Rico Nasty

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.

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.