This is the 4th collaborative EP between New York emcees NVY JONEZ LKR & D-Rell. The later coming straight out of Harlem & the other hauling from Brooklyn. The pair started working together a couple years ago during the pandemic by kicking off a series of EPs called The Chicken Spot & releasing the first 3 installments all that summer. But after 2 years, they’re returning for a 6 Piece.
“4 KILLAZ” is a boom bap-tinged opener with RTPBoat joining NVY & D-Rell to talk about their gangsta mentalities whereas “I.D.F.W. (I Don’t Fuck With)” with Mugga Wall shoots for a grimmer aesthetic confessing they don’t associate with people who associate themselves with people they dislike. “Street Politics 2” is a stellar yet raw sequel to the joint on 2 Piece & a Biscuit getting to the nitty gritty while the song “By Any Means” talking about doing it for their legacies over a cold instrumental. The penultimate track “G.D.2.D. (Good Day 2 Die)” incorporates some dusty drums & pianos quenching for blood & “Survive” is a triumphant closer talking about the real lasting in the end.
Although it’s almost been 2 years since the last time these guys have put out an EP with each other, 6 Piece is definitely my favorite of The Chicken Spot series thus far & I think it’s a good place to start for those who’re new to their catalogues. The chemistry from both MCs is still going strong than it was back in 2020 & the production impressively blends elements of today’s sounds with the culture’s gritty roots.
Sheep Stu is a East Coast duo consisting of New York emcee Dres & Boston producer Stu Bangas. Both of whom have cemented themselves as legends in the game in their own rights, but have never worked with each other prior. However considering how incredibly consistent Stu has always been (especially in recent years) & as a fan of A Wolf in Sheep’s Clothing, I was very much looking forward to this debut EP of theirs.
“Simple is an uncanny opener to the EP with Dres coming out to say he ain’t like these other motherfuckers whereas “Hate” fuses boom bap & rock together talking about what doesn’t help the hood rise. The title trackadvises everyone that nothing in the world will ever hit like the same thing over a trunk-knocking instrumental while the penultimate song “Killin’ It (For a Lil Bit)” returns to dustier territory with Dres talking about being a class act. A.G. then comes into the picture for the grimy closer “Walk About It”, where he & Sheep Stu describe the way they lay motherfuckers down.
Now if you ask me, this is the best that Dres has sounded in a long ass time & I really hope we get more stuff from them down the road. The passion is clearly there in his voice, he never lost a step lyrically & Stu gives him the best batch of beats that he’s received in a while.
Leedz Edutainment is an underground record label based in Boston, Massachusetts that has been around for a little over decade now. They already have a quite a few showcase compilations under their belt already with the Mass Movementz duology as well as the Write Off tetralogy & Eastern Standard, but are kicking off the summer by returning in the form of A Worker Among Workers.
After the “Introview”, the first song “Edutainment” by S.T.R.E.E.T. is a triumphant boom bap opener asking if y’all are entertained or not whereas “Hustlenomics” by XL the Beast works in some pianos to declare that you’re in the presence of a monolith. “Massive” by REKS, Slaine & STL GLD has a more rowdier tone to it with the trio talking about doing that shit & after the “Threat” skit, “Demons At Your Door” by Reef the Lost Cauze & Wildcard takes a turn into trap territory asking what you gonna do when your demons want war.
“Hands of Time” by Blak Madeen & Smif-n-Wessun finds the trio coming together over bass-guitar laced instrumental to discuss the concept of time & after the “It’s All Hip Hop” interlude, “Heavy Decorated” by Ace & Edo, Akrobatik, Bugout & El Da Sensei sees the 5 asking what your life like over a soulful boom bap beat. “The Rent’s Due” by A-F-R-O, Jarv & Spose references WWE Hall of Famer, former 6-time WWE Champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 2-time WWE United States Champion, 5-time WWE Tag Team Champion & NWA World Tag Team Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin just before “Lyrical Plunger” digs up an old freestyle from 1999 that still sounds fresh today.
Meanwhile on “You Still Gotta Rap”, we have Checkmark & The Dunnas delivering some battle bars accompanied by a quasi-funky groove to the instrumental leading into the Parker & Leedz interlude. “Once Upon a Time” by Jon Hope & Skyzoo is a fresh piano ballad discussing what hip hop is to them, but then Blak Madeen recruits the late Baba Zumbi & Locksmith for the socially conscious “Rise Up” remix that I like better than the original.
