Noah Mejia is a 25 year old producer from Los Angeles, California who was introduced to in the spring of 2023 when he produced the opening track off Sk8star’s 2nd mixtape Whole New Meaning. He would go on to work with a handful of trap artists ranging from SoFaygo to $crim of the $uicideboy$ & even Lucki, coming off a small handful of stand alone singles that he’s been dropping since the very beginning of 2026 to compile a solo debut extended play of artists rapping over his beats for less than 10 minutes.
“Ballright” by Boohavinn made for a decent trap intro talking about being the flyest muhfucka walking the Earth & flexing his connections to the mob whereas “I Don’t Need Love!” by Cashjunko explaining he’ll only fire his Glock if his girl in the mood. “Shine” by D. Savage co-produced by Rio Leyva kicks off the 2nd half talking about running these bands up while “1500” by Diorvsyou finishes the EP calling out broke ass bums with some buzzing synths Internet Money Records in-house producer Synthetic provides.
If we ever get a full-length studio debut from Noah Mejia at any point going forward, I hope I find myself enjoying it a lot more than I did Platinum After Dark considering I personally was left on the fence with it in general. The first couple guests don’t really stick out but once you get past it, I’m not gonna dismiss Noah handling 75% of the production with the exception of the outro & or the performances picking up towards the backend of it.
New collaborative extended play between Philadelphia, Pennsylvania emcee, songwriter, actor & occasional producer Kurupt alongside Long Beach, California emcee, songwriter, media personality, actor, entrepreneur, record executive & WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg. Both of whom met each other in the early 90s at the Roxy when they engaged in a 20 minute battle & signed to Death Row Records not too long afterwards, celebrating Halloween by taking their chemistry to new heights for The Hollow.
“Neighbors” after the ”Our Gang” intro kicks things off with this futuristically funky beat from Rick Rock telling us where they’re from & after “Priceless” takes a more luxurious route instrumentally thanks to Uncle Snoop himself talking about money not meaning shit when everything in life’s going the way it’s supposed to, “Get Yours On” featuring G Perico finds the trio goes full g-funk so they can tell everyone to get what’s rightfully theirs.
Soopafly appears during “Fuss About It” to commence the 2nd half refusing to complain of people building them up to tear them down while “A Dog Party” finds Snoop holding it down by himself calling for people from the suburbs to the slums to go crazy. “Survival” reunites with Young Gotti only to kill everything it had going for it by using AI for the final version of it when the original in May didn’t include that technology whatsoever until “Almost Broke My Collar” concludes The Hollow having Snoop rock it solo 1 last time.
It was telling Kurupt & Snoop Dogg were planning to have an entire collection of material when both singles came out within the span of 5 months almost 6, I completely understand why The Hollow arrived in preparation of Tha Kingpin linking up with Hus Kingpin this Christmas Eve for their own collab album Kingpin’s Theory & the Cuzznz’ eponymous LP over a decade earlier. Aside from ruining the lead single through AI usage, the classic west coast vibes & the boastful performances.
And here’s the 7th extended play from Flint, Michigan emcee/producer Jon Connor albeit the 8th in his ongoing The Artist Yahn Freeman series. Someone who’s steadily been holding it down for the last 2 decades including The Calling, Vinnie Chase & S.O.S. trilogies along with the Best in the World series paying homage to some of Jon’s influences, Salvation, While You Were Sleeping & Unconscious State. He was even signed to Aftermath Entertainment for 6 years before departing after Vehicle City wound up being shelved, coming off Food for the Soul & 24 produced by KLC of the No Limit Records in-house production team Beats by the Pound to drop VI, VII & VII simultaneously for Halloween.
Tito Lopez appears during the trap intro “There for You” talking about how they feel like superheroes whereas “Never Keep Me Down” explains that confidence is crucial for one to survive & things boiling down to whether you got it or not. “Seen It Before” calls for everyone to line up all the closest people in our lives in a row & after the sinister “Let ‘Em Know” reminds people who’s the realest from head to toe, “We Not the Same” talks about the differences between him & those saying they’re on his level.
