Matawan Guys Write Rap Love Song To NJ, 'Garden State Of Mind'

ABERDEEN, NJ — We all know Alicia Keys and Jay-Z penned a love song to New York City ("Empire State of Mind"), but what about that superior locale on the other side of the Hudson River? You need to stop what you're doing right now and listen to "Garden State of Mind," a rap song dedicated to the great state of New Jersey. Even better, it's written and recorded by a couple of local Matawan guys. Could this be the new anthem of summer? For the 732, it is. And 609, 908, 201 ...

Nico Araco, 27, and Kyle Wolf, 26, grew up in Matawan (they graduated from Matawan High School in 2010) and they still live in town. Together, they are the hip-hop duo The Empire Project. The song is good, with lyrics like:

• I'm diagnosed with road rage/I get wordy
• It's a real condition/Only in Jersey
• I don't wanna lose my cool again/But if you don't know what a Wawa or a pork roll is/Then it's better we don't be friends
• No, we're not The Sopranos/Though 80 percent of us are Italiano
• I'm Exit 117 representin'/You can smell the Raritan as soon as you get in
• The Jersey Devil has an office in Trenton (video then zooms in on Chris Christie's face)

Here is the video (viewer discretion advised for some language):

"People told us we had to write a love song next," Araco told Patch. "So I made a love song to New Jersey. Kyle showed me this beat he came up with one day, and I was like, that's it. You need to let me rap to that. It's really fun, it's a little gritty — it reminded me of the New Jersey attitude. That's what spoke to me."

The song was actually recorded in 2016, and is part of their album "Infinity," the only record the duo has produced so far. But "Garden State of Mind" resurfaced on the Internet this June.

Araco and Wolf met in second grade — "We lived around the block from each other and we started making music in high school." Wolf comes up with the beats in the studio basement of his home on Elmwood Drive, and Araco writes the lyrics and raps.

"We first started a five-person pop/funk band in high school; it was all local Matawan kids," said Araco. "But then people moved away and it became harder to meet for practice. So Kyle started doing more hip-hop instrumentals in his basement. He and I would just meet and we moved into more hip hop/electronica."

Araco said he counts Eminem, Tupac, Macklemore, Lupe Fiasco and Drake among his influences, and Guns N' Roses is actually his favorite artist.

"We try not to stick to one genre," he said. "Our music is aimed to inspire people to do what they love. We're both 27 and we're still pursuing our music. I saw so many people in high school pursue a career in arts and music — creative types — and they stopped because they had their parents saying, 'Stop. Time to get a real job.' We want kids coming out of high school to stick with what they love. Hopefully we can prove to people if you just keep trying, you'll get there one day."

The Empire Project has played live at Red Rock Tap + Grill in Red Bank and they were supposed to open up for rapper Tech N9ne when he played at the Starland Ballroom. But then Tech N9ne broke his leg and the show was canceled. On the side, Wolf does odd jobs to pay the bills and Araco works as a a bartender at McDonagh's in Keyport. He loves to sing and write music, and said he can never stop rapping. "I don't have a choice, I have to just go for it."

Remind you of any other young, start-up musicians you might have heard about lately?

"I really loved 'Bohemian Rhapsody,' it's funny you brought it up," Araco told Patch. "I love Freddie Mercury and his story. He's one of the greatest stage performers of all time and look at how he came up. His father told him, 'You can't do this, you can't go this route.' And look."

You can listen to The Empire Project's music on YouTube, Spotify, Apple Music, Soundcloud and Bandcamp. Another of their songs: