Matt Champion – “Slint’s Favorite” review

This is the 2nd EP from Woodlands, Texas rapper, singer/songwriter & producer Matt Champion. A founding member of the now defunct BROCKHAMPTON collective, he also released a solo EP Harley in the spring of 2017 right before the classic SATURATION trilogy & Mika’s Laundryfrom this spring showed the versatility that he was very much capable of. 8 months later, Matt’s surprise-dropping Slint’s Favorite.

“Faye” fuses experimental hip hop, trap, cloud rap, alternative R&B, witch house & industrial hip hop to talk about being haunted while “Hacker”works in elements of alt-pop, neo-soul, alternative R&B & psychedelic soul singing that he wants a home run. “SPJ” produced by Romil Hemnani brings indietronica, alt-pop, minimal wave, alternative R&B & neo-soul together asking if everyone would erase their minds if it was easier prior to “Ash” featuring Deb Never finishing the EP pulling from bedroom pop, alt-pop, downtempo, alternative R&B, art pop, neo-soul & dream pop wanting to know why they don’t ask each other out anymore.

Ahead of his solo set at Camp Flog Gnaw this weekend, Matt whips up a 4-track EP that continues to demonstrate the artistic range prominently shown throughout Mika’s Laundry earlier within the year. Styles like experimental hip hop, trap, cloud rap, alternative R&B, witch house, industrial hip hop, alt-pop, neo-soul, psychedelic soul, indietronica, minimal wave, bedroom pop, downtempo, art pop & dream pop all shift into 1 another fluidly during the span of 12 minutes.

Score: 4/5

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Young Nudy – “Sli’merre 2” review

Atlanta, Georgia rapper Young Nudy back for his 10th mixtape. Despite being cousins with 21 Savage, he eventually carved a lane of his own in the last decade with his last 9 mixtapes (the most notable one being the Pi’erre Bourne-produced Sli’merre) & 3 full-lengths. Rich Shooter & EA Monster were the last projects of his that I covered, coming off Gumbo from a year & a half to reunite with Pi’erre for the highly awaited Sli’merre 2 ahead of his next album fully produced by Metro Boomin’.

“Come to My World” is this syrupy trap intro talking about Nudy being way too geeked up as it is whereas “Get Fucked Up” works in some synthesizers & hi-hats once again not shying away from making it known that he’s under the influence. “Money” pushes forward with an uncanny trap atmosphere instrumentally stacking his bread all the way up to the ceiling prior to “I’m Big Dawg” hookin’ the synths back up in order for him to flex his current status in the rap game.

Moving on from there, “Breakdown” kinda has this bubbly trap flare to the beat talking about doing shakedowns taking everything since he’s #1 & everyone else is right behind him just before “Bang Pistols” pulls a bit from the plugg scene showing off his mob ties. “Loaded” is another synthesizer-heavy trap joint boasting that he’s sitting on millions leading into “Splash” sampling “NEVEREVER” by Destroy Lonely addressing the theme of lust.

“10pc Teriyaki” kicks off the 2nd half of Sli’merre 2 on a playful tip maintaining a synth-trap edge talking about being a star in the subgenre & smiling at his opps while “Gotta Salute” flexing that his clique remains bulletproof on top of broke muhfuckas being unable to do what he does. The prominent woodwinds throughout “Save Myself” featuring BabyDrill are a uniquely distinct touch getting on their gangsta shit referencing current AEW performer & commentator as well as former 7-time WWE world champion, 11-time WWE Tag Team Champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion & 3-time WWE Hardcore Champion Paul Wight while “4Slime” cloudily talks being a stone cold killer.

Meanwhile on “Bloody”, we have Nudy beginning the final leg of the tape by cautioning that he’ll shut down your trap the second he pulls up speaking the truth on wax since it’s beyond rap while the synthesizer-driven “Hakuna Matata” gets down & dirty. The lead single “Right Now” remains in the trap house tryna beat it ’til it down & finally, “How It Be” ends with more synths telling everyone who ain’t getting money to get the fuck off his dick.

