In 2012, Pro Era made waves on the east coast hip hop scene with “Survival Tactics,” an anti-government anthem led by a 17-year-old Joey Bada$$ aggressively rapping over Styles of Beyond’s instrumental of the same name. But while all eyes were on Joey and his critically acclaimed debut project, 1999, there was another emcee who was equally receiving praise for his contributions to the song.

Enter Capital STEEZ.

A truly gifted rhymer whose featured verse is still revered five years later. Spouting lines such as “King Arthur when he swung his sword, a king author, I ain’t even used a pen in like a month or four,” the clever Brooklyn native was “poised to shine.” While Joey’s tape earned plenty of attention, STEEZ’s project has amassed quite the following on its own accord and can certainly hold a candle to some of your favorite rapper’s mixtapes and LP’s.

Amerikkkan Korruption was released in the same year, consisting of freestyles and new takes on some classic production, including Jay Z’s “So Ghetto” and a hard hitting mic-check over Madvillain’s “All Caps.” With some impressive sequencing, the tape immediately elevated itself from your standard rapper’s best rhymes and into an underground album, much like J. Cole’s Friday Night Lights, that was released prior in 2010. And at 19-years-old, Capital STEEZ established that he was an unstoppable force to be reckoned with.

Long Live King Capital.