“Faith of a Child” continues the 2nd half of VIII instrumentally leaning towards a boom bap to discuss grinding until he gets every last thing he prays for in life while “7 Days” talks about the importance of allowing our surroundings influence us regardless of where one lives. “On Go” discusses him hustling like he’s getting ready to lose his mind & trying to feed his kids while the soulful trap crossover “Legacy” wraps it all up talking about his optimism never being compromised by living in the ghetto.
Similarly to VI dedicating myself to the memory of Jon Connor’s friend Mekeva Blackmon who always gave him a space to be himself & believed in him from the get go to her untimely death a couple months earlier as well as The Artist Yahn Freeman VII honoring his older sister in professional life coach Chanel Patton, The Artist Yahn Freeman VIII brings these new chapters full circle mother Mahaley Lark to coincide her birthday only 24 hours earlier.
This is the 6th extended play from Flint, Michigan emcee/producer Jon Connor & the 7th chapter of his ongoing The Artist Yahn Freeman series. Someone who’s steadily been holding it down for the last 2 decades including The Calling, Vinnie Chase & S.O.S. trilogies along with the Best in the World series paying homage to some of Jon’s influences, Salvation, While You Were Sleeping & Unconscious State. He was even signed to Aftermath Entertainment for 6 years before departing after Vehicle City wound up being shelved, coming off Food for the Soul & 24 produced by KLC of the No Limit Records in-house production team Beats by the Pound to drop VI, VII & VIII simultaneously for Halloween.
“Look at Me Now” opens up with a trap intro talking about people laughing at this person instead of with them whereas “They Ain’t Free” calls for people to stop idolizing those who hate their lives. “Actin’ Like” talks about prioritizing his peace over what people in the streets be saying but after “Same Story (Don’t You Know)” observes everyone trying to get their money & minds right, “Leap of Faith” reminds us all that karma’s very much real.
As for “Dark or Light”, we have Jon talking about how making something outta nothing is simply what he does while “Halfway Home” explains there being more to life than what we’re shown regularly. “The Reminder” experiments with disco rap for not even a minute expressing hope of what he’s saying being made to clear to people listening while “Start Today” soulful ends VII offering some clear advise to those who aren’t living up to their full potential.
Considering that VI was dedicated to the memory of Jon Connor’s friend Mekeva Blackmon who always gave him a space to be himself & believed in him from the get go to her untimely death a couple months earlier, I love the idea of him expressing the gratitude he has towards professional life coach Chanel Patton throughout The Artist Yahn Freeman VII, who considers his older sister the 1st best friend he ever made in his life. I also have to commend Maestro Williams for the outstanding mixing.
Finally got the 6th installment of Flint, Michigan emcee/producer Jon Connor‘s ongoing The Artist Yahn Freemanseries. Someone who’s steadily been holding it down for the last 2 decades including The Calling, Vinnie Chase & S.O.S. trilogies along with the Best in the World series paying homage to some of Jon’s influences, Salvation, While You Were Sleeping & Unconscious State. He was even signed to Aftermath Entertainment for 6 years before departing after Vehicle City wound up being shelved, coming off Food for the Soul & 24 produced by KLC of the No Limit Records in-house production team Beats by the Pound to drop VI, VII & VIII simultaneously for Halloween.
“Miracle” begins with this cinematic trap intro talking about being a supernatural phenomenon in the living flesh whereas “The Confessional (Long Road)” breaks down all the things he used to do in his life. “Unapologetically Me” instrumentally leans towards a more soulful trap vibe talking about having no remorse for doing his thing just before “Consequences of Content” observes people not comprehending the things they watch every single day.
Continuing from there, “Evidence” talks about the amount of potential wasted when people succumb to temptation leading into “The Best” flexing that he was born to be the greatest to ever do this shit. “Forgiveness of Self” interestingly blends jazz rap & trap including a cool interpolation of “Hail Mary” by the Outlawz to reach the midway point of the tape while “On Everything” passionately talks about using the flow to bare his soul when he’s ready to snap.