Over 5 years since the original, Sli’merre 2 recaptures the essence of what made Sli’merre the best mixtape in Nudy’s catalog since Nudy Land & joins it’s predecessor as one of the most essential bodies of work in his catalog. Granted you can never go wrong with Pi’erre’s 1-of-a-kind production style top to bottom, but I most importantly appreciate the fact Nudy got lesser guests than he did last time he did a tape with Pi’erre & mostly held it on his own.

Score: 4.5/5

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Berner – “Hoffa” review

Berner is a 41 year old rapper, songwriter & entrepreneur from San Francisco, California who began battle rapping in high school. Following his 2007 debut mixtape Dirty Sneakers…Plenty Ways to Get It, he would go on to drop 15 LPs along with a couple more mixtapes & a couple EPs in addition to the plethora of collaborative projects he has with numerous artists. Ahead of the Cookies cannabis brand’s 10-year anniversary however, Berner’s coming off The Farmer’s Market for his 16th album.

“Sweat” is this slick west coast trap opener flexing that he got big money whereas “Remember” moves on from there working in some sampling to talk about the memory he has remembering way things were before the cash flow. “Hard to Spend” gets on the psychedelic trap tip admitting that the dirty money getting more difficult to blow as time goes on just before “Heavy” featuring Mozzy & Peysoh gives off a Detroit trap vibe describing shit as sketchy

As for “Power”, we have Berner calmingly talking about being attracted to the titular feeling into “Callin’” featuring Moneybagg Yo & Ty$ brings the trio together so all 3 of them can ball with money on the mind. “Who Gon’ Love You?” featuring Larry June offers a cloudier flare to the table asking that exact question when it goes dry while “Lots of Green” featuring B-Real, Devin the Dude & Wiz Khalifa finds the quartet expressing their love for weed.

“Fried” featuring De’Migo has cool sampling techniques throughout pulling from soul & jazz music knowing that both of them will be fine as long as they wake up in the morning, but then “Easy” turns the jazz rap influences way higher talking about breaking the bank. “The Source” featuring Ghostface Killah, Killer Mike & Raekwon is a standout for me since every single one of them floated over a chipmunk soul beat while “The Smoke” featuring Too $hort produced by Ant Banks finds both of them assuring not to worry over where they going.

Galaxy! & Zakee both join Berner for “Ruthless” reminding that they’ve been shining while “Possible” talks jumping obstacles in 2024 doing the impossible. “Litigation” featuring Cozmo gets stuck between fake smiles & legal proceedings while the title track featuring Chevy Woods & Cozmo homages labor union leader Jimmy Hoffa who disappeared almost 50 years ago. “Keep Pushin’” passionately gets his message across & the closer “Amazing” sends it all off smoking the pain away.

Hoffa as a sequel to Gotti recaptures everything that made its predecessor stand out in his discography & makes it a completely different listening experience altogether. The production offers a wide range of palates from trap to cloud rap, Detroit trap, psychedelia, chipmunk soul & jazz rap for the Cookies founder to tackle themes of organized crime joined by guest performances that’re either outstanding or tiresome.

Score: 3.5/5

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Tha God Fahim – “Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap” review

Nicholas Craven back once again with Tha God Fahim for his 47th EP. Starting as an affiliate of Griselda Records as well as being 1/3 of the Dump Gawds alongside Mach-Hommy & Your Old Droog, we also can’t ignore the massive discography that he’s managed to build for himself, some of the standouts include Breaking Through tha Van Allen Belts & Dump Assassins. But dude has been on a CRAZY ass EP run in 2023 with the standouts being the Camoflauge Monk-produced Dark Shogunn Assassin, the Nature Sounds-backed Iron Bull & the Nicholas Craven-produced Dump Gawd: Shot Clock Kingseries, the Oh No-produced BerserkoDump Gawd: Rhyme Pays produced by Mike Shabb, Tha Supreme Hoarder of All Pristine WealthSupreme Dump Legend: Soul Cook Saga produced by Cookin’ Soul & more recently Machine Gun Vocabulary produced by Cartune Beatz. 5 years since Tha Myth Who Never Quit, we got a 2nd AND a 3rd installment last month & they’re maintaining the dumpin’ with Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap.

