Within the rich tapestry of Louisiana’s rap scene, superstar Rob49 stands alone. Blending Master P cool and Boosie braggadocio, the MC boasts a booming voice and a dedication to realism that makes him one of the best New Orleans chroniclers since Weezy first began telling us about the Hollygrove neighbourhood in the early 2000s. Rob, who takes the latter part of his name from the 4th and 9th Wards in NOLA where he grew up, carved a unique path to stardom. His family fled from Katrina and moved to Houston, before returning to Louisiana, where Rob went to nursing school. He quickly dropped out because of a preternatural gift for rapping, which is fully displayed on projects like 2022’s Welcome to Vulture Island and 4GOD II. On 4GOD II, Rob makes his case as the new voice of Crescent City rap. His bars are confident and filled with quotable one-liners, but the MC is at his best when examining his rise from scrappy New Orleans hustler, diving into his backstory using childhood trials and tribulations to help illuminate who he is today. It’s telling that 4GOD II opens with “ILY”, Rob’s most emotionally vulnerable cut. Amongst anthems that tell of fast cars and blindingly bright chains, long nights at the strip club and enough bottles to satiate all of Las Vegas, Rob shares his story, allowing listeners to understand how special the glow-up is considering where he came from. “Only thing gon' make this better is talkin' to my daddy/He the only one that knew shit, but I can't tell nobody,” he raps, before adding, “I wish I could tell my mama what's goin' on inside/’Cause my mental fucked up and I feel like I lost my mind.” It’s a stark contrast to a celebratory cut like “Houston Girls” or the swaggering “Pimpin’ Ain’t Easy”, but it’s Rob49 at his best, unfiltered and determined to rise to the top—no matter how much pain it takes to get there.