Truemendous – “The Misdiagnosis of Chyvonne Johnson” review

Birmingham, West Midlands, England, United Kingdom emcee Truemendous making her full-length studio debut. Introducing herself in 2015 off her debut EP Whoremonal Moodswings, she continued to build momentum with the trilogy P.S. This Is Your Mother Calling began & bridged by P.S. This is Your Father Calling. The final chapter P.S. This is Your Aunty Calling eventually caught the attention of High Focus Records, who dropped her 5th EP Huh? right when the COVID-19 pandemic began. However, she’s ready to take the next step in her evolution & is ready to start the 2nd quarter of the year dissecting The Misdiagnosis of Chyvonne Johnson a couple months succeeding Jamie Hayter becoming a 2-time RPW British Women’s Champion.

“Cause a Scene” comes out the gate with an aggressive boom bap intro talking about her being on the verge of drumming up a disturbance within the UK hip hop scene whereas “Probably Right (Too)” pens a cavernous open letter that Telemachus cooked up to her lover suggesting his parents are right in regards of her being too good for him. “Y” featuring Kofi Stone goes for a jazzy boom bap vibe thanks to Illinformed tackling themes of heartbreak while “Worst Child” asks if one loves themselves over a rich yet dusty beat.

As for “Selfish Behavior”, we have Truemendous spending 9 minutes fusing boom bap as well as neo-soul & a hint of trap telling her partner that she’s coming with whenever he decides to leave her just before “You Don’t Wanna” gives off a cloudier trap vibe instrumentally courtesy of Wundrop so she can give some shine to the unique flow that got her a label deal 13 months earlier for 100 seconds. “You Don’t Like Me Because” takes the jazzy boom bap route with the help of Dirty Dike for a message directed at all the people who doubted her while “Free Food” moodily talks about only being somewhere she didn’t want to be because of the complimentary nourishments.

“Crying of Laughter” begins the 2nd half with an atmospheric trap beat explaining that she’s only shedding tears of amusement because she wants to cry over the very person she has in mind while she was writing this while “Spirit & Breanna” celebrates the impression of her having no competition whatsoever. “Mood Ring” incorporates some synthesizers to talk doing people wrong or right depending on how she’s feeling while the J Dilla-inspired “Browkeee” celebrates entrepreneurship.

The sequel to “Tick the Box” jumps over a quirky beat so she can keep moving intrusively while “Emmett Till” featuring Masta Ace returns to the boom bap to talk about the system being rigged in their favor. “Viral” featuring Obi Rundo gets back on the eerie trap tip dismantling the crowd who downplays their work ethics but once “Petty You, Petty Me” cohesively talks about the concept of pettiness itself, it only makes sense for “Yvonne’s Daughter” to finish the LP with an endearing tribute to her mother.

Inspired by Lauryn Hill’s only solo effort The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill, Truemendous’ own debut album under High Focus Records offers the underground at large a complete representation of who she is by capturing every dimension of her musically. The songwriting’s a lot more fiercely heavier than both of her earlier projects were with the production honing in on the eclectic crossovers between boom bap, neo-soul, jazz rap & trap that were heard over a year ago.

Score: 3.5/5

YBN Nahmir – “Visionland” review

YBN Nahmir is a 21 year old rapper from Birmingham, Alabama most notable for being the de facto leader of the now defunct YBN collective. We all know Cordae has proven to be the most successful member of the crew given how well The Lost Boy & it wasn’t until earlier this month that Almighty Jay dropped his painfully boring debut EP Battling My Spirit. However, Nahmir is the last one stepping to plate & is dropping his long-delayed debut album.

“Still (Family)” is actually a good way to kick off the album as Nahmir speaks on doing this rap shit for his family with a guitar & harmonious vocal harmonies backing him. However, the next song “Regardless” sounds like he’s vocally riffing for 2 minutes despite the tranquilizing trap beat whereas the rowdy “Politics” links up with DaBoii & G Herbo to take shots at people talking shit on the internet. The “Opp Stoppa” remix with 21 Savage is better than the original, even though it’s weird how Nahmir puts the OG version of it as the closer later on.