“Saiyan Pride” is this soulful boom bap intro reminding us of the fact that his catalogue is extensive on top of the mystic energy that he always brings whereas “A Nightmare You Can’t Come Back From” works in a chipmunk soul instrumental asking who’s as dope as him lyrically. “Dump Dynasty” hooks up a guitar sample with more kicks & snares making change by spitting flames prior to “10x Gravity” soulfully talking about his power level unable to be mapped out or calculated.

As for “Tha Riddle of Steel”, we have Fahim over a flute cautioning what will happen if you fuck with the known unknown just before “LSSJ” strips the drums altogether talking about MCs tryna weather the storm. “Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap 2” is a raw sequel to a Myth Who Never Quit 3 standout leading into “Tha Supreme Kai of Bean Pies” makes MCs meet death sampling soul once more, but then “Repetition” finishes the EP rhymin’ like a brewin’ storm.

Giving a couple weeks for both Tha Myth Who Never Quit 2 & Tha Myth Who Never Quit 3 to breathe, Breadrick Douglas & the greatest hip hop producer from Montréal recapture the same energy of the original “Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap” track on the last EP & carried it over onto a 20 minute EP of it’s own. Nicholas Craven’s chipmunk soul-heavy boom bap & drumless sound has always brought the best out of the Dump Gawd, except I like this more than Tha Myth Who Never Quit 3 & almost as much as Tha Myth Who Never Quit 2.

Score: 4.5/5

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Jason Martin – “Repack” review

This is the 3rd EP from Compton, California emcee, songwriter & producer Jason Martin. Originally known as Problem, he would go on to release over a dozen mixtapes as well as 4 full-length studio albums & a couple EPs. I can’t forget to mention both collaborative efforts DJ Quik, the first being Rosecrans back in 2017 & the follow-up Chupacabra days before Kendrick Lamar’s now historic 1-off Pop Out concert at the Kia Forum. earlier this summer. However, he’s warming everyone up for the next era by dropping off a Repack.

“Problem” featuring Laila! is a soulful, self-produced Mobb opener referencing the moniker that made a name for Jason whereas “Kill Switch”featuring Daz Dillinger further pulls inspiration from the Bay thanks to Fredwreck talking about their gang ties. “Live It Up” featuring Lil Vada & Sada Baby on the remix maintains a Mobb vibe instrumentally detailing the gangsta lifestyle once more leading into “You Know What It Is” going for a traditional west coast flare to talk about everyone knowing the deal courtesy of Mike & Keys.

As for My Boy”, we have Jason & Glasses Malone coming together to drop braggadocio just before “Poridge” featuring Jay Worthy & Mitchy Slick shows off the rare aura of all 3 of them. “5 Pack” blends g-funk & hyphy talking about being artists being indicted for what they say in their music which I think is wrong, but then “Cookie” turns the bass up refusing to go back-&-forth over a topic of discussion he doesn’t care enough for.

“Come & Shine with Me” featuring RJmrLA playfully encourages everyone to shine with them leading into “Hold Up” featuring LaToiya Williams balancing g-funk & trap to talk about y’all having no more chances. “Actin’ Tuff” featuring Dreebo goes drumless breaking down specific type of bitches & after the “God Knows Best” skit, “Goin’” featuring Lil Neph soulfully finishes by talking about keeping it moving the money flowin’.