“Chosen / The Moral” comes through with a 2-parter explaining that he’s worked too hard to waste his energy while “It Will All Make Sense” spends a couple minutes getting in his conscious bag lyrically. The boom bap instrumental “On Everything 2” brings to the table could be my personal favorite on VII revisiting it’s predecessor’s energy & “Never Die (Testify)” encourages to go hard when you’re fed up, “Conversations with Keva” remembers his late friend Mekeva Blackmon.
So much has happened in Jon Connor’s life over the course of these past 4 months including the untimely death of Keva, so it makes all the sense in the world for the All Varsity Music Group founder to dedicate VII in memory of the very person who always gave him a space to be himself around since she believed in him since the very beginning alongside making it The Artist Yahn Freeman saga’s lengthiest clocking at over a half hour.
Portsmouth, Ohio horrorcore trio & Long Live Evil founders Alla Xul Elu’s celebrating Halloween with their 8th studio LP. Consisting of Billy Obey as well as Joey Black & Lee Carver, they broke out a decade ago as a duo by releasing their first 2 albums Head of Horns & Sci-Co that same year. This was followed up with their 4/20-themed debut EP Necronomichron in 2017 & adding Carver into the fold shortly after, but it wasn’t until Twiztid signed them to Majik Ninja Entertainment in 2018 when the Xul Boys’ music got increasingly better. Their MNE debut The Almighty is unquestionably the greatest horrorcore album of the 2010s, their 2019 EP Church of Xul took a much darker approach, Mauxuleum made it in the top 10 of my Best Releases of 2020 list despite them ditching their signature boom bap sound for a more industrial, trap metal direction & Necronomichron 2: Dead by Bong was a superior sequel to their 4/20 EP. The Magic Xul Bus preluded their final MNE offering Gods of Evil Rise produced by Mike E. Clark, opening for Psychopathic Records & Juggalo Championship Wrestling (JCW) founders the Insane Clown Posse this past Hallowicked. Coming off No Masters & Universal Perverts however, WHellcome Home is here 2 months after its initial announcement.
Following the “Introvert” intro, “Ancient Evil” comes out the gate with a hellish boom bap opener talking about the LLE never expiring whereas “All is Dead” makes themselves at home in a place where there’s absolutely no peace whatsoever. “F.Y.I.T.A.X.E. (Fuck You It’s The Alla Xul Elu)” named after a signature catchphrase of theirs expresses their love for the wicked shit keeping it dusty leading into “Doombaptism” talks about the style of music they play called “doom bap”, similarly to Necro inventing “death rap”.
“Dark Daze” moves on from there sharpening the knives they write with every single evening just before “AKA the Grave” keeps the doom bap vibes rollin’ talking about putting people 6 feet below the ground. “Dances with Worms” featuring the newest member of the Long Live Evil family Malakeye finds all 4 of them reminding us death’s everywhere while “Corpsegarden” begins the 2nd half waking up the deceased arising from parts unknown.
As for “Faith”, we have Xul reiterating the trust they continue to put putting in the Church of Xul until the danceable “AXE Slaps Hacks Backs” talking about chopping people up with an axe. Things return to the doom bap for the group to let out all of their “Invasive Thoughts” & explaining how fucked their brains are in process while “Freezer Burnt” talks about someone being left in the cold so long that they wound up getting frozen, unable to adjust the temperature.
The title track appropriately winds down the last act of WHellcome Home asking if anyone will go after them straight down to Hell’s Pit while “SINsation SELLebration” immediately talks about throwing the hottest party Hell’s ever had, spitting the wicked shit over an EDM instrumental. “Future is Fire” featuring Jahred Gomes takes it back to their signature doom bap style informing those who want to return home of the harsh reality that it won’t happen & “Homebody” finishes the full-length militantly talks about confronting their demons for their own happiness.
These guys have been on an absolute ROLL this year whether it was the clarification of Alla Xul Elu having No Masters & of course the raunchy Universal Perverts EP we got 4 weeks earlier, WHellcome Home comfortably places itself at the hierarchy of everything they’ve done in 2026 & hearing Billy announcing through social media of them having so much more material coming down the pipeline rivals the output of Chapter 17 Records CEO Ouija Macc in keeping the scene alive for generations to come.