“Get It Crackin’” samples “Chaos” by TekraBeats as Nahmir goes on about nothing & then “Fast Car Music (Stain)” serves as a half-baked ode to Lamborghinis. The track “Prison” is pretty much a 2-minute, abrasive self-defense anthem & then “Lamb Truck” is an underwritten cut about wetting up those who cross him with an aquatic beat. The twangy, bass-heavy “Fast Car Ending” is another short & off-the-cuff freestyle that could’ve easily been left on the cutting room floor, but then “Wake Up” goes into a more orchestral direction as he talks about getting his dick sucked in the morning.

“Belgium” is a 2-minute diatribe about how Nahmir been “thuggin’ since a youngin’” over a skeletal piano instrumental while the cumbersomely-produced “Make a Wish” literally says in the hook that he’ll kill the children of his enemies. The electronic-tinged “Homework” opens up about the snakes in his life & even though the classy instrumental on “Streets” is ok, it once again sounds like a barely written song. The soul/trap fusion “WooWAM” goes on about wanting bitches at his mansion, but then “Soul Train” is even worse with it’s funk-influenced production & the gross lyrics about giving his girl everything.

The rubbery, Hitmaka-produced “2-Seater” with G-Eazy & Offset continues to go on about their love for luxury cars over a rubbery instrumental from Hitmaka while “Ca$hland” is a money anthem with a hyphy beat along as well as stellar features from E-40 & Too $hort. The final song on the album (excluding the original “Opp Stoppa” like I mentioned earlier) “Over Now” is a touching sequel to the opening cut.

I said it in my review for Battling My Spirit a few weeks ago & I’ll say it again right now: this is just another reminder that Cordae carried the whole YBN crew. I’ll even say this is even worse than the latest Almighty Jay EP. It didn’t need to be 20 tracks long, the songwriting is vapid, his performances don’t have any “oomph” to them & the production is uneventful.

Score: 1/5

Rod Wave – “SoulFly” review

Rod Wave is a 22 year old rapper & singer/songwriter from St. Petersburg, Florida who broke out in 2019 off his debut album Ghetto Gospel. A sophomore effort Pray 4 Love came out last spring & it would land him a spot in the 2020 XXL Freshman Class few months later. But after working out some issues with Alamo Records

It all starts off with the title track, where Rod talks about balancing his ups & downs over some a cavernous trap beat. The next song “Gone ‘Till November” talks about not wanting to be alone over a twangy instrumental while the track “Wanna Blame Me” talks about a girl doing him wrong over a generic beat. The song “Don’t Forget” talks about coming straight from out the trenches over some acoustics & snares while the track “Tombstone” talks about thuggin’ until the end over a stripped back beat.

The song “All I Got” talks about finally living his dream over a cloudy piano instrumental while the track “Richer” with Polo G finds the 2 talking about their wealth over a summery beat. The song “Street Runner” talks about going higher over a cumbersome instrumental while the track “Pills & Billz” talks about how money can buy you drugs over a piano & some hi-hats. The song “How the Game Go” talks about playing the game the way it was taught to him over some more acoustic trap shit while the track “Shock da World” talks about how they ain’t seen nothing yet & the vocal sample on here is just gorgeous.

The song “What’s Love??” explains the meaning of love to a broken heart over the same BEAUTIFUL THUGGER GIRLS-inspired production we’ve heard a million times at this point while the track “O.M.D.B. (Over My Dead Body)” talks about how he knows this woman don’t love him over an intoxicating beat. The song “Invisible Scar” talks about how he can’t save this youngin’ at the party over a formulaic instrumental while the track “Calling Me” talks about numbing the pain over some more country trap production.

The song “Sneaky Links” talks about keeping relationships secret over a weighty instrumental while the track “Believe Me” talks about having a hard time trusting his baby over a glossy beat. The song “Moving On” talks about starting anew & then the closer “Changing” talks about his newfound maturity over a piano-laced trap instrumental.