Restoring a feeling that’s been missing from California music as a whole 5 months ago, the Repack is completely different since Mike & Keys take the opportunity to help Jason bring together a myriad of west coast sounds old & new with the beats with the guests that join him being a dope mix of mainly west coast veterans and of course a few up-&-comers sprinkled into the equation.

Score: 3.5/5

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Glokk40Spaz – “Slaughter House Recordz” review

This is the 2nd EP Atlanta, Georgia recording artist Glokk40Spaz. Emerging off the Don’t Get Took Off mixtape trilogy & the debut EP Spaz&B, he would also go on to drop his very first LP 2 Glokks followed by the sophomore effort Baby Whoa with both of them receiving quite a bit of acclaim. Took the Biggest Risk distributed by Columbia Records was a great major label debut for EBG Records founder, as was the acclaimed collab EP with OsamaSon earlier this summer 3vil Reflection & his latest magnum opus Da Real Oso. However, what was intended to be a deluxe version of his latest album has morphed into Slaughter House Recordz.

“Welcome 2 da Slaughter” produced by Internet Money Records in-house producer Vendr is this eerie drill opener breaking down his lifestyle whereas the rage-inducing “Decoy” boasts that he’s self-employed & rich as a muhfucka. “3rd Day Out” maintains a hypertrap vibe talking about being home from the pen for 3 days just before the drill-sounding “Take It Up with God” once again shows off his mob ties.

The song “Vicinity” talking about hoes being around him taking risks & bitches at the exact same time leading into “Black Rose Nightmare” hopping over another rage beat from Dylvinci flexing that he’s cool with the heat despite how cold his diamonds are. Finally, the closing track “Yess” rounds out the EP showing off his money being tall as fuck keeping his whole entire block on lockdown.

All 7 of these cuts could’ve easily made it onto Da Real Oso & would’ve fit with the context of it, but I’m not mad at him making it into a separate entity of it’s own. Even if I think the production on the latter is a tad bit better, Glokk40 still undeniably makes some aggressively hungry performances in roughly 17 minutes continuing to hold off from having any guests joining him.

Score: 3.5/5

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A$AP Ferg – “Darold” review

Manhattan, New York emcee & songwriter A$AP Ferg finally releasing his 3rd studio LP. One of the most prominent members of the A$AP Mob, his 2013 solo debut Trap Lord & the debut mixtape Ferg Forever both cemented that further although the sophomore effort A.$.A.P. (Always $trive And Prosper) received mixed responses for its more commercial heavy-sound. Still Striving & Floor Seats both marked a return to form for Ferg although Floor Seats II got divided feedback during the 2020 COVID lockdowns, Darold based on the singles had me hoping it would be another step in the right direction artistically.

“Light Work” featuring Bloody Osiris & DD Osama starts off by dabbling with the New York drill sound telling everyone to go get their lights whereas “Thought I Was Dead” produced by Lex Luger & Mike WiLL-Made It works in some horns & hi-hats to talk about his return to music after so long. “Alive :(“ has a passionate tone altogether admitting he’s been trying to his find his passion for this rap shit lately prior to the lead single “Allure” featuring Future taking it live from Atlanta.

Denzel Curry joins Ferg on the energetic “Demons” to talk about being on the corner, making the hood go brazy just before “Messy” take the trap out talking about everything being disorderly & keeping it that way. “French Tips” has a bit of a boom bap vibe instrumentally keeping it hot, but then “Dead Homies” brings a soulful flare to the table remembering all of his friends who unfortunately can’t be here with us today.

“Casting Spells” hooks up a classy beat from Mario Winans, Lil Rod & disgraced Bad Boy Entertainment founder awaiting trial next spring Puff Daddy a.k.a. P. Diddy or Diddy keeping the hate away from him wanting to live & take care of his family while “Pool” strips the drums completely hoping that one never changes on him. “Chosen” maintains a drumless edge pushing towards the final moments of Darold showing a bit of introspection, which the bombastic title track expands on boasting that he’s been outside.

