Stretch Money – “To the West Coast…with Love” review

Detroit, Michigan emcee Stretch Money returning 4 months after 1984 to release his 10th EP. Emerging in the fall of 2006 off his full-length debut album Take Money to Make Money, he would go on to put out 3 more LPs with 25 Miles Per Hour as well as Locked In & Lil Daran from da Way Way. His output of EPs consists of The Villain, The Tribute, The Drunken Master, The Real Money, the Upper Echelon: Legend of the Silver Surfa duology, Giant, Eastside Lord & the previously mentioned 1984. Stretch also formed the duo Bill & Isiah with Valid, introducing themselves a year ago on their eponymous debut paying homage to the 80s in the process. However to start the 2nd quarter of the year, he’s cooking up an open letter To the West Coast…with Love.

“L.A.” appropriately starts the EP by setting the tone as a warm, slick tribute to the entertainment capital of the world whereas “Make Sum Em” goes into atmospheric turf talking about being stuck to this shit & keeping the faith at his lowest. “This is Y They Mad” is this smooth ass middle finger to everyone hating on him for making paper leading into “Ain’t No Secret” spaciously acknowledging that the way he’s coming really isn’t a secret whatsoever.

Meanwhile on “No Favors”, we have Stretch passionately talking about not needing a plug since he has his own cables just before the souful “Never Thought” talks about never imagining serving time behind bars like he did. “Zombie” weaves these pianos & hi-hats only needing money & Mary Jane, but then “Cool” is a trap closer thanking everyone for hopping on the plane with him.

Being a Detroiter who considers Los Angeles his 2nd home, this EP really spoke to me & I feel like a lot of people in both cities are gonna enjoy To the West Coast…with Love as a profound love letter to the sunshine state. He & the producer Vino coming straight outta South Central take the connection they have with one another & channel it all into this 8-track, 19 minute offering showing their appreciation for the City of Angels.

Score: 4/5

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Chetta – “Sacrifice & Sabotage” review

Here we have the 4th full-length studio LP from New Orleans, Louisiana emcee/producer Chetta. Starting out a decade ago with his debut mixtape Nino White, this was followed up with 18 EPs as well as 11 more tapes & a full-length debut, but gained significant attention off his G*59 Record$ debut Been Here Forever a couple summers back. Falling Off went on to be an equally dope prelude to the previous album Playboy, which also maintained the level of consistency as those previous projects since signing to G*59 as did Sick Bitch almost 5 months ago. That said: Expectations for Sacrifice & Sabotage raised exponentially after learning that $crim of the $uicideboy$ fully produced it.

“You’re Gonna Die Tonight” gets the ball rolling by mixing bells, a vocal sample & hi-hats asking exactly who wants to meet their demise risking their souls whereas “1 of 1” follows it up with a piano-trap banger talking about never folding since he’s locked in & they know how he be rockin’ it. “Millennium” goes full-blown rage beats to discuss feeling the exact same after poppin’ pills leading into “God, Can You Hear Me?” incorporating more keys & hi-hats into the picture explaining that he’s never scared.

The Memphis influences that G*59 is known for make their way onto “Born Under a Bad Sign” talking about always being him & not playing games at all prior to the riot-inducing “Horus” finding himself in his zone getting throwed unable to be saved because he doesn’t need anyone. $crim himself joins Chetta on the guitar-trap driven “Meet Me At My Worst” talking about being way too high for this shit, but then “Vera Wang” jumps on top of a crooning loop & hi-hats breaking down having hoes in every state.

“*Crash Out*” continues the 2nd half of Sacrifice & Sabotage by going for a creepy trap atmosphere sonically talking about drug use prior to the Memphis sound returning on “While I Burn” so he can ball on the right key & boast the fact that he’s tapped in. “KillKillKill” turns up the bass to 11 feelin’ like he could easily blow $100K while “…What a Letdown” tells a bitch that it’s on for her to hate him by now over what could possibly be the most upbeat instrumental on the entire album.

The dreary yet bouncy “Claymore” begins the last moments of the LP by talking about being tired & asking not just why they hatin’, but what they’re running from on top of it. “Missing<>Link” goes into cloudier turf asking a lil hoe what they missing so he can actually go get it next to just living out all that wishing she does & “As If Everything Wasn’t Enough” ties everything up by solemnly yet exuberantly getting all up in his bag.