Coming away from this album, it’s a just a mixed bag for me personally. It’s really cool to hear how personal he can get through his lyrics, but it’s just the production sounds the same for a good portion of it.

Score: 2.5/5

Saigon – “Pain, Peace & Prosperity” review

Saigon is a 43 year old MC from Brooklyn, New York who broke out in the early 2000s off his debut mixtape Da Yardfather. However, it wouldn’t be until 2011 when he would make his full-length debut by dropping The Greatest Story Never Told under Suburban Noize Records. The album would spawn a sequel to fulfill his contract with the Spade the following year & then a final installment on his own imprint Squid Ink Squad Records in 2014. He returned from a 6 year hiatus last summer by signing to Strange Music’s new subsidiary It Goes Up Entertainment & dropping the STREETRUNNER-produced EP 777: The Resurrection almost right after but here we are 7 months later with Saigon’s 4th full-length album.

After the DJ Kayslay intro, the first song “Head Blown (Vitabudz Theme)” talks about vibing until his head is gone over an instrumental that hawks back to 80s electro while the track “2 for $5” makes multiple comparisons to the titular deal over a bountiful beat. The song “My Gun” talks about being strapped at all times over a boom bap instrumental with some sirens while the track “Blessings” pays tribute to those murdered by the system from Mike Brown to Sandra Bland over a bereft beat.

The song “People Next Door” talks about the person living next to him getting laid down the night before over a cinematic instrumental while the following track is a pointless remix to “Mechanical Animals” off of The Greatest Story Never Told 3: The Troubled Times of Brian Carenard. “The D” with Jay Varcity is a gross, lovey dovey disco tune while the song “Warm Honey” is almost as painful to listen to except the production on this one is more silkier.

The track “U Do Understand That, Right?” With Axel Leon finds the 2 talking about partying all night over a jazz/trap infused beat while the song “We Don’t Need You” talks about cutting off punks in his life over a Satanic instrumental. The track “Same Ol’ Me” talks about how he hasn’t changed after all these years over an inspiriting beat while the song “U Don’t Know Me” is a catchy bop calling out those who think they know everything about him.

The track “Buss It Down” with Bam Vito is a terribly written strip club anthem backed by generic instrumental while “The Streets” talks about how it ain’t no joke in the hood over an organ-laced beat. The track “It Goes Up” with Rough finds the 2 talking about firing at their squad if they take food out their mouths over a boom bap instrumental with some choir vocals while the song “Deeper” with O.T. the Real sees the duo talking about how deep they are over an exultant beat. After the “Saigon Speaks” skit, “The Co-Op Cipher” teams up with Cassidy to get on the battle tip over a sullen instrumental. He also takes the time to announce 2 more albums coming later this year, one produced entirely by Buckwild & the other with Jahlil Beats.

Even though I prefer 777: The Resurrection, I still think this is a solid album. There are joints on here that felt out of place like the “Mechanical Animals” remix & that cringey disco joint, but Saigon can still rip up mics like it was nothing & the production is pretty tight for a good deal of it.

Score: 3.5/5

Flee Lord – “RAMM£LLZ££” review

This is the 15th EP from Queensbridge emcee Flee Lord. Blowing up in 2017 off his debut EP Loyalty or Death: Lord Talk & it’s 2018 sequel, the Prodigy protege continued to grow from there by dropping subsequent projects like Gets Greater Later & Loyalty & Trust. But after dropping every month last year (the most notable ones being Hand Me My Flowers as well as The People’s Champ & In the Name of Prodigy), Flee is teaming up with DJ Muggs to drop RAMM£LLZ££.

The titular intro is a cool little skit that I had expected going in, but then the first song “Eating Never Stressing” talks about how your life will be great if you work as hard as him over a bare organ loop. The next track “SA Mobbin’” talks about holding his block down over a doleful piano instrumental while the song “Driver’s Seat” pays tribute to Capone-N-N.O.R.E. over a misty boom bap beat.