“Stuck in My Way” by Peter Manns embraces a more deadpan tone confessing he hasn’t been himself in days while “Spiritual Awakening” by Pvth, Ren Thomas & Vincent Tesoro marks the return of the boom bap to represent God. After the “Hustling in the Wrong Direction” interlude, “Tools of the Trade” by Lateb is a guitar/boom bap fusion talking about finding their way while “Dark Magic” goes full rap rock so Jazzmyn Red can address ego someone’s ego not allowing one to be set free. After the “Results Business” interlude, the final song “Feed the Fire” by XL the Beast ends the album with a more atmospheric ballad pouring his heart about how it’ll all pay off & “Thanks For Coming In” is just a spoken word outro.
I’ve enjoyed every single compilation that Leedz has put out in the last 15 years or so, but A Worker Among Workers honestly has to be my favorite one of the bunch thus far & it continues to cement their longevity celebrating their impact within the underground for over a decade. The Arcitype did a fine job at producing a vast majority of it & the list of guest MCs that the label brings together to do their thing on the mic is pretty consistent.
This is the 5th full-length album from XP the Marxman. Coming up as 1/3 of the trio Rhyme Addicts. As far as his solo career goes, the dude has a handful of projects under his belt already, with my personal favorite being the Roc Marciano-produced Keep Firing. He just dropped The Marxman at the very beginning of the year & as we finally enter summer, D-Styles & DJ Rhettmatic are being brought in to fully produced Pacific Standard Time
After the “Pst #1” intro, “Get At a God” kicks off the album on a dreary note thanks to D-Styles with XP comparing himself to that of a God whereas “Lil Mijos” takes a jazzy boom bap route talking about growing up in the streets. RhymeStyleTroop tags along for the guitar-driven “Ms. America” embracing their Mexican heritages leading into the spine-tingling “Trunk” getting in his hustler bag.
After the “Pst #2” skit, Sick Jacken comes into the picture for the dusty “Tom Fears” produced by Rhettmatic reminding everyone how they play just before the eerie “Paint Pictures” quenching for blood. “The Kuyas” with Big Twins finds the 2 over a piano-laced boom bap instrumental talking about keeping them open, but then “Ski Mask to Jet Skis” lavishly reflects on his life then & now.
The song “Turn Up the Volume” incorporates some colorless piano melodies so XP can get on his thug shit while the penultimate track “Old to New” talks about being a king & the beat on here is just petrifying to the core. However, “Frost Bitten” is a gully ass way to end the album from the horn-laced production to XP’s malicious lyricism.
I was very excited going into this given that I’ve been a fan of The Beat Junkies for a minute & how much I’ve enjoyed some of XP’s most recent projects. Needless to say: It’s some of the best shit he’s ever done considering how great the chemistry between him, D-Styles & Rhettmatic is. Purely raw penmanship & production from start to finish.
Drake is a 35 year old rapper, singer/songwriter, actor, producer & entrepreneur from Toronto, Ontario, Canada who skyrocketed to fame in 2009 off his 3rd mixtape So Far Gone. The success of this groundbreaking project resulted in a contract with both Young Money Entertainment/Cash Money Records & they helped put out the man’s full-length debut Thank Me Later the next summer. His sophomore effort Take Care the year after would be even better & I enjoyed Nothing Was the Same too but after If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late & then What a Time to Be Alive with Future (both of which came out in 2015), that’s when the quality in Drake’s music really began to take a nosedive. VIEWS was a terrible foray into dancehall, More Life was mediocre despite being stylistically eclectic, his YM/CM swan song Scorpion was a disappointingly failed attempt at making a double disc album showcasing his hip hop/R&B sides of his music respectively, Care Package is decent collection of 17 loosies from 2010-2016 that we’ve all heard before, Dark Lane Demo Tapes tried to experiment with new sounds only to miss the landing & Certified Lover Boy just felt like the same old shit we’ve heard from him before. However to celebrate his new SiriusXM radio show, Drizzy is surprise-dropping his 7th album.
