Tag: Hip-Hop

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New Music

BROCKHAMPTON – Ginger

The internet’s favorite boyband is back with the release of their highly anticipated fifth album, GINGER. The rap collective returns to the spotlight after a year-long hiatus, an unusual gap for the notoriously productive group, that was used to recover from the various pitfalls that came along with their rapid rise to fame. The recent struggles endured by Brockhampton’s members are openly expressed throughout the project, with Joba summing up the artists’ mutual feelings best on NO HALO with the lines, “been goin’ through it again…lost a part of me, but I’m still here”. Fittingly, the album has a gloomy, dejected feel, and much of the track-list seems to have a dark cloud hanging over it. Songs like DEARLY DEPARTED and LOVE ME FOR LIFE clearly establish overarching themes of depression, nihilistic self-reflection, and abandonment, among others. Despite their inherently disheartening subject matter, certain tracks like BOY BYE  and IF YOU PRAY RIGHT retain some of the group’s signature style and energy, featuring the catchy choruses and bouncy instrumentals they’re known for. All things considered, this record is by no means Brockhampton’s best, but it fits their current situation, and for that reason I respect it for what it is.

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New Music

Chance the Rapper – The Big Day

Chance the Rapper has come a long way from Acid Rap, and I mean that in the worst way. After constantly being hailed as one of the most exciting young faces in hip-hop, Chance has managed to flip his career on its head to become one of the most clowned-on artists in recent memory. I’m not against most of the inherent ideas that populate this album, I fully support Chance’s artistic shift into making soulful gospel music or tracks praising his wife, but this project simply missed the mark lyrically and conceptually. The cutting-edge, tongue-twisting bars we have come to expect from the Chicago prodigy were nowhere to be found on The Big Day, and Chance was constantly outshined by artists featuring on the album, like Da Baby on Hot Shower, and Megan Thee Stallion on Handsome. Other features, however, like Ben Gibbard and Francis and the Lights, feel incredibly forced and out of place, not meshing well with the albums overall sound. Tracks like Ballin Flossin, a poor attempt at a hip-house track, embody everything wrong with this album and feature some of Chance’s laziest bars to date. Chance, please do better, we know you can. 


















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New Music

Dreamville & J. Cole – Revenge of the Dreamers III

R.O.T.D III has set the bar for collaborative albums in 2019. Recorded over 10 days at Tree Sound Studios in Atlanta, the album has one of the most unique origin stories of any collaborative project to date. Rappers were left to their own devices in a sea of producers and musicians scattered throughout the building, with the only direction being to make hits. A total of 35 artists, along with 27 producers, worked on what would become the final project, with at least 124 tracks not making the cut. That being said, what did make the cut was fantastic. This album is chock full of songs that will surely be everywhere this summer. Anthemic, instant-hits like Down Bad, Wells Fargo, and Middle Child are accompanied by more subdued boom-bap tracks like Swivel, Sleep Deprived, and Sunset, creating a colorful mixture of sounds and styles. The sheer amount of talent on this album is too much to name, but many, like EARTHGANG, JID, and Buddy, gave such noteworthy performances that this project will surely cement their spots as modern hip-hop mainstays. Albums like this don’t come around often; do yourself a favor and put aside an hour to listen to it. 










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New Music

Dizzy Fae – NO GMO Mixtape

Hailing from the mean streets of Minneapolis, Dizzy Fae has released her second project titled, NO GMO Mixtape. Fae brands herself as a “pop” artist, but this album combines elements of R&B and electronic music to form tracks that could populate a genre of their own. Wonky, dark, heavily-processed production on songs like Company, Huu R Uu, Solo, and Now N’ Later is contrasted by light and airy tracks with dreamy vocal chops and synths, like in Lifestyle and Gut Talk. At points, the album has a nostalgic and retro feel, with 80’s-style synthesizers populating much of the instrumentation. The album doesn’t shy away from an analog sound, however, with beautiful acoustic sounds making up the roster on tracks like Pink. Every track is a surprise, and no two songs sound similar. If broken down, this album’s contents would be just as comfortable in a DJ’s set at an underground club as they would in a coffe-house R&B performance. This might be my only “complaint” with this album – the fact that there isn’t much cohesiveness with the project & it seems disjointed at times. Still a good album nonetheless, and I look forward to more from Dizzy Fae.




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New Music

Lil Keed – Long Live Mexico

After nearly a year of teasing the project on social media, Atlanta’s newest rising star, Lil Keed, has released his debut album, Long Live Mexico. While he doesn’t stray too far from his Young Thug-esque sound that has drawn criticism, Keed manages to distinguish himself and carve out his own corner in the ever-growing Atlanta rap scene. The album is bursting at the seams with star-studded features from artists that complement Keed incredibly well, with the exception of NAV. Despite the lengthy 20-song track list and hour runtime, the album does not seem nearly as long. With a majority of the album’s tracks flowing seamlessly into each other, the album feels like one cohesive unit that doesn’t burn out the listener with identical and repetitive songs, as many recent rap albums seem to do (looking at you, Migos). This is due, in part, to the robust roster of producers that had a hand in the album’s creation and kept the project interesting, including Pi’erre Bourne, JetsonMade, and, of course, ATL’s own MetroBoomin. This album by no means a 10/10, but still a strong studio debut nonetheless, adding Keed to the long list of Atlanta rap icons. 