The track “Wallabies & Gucci Loafers” with Ghostface Kilah & Roc Marciano finds the trio on their fly shit over a soul-tinged instrumental while the song “Mansions in the Ghetto” with Crimeapple sees the 2 talking about giving back to their people over some guitar-picking & horns. The track “45 in My Pocket” talks about how going back to the hood is stressful for him over a rich boom bap instrumental while the song “Daleon & Delgado” with TF finds the duo talking about shooting rounds at the sky over a beat kin to Daringer.

“The Equation” talks about hoping people follow his path when he’s gone over a deranged instrumental & while the penultimate track “Queens Get the $$$” with Meyhem Lauren sees the 2 talking about all being psychos over a boom bap beat with some rapid piano-playing throughout. The titular outro talks about going from having bad to making good paper over a sample of “I’m Alive” by Johnny Thunder.

Even though 2020 was the Year of the Lord, it’s starting to look like 2021 will be the Year of Muggs because this is a damn near perfect EP. Death & the Magician is still my Album of the Year as of me writing this review, but RAMM£LLZ££ is just as enjoyable because both parties manage to bring their A-game on here lyrically & sonically.

Score: 4.5/5

Armand Hammer – “Haram” review

Armand Hammer is duo from New York City consisting of Billy Woods & Elucid. Forming together in 2013 off their only mixtape Half Measures & the debut album Race Music, the pair would go on to release an EP & 3 more full-lengths worth of abstract political hip hop. Their previous effort Shrines just came out this past summer & not even a year later, Billy & Elucid have tapped on The Alchemist for their 5th full-length album.

The album kicks off with “Sir Benni Miles”, where Armand Hammer gets cryptic over a grimy instrumental with a couple of vocal samples laced in. The next song “Roaches Don’t Fly” talks about how “you don’t have to be here if you don’t wanna” over a synth-heavy beat with some occasional guitar passages while the track “Black Sunlight” gives the listener profound motivation over a cheerful instrumental. The track “Indian Summer” references the Indiana Jones franchise owned by The Walt Disney Company subsidiary Lucasfilm over a mystical beat while the track Aubergine with Fielded finds the 3 talking about hysteria over an instrumental that starts off with a demented atmosphere, but then switches into something more forlorn.

The song “God’s Feet” talks about “blowing that horn fast” over a glistening boom bap beat while the track “Peppertree” talks about how “there’s something else out there” over a saxophone & a reversed loop. The song “Scaffolds” talks about always being late with the epiphanies & having excuses over a paranormal instrumental while the track “Falling Out the Sky” with Earl Sweatshirt sees the trio opening up about their demons over a lachrymose beat.

The song “Wishing Bad” with Curly Castro & Amani finds the 4 talking about how all their problems come from no compensation over a minimal, yet deranged instrumental while the track “Chicharonnes” with Quelle Chris sees the 3 talking about corrupt cops over a ghastly beat. “Squeegee” is another favorite of mine with it’s enraged verses, the ear-grabbing hook & repose production while the penultimate track “Robert Moses” talks about a new day over a jazz-laced instrumental. The album ends with “Stonefruit”, where the duo talk about having so much to undo over a celebratory beat.

This is hands down one of the best albums I’ve heard all year & I’ll even go as far to say that it’s Armand Hammer’s magnum opus. Couple of the features were a miss for me personally, but the gruesome imagery that Billy Woods & Elucid paint goes hand to hand with Uncle Al’s signature sound almost flawlessly.

Score: 4.5/5

Drego – “Krazy Man” review

Drego is a 23 year old rapper from Detroit, Michigan known for being 1/2 of the duo Drego & Beno. Their debut mixtape Sorry for the Get Off established them as one of the biggest groups in Detroit trap as did Meet Us Outer Space & Sorry for the Auto Tune respectively, extending their break as a pairing to focus on their individual careers & Drego becoming the first of the 2 members to make his official solo debut exhibiting the mind of a Krazy Man ahead of their debut album together.