36 projects overall in his discography in the span of 10 years & this most recent entry has not solely joined Been Here Forever as my one of favorite albums of Chetta’s that he’s put out since being signed him just now, but even as one of my new favorite LPs of his whole entire discography period. $crim has evolved as a producer since Been Here Forever balancing old & new sounds together, so it’s right for him & Chetta to take themselves to a higher level than the G*59 debut.

Score: 4/5

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Scum – “Anti-Human” review

Denver, Colorado emcee & Lyrikal Snuff Productionz founder Scum moving on from the Dyin’ World Chroniclez trilogy by releasing his 15th full-length solo LP. Starting as a member of an experimental grind/noise band called Down Syndrome about 28 years ago, his solo debut Enter the Asylum just turned 20 this past winter & has outdone himself plenty of times since. Case in point: The Gorefather, Out with the Old & recently his 3rd EP Bad Uncle fully produced by Chapter 17/Psychopathic Records in-house producer Devereaux last summer. I also found myself enjoying the previously mentioned Dyin’ World Chroniclez trilogy of course too & was certainly interested in the outcome of Anti-Human.

M.M.M.F.D. gets us started with “This Pain” morbidly talking about losing an addiction battle & doubting that heaven would let them in if they even try walking through the pearly that is until “Revenge is Cheap” grabs the ski mask & makes them bleed rather quickly over this gruesome trap instrumental. “The Past” takes the trap metal route stylistically blowing up in people’s faces similarly to that of an explosive barrel, but then “Float or Sink” featuring Big Hoodoo works in kicks & snares talking about swimming for your life.

“What U Leave Behind” has more of a cloudy trap flare to it tackling the idea of forgetting things that one may now regret as time passes by while “Bloody Mess” works in some guitars & hi-hats talking about leaving them curled up in a ball bruised & abused. The piano-heavy “When I’m Gone” featuring Madopelli presents self-mutilation at it’s finest clarifying it’s about those who’ll remember you when the hype is through as opposed to who’ll show up at your funeral just before “Unsobriety” goes trap metal again talking about being fucked up to cope with anxiety.

Smallz 1 joins Scum for “Pull Up” going for a cloudy trap vibe advising to come through just to be murdered leading into “Cold One” featuring Lyte menacingly breaks down simply how cold both the Gorefather & the Psychopathic MonStar can be. “Guilty” wickedly talks about sitting in this motherfucker with a shotgun while “Daaamn” calls out an individual that he heard stole from those that you should never steal from in the first place & severing ties in the process.

“No More” featuring JP tha Hustler, Mista Doesha & Slyzwicked begins the final moments of Anti-Human in the form of all 4 MCs desecrating everyone who pushed them to the limit returning to the boom bap in the process while “Heavy Lies the Crown” continues the encore of the album with a synth-trap fusion talking about too much pressure steady caving in on his skull now. “Voicemail” ends the LP getting relatable over on top of kicks & snares needing someone to talk to as soon as possible rather than leaving a voice message.

Over 2 decades of giving the underground nothing but straight-up gore hop & Anti-Human continues to make that the case for the Gorefather himself. The overall sound is predominantly trap, yet you also get hints of trap metal & even boom bap so Scum can bring some his LSP brethren & even a couple Psychopathic Records alumni keeping the underground wicked shit scene alive & thriving in the distinctive styles of all performers involved.

Score: 3.5.5

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Mike Dean – “4:24” review

Houston producer, songwriter, multi-instrumentalist & one of the greatest audio engineers of all-time Mike Dean continuing to further establish himself as an artist by releasing his 5th full-length studio album. Pioneering the dirty south sound in the 90s as an in-house producer for Rap-A-Lot Records, one may also know him for engineering nearly all of Kanye West’s output up until his 2022 antisemitic meltdown. 4:20 was a 90 minute exploration into progressive electronic & the nearly 2 hour sequel 4:22 continued towards that trajectory. Smoke State 42222 went for more of a straight-forward electronic sound with additional elements of space ambient & even Mike’s last LP 4:23 went head-on synthwave, landing a spot on my Honorable Mentions of 2023 list as a result of being more well-put together than his last couple solo efforts. Considering that, I went into 4:24expecting it to reach the bar its predecessor had set.

“Subdivision of Time” begins by incorporating these synthesizers that only get grander & grander in the span of a little over 3 minutes whereae “3 AM” goes into space ambient territory starting off reminding me of the scene in one of my top 5 shows of all-time Rick & Morty where Rick’s traveling universe-to-universe searching for Rick Prime, but feels like an out-of-body experience during the 2nd half. “It’s in the Water” gives off a straight up progressive electronic vibe that I can imagine hearing in a sci-fi movie trailer just before “Don’t Fast Forward Life” incorporates some jazz influences towards the end that I love.