After the intro, “Falling Back” opens up the album by going full-blown afrobeats with Drake singing about giving his all into a relationship whereas “Texts Go Green” is a more mellower cut produced by the album’s executive producer Black Coffee as he details him moving on from an ex. “Currents” pulls from Jersey club music with a distracting squeaking sound throughout talking about how he feels like he’s tumbling & doing a shitty Abel impression on the hook, but then “A Keeper” asks his old muse why he’d have her stick around over an airy instrumental.
Meanwhile on “Calling My Name”, we have Drizzy returning to dance-pop turf thanks to Gordo asking why it’s hard for him to give this bitch up just before “Sticky” comes through as the best track off the album with the lyrics about knowing tough situations can be & how the drums just hit you in the chest. “Massive” embraces a housier sound singing to his lover about finding them again, but then “Flight’s Booked” incorporates some synths to singing for his chick not to make him wait.
“Overdrive” has a funky ass groove to it with a fresh guitar solo at the end that I both really like admitting that his heart’s racing while “Down Hill” tells his bitch that they’re done & the 40 instrumental has an intriguingly wavy flare of the beat as well as the finger-snaps. The song “Tie That Blinds” throws a nylon guitar in with some prominent drums confessing that he never wants to see his lover leave while the penultimate track “Liability” slathers his vocals in chopped & screwed effects singing about changing for this woman with the hi-hats being mixed louder than the synths. “Jimmy Cooks” with 21 Savage ends the album with a fun 2-parter produced by Vinylz, Tay Keith & Cubeatz describing them throwing a party for their Day 1s remembering Lil Keed & warning this ain’t the WME Group-owned UFC.
I’ve noticed the reception for this has been very polarizing but for it to be a homage to the late Off-White founder Virgil Abloh, I’m honestly on the fence with it. I respect that Drake put his signature pop rap sound in the back-burner in comparison to Certified Lover Boy not elevating it any further so he can mix house & alternative R&B with afrobeats, but the results are extremely hit or miss.
This is the 11th EP from Buffalo emcee & entrepreneur Conway the Machine. Blowing up in late 2015 as part of the 3 OGs of Griselda Records alongside his brother Westside Gunn & their cousin Benny the Butcher. Ever since the trio have rose to prominence, they’ve had hip hop on lock by their constant work ethic balancing quality & quality as well as vividly detailing their lives in the streets on top of boom bap production kin to that of RZA & Havoc in their music. Con’s full-length debut From King to a God was my Album of the Year for 2020 & just dropped his Shady Records-backed sophomore effort God Don’t Make Mistakes back in February, which is the most personal he’s ever been. He just dropped Organized Grime 2 a few weeks ago & is reuniting with Big Ghost Ltd. for What Has Been Blessed Cannot Be Cursed.
“Salutations” is a grim opener talking about whacking motherfuckers whereas “It’s a Green Light works in a piano & a harp admitting that he’s more confident than ever. “Bodie Broadus” takes a richer albeit drumless route calling out those who waited until he blew up to reach out to him leading into Jae Skeese tagging along for bloodcurdling “In My Soul” talking about people wanting them gone. “Y.B.C.M. (Your Bitch Chose Me)” goes into more soulful territory saying they know the game just before “Why You Ain’t Move on Me?” eerily gets on his murder shit.
Meanwhile on “Sunday Sermon”, we have Conway reuniting with Jae Skeese to go back & forth with each other over yet another soul sample bragging about their legendary status while the song “Scared II Death” with Method Man is a ghoulish boom bap banger taking a shot at those who be afraid of them. The final song “Big Drum” comes through with yet another Drumwork posse cut except he’s showcasing damn new the full roster at this point & “Dog Food” ends the EP with an outro from the skit gawd himself Lukey Cage.
No One Mourns the Wicked & If It Bleeds It Can Be Killed have quickly become some of the best EPs that Con have put out yet, so I had very high hopes going into into What Has Been Blessed Cannot Be Cursed & I’m very satisfied with it. As raw as Organized Grime 2 was, the production from Big Ghost Ltd. is much spookier & Con’s lyricism remains unmatched in today’s hip hop climate.
Will Gates is a 20 year old MC from Traverse City, Michigan who’s been catching my attention for the last year or so by dropping singles like “Juggalo Rage” or more recently “Clown Town”. However with the 1-year anniversary of his debut mixtape Trashboy passing a couple months ago, he’s returning by dropping his debut EP under his own label Trashboy Entertainment.