A rich auditory experience, Ferg’s first full-length in nearly a decade echoes his enduring impact on hip hop combining seasoned artists & rising stars offering something for everybody. This goal is achieved by the production drawing inspiration from boom bap, trap, neo-soul, contemporary R&B, pop rap, hardcore hip hop & the New York Drill scene refining the personal themes of A.$.A.P. (Always $trive And Prosper).

Score: 3.5/5

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Ab-Soul – “Soul Burger” review

This is the 3rd mixtape from Carson, California emcee Ab-Soul. Coming up as 1/2 of the duo Area 51 alongside Snake Hollywood, Soulo would go on to sign to Top Dawg Entertainment after their disbandment & has remained under Top Dawg’s wing since. Dude’s first 2 mixtapes Longterm & Longterm 2: Lifestyles of the Broke & Almost Famous would begin to turn heads & I can’t forget about his first 2 full-lengths Longterm Mentality & Control System going on to become the Black Lip Bastard’s most acclaimed efforts to date, but These Days… & Do What Thou Wilt. were both released to mediocre reception from many including myself. Herbert marked a return to form for him a couple years ago & is now remembering Doeburger throughout Soul Burger.

“9 Mile” is a drumless/boom bap 2-parter sampling the iconic Mobb Deep single “Shook Ones, Pt. II” talking about how caine never really left his side whereas “Paiday” takes the trap route instrumentally demanding he gets paid. “All That” featuring Jason Martin & produced by Tae Beast goes for a bit of a gangsta rap vibe representing their west coast street ties just before the sample-driven “California Dream” featuring Vince Staples with 9th Wonder behind the boards shows love to their home state.

Moving on from there, “B.U.C.K.O. Jr.” returns to a trap sound touching on his soldier mentality leading into Doechii joining Soulo for “I, Myself & Me” brings back a bit of a boom bap edge talking about it simply being themselves. “DND” featuring Notorious N.I.Q. pulls inspiration from the trap scene once more thanks to Beat Butcha & Sounwave running the checks up tryna pay the price, but then the symphonic trap hybrid “Don Julio 70” by Soul Fre$h demonstrates the duo’s chemistry.

“Go Pro” featuring Ty$ starts the 2nd half of the tape boasting that the real ones are back in style while the catchy “Saudi Sweats” makes it clear that if it ain’t about the money, he ain’t really having it. “Squeeze 1st 2” is this jazzy sequel to the JAY-Z joint “Squeeze 1st” letting the gun off & asking questions later while “Crazier” featuring J.I.D brings the 2 together for a drumlessly experimental ride showing off abstract lyricism.

The song “Peace” featuring Lupe Fiasco & Punch strips the drums once more showing a bit of a conscious side to them for 5 & a half minutes while the penultimate track “The Sky’s Limitless” heads for a psychedelic trap direction courtesy of Terrace Martin whom Kendrick Lamar mentioned on “The Day The Party Died” encouraging listeners that they can have & be whatever they want in this life. “Righteous Man” properly ends the tape on some hardcore shit keeping a bullet with your name on it.

For his 1st mixtape in nearly 14 & a half years, Soulo maintains the consistency of Herbert by cooking up a homage to Doeburger that I feel does his memory justice. The production ranges from boom bap to trap & drumless with the lyricism offering a look at the gangsta life, consciousness & even a hint of abstract through use of metaphors along with symbolism & cryptic meanings.

