listeners on Spotify). For the past 4 years, his listeners have been blessed with frequent drops and high-quality music. However, he has not yet released a song with more than 350,000 streams.

Being from LA, a Mecca for artists looking to blow up, Talin has been able to distribute his music to listeners who quickly become fans. Such a city also has its disadvantages, though, as countless artists at the same stage of their career are also releasing music, creating competition for Talin.

An aspect that stands out in Talin’s music is his beat selection. Full of angelic wide-stereo melodies offset by bouncy, unusual drums, Talin unleashes his vicious flows across much of his catalog. Having a high-pitched yet smooth voice, with a vocal preset that complements his range, has really allowed his flows to shine on the beats he chooses.

Much like him, his beats are unique. They do not sound similar to much of the underground, or to much of anything. Having a couple of good beats is not uncommon for smaller artists, but having only good beats is a rarity, which is why it is no surprise that Talin’s inner circle includes Kelewya, a popular underground producer, and also Talin’s older brother. Kelewya’s placements that have done well, such as 556 (Green Tip) by Jace!, share the same abnormal conventions that Talin’s songs do. In combination with Talin’s catchy flows, the beat selection has created a catalog that could interest the audiences of artists who use Kelewya’s beats, given how unique they are.

Despite the beats being a significant part of his appeal, Talin’s ability to rap should not be overlooked. In his music, fragments of legendary trap rappers like Young Thug and Future fuse with less mainstream sounds, resulting in tracks that are not as off-the-rails as other underground tracks and are still appealing to a broader audience. This sound he has created, capitalizing on the best of what the underground and mainstream scenes have to offer, is his charm and why he is bound to blow up.

His three most-streamed songs, PHAROAH, NEVER, and WOA FREAKY (KELE), all sound so different but familiar. His voice fuses the otherwise impractical beats into listenable pieces of art. His versatility knows no bounds, which is why a song like PHAROAH, with a beat that hardly sounds like it belongs to a rap artist, has had so much success, with over 400000 streams.

Much to his fans' surprise, Talin has not yet had a song that has accumulated over a million streams. In fact, he does not even have a song with over 450,000 streams on Spotify. Given the facilities he has, it is remarkable that all aspects of his music appear to be professional. Even the music videos he has published on his YouTube channel, such as the one for the song NEVER, are comparable to those of artists with millions of fans.

Why he has not allured more listeners is a mystery. His career as a whole reflects a rapper who is doing everything right but somehow isn't attracting more fans. He is growing gradually, though, feeding the fans that are already loyal to his music, which allows him to continue refining his sound without being pressured to drop. All he needs is one popular song to broaden his listener base.

It is challenging to concretely describe Talin’s music with words. Personally, after hearing F*CK iT at the end of 2024, Talin’s presence has been felt heavily in my playlists, but also with my friends. Almost anyone I’ve shown his music to has found a couple of songs they like, and one of my friends has been listening to him daily for the past couple of months. He has not yet disappointed me. He is a competent, interesting, and catchy new rapper. I strongly recommend listening to his most popular songs, and if you like them, explore his albums. I want some of his unpopular songs more than his most-streamed ones.

Talin, and the reason why it is so surprising that he does not have more fans is that, despite being unique and, to some odd, his music has broad appeal. Artists whose sound is so niche and so creative that it is simply unattractive to most listeners get stuck in the underground because their sound is not appealing enough to the mainstream. Talin is not one of these artists. His catalog aligns with the hype surrounding many mainstream artists who are also known for bending traditional musical conventions. Because of his appeal, I firmly believe that he will blow up.

My rating: 4/5