Unsigned Hype (feat. Jay Cinema) - Mark Saunders

Cover Art - Unsigned Hype (feat. Jay Cinema) - Mark Saunders

I remember when I was a teenager, right in the middle of what felt like my first music discovery zeitgeist. Long story short, I’d developed my love for Tupac and Notorious B.I.G. as the typical mainstays of my beginnings. But when I started to dig deeper and really listen to Hip-Hop as a complete genre — the differences in where these artists were from, and how that shaped their sound — really stood out to me.

I didn’t grow up with Rap Music as a kid, so hearing this wide variety of brand-new sounds was damn near euphoric. Artists like Too $hort and Mac Dre had a sound clearly distinguishable from someone like Big L or Gang Starr on the East Coast — which in turn sounded night and day from artists like Three 6 Mafia or Gucci Mane in the South. And somewhere in between all of that lies an infinite number of subgenres and worlds that continue to blend into most, if not every, genre in music today.

New York rapper Mark Saunders released his track “Unsigned Hype” featuring fellow rhymesmith Jay Cinema on April 20th — showcasing Mark’s ability to pair high-quality lyricism with a confident, magnetic performance. Jay Cinema’s supporting verse feels like an effortless contribution, and together they create something that feels fresh and new, while still scratching that nostalgic itch for classic East Coast hip-hop. Sharp, crisp drums punch through a funky, aggressive bassline, layered with keys and saxophone that make the whole track feel like it could be on the soundtrack for a modern day American Gangster.

The title “Unsigned Hype” references the legendary column from The Source magazine, launched in 1990 — the same one that helped introduce names like Notorious B.I.G., Eminem, and DMX to the world. Back when magazines were at their peak in the ’90s and early 2000s, The Source was the hip-hop magazine. Even the 5 Mic ratings carried weight — if an album got 4 Mics, I was almost guaranteed to seek it out. A 5 Mic album? That felt like your life wouldn’t be complete until you heard it.

These opinions mattered. And the people who wrote about them were scholars of culture and music. It wasn’t like today’s world — a society where everybody has an opinion and thinks it matters (myself included).

I remember digging through Sports Illustrated or ESPN The Magazine for the big features, and stumbling across The Source felt like I had just found something I needed in my life at that time as a young, wide-eyed music fan. I bet Mark had similar moments. And now, both as an artist and a person, he’s older, wiser, more refined in his craft — and worthy of making noise within that same prestigious ecosystem.

Stream Mark Saunder’s New single “UnSIGNED HYPE (Feat. Jay Cinema)”

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