“55 Bars” takes on the intangible fame & seeking for clarity simultaneously referencing the greatest QB of all-time Tom Brady whereas “Ball” by Drego & Beno finds them going back & forth with one another seamlessly asking how you gon’ tell them to live when you ain’t even doing shit with your life. “Numbers” uses sharp numerical wordplay for 2 & a half minutes just before “Okay” featuring PeeWee Longway compares themselves to Tony Montana.

Meanwhile on “Pick the Plug Again”, we have Drego making reference to the Ice Cream Man era of No Limit Records founder Master P leading into “Chauncey Billups” honoring the 2004 NBA Finals MVP it’s titled after. “If You Want” by Drego & Beno featuring Cash Kidd & Nuk unites the quartet killing to get what they want while “Dis Dat” gives the fine print to those he wants to influence.

“Popovixh” keeps it rollin’ talking about making more plays than the San Antonio Spurs’ head coach Greg Popovich until “Ronda Rousey” obviously refers to the former WWE Women’s Champion, UFC Hall of Famer & the inaugural UFC Women’s Bantamweight Champion of the same name. “Dub” by Drego & Beno featuring BandGang Biggs, BandGang Lonnie Bands & BandGang Masoe boasts of them being like the Pistons during their first of 3 NBA Championship seasons while “Push da Bag” by Drego & Beno gets on the back-&-forth tip again delivery wise.

BandGang Biggs & BandGang Lonnie Bands come back with the late BandGang Paid Will in place of Masoe during “Eddie Long” touching people’s spirits similarly to the late pastor who passed away 4 years ago, but then “I Know What U Want” featuring Sada Baby finds the 2 talking about being the only ones around their way up by $60M. “In the Game” featuring Rio da Yung O.G. shows no signs of slowing down the money counting while “Sponsor” shuts down the need for any kind of backing since he knows every baddie.

“Zaza Pachuila” featuring Veeze got these organ melodies during it’s course matched with 808s boasting that both of them have achieved self-employed status while “Drekio” talks about nobody being able to do it the way he does it. “Ms. Dash” featuring Ju6aby, Money Reese & 5auce Lik concludes our journey into the mind of a Krazy Man with an underwhelming collaboration saving the best verse for last showing off their gang ties.

Many including myself got introduced to Drego through his guest appearance on the viral Sada single “Bloxk Party”, so Krazy Man was a huge deal for that crowd of people & he holds it down well enough for me to be confident of him becoming successful with or without Beno. Nevertheless of having to see when the other eventually goes up at bat & a couple moments where the guests’ performances fall flat, it’s a tightly conceived Detroit trap solo debut.

Score: 3.5/5

Kota the Friend – “To Kill a Sunrise” review

Kota the Friend is a 28 year old MC from New York City that broke out in 2016 off his debut EP Palm Tree Liquor. This was followed up with 2 more EPs before dropping his debut album FOTO in 2019. Kota has gone on to release 4 albums since then but just 2 months after his previous one Lyrics to Go 2, he’s staying busy by enlisting Statik Selektah for his 5th full-length outing.

The album kicks off with “Wolves”, where Kota talks about how he can’t lose over a weepy boom bap beat. The next song “Hate” addresses those who throw shade on his name over some dusty drums & a piano loop while “The Cold” talks about how people wonder where he goes when he’s in his bag over a violin-tinged beat. “The Love” gets in his romance bag over a luxurious instrumental while the song “Go Now” talks about wanting to build with his partner over a dream-like beat.

The track “What Ya Sayin’?” calls out those who tried to bring him down with them over some rich boom bap production while the song “Live & Direct” talks about sharing your mind with your set over some more gorgeous keyboard harmonies. The track “Day Glow” talks about opening up the windows over a tranquil instrumental & letting it all in while the song “Sunrise” thanks the listener for having his back over a jazzy beat. The album then finishes with “Sunset”, where Kota talks about being true then over some heavy horns.

