[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=kAToEpL2eLc[/youtube]

Hip-hop fans might be forgiven for not knowing New Orleans rapper Martyrman, who hasn’t had much local presence at shows or on Twitter, blogs, or the radio. His single “Stranded,” though, has quietly amassed over 150,000 views on YouTube since being released in mid-June. He’s anything but silent in the song, delivering strong verses about struggle, loneliness, and the dark recesses of the mind over a funky guitar and organ driven beat. The complementary visuals were directed by Tyler Yee, who has seen similar popularity with another recent video, “Runaround Sue” for G-Eazy.

Bonus Beat: One of our personal favorite local hip-hop tracks of 2010 in the OffBeat office was Martyrman’s “Say Yea.” For some reason, it’s been unlisted on YouTube, making it only available via direct link, but here’s its music video below.

[youtube]http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ovpMWDFBY0w[/youtube]