“Dedication” kicks off the EP with a hi-hat heavy tribute to his homie Ashton whereas “Undisputed” is a fresh ass ode to Detroit down the hyphy sound that some of the younger acts out here be bearing in the music. “Reppin’” takes it back to the trap route to talk about being underground just before the title track brings back the Detroit trap flavor of “Undisputed” to remind everyone he’s obtaining the wicked shit.
The track “Fuccin’ wit da Oppz” works in some pianos to so he can spit that gangsta shit while the final song “I Keep That Hachet on Me” is a keyboard, hi-hat infused juggalo anthem. “Gratitude” ends the album with a 2-minute spoken word cut giving shoutouts to all the people he’s grateful for including myself, which I’m very honored by.
If any of y’all still aren’t hip to Will yet, then I recommend you give Procuring the Wicced a listen because it’s my favorite body of work that he’s put out thus far. The sound of this EP is very refreshing considering that I don’t think I’ve ever heard many people or anyone really put a horrorcore spin on the Detroit trap style & he’s at his hungriest lyrically.
Logic is a 32 year old rapper, singer/songwriter, producer, author & Twitch streamer from Rockville, Maryland who came up just about a decade ago off the strength of the first 3 installments of the Young Sinatra mixtape series. His potential would continually be shown on his first 2 albums Under Pressure & The Incredible True Story but it’s no secret that since the release of Bobby Tarantino in 2016, the dude’s discography has become a definition of inconsistent. ΞVERYBODY, Bobby Tarantino II & Young Sinatra IV were all mid at best, but who can forget the embarrassing attempt at going indie rock on Supermarket or the unlikeable bitterness of Confessions of a Dangerous Mind?No Pressure however was a mature sequel to his full-length debut & I also thought the Doc D concept mixtape Planetory Destruction was decent too, but Bobby Tarantino III was pretty underwhelming. That being said, almost every single he dropped leading up to this 8th album of his albeit his last with Def Jam Recordings has been incredible & had me very excited going into it.
After the “Danger” intro, “Tetris” kicks off the album with a soulful boom bap note spitting some braggadocio whereas “In My Lifetime” with Action Bronson has a more energetic tone to it warning their competition to be concerned. “Decades” flips “Oh How You Hurt Me” by The Fabulous Performers talking about how money isn’t everything & after the “J.J. Abrahams” skit, “BLACKWHITEBOY” comes through with a visceral shot at everyone who’s ever doubted him.
Meanwhile on “Quasi”, we have Logic asking Madlib to start rapping again with an instrumental that’s clearly influenced by The Beat Konducta just before “Bleed It” heavily samples the Beastie Boys looking back on his childhood. “LaDonda” has a bit of a J Dilla influence to the production with Logic looking back on his career up to this point & after the “Aaron Judge” skit, “Clouds” with Langston Bristol serves as a decent prelude to College Park with the beat-switching up during the last minute so Curren$y can steal the show.
After the “Michael Rap” skit, “Therapy Music” was the only single that I didn’t like prior to the album’s release due to how similar Russ & Logic both sound. However, I do like the jazzy instrumental & the reference Russ had to Game of Thrones on the Warner Bros.-owned HBO. After the “Tony Revolori” skit, “Rogue 1” works in some dusty drums & a whistling teapot kettle to talk about how he had to take a step back leading into “Breath Control” sampling “I Really Really Love You” by Father’s Children as he & Wiz Khalifa tell anyone who wants to set up to them not to try them.
After the “NEMS” skit, “Nardwuar” marks the return of Logic’s alter-ego Doc D accompanied by a fuzzy boom bap beat while “Kickstyle” is just a decent Ratt Pack reunion & I’m disappointed that Bobby doesn’t have a verse on here at all because Big Lenbo & IamJMARS’ are both just mid. After the “EarlyBird” skit, Royce da 5’9” tags along for the raw “10 Years” to celebrate their accomplishments in the previous decade while RZA comes into the picture for the basement-sounding “Porta 1” to spit some hardcore bars.
After the “NeedleDrop” skit, “Introducing Nezi” is basically Logic’s way of showing Nezi Momodu to a wider audience with a siren-laced instrumental while “Orville” with Blu & Exile and Like has a chipmunk soul flare to it letting y’all know how they get down. “Carnival” with AZ finds the 2 over some horns to creep up on them lyrically referencing 10-time WWE world champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 5-time WWE Tag Team Champion & $7 Productions co-founder The Rock while the title track after the “Lena’s Insight” skit goes into a more symphonic direction talking about wanting the ESPN division of The Walt Disney Company to get their shit right.