Concluding the first half of the album, “Distorted Time” brings the synthwave influences back into full effect leading into “Space Brains” admirably venturing out into electronic rock a bit. “Black Holes Echoing” returns to the large, throbbing synthesizers & upbeat percussion that retro electro is known for that is until “Swimming Pools & Movie Stars” presents these cinematic synths for a minute & a half. “Fast Forward Life in Rewind” pushes near the end of 4:24 by going space ambient again for 6 minutes, but then “I Like” closes the LP shooting for a ghostly atmosphere.

Everything that made 4:23 more enjoyable than Mike’s first couple albums manages to make their way onto this new one here & I find it to be as tightly crafted as the predecessor over a year ago already. He puts a bigger emphasis on the progressive electronic style predominantly throughout his solo catalog once more in the midst of maintaining the synthwave & space ambient elements although in a lesser capacity.

Score: 4/5

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tana – “bana” review

Atlanta up-&-comer tana coming off a string of EPs by releasing his full-length debut studio album. Starting in 2018 as a member of the plu2o9 collective under the original moniker BabySantana, he would go on to drop his first 2 EPs Recreation! & Planet Sosa alongside his debut mixtape Quan before signining to Lil Tecca’s very own Republic Records imprint Galactic Records the next fall. tana than preluded bana by putting out Gaultier as well as London & Dale. Nearly 6 months after the latter, we’re finally being treated to the main course.

“Decatur” produced by Zaytoven has to be my favorite opening track to a tana project yet jumping over a rich trap instrumental talking about his current mentality paying tribute to the titular city in Georgia whereas “Never Sober” takes the atmospheric route thanks to Rio Leyva working in some hi-hats as well boasting that his clients are always under the influence. “Because of Me” is this piano/trap hybrid asserting his position over those who turned his back on him after teaching them everything they know leading into the pluggnb infused “Cut Ties” telling his old hoes he ain’t interested in them no more.

Meanwhile on “Helluva Night”, we have BabySantana luxuriously describing an eventful evening that he’s had just before the club banger “couple$$$” talks about the high status he’s reached as result of his position as an artist. “stfu” breaks down life on the road & being too busy to have conversations with others unless it’s about money accompanied by a harp & hi-hats, but then the heavenly “Designer Thangs” begins the 2nd half of the album by talking about tana’s commitment to his craft.

“Slide” makes it clear to his current romantic interest that he’s in her city for the night on top of a spacious backdrop & rattling hi-hats while “Jesus Piece” is this synth-trap fusion looking back on the early stages of his career since he was introduced to the industry at a young age. “YSL” playfully talks about having her leave in new Saint Laurent while “VTMNTS” mixes a guitar & hi-hats talking about the Swiss luxury fashion house. “Feng Shui” clouding prays for better days & “wake up” ends Santanaromani’s first LP by psychedelically hoping she’s still there when he gets up.

Of all 4 projects we’ve gotten from tana in the last year & a half ever since he signed to a major label, bana stands out differently than Gaultier or even London & Dale did. Not only is he continually progressing artistically here but this time, we get what could possibly be his most cohesive body of work thus far. It’s more well-produced refining his signature pop rap/trap/pluggnb stylings & as far as the subject matter goes, you get a clearer look at who tana is personally.

Score: 4/5

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Hardrock – “My Gift to You” review

Up-&-coming Atlanta recording artist Hardrock celebrating his new Victor Victor Worldwide/Republic Records deal by releasing his 7th EP. Getting his start over 2 years ago off his debut EP Y.N.S. (Young N***a Shit), he would continue to build up anticipation by delivering 6 more EPs ahead of the commercial debut LP Next! & the breakout sophomore effort 808 Speaker Knockerz. The latter of which contains some of his best tracks to date like “H.Y.L.M.N.? (How You Like Me Now)”, “Madonna”, “New WRLD” & “Luigi Mansion”. Last summer’s 1of1 matched the caliber of its predecessor & is preluding the next full-length with My Gift to You.

