You don’t really understand where you grew up until you’re long gone. That exact realization hit Omari Alltimer only after leaving the suburban pines of The Woodlands, Texas, and landing on the West Coast for college in San Francisco. Being one of the only Black kids on his block meant his relationship with his hometown was complicated—marked way more by feeling out of place than fitting in. Yet, getting some real distance has a habit of clearing out old bitterness and replacing it with genuine perspective.
That unspoken friction is the backbone of Research Forest, Alltimer’s new project crafted alongside producer MNTRY. Named after the main thoroughfare of his upbringing, the record skips the nostalgia and holds back on petty grievances. It settles into a simpler truth: the places you can’t wait to escape usually end up giving your work its character.
MNTRY’s backdrops match that internal push-and-pull, pairing roomy, atmospheric production with space for Alltimer to trace his steps. The project kicks off with “4sho,” using light, buoyant synths that balance out his deliberate, sharp delivery. Things get heavier on “Everything Different,” where the instrumentation dense-ups to keep pace with a more self-assured flow. By the time “The Cost” wraps things up, it feels less like a dramatic ending and more like a quiet exhale. Resting on a steady, unhurried rhythm, Alltimer sounds completely settled with how far he’s come.
What makes Research Forest work is how plainspokenly it nails a common reality: we’re all built from the places we used to exist in, whether we enjoyed being there or not. It’s a nod to anyone who grew up feeling on the outside, and an acknowledgment of a culture Alltimer only grew to appreciate once it was way back in the mirror.
Stream Research Forest below:
