Skyzoo and Apollo Brown bring their formidable talents together again with Luxury Tax, their second joint album and first since 2016. Dropping on September 25, the album has already produced three singles, including the latest track, “Hear Me Out,” giving fans a tantalizing glimpse of what the highly anticipated reunion has in store.
“Hear Me Out” Brings the Duo Back Into Focus
The new single follows “No Discounts,” released in August, and continues the rollout toward Luxury Tax. “Hear Me Out” is accompanied by an official video, adding a visual aspect to an album campaign that has built anticipation around the duo’s return.
For Skyzoo, the track draws inspiration from the classic New York sound while keeping the writing rooted in the present. He described the song as a lyrical showcase centered on a message of leaving his surroundings while carrying it with him.
“With ‘Hear Me Out’, when I first heard the beat, it sounded like something out of New York in the mid-80s, a time of learning how to survive on the fly. It felt gritty and nostalgic while still being 2026. Lyrically, it’s a bar fest, but with a message as always; me figuratively telling the corner store and all the surrounding parts that when I leave to make it away from it, I will be making it proud at the same time, hear me out.” (Source: Attack the Culture)
The single combines the dense lyricism and lived-in New York imagery that is part of Skyzoo’s creative signature. As part of Luxury Tax, it gives the album an unmistakable connection to the musical language that shaped the rapper’s earlier work.
Ten Years After The Easy Truth
The timing of the album’s release ties back to Skyzoo’s and Apollo Brown’s first collab, The Easy Truth, which dropped in September 2016. On that album, Skyzoo’s detailed writing and Apollo Brown’s production provided a densely layered backdrop to featured appearances from Joell Ortiz, Conway, Westside Gunn, and Stalley.
Now, a decade later, Luxury Tax picks up where the pair left off with a fresh set of 14 tracks. “No Discounts” and “Hear Me Out” both emphasize the lyrical side of the collaboration, while “The Blind Spot” features the talents of Blu and Elzhi.
All these details indicate that Luxury Tax is more than a retrospective reunion. In many ways, it’s a new chapter built around a solid partnership that has already proven itself a decade before.
Luxury Tax Arrives September 25
With Luxury Tax scheduled for September 25 through Escapism Recordings, Skyzoo and Apollo Brown are now days away from releasing the project. Already, the first three singles suggest a focused direction centered on heavyweight production, detailed writing, and the potent chemistry that made The Easy Truth such a respected release.
For listeners who have been waiting a decade for another full-length collaboration, the wait is nearly over. But despite Luxury Tax being pushed as a reunion record, the singles suggest Skyzoo and Apollo Brown are approaching it as a continuation of their creative partnership rather than a return to the past.
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