California City horrorcore duo Madopelli consisting of M.A.D & Ant Dog dropping off their 3rd extended play. Dropping a couple of mixtapes & EPs ever since forming a decade ago, their sophomore effort albeit Lyrikal Snuff Productionz debut No Bluffin’ proved itself to be Madopelli’s most refined work to date both lyrically & sonically to the point where they were instantly accepted within the Gorehop realm. The follow-up Stories from the Sanctum later resulted in both members making their LSP debut as solo artists with Sadistic Symphony & M.A.D (Me Against Death), coming off Suffer Not Dishonor & The Unkindness to celebrate Wicked Season.
After the intro, “Autumn Fallz” opens yon having the pair drearily talking about them painting the walls with blood & mentally being gone while “Witching Hour” admits they can’t sleep at night because they feel like their souls are decaying over a symphonic trap instrumental. “Dark Arts” kicks off the 2nd half talking about murder & the title track preceding the outro concludes the EP shifting towards a trap sound again explaining there’s no time to sleep since Halloween’s here.
The Unkindness certainly rubbed people the wrong way last month largely because of its artwork when their observations of the world becoming increasingly crueler were 100% valid & one calling it one of the worst albums they’ve ever heard, which I understand because people like to shit on horrorcore in general. Either way: I like that Wicked Season was recorded throughout the entire month of October spitting the wicked shit over a collection of horror-related samples.
California production team The Inner Realmz back for their 7th beat tape. Founded by Masta Cypher Devine & Goomson, they’ve been making waves in the west coast underground scene since the beginning of the current decade off their first 2 beat tapes SP 1000 and Build & Destroy followed by Low End Wizards as well as it’s sequel & Digital Chains. Goomson so happened to team up with Broke for a collaborative beat tape Heavy Wreck displaying Broke’s talents behind the boards for Side A & of course Goomson on Side B except for Masta Cypher Devine doing the closer. Omnipotent masterfully selected & arranged jazz samples catching my attention, coming off Mass Collide to reform & teach the world Beat Maker Ethics.
“Space & Time” spends the opening minutes drawing inspiration from 90s east coast boom bap/jazz rap reminiscent of a top 5 producer of mine Pete Rock whereas “The Math” works in an occasional vocal sample from the late Prodigy popping in & out keeping it raw. “No Destination” moves on from there fusing the traditional boom bap sound wiry elements of lounge music but once “Past Lives” swaps out the latter in favor of lo-fi hip hop, “Over & Over” ends the 1st half with another dusty 90s east coast throwback.
Kicking off the 2nd half, “Born Physical” retains the boom bap vibes with horns & a vocal sample right until letting the drums ride out while “Like This” brings somewhat of a psychedelic flare to the table whilst holding a tight grip on the ruggedness. “Nitro Fresh” kinda has an irresistible grooviness that I can’t get enough of & after “Bus Hoppin in ‘97” throws it back to the days of riding 1 bus after another 3 decades ago, “Afraid to Represent” concludes the tape with the crew’s de facto leader treading the boom bap/jazz rap waters 1 last time.
It’s cool to hear Goomson, Jon Deliz, Mike B & Ripe143 recruiting more up-&-coming producers to join The Inner Realmz because Beat Maker Ethics celebrates this new era in their career testifying the power of community & creativity by having newcomers Dexplorist, Roving Jewel, Cash Gordon, Starks, Carlskee & Gizmo help the create a rawly authentic & unique presentation of their perspectives & styles bound together by a shared passion for underground hip hop.
Atlanta, Georgia rapper Slimesito dropping off his 19th extended play on Devil’s Night. Notable for being a member of the quintet Jurassic Park, he would also drop 5 LPs as well as 18 EPs & a mixtape of his own. Highlights in his discography include his 4th EP Scarface Sito, his 9th EP Rich Slime, his full-length debut Vida Brazy, 11th EP Life of a Slime, the Dedication duology hosted by DJ Phat & the Evilgiane-produced Evilslime. However, he’s running it back with Giane for Evilslime 2.
