The MTL Rapper You Need to Get on: Seinsucrer

MTL Greatest Underground Rapper

Montreal’s rap scene remains relatively underground. With the exception of a few artists who have reached a level of mainstream recognition—such as Mike Shabb, JeanLoup, and Zach Zoya (&more)—the non-commercial nature of this genre contributes to its broader underappreciation. This might be intentional, a feature that many artists take pride in as it highlights their authenticity and rawness.

The rap scene here is diverse (I must say I sometimes feel like I have barely scratched the surface of all the music that comes out of the city), however, the one I am most invested in - and I think the one is most worth investing into - is definitely that characterised by what ChatGPT calls neo-boom bap fusion (good one chat). This style is heavily influenced by artists like Benny The Butcher, WestsideGunn, Conway the Machine (Founders of the Griselda Movement) who use gritty, soulful samples, hard hitting drum patterns & a smooth yet disruptive vocals to give a tune that is as laid back as it aggressive. I have personally been greatly influenced by this genre of music.. using Kenny Segal & Billy Woods’s collaborative album Maps as the kickstarter to what is soon to become my debut album.

It makes sense why the rap scene here embraces this grunginess; this city incorporates much of what this genre represents, with its diverse cultural DNA reflecting both global influences and a fiercely local identity, its long, harsh winters mirroring the cold, gritty undertones of the music, and its prideful Québécois attitude that demands unapologetic self-expression. Montreal represents a stronghold of this identity, placing its artists as the gate-keepers to its unique culture.

Seinsucrer is & my experience with Rap Queb

I remember the first time hearing Seinsucrer. I was scrolling through instagram and came across a post by REMASTEREDMTL which was promoting a song by Mike Shabb & Seinsucrer called GMM. I had heard of Shabb—listening to Sensuelle felt like an initiation into the Montreal rap scene, a necessary step as I began to navigate my own creative journey in this city. But I had never heard of this other guy. A small dude bouncing up and down to the beat whilst wearing a weared down Gatsby hat with a green and yellow AUTOPRO bomber with checkered sleeves…. His style was weird, I can’t lie I could barely understand a word he was saying but, damn. Boy was smooth with it. The fact that the first time I heard his music was paired with a visual made his sound have a much bigger impact on me. Everything matched perfectly—from the fit, to the flow, to the beat, to the general aesthetic. GRUNGE.

Beyond satisfying some deep desire I hadn’t revisited since first listening to this song over a year ago, I felt proud to be an artist in this city. I recognised the long journey I yet had to make to reach this level of ‘legitimacy’ amongst my creative peers, yet I bathed in the excitement and prospect of one day participating to meaningful art that represents a side of the city that few foreigners who come here to study ever get to (or want to) appreciate.

Si Dieu Existe

Si Dieu Existe is an 11-song album—one of many in Seinsucrer long discography. This one does however, hit different. I don’t know if its because of where I am mentally and musically as an artist, or because of the flavour it brings to my ears when walking around the empty, Christmas lit-up streets of Montreal. Each instrumental has a traditional, old-school hip-hop backbone yet incorporates sharp, jazzy elements that provide the perfect playing ground for Seinsucrer to execute his witty, impactful & melodic wordplay. Because of his lisp and the lack of pronunciation queb words tend to require, its almost impossible for one to understand each phrase that is splattered onto the track, yet I see this as a bonus, as when you do hear the utterance of a familiar expression or word you straight away get the gist of what the artist wants to translate through his music. This brings me to my main point: Seinsucrer has mastered the art of informal communication. He paints vivid pictures and tells cohesive stories without conforming to the polished frameworks through which legitimate information is usually delivered. And its impactful! I mean, I can’t even understand half of what he says, yet here I am writing a whole piece about him on New Year’s Eve!

The Key: Informal Communication

You might call this a stretch, but to me, Seinsucrer, and artists like him, are extremely effective communicators who create a far greater impact than they are often credited for. This is probably the first time many have heard his name, and such a claim may seem hard to justify when his 10,000 monthly listeners could classify him as an insignificant artist in the vast pool of musicians and pop culture leaders.

But that's exactly the point. Niche fosters community; mainstream garners influence.

Niche music doesn’t reach the masses, and Montreal rap, with its multilingual roots and rich but distinct culture, perhaps never will. But that in no way makes the music less impactful or less important. If anything, it provides a creative safe haven—one not littered by the demands and compromises of mass appeal.

If this all sounds a little bit enticing to you. I recommend you listen to Zone Grises, as a start. Maybe start a playlist? Boy releases a stupid amount of music so buckle up— literally while writing this he released a 31 song mixtape. That’s not a joke by the way.