Femdot and Gold Haze are back for their Second Installment of ‘Less Talk, More Haze 2’
Evan Dale | September 17, 2026
Part one of Less Talk, More Haze dropped in February, setting the stage not only for future installments but also for a rapper-producer collaboration that – though there have been single releases in the past – feels like it should exist many times over in the Chicago archives. After all, rapper, femdot. and producer, Gold Haze – both of whom create with acclaim well beyond those descriptions – are two of the city’s most prolific living legends. The former is defined by his uniquely shapeshifting flow, stutter-stepping his deep register and story-driven poeticism through any beat with rapped athleticism. The latter is known for writing and producing just about anything. Books and soundtracks; commercials for Daily Paper, Carhartt, Reebok, and the Stanley Cup Playoffs; and most inexhaustibly, beats. Musically, his range is vast, often tailored to the auditory aesthetics of his collaborators. Usually weaving in organic instrumentation, consistently defying the definition of era or epoch to envelop his listeners in something timeless, and never failing to lean heavily on percussion, from the hi-hats down to trunk-shaking bass, his signature is his adaptiveness.
Part two of Less Talk, More Haze dropped a few weeks ago. Like its predecessor, it’s short – coming in at just over ten minutes, split between five tracks plus an interlude. And yet, like its predecessor, its timeframe is somehow more than enough for both artists to put on an exhibition of their respective textural depth. It’s no surprise that two Chicago artists would embody so much musical breadth. After all, this is the city that’s delivered everything from the conscious poetry of Common to the hype lord anthems of Chief Kief; from the transcendent omnipresence of No I.D. to the chime-tinged eclecticism of Monte Booker. There’s a lot of influence to pull from in the hip-hop history alone, let alone the creative patchwork of the city at large.
For Gold Haze, that range is built into his portfolio. He does a little – a lot – of everything at the upper echelons of multiple creative streams. For femdot., range is also built into his catalogue. As he said, “because life’s about balance. don’t overthink.” Since the very beginning, his collections – mixtapes, EP’s, and albums – have unwaveringly been displays of his knack for crafting a mosaic of sonic directions that always work their way through the authenticity at the core of femdot.’s style to ultimately find natural cohesion rooted in the inimitability of his sound. 2019’s 94 Camry music was an early breakout project that flowed from the jittery diary-entry opener, Parked Car Conversations, to the wavy titular cut gleaming with its addicting chorus; from the anthemic, deftly titled, Smino-assisted Rap City, to the marathon hip-hop odyssey, Snuck to Matty’s.
Seven years and an incalculable number of equally well-rounded releases later, femdot is the image of prolificity, and yet also consistency, continuously delivering rangy, signature projects built on tracks that, when listened to piecemeal, exude an elusive stranglehold on the bookends of his skillset as a rapper, vocalist, and lyricist, but when consumed in whole, are immersive and vast. Seven years later, Less Talk, More Haze 2 is another cemented example of femdot.’s kaleidoscope. From the grungy, vulnerable lyricism of its opener, Master P, to the uplifting nature of Champion Sound; from the daunting stylistic display of femdot.’s signature fidgety therapy session at Chianti Freestyle, to the shit-talking flex of his infinite lyricism, 728, everything about the project is what we’ve come to expect from him, yet still surprising and detailed at every turn.
It’s made even more distinct by the equal additions of Gold Haze, whose ability to adapt and maneuver alongside such a variable yet collected force as femdot. would prove too much to tether for most producers. In many ways, the two Chicago artists are mirrors of one another, never ceasing to deliver a seemingly insurmountable amount of work, consistently exploring the unparalleled range of their creative immensities, and yet never failing to bring it all together, the work itself – even when as brief as Less Talk, More Haze 2 – emerging as meandering yet deeply enveloping.