“I outgrew Ritchie with a T,” said Nathaniel Ritchie of the name he’s rapped under for ten years. “Now that I’m putting out solo music, I want to really identify with my stage name.”

When the rapper kicked off his solo career last summer, he reintroduced himself as RiTchie – a switch inspired by fellow rapper Slauson Malone addressing him as “RiTchie” over text.

Originally one-third of Injury Reserve alongside Corey Parker and Stepa J. Groggs – which then became ByStorm after Groggs’ death in 2020 – RiTchie has already amassed a substantial discography and devoted fan base from his work with prior groups. With a decade of Injury Reserve behind him and ByStorm still in the developing stages, RiTchie felt now was the time to unveil his debut solo project (itself 10 years in the making): Triple Digits [112].

RiTchie didn’t want his solo introduction to be a big deal, as it started as a “personal outlet.”

“I didn’t want it to feel like a big debut, and I didn’t want it to come off like I was expecting people to take me seriously because I’m not,” he says. With that sentiment at the forefront, the rapper stuck to a pretty lowkey album rollout led by three very different singles: “RiTchie Valens,” “Dizzy” with Aminé and “Looping.”

“I didn’t want this to be the same as any Injury Reserve or ByStorm stuff,” RiTchie reiterated. “People talk about the last IR record like its a reclusive album you listen to alone in your room. I wanted to make something closer to the music I listen to on a daily basis – and something my friends can drive around and listen to.”

On the 14-track offering – a scrappy melange of genres and influences – Aminé is one of three features; the other two going to Niontay on “How?!” and Quelle Chris on “That Thing.” RiTchie cites “The Keepers” as one of his favorites from the project. “It’s a mix between my typical style and some new production for me. I want to explore this contrast more.”

RiTchie admits that the album’s sound is hard to describe, but what he can articulate is the goal he, as a self-described “reactionary” and “instinctual” artist, had with the album.

“My goal isn’t to make the most groundbreaking hip-hop record I can possibly make.”

“My goal isn’t to make the most groundbreaking hip-hop record I can possibly make,” RiTchie explained. “I had to decode my Injury Reserve brain because we were laying everything out there and pushing everything as hard as we could.”

RiTchie reflects a lot on the differences between being a solo artist and being in a group; everyone seems to care about your social media activity, clothing choices and even your name a lot more when you’re on your own. Where RiTchie felt the void the most is in creative validation.

“In a group, you have other people that are just as involved so they can kind of reinforce your beliefs,” he reminiscences on working with Parker and Groggs.

“For the first time, this is me doing it all by myself.”

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Stream ‘Triple Digits [112]‘ on Spotify and Apple Music now.