East Oakland rapper and producer Ovrkast. released his new album, STRIKING, on Oct. 9 through the Brooklyn label three times LOUDER, Clash reported. It is the 12-track follow-up to his 2025 breakthrough, While The Iron Is Hot.
How it was made
Clash reported that Ovrkast. made the record with Grant Lapointe, Like and string arranger Aaron Paris. It started as an expansion of While The Iron Is Hot and grew into a new project over about a year and a half, finished at a week-long writing camp in Los Angeles. He drew on Kendrick Lamar's DAMN and Jay-Z's 4:44 while keeping a jazz-leaning, sample-heavy sound in the line of Madlib, J Dilla and Bay Area innovators.
The Bay Area on the record
In its Oct. 14 review, Pitchfork singled out “ACTRANSIT / LEMME AT EM,” a montage of chaotic bus rides from his past. Other tracks include “Wata” with Niontay, “STATIC” with Flatbush singer Nali, and “KNOCK” with Mavi and Samara Cyn. Pitchfork said live instruments replace much of the dusty, self-produced sound of his 2023 RESET! EP.
The Outkast lawsuit
Pitchfork reported that Ovrkast. has been sued by Outkast and their representatives over what the suit calls the “improper, willful, unauthorized, and illegal use of the nearly identical name.” Pitchfork said he had been dealing with the dispute privately for about a year before it became public. Pitchfork did not report any resolution of the case.
More Bay hip-hop: Hyphy at 20, explained.