“Boba” is a synth-heavy opener to the EP looking to fuck them over & detailing being in the trenches with the pots whereas “Clear the Store” incorporates a trippy rage beat talking about walking into the store simply to clear that bitch out. “Taliban Hoodie” mixes some synth-horns & hi-hats together refusing to let anyone play him since the block knows he’s famous, but then “South ATL” takes a darker route instrumentally for a dedication to the southern parts of Atlanta.

The trippy lead single “King Tut” produced by Honorable C.N.O.T.E. talks about how nobody can do shit to him or his squad in general leading into “Russian Cream” talking about his mob ties over a bit of a quirky trap beat. “St. Patrick’s Day” brings back the hypertrap influences eating green like the titular holiday just before “Nvrcared” turns up the bass thanks to ReidMD brushing off what everyone else thinks of him. “Pain Strain” concludes the EP on some cloudy trap shit styling.

Slattydon was my favorite Hardrock EP up to this point, but I really think My Gift to You is on that same level if not better as it reaches the bar that 808 Speaker Knockerz & 1of1 had both set for him as one of the most interesting trap artists that Atlanta has to offer right now. His overall style is still refining itself as his popularity grows on top of the songwriting getting catchier & maintaining his unique voice.

Score: 4/5

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Novatore – “The 87 Arsonist” review

Chicago emcee Novatore is back with the 12th solo LP in his catalog. Emerging as a member of the Infamous Crew, he’s also built up an impressive solo career over nearly a decade by dropping 4 EPs & an acclaimed collaborative effort with A.M. Early Morning produced by Stu Bangas called Kingdom of Criminality on top of all the previous LPs that he’s dropped along the way. Other highlights include Louie, Louie II, Embrace the Darkness, Portrait of a Madman, Embrace the Darkness II: Explorers of Experience, Master of Morbid Creations & Living in the End Times. He just put out Alchemy & Black Magic last summer & is returning to make his Goon MuSick debut as The 87 Arsonist.

After the “Ronald Bartel” intro, the first song “Flammable Material” is a grimy boom bap opener produced by C-Lance talking about feeling like he’s showing off every single time he’s writing whereas “Backdraft” featuring Lord Goat finds the 2 over a coldblooded instrumental with kicks & snares as they look to burn everyone lyrically. “Point of Origin: The Biography of John Leonard Orr” portrays the life of the titular serial arsonist & mass murder on his 75th birthday coincidentally with the help of Stu Bangas, but then “Pyromaniacs” featuring Celph Titled hops on top of a piano/boom bap crossover talking about their names raising to the top.

“All Consuming” featuring Daniel Son finds the 2 on their battle shit over some more keys, kicks & snares from Johnny Slash just before “Burning Monk” featuring Moecyrus begins with some jazzy horns & a vocal sample talking about feeling like a monk lighting himself on fire tackling the theme of self-destruction. The song “Waking Up to the Fire” is an operatic boom bap cut about his rhymes being conceived in his sleep leading into “Incendiary Device” featuring A.M. Early Morning recapturing the magic of their collab effort from a couple years ago. “Sent from Hell” featuring Benny Holiday ends on an atmospherically dusty note thanks to the Snowgoons burning hoes naked.

It’s been amazing to watch this guy gradually getting better over the last 3 years & his Goon MuSick debut here as I expected stands as yet another fiery entry in Novatore’s discography. The traditional boom bap production dominant throughout his entire catalog continues to only get consistently stronger by each year, it has a one of the more consistent list of guest MCs that match his caliber of lyricism portraying himself as an arsonist for about 27 minutes.

Score: 4/5

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PARTYNEXTDOOR – “PARTYNEXTDOOR 4” review

PARTYNEXTDOOR is a 30 year old singer/songwriter, rapper & producer from Toronto, Ontario, Canada becoming the first artist that Drake signed to OVO Sound in the spring of 2013 & released a well-received eponymous debut EP few months later. His full-length debut PARTYNEXTDOOR 2 nearly 13 months later took everything from self-titled to another level & Colours that winter was noticeably more contemporary. PARTYNEXTDOOR 3 received generally mixed responses in comparison to it’s both predecessors until Colours 2 showed a bit of improvement, but 7 Days ended up missing harder than P3 did. PND’s next EP Partypack became another redeeming moment much like Colours 2 & keeping in mind that the last album Partymobile easily stands as his worst, PARTYNEXTDOOR 4 gave me some optimism that it would outdo his last couple LPs.