This is a super solid album in my book & it’s just been really awesome to see how much Kota has grown since the latter half of the previous decade, earning the right of becoming the greatest achievement of his whole catalog. His lyricism is a lot more wittier in comparison to Lyrics to Go 2 & Statik Selektah whips up some of his most luxuriantly jazzy boom bap beats ever.

Score: 4/5

Guapdad 4000 – “1176” review

Guapdad 400 is a 28 year old rapper & singer/songwriter from Oakland, California who caught my attention in 2019 as part of the supergroup Zoink Gang as well as his handful of features on the Dreamville Records showcase compilation Revenge of the Dreamers III. This was followed up with the mediocre full-length debut Dior Deposits but after much anticipation, Guapdad is tapping in !llmind for his sophomore album.

Things kick off with “How Many”, where Guapdad ponders the number of times he’s been called as well the amount of drugs & alcohol one did over a trap beat with some dreary guitar melodies. The next song “She Wanna” talks about sex over a skeletal instrumental while the track “10finity” talks about still living on 10 over some somber piano chords. The song “Big Shot” talks about being a baller over a cloudy trap beat while the track “Catching Bodies” talks about hitting licks over a more joyous instrumental.

The song “Chandler” talks about feeling cocky over some snares with some occasional piano & guitar passages while the track “Muhammad” talks about trapping over an inebriating beat. The song “Touch Dough” talks about getting money over some skittering hi-hats & glistening keyboards while the track “Downgrade” talks about going back being a dog over a dim beat.

The song “Uncle Ricky” goes into a more boom bap direction as Guapdad talks about how crazy his uncle was while the track “Gargoyles” talks about being a castle with soft walls over an enticing beat. The song “PlayStation” pays homage to Digital Underground’s “I Get Around” over a palatial instrumental while the penultimate track “Chicken Adobo” talks about a woman holding him down over a tropical beat. The album ends with “Stoop Kid”, where Guapdad gets reflective for 7-minutes over a buoyant instrumental.

I didn’t know what to expect from this album given that I wasn’t a huge fan of Guapdad’s previous material, but I gotta say: This is the best he’s ever sounded. His lyrics are a lot more personal than before whereas !llmind cooks up the most consistent batch of production Guapdad has ever hopped on top of.

Score: 3.5/5

Benny the Butcher – “The Plugs I Met II” review

Benny the Butcher is a 36 year old MC from Buffalo, New York who’s been making music since 2004. However, it wouldn’t be until 2016 where he alongside his cousins Westside Gunn & Conway the Machine would take the culture by storm off projects like Tana Talk 3 & The Plugs I Met. He just dropped his Hit-Boy produced sophomore album Burden of Proof this past fall & as the 2 year anniversary of The Plugs I Met approaches this summer, Benny is enlisting Harry Fraud for the sequel EP.

The EP kicks off with “When Tony Met Sosa”, where Benny talks about how the rap game saved him over a jazzy beat. The next song “Overall” with the late Chinx sees the 2 talking about winning over a grimy instrumental while the track “Plug Talk“ with 2 Chainz finds the pair talking about how they address drug shit in interviews over some harmonious background vocals hanging behind their verses. The song “Live by It” talks about living & dying by the gun over an uncanny instrumental while the track “Talkin’ Back” with Fat Joe sees the 2 responding to everything from dope money to the streets over a flute-tinged beat.

The song “No Instructions” talks about how there’s no rules to the drug game over a poignant boom bap instrumental while the track “Longevity” with French Montana & Jim Jones finds the trio talking about making sure their cash is the strongest over an alluring beat. The song “Survivor’s Remorse” with Rick Hyde sees the 2 talking about how they could’ve died or wound up in jail over a dirgelike instrumental & then the closer “Thanksgiving” tells the rap game to be grateful for him over a soul sample & an organ.

The Plugs I Met is a crown achievement in Benny’s catalog & this sequel is almost as enjoyable as the predecessor. In comparison to the mature & polished vibes that Burden of Proof gave off, he & Harry Fraud take things into much more darker territory as the dark production & the harsh realities The Butcher paints mesh well with one another.

Score: 4/5