Score: 3.5/5

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Babytron – “Tronicles” review

Detroit emcee Babytron delivering his highly anticipated sophomore effort. Coming up as a member of the trio ShittyBoyz along with his childhood friends Stanwill & TR Dee signing to Lando Bando’s own The Hip Hop Lab Records, he also branched out on impressive solo career for himself as well as the side groups Lewis & Clark and the Dookie Brothers. But the last couple years was probably his biggest yet landing interviews ranging from No Jumper to even Rolling Stone following the release of Luka Trončić a couple summers prior to signing with EMPIRE Distribution later that same month & then Bin Reaper 2: The 2nd Coming that same fall. Bin Reaper 3 ended the trilogy with a 2-disc effort, the bootleg Style EP wound up being disappointing, the full-length LP 6 made up for it as did his previous tape Megatron 2. His collaborative mixtape Mario & Luigi with Certified Trapper wasn’t all that great either, so I was hoping Tronicles would bounce back again.

“1 of Them Ones” is this robbery Detroit trap opener talking about being in the kitchen suggesting you go get some pans since it’s too much work in here whereas “Yew!” has a bit of a dancy trap vibe instrumentally wanting to get tapped in with Warner Bros. alongside referencing both SMW Tag Team Champion, WWE Tag Team Champion & 6-time WWE Hardcore Champion Al Snow AND 10-time WWE world champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 5-time WWE Tag Team Champion, United Football League (UFL) co-owner, TKO Group Holdings board of directors member, $7 Productions co-founder & the final boss of professional wrestling The Rock whose 2nd cousin once removed Nia Jax is the current 2-time WWE Women’s Champion.

The grim atmosphere of “Nightmare on Yo Street” was perfect, considering the fact that it was released as a single this Halloween shrugging off his ex moving on to finer things in life while “Hawk Tuah” references Hailey Welch becoming a meme earlier this summer. “Hellraiser” likening the Dog $hit Militia to terrorists suggesting he should rock shorts the way he balls just before “Neymar” offers a delicate trap flare homaging the Brazilian soccer player of the same name including a reference to former 2-time ECW World Heavyweight Champion, FTW Champion, ECW World Television Champion, 3 time ECW World Tag Team Champion, JCW World Juggalo Heavyweight Champion, NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion, IWGPジュニアヘビー級チャンピオン & the longest reigning XPW World Heavyweight Champion Sabu.

“TRX” maintains a Detroit trap edge asking how you fly when he ain’t even past TSA leading into “Tronald Trump” talks running for president since the bigoted, misogynistic 45th president of the United States Donald Trump is now unfortunately the president-elect & will be inaugurated as the 47th president in January although I’m not saying I support the current Vice President Kamala Harris & “Is You Serious?” featuring Project Money flexes they’re more macho than WWE Hall of Famer, former 6-time world champion & Intercontinental Champion Randy Savage.

Meanwhile on “Haunted House”, we have Babytron cautioning that you won’t ever step out of the D$M haunted house once you set foot in that bitch prior to “3 OT” talking about putting a triple overtime, assuring that it wasn’t luck at all for him. “Lost in the Sauce” produced by Certified Trapper stands out as a lowend hit throwing in a bar referring to former WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion & 2-time WWE tag team champion Carlito ahead of “Headbop” cleverly referencing Eminem over a Danny G & Jakesand instrumental since he was featured on THE DƎATH OF SLIM SHADY (COUP DE GRÂCE) this summer.

“DPOY” finishes the first half of the Tronicles boasting that he feels like San Francisco 49ers QB Brock Purdy the way he touches down in the Bay Area of California while “Me & My Bitch” fuses Detroit trap with chipmunk soul flexing that he & his new girl are chillin’ in a 2-seater. “Funnybutt” makes something outta nothing as if the D$M crew are really a bunch of magicians while “Clark Fent” pokes fun at a fiend who thinks he’s Superman.

Lazer Dim 700’s feature on “Lion’s Den” doesn’t do much for me although I love Tron referencing 2-time WWE Champion, 8-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 2-time WWE United States Champion & 9-time WWE tag team champion The Miz a.k.a. The Mid that is until “AMP” makes a dope reference to former No Limit Records founder Master P. “What Type?” wants to know the bullshit people on pointing out the fact WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson will literally beat the living shit outta Jake Paul a week from today on Netflix while the piano-driven “Poison Oak” admits being stingy with the Quagen.

