Once a week the Philly Plain Dealer will be highlighting artists throughout the Philadelphia area.
For the week of June 4th, 2024 – the Philly Song of the Week is C’est La Vie by Zeke Ultra, produced by popular Philly DJ and producer JEWELSSEA, and Yonqi. According to Genius, ZekeUltra is from Dover, Delaware, but has become a juggernaut in the Philly Underground scene. This is the second time that we have given ZekeUltra the “Song of the Week” honor, and since that first article in 2021, he has only grown.
The track C’est La Vie is reminiscent of a modern Earl Sweatshirt song, but Zeke has his own smooth sound that he came up with independent of the lyrical rap legend. According to savvy Redditors on the r/EarlSweatshirt subreddit, “I think ZekeUltra is even more similar to Earl. And the most (surprising thing) is he adopted this style of rapping before Earl.”
C’est La Vie reads as a song about the modern American guilt of living a care-free life as atrocities take place all over the world, the IDF is name checked. Lines like “Who has to die being crushed for me to get comfort,” and “who has to lie asleep hungry for me to be stuffed up” ring true to the themes of modern guilt and questioning the status quo throughout C’est La Vie.
This is the perfect song to bring back the Philly Song of the Week; it’s inventive, smooth, creative, and important. ZekeUltra is one of the more interesting artists bubbling in the Philly rap scene and JEWELSEEA is a must-see DJ and a draw to any club or venue.
Stream C’est La Vie on Spotify here:
Check out the Philly Song of the Week playlist here:
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