“C o n t r o l” gets started with this atmospheric trap soul/alternative R&B crossover with Cardiak behind the boards talking about wanting to sex up this woman whereas “L o s e M y M i n d” ruins the timeless DMX song “Party Up (Up in Here)” gratingly discussing 2 women driving him to the point of insanity. “S t u c k I n M y W a y s” takes a groovier route instrumentally thanks to Alex Lustig & 40 so PARTYNEXTDOOR can talk about never wanting to change just before “C h e e r s” brings this futuristic trap soul vibe to the table dedicating this one to all the lovers that like to turn up by consuming alcohol.

Drawing near the end of P4’s first half, “M a k e I t T o T h e M o r n i n g” spaciously sings about not wanting to fight with his romantic interest wanting them to last until the sunrise while the moody “N o C h i l l” produced by Nonstop da Hitman telling the star of the show that she been acting reckless ever since he got her some ice. “H e r O l d F r i e n d s”produced by OG Parker & G. Ry was an ok trap soul/alternative R&B single talking about sleeping with girl’s old friends but after the “R e t r e a t” skit, “F o r C e r t a i n” sounds like a boring dancehall track running off from VIEWS/More Life.

“S o r r y, B u t I’ m O u t s i d e” works in luscious synths & hi-hats singing that he has someone waiting for him inside playing with their emotions while “R e a l W o m a n” is another alternative R&B/trap soul fusion showing off this model he’s dating who’s taller than him. After the “M o t h e r’ s P r a y e r” skit, “F a m i l y” stands as the most heartfelt moment on the album talking about that he misses his family & the self-produced “R e s e n t m e n t” closes shop with some downtempo undertones needing respect.

The reason both P3 & Partymobile weren’t was well received as PARTYNEXTDOOR’s first couple LPs is because of the fact that he confirmed he wasn’t using everything he learned artistically on them & cheating on the quality of the art, which P4 does the complete opposite of as the best album he’s put out in almost a decade. He cooks up 46 minutes worth of amongst the most focused alternative R&B/trap soul in his discography from a “me & her” perspective that the intimacy for the prime PND listening experience requires.

Score: 3.5/5

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WRLD Tour Mafia – “Tourmania II” review

This is the 3rd mixtape from Detroit, Michigan trap group the WRLD Tour Mafia consisting of DaeMoney, Rafa, Miles, Re & Solid. These guys originally formed in 2019 dropping their debut mixtape World Tour Mafia or Die a couple summers later followed by Tourmania the fall after that & most recently the Mob Ties EP from 7 months ago. However with Slae & Rafa coming fresh off Rockstar Lifestyle 2 & Good Girls Don’t Exist respectively, WRLD Tour’s getting back together for an official Tourmafia sequel as a way of celebrating 4/20.

“Tourmania” is a triumphant trap opener to the tape cautioning that trying their shit with them would be worst day flexing that they’re getting cake on a daily basis whereas “Pat Mahomes” gives me a psychedelic vibe instrumentally talking about their pockets looking like Teletubbies since the money coming in different colors. “WUTANG” might be my favorite on the project from the rage-inducing Carlo Anthony beat calling out everyone who be on some childish shit & keeping their heads up staying focused just before the cloudy Detroit trap cut “Citgo” talking about cracking back if you lackin’ in the field.

Luh Tyler joins WRLD Tour for the atmospheric “Money in the Bank” produced by LulRose getting in a different bag from what they had yesterday leading into “Halloween 2” serving as a sequel to a standout from the previous Tourmania almost a year & a half ago. “W.T.M.D.$.M. (WRLD Tour Mafia Dog $hit Militia)” featuring Babytron has a bit of a futuristic beat as WRLD Tour & Tron remind us why they’re amongst the best the D has seen in recent memory, but then “Jansport” fuses cloud rap with Detroit trap talking about grinding for everything you want.

“Degenerates” works in some guitars & hi-hats boasting that they run this shit while “Feel Like TC” hops over a hypertrap instrumental talking about the squad catching back-to-back dubs as if they’re the Golden State Warriors. The aggressively jumpy production on “SmackDown vs. Raw” is really fun admitting to feelin’ like A$AP Rocky as they need them Pesos & that Slam A Slut Records got girls all over the world much like Lloyd & Lil Wayne while the appropriately titled “Life of Tour” gives you an otherworldly look into their lives.