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New Music

GoldLink – Diaspora

GoldLink, the artist behind one of the most recognizable flows in hip-hop, has returned with his new project, Diaspora. The otherwise well-made album starts off on a low note, with Ari Pen-Smith’s comically bad hook on Joke Ting. However, the star-studded roster of other featured artists makes up for this lapse in artistic judgment, with A-list talent like Khalid, Pusha T, Tyler, The Creator, and Wiz Kid delivering fantastic verses that do nothing but add value to their respective tracks. As evidenced by his previous discography, GoldLink is at home on up-tempo four-on-the-floor beats like in U Say, but he shows his versatility by flowing over a plethora of beat styles throughout the album. These beats borrow from several cultural inspirations, with American-style trap bangers like Rumble following tracks reminiscent of afro-Caribbean dancehall like Yard, and others like Zulu Screams and Spanish Song drawing from African and Latin music, respectively. The refrain “no bad vibes gonna enter my yard” perfectly sums up the overall feel of the album, with this project’s release coming just in time for summer. These tracks will be played at cookouts and pool parties alike, and should absolutely have a spot somewhere on your summer playlist. 


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New Music

DUCKWRTH – THE FALLING MAN

Artist of multiple mediums and LA native DUCKWRTH has released his second studio album, THE FALLING MAN. The eight-song project begins with a sultry track with passionate vocals quickly turning into a rap verse that sets the tone for the rest of the album. FALL BACK wastes no time in picking up the energy with distorted 808’s and a fiery verse that fades into a Frank Ocean-esque refrain calling on the listener to “settle down”. NOBODY FALLS is a fantastically produced song alternating between a bouncy bassline and an ethereal vocal performance from Kiana Ledé. This is the first of two tracks produced by electronic musician Medasin, the second being the next song, LOVE IS LIKE A MOSHPIT, a song with a self-explanatory refrain and a feature from Rico Nasty that is far more melodic than her typical abrasive sound. SOPRANO follow suit with most songs on the album by surprising the listener. Starting off light and airy, the track suddenly shifts into an upbeat, mosh-pit worthy rap song. Legendary producer Mr. Carmack also graces the album on a penultimate track full of rock star vocals and fuzzy guitars. Overall a fantastic and diverse sophomore project for the rising star.

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New Music

Injury Reserve – Injury Reserve

The experimental rap trio Injury Reserve returns with the release of their highly anticipated self-titled debut album. The album starts out incredibly strong with Koruna & Lime and Jawbreaker, which is hands down one of the most unique rap songs in modern history, with well-placed features from Rico Nasty and Pro Teens. Aminé’s verse on Jailbreak the Tesla marks another fantastic feature, on a standout track on the album nonetheless. Rap Song Tutorial hilariously lives up to its name and comes together to form a punchy track likely to get any crowd going. Best Spot in the House brings a new sound to the album, with a guitar-oriented beat and mellow deliveries from Stepa and Ritchie. One of my favorite pieces of the album comes from New Hawaii, with a Chromeo-style vocoder solo halfway through, followed by a soulful DRAM feature. The album ends on a jazzy high note with Three Man Weave. Parker Corey holds nothing back and shows his production chops on this project with some of the most creative and impressive beats I’ve ever heard. Literally my only complaint is that QWERTY Interlude is just that, an interlude, when it would be fantastic as a full track.

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New Music

Tyler, The Creator – Igor

The multi-talented Tyler, The Creator follows up his critically acclaimed Flower Boy album with a self-produced project titled IGOR. The album begins with a surprising vocal performance from Lil Uzi on IGOR’S THEME, and it’s all uphill from there. While the vocal mixing on EARFQUAKE leaves much to be desired, I THINK makes up for whatever the previous song lacks, as Tyler raps with a Kanye-esque flow over a bouncy trap beat with intermittent R&B vocals and beautiful, synth-filled bridge. Additionally, the beat breakdown halfway through RUNNING OUT OF TIME is god-tier and reminds us of Tyler’s growing production ability.  NEW MAGIC WAND is a standout track, with a dark, distorted bassline driving the song. WHAT’S GOOD, another standout track, kicks the energy up to 10 with a fast-paced beat and fiery line delivery. This is followed by the vastly different GONE,GONE/THANK YOU with a catchy refrain reminiscent of 70’s soul. The track switches up twice, first to a vibey slow jam with a verse delivered in Tyler’s signature style, and then to a harmonic, arpeggio-filled outro. This project is significantly different than anything the Odd Future alum has released before and speaks to how diverse Tyler can be.

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New Music

Rico Nasty & Kenny Beats – Anger Management

The dynamic duo of Rico Nasty and Kenny Beats have released their collaborative and appropriately titled project, Anger Management. This album is incredibly high energy, with equal parts attributed to Rico’s enthusiastic delivery and Kenny’s hard trap beats. The LOUDPVCK alum pulls out all the stops with incredibly unique production, especially on Cheat Code and Big T*****s in collaboration with Baauer, as well as on the track Mood. Things takes a surprising turn on Hatin’ with a surprisingly calm beat sampled from Jay-Z’s Dirt Off Your Shoulder. The album includes fantastic features from rap duo EarthGang and rapper Splurge, who all complement Rico incredibly well and make for bouncy hip-hop tracks that might be the standouts of the album. Rico takes a more serious tone on Sell Out, discussing her built-up anger, everything that comes with fame and, fittingly, being viewed as a sellout. Rico closes the album with a track titled Again, where she surprises fans by singing melodically over a classic trap beat. This project was nothing special, but not disappointing in the slightest. It was a testament to Kenny Beat’s exceptional production ability and Rico’s undeniable energy, and I look forward to more collaborations between these two.