Just days before he released the lead single from Chapters of the Trenches—an especially detailed and compelling storytelling rap called “Robbery, Pt. 4”—Detroit MC Tee Grizzley’s home was burglarised to the tune of a reported $1 million in property. Fortunately, no one was hurt, but the experience inspired Grizzley to share a bit of wisdom with his supporters. “We got to watch what we’re speaking into existence,” the MC says during a video posted to his Instagram account. “I know we look at it like we’re just making music, and it’s art, but these words are powerful, bro. Just like we speak some good shit into existence, we can speak some bad shit into existence. So we really gotta be careful what we’re saying about ourselves when we’re making this music.” “Robbery, Pt. 4” isn’t about a burglary, but it’s a song in line with the rest of Chapters of the Trenches, wherein Grizzley is recounting one of the more horrific stories he has either seen or could have imagined as a survivor of Detroit street life. Chapters of the Trenches plays like a collection of short stories set to some of the hardest Detroit-centric production available, courtesy of frequent Grizzley collaborators Helluva Beats and J.R. Rotem. Stories span multiple songs, are divided into numbered parts and climax in Trapped in the Closet-like, wig-snapping plot twists. The hope, as fans, is that Grizzley has paid whatever karmic penance he believes was owed for these raps, because writers releasing work of this creative magnitude must be protected.