Critical Praise:
“Mozzy is the flip side of that coin, conscience-stricken and tormented by every loss. Less than a year removed from a stint in federal prison, there is seemingly even greater caution to his music now, turning his matter-of-fact disposition in an even more poignant direction. Mozzy, who recently said he was “not one to glorify his L’s,” has moved into a hyper-reflective position on his new album, Children of the Slums.” – NPR
“He never needs to raise his voice or act out just to grab your attention; his delivery is assured and consistent but never overconfident. But despite how second nature rapping is for Mozzy, he never lets that confidence tilt into arrogance.” – Pitchfork
“Mozzy is the definition of a rapper in the zone, with a signal-to-noise ratio that rivals anyone else working in hip-hop today.” – Complex
“Chalk it up as a victory for Sacramento’s lyrical champion.” – HipHopDX
Rolling Stone’s 100 Greatest West Coast Rap Songs of All Time (#68, “Bladadah”)
The Announcement:
Processing his pain through his gritty and detailed lyrics, Mozzy understands that one cannot fully escape from a traumatic youth. Continuing to explore the memories that never fade, Mozzy announces INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS 2, his next project. Following up April’s INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS, the sequel dives even deeper into the recesses of Mozzy’s mind, as the veteran rapper learns to live with regret, and attempts to dodge the specters of his past that return to haunt him to this day. The upcoming album is home to the recent single “23 AND 1,” a poignant collaboration with YFN Lucci, which reached #19 on YouTube’s Trending chart for music and generated over 4 million streams across platforms, and features additional guest spots from Boosie Badazz, Hunxho, Nardo Wick, Rexx Life Raj, Millyz, DCMBR, and his Sacramento associates Celly Ru, E Mozzy and Marco Mula. Mozzy’s second project of 2025, INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS 2 arrives on August 8th via Mozzy Records / EMPIRE.
Along with the announcement, Mozzy shares “4 A NECKLACE,” a new single and music video from the album. A sinister West Coast rider’s anthem, “4 A NECKLACE” is blessed with the same lyrical dexterity and cinematic detail that defines Mozzy’s recent work. The rapper reflects on his life trying to dig out the mud, vividly relating the mind state of a hustler who will stop at nothing to shine: “Fingernails dirty got it out the mud, that’s how my life is/Waist deep is way different from you divin’ in/If we don’t get up, we gon’ try again,” he spits. The song arrives with a stylish video directed by AdamKG.
The upcoming INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS 2 picks up right where INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS left off, dramatizing Mozzy’s journey toward inner peace, as he attempts to move forward from the memories of traumatic youth that flood back, even during his current life of luxury. INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS swerves between emotional paeans like the Pitchfork-praised “NIGHTMARES” ft. Lil Poppa and ruthless anthems like “BLOOD DIAMONDS” ft. Peysoh and “KATTA CLIPS,” making space for fan favorite singles like “10 PERCENT” and high profile collaborations like “WHO WANT WAR” ft. Polo G. Featuring additional guest spots from EST Gee, Maine Muzik, Tsu Surf, and Mozzy’s faithful Sactown associates E Mozzy and Celly Ru, INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS is available everywhere via Mozzy Records / EMPIRE.
INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS continues Mozzy’s run as one of the most acclaimed and popular street rappers of his generation. He has earned a PLATINUM certification (for “Sleep Walkin”) and one GOLD certification from the RIAA as a lead artist (for “Excuse Me”) and three more on his collaborations with Skylar Grey, Likybo, and $tupid Young. Mozzy earned mainstream recognition in 2018, when his song “Sleep Walkin” was featured in a pivotal scene in Ryan Coogler’s Black Panther, and he earned a shout out from Kendrick Lamar in his Grammy Award acceptance speech. His street classic “Bladadah” placed #68 on Rolling Stone’s list of the 100 Best West Coast Rap Songs of All Time. Late last year, Mozzy teamed with Kalan.FrFr for the breezy LUCKY HER, and earlier, he paid tribute to his neighborhood with the album CHILDREN OF THE SLUMS.
Stay tuned for much more music from Mozzy in the coming days and weeks.
Pre-save INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS 2: https://music.empi.re/intrusivethoughts2
Stream “4 A NECKLACE”: https://music.empi.re/4anecklace
Watch “4 A NECKLACE”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WUAOATu121c
Stream “23 AND 1” ft. YFN Lucci: https://music.empi.re/23and1
Watch “23 AND 1” ft. YFN Lucci: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrEmSn4_jP4
INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS 2 tracklist:
Photo credit: Bryan Berry
Please contact Michelle or Kevin for more info.
Links:
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Pre-save INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS 2: https://music.empi.re/intrusivethoughts2
“4 A NECKLACE”: https://music.empi.re/4anecklace
“23 AND 1” ft. YFN Lucci: https://music.empi.re/23and1 / https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=HrEmSn4_jP4
“KEEP CALLIN MY NAME” (Vevo ctrl performance): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dG2348n3-Ag
“SEVEN 2’S” (Vevo ctrl performance): https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLNU2tTNQ4s
INTRUSIVE THOUGHTS: https://music.empi.re/intrusivethoughts
“WHO WANT WAR” ft. Polo G: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2iYITT3xS5A
“NIGHTMARES” ft. Lil Poppa: https://music.empi.re/nightmaremozzy / https://youtu.be/aKqhIqe-QqA?si=2dZGjM6dvSr37pmc
“UNDER OATH”: https://music.empi.re/underoathmozzy / https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=r5PvacJ87w4
Mozzy & Kalan.FrFr – LUCKY HER: https://music.empi.re/luckyher
Mozzy & Kalan.FrFr – “BBL” ft. Rob49: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pgKIvcOL-fY
“LOST IT ALL” ft. Fridayy (Lyric Video): https://mozzy.lnk.to/LOSTITALLVideo
CHILDREN OF THE SLUMS: https://mozzy.lnk.to/ChildrenOfTheSlums
“RED NOSE BULLY”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6WQDcIKqMX4
“JADED” ft. Eric Bellinger: https://Mozzy.lnk.to/Jaded / https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=P3NOqXE2fPo
“FREE JUJU”: https://Mozzy.lnk.to/FREEJUJUVideo / https://Mozzy.lnk.to/FREEJUJU
“Ain’t On Sh*t” ft. Lil Zay Osama: https://mozzy.lnk.to/AINTONSHIT / https://youtu.be/GHw5oAVxUwM?si=Q2o2z-1yofsrbxba
“IF I DIE RIGHT NOW”: https://mozzy.lnk.to/ifidierightnow / https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=o7UVt7KUkj4
“Count Time”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=_oaaW-sPj1M&
“10 Percent”: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rZq8S5dpKk
KOLLECT KALL EP: https://mozzy.lnk.to/KOLLECTKALL/