The penultimate track “I Guess I Love It” with The Game brings back the jazz to admit that it’s funny how their feet been on the beach lookin’ at the sky & the stars above with “Sayonara” ending the album with a 10-minute open letter to Def Jam since Vinyl Days fulfills his contract with the label after being signed to them for the past decade.
Going into this, I had a strong feeling that this would be the best album of Logic’s career given how much I loved almost every single that he put out prior & that ended up being the case here. Granted there are WAY too many skits & some of the “mumble rap” lines are outdated as Hell but once you get past that, the actual music on here is actually his most artistically definitive yet.
This is the sophomore album from Compton, California emcee Westside Boogie. Breaking out onto the scene in 2014 with his debut mixtape Thirst 48 as well as following it up with The Reach exactly a year later as well as Thirst 48, Pt. II the year after that, he would eventually catch the attention of Detroit icon Eminem by signing to his Interscope Records imprint Shady Records in late 2017. His full-length debut Everything’s for Sale at the beginning of 2019 was a solid way to introduce himself to a wider audience & he’s finally returning in the form of More Black Superheroes.
“KILLA MODE” opens up the album with an acoustic guitar & some crooning vocals as Westside Boogie warns everyone to stop playing with him whereas “STUCK” takes a more piano-trap route & show a more contemplative side of him. “NONCHALANT” has a more summery tone to it getting romantic just before “LOL SMH II” starts off with a more soulful tone talking about needing power to be present, but switches into somewhat of a funkier sound saying he’s as calm as can be.
Meanwhile on “CAN’T EVEN LIE”, we have Soulja Boy tagging along over some keys & hi-hats calling out the pussies leading into the smooth “PRIDEFUL II” asking his girl what she be getting into. “AIGHT” returns to trap territory to brush off all the cap people be telling him, but then Smino & Teezo Touchdown come into the picture for the sensual “CAN’T GET OVER YOU” talking about how they can’t get over their significant others.
“RATCHET BOOG” is an aggressive introduction to one of the 3 alter egos that Westside Boogie has with a cool beat-switch towards the end while “SOMETHIN’ STRANGE” seems a little out of place given the fact that Kalan.FrFr has the most presence on it out of everyone. The penultimate track “WINDOWS DOWN” with WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg finds the 2 talking about smoking weed over a tranquilizing instrumental & “ANTHONY (WAR)” finishes the album with a well sequenced 2-parter admitting he thinks he’s too bougie now.
We’ve waited 3 long years for this one to come out & I think I happen like it a tad bit better than Everything’s for Sale. I admire the whole concept of embracing your powers as well as how much Westside Boogie has grown both creatively & personally since the last time we heard from him.
SoFaygo is a 20 year old rapper from Cobb County, Georgia who has cemented himself as one of the biggest faces in the plugg/pluggnB & rage scenes. He’s gone on to drop a total of 10 EPs since 2015 & now in light of Travis Scott signing him to Cactus Jack Records early last year, SoFaygo is preluding his upcoming full-length debut Pink Heartz by dropping an 11th EP & to celebrate him earning a spot on the new XXL Freshman Class list that also came out today.
“Long Way” is an amazingly energetic opener produced by Nick Mira of Internet Money Records & BryceUnknwn talking about how far he’s come whereas “Count Me Out” takes a airier, trap route instrumental wise dismissing those who be doubting him. The song “Good Day” returns to a more cloudier approach confessing that he can’t stay in Atlanta anymore while the penultimate track “Fall” is him bragging about him being the shit over a hazy beat. “Got Damn!” ends the EP by venting out what’s been on his mind & the Bakkwoods/Rafmade instrumental on here has a futuristic flare to it that I really like.
My lil bro J$zpiech actually put me onto SoFaygo months before he signed to Cactus Jack & I really think he gave everyone a fun little prelude ahead of Pink Heartz. The production is alright, but I can’t deny that he has a knack for catchy songwriting & melodic performances. All that being said: I’ll be going into his upcoming full-length debut expecting it to be a pivotal moment in his career.