“Lame Asl” contains one of my favorite beats on the entire album courtesy of Helluva dissin’ everyone out here for being as corny as they are while “Home Run” featuring Dave Blunts dismissing those who bullshit with the bags they make in contrast to them legitimately making theirs. “Silly Goose” flexes everyone better get a raffle ticket if they really want a chance to win including a bar referring to the current UFC Heavyweight Champion & former 2-time UFC Light Heavyweight Champion Jon Jones while “Really Jimmy? blows through 50 states poppin’ out with $3M.

The song “Summer ‘24” pushes towards the final moments of the Tronicles talking about the block scorching as much as it was earlier this past summer while the penultimate track “Heavy Mental” fuses Detroit trap & orchestral talking about how nobody asked for any favors in regards to what he did out here in the streets. “Legend of Tron” ends the Tronicles brushes off not getting enough respect since the ain’t done yet.

Clocking in at almost an hour & 15 minutes, Babytron reaffirms exactly why he’s the biggest member of the ShittyBoyz & one of Detroit’s finest in general. His production stands out amongst his local contemporaries sounding similarly to one another making further room for his unique punchlines to reveal himself as one of the Motor City’s best in recent memory.

Score: 3.5/5

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BigBabyGucci – “ANTI” review

This is the 5th full-length studio LP from Charlotte, North Carolina recording artist BigBabyGucci. Start in the summer of 2016 off his debut EP ART HOE Collection, he would continue to build a name for himself by putting out 19 more EPs as well as his last 3 full-lengths & a mixtape along the way. Baby 5 came off some of his best LPs & EPs to date When U Wake Up & When You Go to Sleep respectively continued the acclaim, which the alternative-heavy ANTI nearly a month after Jake Doyle became the oldest DPW Worlds Champion will surely elevate.

“Senzu” starts by singing over a rage beat from thr6x that he would never make someone do anything they won’t ever want to do poppin’ a band whereas “Lost Control” featuring Aloïs brings the 2 together for a smooth duet revolving around themes of love. “How U Feel” psychedelically sings about people keeping it trill & others switching up ratting on him leading into the pop rap/trap crossover “Givenchy Paintings” featuring MDMA co-produced by Rafmade assuring his lover they know he’ll be there soon.

Meanwhile on “Xo”, we have BBG singing over synthesizers about an ex of his having a new man on top of a new bag & new problems just before “Cheap Thrills” goes full-blown cloud rap asking those using a short-lived moment of excitement or pleasure that is ultimately unsatisfying when they’re gonna pay. “Badina” has a bit of a Ye formerly known as Kanye West influence promising he’ll never keep her waiting while “The Fall Thru” is a 2-parter going through the motions.

“Sandbox Raps” starts the 2nd half of ANTI flexing that he got bigger toys in his sandbox while “Cape Town” instrumentally pays homage to The Neptunes down the 4-start count at the very beginning rapping about not knowing any mercy. “Under the Influence” hazily wants everyone that tells him they have his back to actually prove it, but then “Fancy & Focused” luxuriously suggests he might buy the bank since he’s so money hungry.

Nearing the final leg, “Hype” gives off a stripped-back trap vibe hearing the pussy fire only for him to leave after hitting it since people were gassing it up to him while the cloudy “Linkup USA” sings that he hope his lover follows him whenever he dips out. Bad Kids” featuring Thouxanbanfauni pushes further towards the conclusion boasting that both of them are 1 of a kind & “Air” finishes with a catchy heater needing his romantic interest to come on by.

Originally intended to be an EP, ANTI surpasses both When U Wake Up & When You Go to Sleep as the most essential entry in BigBabyGucci’s discography elevating his artistry to newer levels. The alternative production is a refreshing change of pace for him compared to his earlier material, demonstrating his range both as a rapper & most importantly as a singer.

Score: 4/5

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