WB Nutty of Los & Nutty appears on “Daisy World” bringing a bassy Detroit trap sound to the table throwing some bells in the picture on top of it bragging that they’ll teach you how to flip it while “Ed Reed” takes a more serious approach generally talking about having to get your own & that you can’t depend on anyone else out here. The sample flip throughout “Cross $tate Brothers” is astounding to get on another fuckin’ level while the operatic/trap crossover “Kill” talks about how this life chose them rather than the WRLD Tour Mafia choosing it themselves.

“Boo Thumper” featuring Brooks goes into a piano-driven direction flat out warning everyone that fuckin’ with them will find you layin’ in the dirt while “B.O.D. (Brothers of Destruction)” serves as an introduction to the greatest gang sampling WWE Hall of Famer Kane’s entrance theme. “Wise Guys” has these cool ass horns throughout showing off their real mob ties while “Bigger Dreams” follows it up with an atmospherical mob meeting. “Trilogy” is another heartfelt moment talking about those not knowing what comes with this shit & “Lenny Kravitz” wraps things up rockin’ out over strings.

In the past couple years of familiarizing myself with the WRLD Tour Mafia, they’ve really been outdoing themselves both from a collective & individual standpoint further solidifying themselves as one of the most exciting groups to emerge from the Detroit trap scene as of lately. Tourmania II much like Rockstar Lifestyle 2 takes it a step above the predecessor. The last one had a tighter guest list but anyway, there are some interesting ideas within the production & there are significantly more wrestling references than last time that I admire as someone who grew up during the Attitude/Ruthless Aggression Era.

Score: 4/5

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Mozzy – “Children of the Slums” review

Sacramento, California emcee Mozzy is back with the 8th full-length studio LP in his discography & his Collective Music Group/Interscope Records sophomore effort. I became a fan of in the summer of 2017 off his debut 1 Up Top Akh & he went on to be featured on the soundtrack for the incredible Marvel blockbuster Black Panther only 6 months later & drop 6 more albums through his EMPIRE-backed Mozzy Records prior to Memphis veteran Yo Gotti landing him a CMG contract. Mozzy’s major label debut Survivor’s Guilt in 2022 was more poignant than what he’s done previously & that alone raised my stakes for Children of the Slums.

“Damn” starts us off by calling out someone who ran when they got on the homie line over a mellow beat whereas “Still Hurt” works in a soul sample with hi-hats admitting the pain he still feels over Diaonds’ death & the love he had for Sauce on top of it. The title track comes through with this piano talking about the fact that he did so much for his hood prior to “Red Nose Bully” reminding everyone that he’s still that guy from the middle over exuberant pianos & hi-hats.

Fridayy joins Mozzy on “Lost It All” for an R&B/pop rap/trap crossover asking their lovers if they would still care about them even if everything was suddenly taken away from just before the 3rd single “Miss Big Bruh” showing genuine heartbreak over his big brody who’s no longer here in the flesh. “Ebony from 12th” gives me this mafiosi trap vibe instrumentally talking about being tired of death after seeing one too many coffins, but then “Miss You Blood” brings this angelic/hyphy fusion to the table addressing one that he often thinks of.

“Jaded” goes into a cloudier direction to discuss angels callin’ them on top of their demons still creepin’ up behind them as well prior to the soulful “Living Proof” featuring E Mozzy finding the 2 talking about being breathing examples of that your dreams can come true. “Traumatized” has this melodic vocals in the background throughout to break down an individual he once knew receiving a traumatizing sentence in court with his momma crying in court while “Lost in My Thoughts” jumps over pianos & hi-hats talking about not needing any validation.

The lead single “Free JuJu” pays tribute to someone he wanted to guide & set on the right path from Oak Park that he couldn’t save while the violin, hyphy flavored “Act a Fool” featuring Celly Ru & E Mozzy finds the trio talking about actin’ reckless. “I Can’t Go Out” passionately draws near Children of the Slums’ conclusion by refusing to go out for nothing when it’s all said & done while the atmospheric “If I Die Right Now” asking if his so-called brothers would miss him as much as the fans. “Better Without You” finishes the LP with a gloomy sample drowning behind him tired of seeing one suffer & struggle.

Much like Survivor’s Guilt, this could be considered one of Mozzy’s most personal projects to date & I certainly like it more than Glorilla’s latest tape EhhThang EhhThang from earlier this morning. He shines light on life growing up in the Sacramento community, the trials of being raised in survival & the complex lifestyle that comes with it. It further exemplifies the growth of Mozzy’s rap career & personal life, serving as an inspiration to fans that even the titular type of people can also make it out like anyone else.

Score: 3.5/5

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