“Georgia State” opens up representing the university Sito’s bitch attends over a cloudy instrumental with some 808s whereas “Lik Rocky” talks about having nothing in common with the rest of these sloppy muhfuckas. “Pop His Top” kinda has an upbeat groove to it painting imagery of the gangsta lifestyle for only 91 seconds & after “Last Forever” talks about rising with his bro until the end, “Incognito” makes it known he’s been around the block ever since he was kid.
To wrap up the EP’s final leg, “Been Shinin’” talks about his diamonds being so timeless to the point where they leave people blinded while “Bal Main” works in some synthesizers flexing that he only comes in 1st place & hallucinating as a result of the new medication he’s been taking. “MF DOOM” pays homage to one of the greatest lyricists of all-time in addition to following his aunt’s advise or staying authentic to himself & “West 2 East” talks about staying on the same time much like the late Kobe Bryant.
Bity of God along with GTA9 & Plugg n Slime were all average to me, so hearing that Slimesito reunited with Evilgiane to make a sequel to his most beloved EP gave me the feeling we were in for some of his greatest material in the past couple years & the final results of Evilslime 2 pretty much confirms those expectations being met. The trap, sample drill, plugg & dark plugg production’s more consistent & Sito keeps it short but sweet with his performances.
This is the 3rd studio LP from Naples, Florida musician, singer/songwriter & rapper Dominic Fike. Signing to Columbia Records in 2018 off his debut EP Don’t Forget About Me & later What Could Possibly Go Wrong? during the COVID-19 pandemic, he would later join the cast of the Skydance Corporation division Warner Bros.-owned HBO series Euphoria during it’s 2nd season & the sophomore effort Sunburn wound up being more well received than it’s predecessor. 14 Minutes preluded his debut mixtape Rocket to mixed feedback & looks to teach the world How to Quit Smoking.
“Wallflower” was a decent indie pop opener singing about the type of person who’s shy yet introverted whereas “Small Town” works in some bedroom pop influences so he can reminisce over a woman he once knew, hoping to rekindle their relationship even though she’s not who she once was. “Pangea” combines bedroom pop, neo-soul & pop rap to discuss a relationship that has some serious potential while “Casting Call” sings about feeling like he’s up against robots due to the rise of AI.
reggie joins Dominic for “Doomsday” to directly addressing the theme of them going cold turkey on smoking & letting their partners know they love them more than they did the day prior leading into “Honeylove” featuring Grace Ives singing about wanting to consume each other’s DNA. “White Keys” blends alt-pop & bedroom pop for an observation of the space around them changing negatively affecting his relationship just before “Squeeze” sings about wanting to feel his lover’s touch.
“Reno” featuring Hether continues the 2nd half of the album throwing it all the way back to the What Could Possibly Go Wrong? era stylistically while “Lily Was a Cavalier” sings about the titular character fucking him much better than any of his exes have. “Cabby” featuring Emma Ogier finds the pair admitting they’re at their worst when they forget the humanity of their love while “City of Steel” featuring Jorjiana originating in Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania talks about heartbreak.
Danny Brown’s appearance during “Not the Spirit” ranks amongst my personal favorites contemplating whether or not they’d break even if they had a dime for every time they went broke while “War Machine” sings about his regrets ranging from drug abuse to infidelity, including an interpolation of “Got Ya Money” by the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard when the hook comes around. “Spotlight / Innerchild” finishes How to Quit Smoking in the form of a 2-parter promising to do his best despite not knowing what’s next.
Originally announced a couple months ago right when the Comedy Tragedy Parody Tour was getting ready to commence, Dominic Fike finally drops How to Quit Smoking following 2 or 3 weeks of delays putting himself in a position where he had no other choice but to step his game up regardless of me still having Rocket as his finest statement yet. Primarily because the indie pop, pop rap, indie rock & bedroom pop production can feel repetitive after a bit although appreciate the themes of growing up are undeniably sincere.
