Released on August 10, 2025,
via M I N E Entertainment.
The return from prison. That crucial moment of truth. That decisive turning point in the careers of rappers never quite free from delinquency (or from relentless policing).
Many disappoint. For every Pimp C, who delivered the historic Underground Kingz shortly after regaining his freedom and reuniting with Bun B, how many Guwops and Boosies are awaited like messiahs, only to never rediscover their former brilliance?
Rio Da Yung O.G., it seems, falls into the first category. Since getting out, he has released the remarkable single “Rio Free.” And while not everything on the album of the same name was as strong, the next one clearly feels like a culmination.
My debut album drops TONIGHT !! FLINT (feeling like I’m not through) this album is special to me because I actually dedicated this to my city (FLINT) we dropping this tape on a Sunday because it’s 810 day a special day in my city where we celebrate being from FLINT.
That’s how Rio announced the release on social media, in a statement that contains several key pieces of information.
The first, found in the title, is that this project strongly represents one of the most vibrant and exciting scenes of recent years – the very one in which Rio is the undisputed figurehead. F.L.I.N.T. (Feeling Like I’m Not Through) is released on a major day of celebration in his city, leaves room for two other local heroes (longtime collaborator RMC Mike and the ever-energetic YN Jay), and features several architects of the local sound: Wayne616, BEATSBYSAV, and Danny G Beats. From the excellent “Different Music,” Flint is unmistakably present. What follows is the region’s characteristic shit talking, a long chain of absurd jokes that jump from one idea to another, sometimes abruptly, sometimes out of nowhere.
The second key point in Rio Da Yung O.G.’s announcement is that the rapper considers this album his first. One can infer that all the previous releases were “mixtapes,” and that this is the true body of work, the serious one, where real effort has been put in. Despite a slightly more muted voice than before, Rio is at the top of his game, and the producers master theirs. They deliver Michigan’s signature elements – pianos, synths, bells, and heavy bass – sometimes with more melody, with a few samples (“Open A Bank”), and across different tempos, from the more intense (“Aggressive Flow”) to the more relaxed (“Great Day”).
This brings variety within consistency across a twenty-track release. All the more so as Rio alternates between his long, disjointed monologues, a breathless posse cut (“Ghetto Cypher,” with VonOff1700, RMC Mike, and YN Jay), and entertaining duos – particularly with his longtime partner RMC Mike on the model example “Dumb N Dumber Flo,” and Star Bandz on “Ghetto Star.” The rapper also tempers his crude talk about sex and women with moments of drama and mourning (“Another Story”) and memories of prison.
The record is clever, balanced, and very well put together. Whether it truly is his first or not, F.L.I.N.T. (Feeling Like I’m Not Through) is unquestionably a major album from one of Flint’s finest – and from a major rap artist.
