Originally scheduled for release way back in March 1996, The Raw Factor by North Carolina native Omniscence is one of the last of the unreleased mid-90s albums to see the light of day. Despite being awarded The Source’s coveted “Hip Hop Quotable” and dropping two well-received singles (“Amazin'” and “Touch Y’all”), record label politics meant the full-length The Raw Factor album was never released, and fans were left wondering what might have been.
Twenty-eight years later, The Raw Factor is finally being released on vinyl, CD, and digital stores. Featuring punchline-driven lyrics from Omniscence delivered in his unmistakable cadence and backed by head-nodding production from Fanatic, the album is a must-own for fans of 90s Hip-Hop.
In retrospect, Omniscene could’ve been one of the biggest stars in Southern hip-hop history if The Raw Factor release wasn’t interrupted. The artist’s effortlessly relaxed flows and mind-bending rhyme schemes soar over the subtle instrumental jazz on “I’m On Mine.” Omniscene evokes the hazy feeling of mid-90s hip-hop while incorporating his perspective from Southern America. The way Omniscene delivers rhymes is reminiscent of the New York scene, but how he writes is where the artist’s uniqueness truly shines. There is an authenticity behind each word out of Omniscene’s mouth that is indubitably a style all to his own. “I’m On Mine” is a highlight from a recently resurfaced 90s hip-hop gem with Omniscene capturing the attention he always deserved via a mesmerizing performance over lo-fi hip-hop-jazz excellence.
.Omniscence haunted the same early 90’s cyphers and stages that many lyrical greats from the era had to cross. With a gruff delivery and equal adeptness with punchlines and metaphors, his high finish at the 1994 edition of Battle For World Supremacy at the New Music Seminar assured heads across the culture were watching. After this, Omniscence locked in with producer Fanatic (who also laced tracks for Notorious B.I.G., Ma$e, and Michael Jackson). The result was The Raw Factor album, fifteen plus tracks of jazzed-out boom-bap, replete with crackin’ drums.
