The Penguin Rocks logo
The Penguin Rocks Menu


Makin Waves Record of the Week: "Suburbia" by Drew the Recluse


By Bob Makin

originally published: 09/26/2019

Makin Waves Record of the Week: "Suburbia" by Drew the Recluse

Jersey Shore rapper-singer Drew the Recluse will play Oct. 4 at Asbury Park Music Foundation in support of his latest EP, “Suburbia.” PHOTO BY CHRISTIE CORSO

 

Jackson-raised rapper-singer Drew the Recluse is based in Asbury Park but lives in Freehold. The suburbs have influenced him more than the kind of urban setting that informs most rap, hip-hop and R&B, the blend of which he once again deftly mixes on his latest EP, “Suburbia,” for his family-owned Black Suburbia Music Group.

The four-song collection opens with the title track, a sonically symbolic snippet that depicts both the serenity and sprawl of suburbia and segues into “Survive,” a hip-hop anthem about remaining vital as an artist and alive as a human. Drew realizes there’s no place like home even if it means you have to die in suburbia rather than be a creative and physical flash in the pan among the flashing lights of the big city. A beautiful chorus features an excellent high-pitched vocal sung by the rising local star.



 
Advertise with The Penguin Rocks for $50-$100 per month, click here for info



“Everytime,” the Makin Waves Song of the Week, is an ode to a stripper working her way through college that features awesome internal rhymes by Drew and a dreamy feature by Solo for Dolo. As the Song of the Week, the tune can be heard at 6:45 pm on Friday and Monday on “Radio Jersey,” four more times daily at ThePenguinRocks.com, as well as at Makin Waves’ Spotify and YouTube playlists. The lyrics were co-written by Jake, who also helmed the closing track, “The New Zealots Oath,” a dynamic account of race, religion and righteousness in relation to the American Dream, the pursuit of which Drew says is his mission.

Check him out live Oct. 4 at Asbury Park Music Foundation, where he also may perform tunes from an EP due by year’s end and an LP to be released early next year. Sharing the Suburbia Friday Night bill will be brother and Black Suburbia Music Group mate Momo Da Gawd?, as well as fellow Jersey Shore rapper Lance Ambrose.

 

Makin Waves Record of the Week: "Suburbia" by Drew the Recluse

 

 

Bob Makin is the reporter for MyCentralJersey.com/entertainment and a former managing editor of The Aquarian Weekly, which launched this column in 1988. Contact him at makinwaves64@yahoo.com. And like Makin Waves at www.facebook.com/makinwavescolumn.



New Jersey Stage is proud to be the home of Bob Makin's Makin Waves column since 2017. His Song of the Week column comes out every Friday. He also writes an Album of the Month and Interview of the Month as well.


 
Advertise with The Penguin Rocks for $50-$100 per month, click here for info




 

COLUMNS


Makin Waves Song of the Week: "Honeydew" by Via Crowe

The Makin Waves Song of the Week is "Honeydew" by Jersey Shore singer-songwriter Via Crowe.




Rock On! This Week's Sound Bites...7/10/25




This Week in Music: Previews for Concerts from July 8-14, 2025




The Newton Theatre presents Dirty Deeds - The AC/DC Experience






 

MORE NEWS

(ENGLEWOOD, NJ) -- Bergen Performing Arts Center (bergenPAC) presents Hanson on Thursday, October 23, 2025 at 7:00pm. Over their first 28 years as the band Hanson, brothers Isaac, Taylor and Zac Hanson have made a significant mark in music.


A Brother's Revival: Celebrating the Legendary Sound of the Allman Brothers Band Live at Drew University




Lizzie Rose Music Room presents Griffin House




A Chat with Jasper Smith of Straight No Chaser Which Brings its "Summer: The '90s Part 2" Tour to STNJ on July 16




Centenary Stage Company presents Yacht Rock Gold Experience






 

UPCOMING SHOWS


Sounds of a Summer Night: Music, Nature, and Community in Concert at Reeves-Reed Arboretum

(SUMMIT, NJ) -- Bring your blankets, lawn chairs, and picnic baskets to Reeves-Reed Arboretum and celebrate summer with their 2025 concert series, Sounds of a Summer Night! All performances will be held on select Wednesday evenings on the grounds of this non-profit public garden located in Summit.


2025 Horizon Sounds of the City at NJPAC




South Orange Summer Nights to Offer Free Concerts Every Wednesday Night In July




Middlesex County's Free Concert Series Returns for 2025






Advertise with The Penguin Rocks for $50-$100 per month, click here for info


The Penguin Rocks

© 2025 by Wine Time Media, LLC
PO Box 811, Belmar, NJ 07719
info@newjerseystage.com

Presented by New Jersey Stage

Images used on this site have been sent to us from publicists, artists, and PR firms. If there is a problem with the rights to any image, please contact us and we will look into the matter.

Follow us on Facebook, Twitter, and our NJ Stage accounts on Instagram, and Threads


News | Features | Radio Shows | Penguin's Hall of Fame | Song of the Week | BlowUpRadio column

Contact Us | About Us | Submit Music | Ad Rates