GT – “Great Timing” review

GT is a 33 year old rapper from Detroit, Michigan who got his start at the beginning of 2018 by releasing the debut mixtape Relentless along with both his full-length debut Timeless & the sophomore effort Relentless during the 2020 COVID-19 lockdowns. He would later follow these up with 2 more albums Call Me GT & Motion, his first EP Money Counter Music spawned his own label of the same name & the sequel became the 5th LP in his discography. GT’s previous album Owe It to Myself got mixed reception the summer prior & is returning with a month left in 2024 for his 2nd EP.

“I’m Straight” produced by Pooh Beatz is this cloudy opener assuring everyone he’s been doing good whereas “Get ‘Em Back” works in a rubbery bass-line & pianos talking about being the same despite being stressed. “Stay Low” cautions those coming in your life with bad intentions just before “Money, Power & Respect” stand sour from the Helluva instrumental to the boastful lyricism.

Landstrip Chip joins GT on “The Streets Dead” clarifying that both of them can break down how deep shit can get while “Prayed for It” heads for a sample-driven Detroit trap vibe speaking his dreams into existence & finally being fortunate enough to be in a place where he can finally live them out. “This Life of Sin” featuring Streetlord Juan ends the EP with 1 more Detroit trap cut calling themselves living legends.

Right when you thought that the Detroit trap star wasn’t gonna drop anything in 2024, he came in the game during the 4th quarter & dropped off an 18 minute EP reaching the same caliber as both Money Counter Music offerings along with Timeless in being essential listens for those new to his discography. The features are alright, but the productions sees some notable improvements & GT sounds focused ahead of whatever he’ll do next.

Score: 3.5/5

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Dax – “From a Man’s Perspective” review

This is sophomore full-length studio LP from St. John’s, Newfoundland & Labrador, Canada rapper Dax. Working as a janitor before blowing up after dropping the single “YourWorthIt.org” with Hopsin in the summer of 2018, this was followed up with his debut EP It’s Different Now shortly after & the I’ll Say It For You EP under the Strange Music subsidiary It Goes Up Entertainment. Pain Paints Pictures was one of the worst debuts of this decade & 3 years later, he’s returning From a Man’s Perspective now that he’s signed to Columbia Records.

The title track starts with a melodramatically cloudy opener talking about wanting to be with this individual for the night whereas the acoustic “Took My Heart Out” whines about not wanting to use his heart anymore & comes off as sappy than genuine. “Place of Peace” works in a guitar & some fingersnaps telling his significant other than he wants to go to her for peace while “A Real Man” talks about what this woman wants not being legitimate.

“Soldier” featuring Tom MacDonald ends the first leg with a tedious far-right propaganda joint which is odd because neither of them are from the United States just before “To Be a Man” takes a laughable shot a county rap & it’s not Darius Rucker’s fault. “Lonely Dirt Road” mixes cloud rap & pop rap escaping to a place where no one knows, but then “You’re the Problem” tries to gaslight his critics saying their dislike for his music comes from a reflection of theirselves.

The penultimate song “Diary of a Man Trying” nears the conclusion of From a Man’s Perspective talking about trying to move on GPSing all his thoughts even if they wind up leading him to places that’ll hurt him & finally, “I Hate That I Love You” ends the album by dissing the mother of his child as if he’s Eminem in the late 90s/early 2000s, who has always been an influence to Dax except that he exemplifies Em’s worst traits to a new level.

From the moment that Falling in Reverse put out Popular Monster this summer up until now, I wasn’t sure if there could be a hip hop album that could match the metalcore offering in terms of being unlistenable & Dax sure enough manages to do it with a month left in the year. The mainly country rap influenced production is tasteless & his subject matter delivered From a Man’s Perspective feels more trite rather than sincere. Tyler, The Creator’s 7th album Chromakopia does a significantly better job of providing introspection than this.

Score: 0/5

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Nettspend – “Badass Fucking Kid” review

Nettspend is a 17 year old rapper & songwriter from Richmond, Virginia notable for being an affiliate of both the Novagang & 1c34 collectives. His debut EP KiCKDOOR was released a year & a half ago to mixed reception, although his subsequent singles have been skyrocketing his popularity in the jerk & lowend subgenres to the point where he landed a record deal with Grade A Productions & Interscope Records for his official debut mixtape with an interesting list of production credits that could make it clear the breakout EP.

“Growing Up” starts the album on some atmospheric trap shit talking about not wanting to grow up although Tyler, The Creator did the concept better on “Parade” off his only mixtape Bastard whereas “Leader” goes for a rage-inducing vibe instrumentally thanks to Kenny Beats & Ok talking about trying new things, which I’m all for. “Project Pat” keeps the hypertrap vibes going paying homage to the titular Hypnotize Camp Posse member & “Tommy” flexes his girl street slimin’.

Moving on from there, “Tyla” maintains the rage beats talking about needing a bitch as lit as the mononymous Queen of Popiano prior to “A$AP” incorporating some pianos & hi-hats making it clear to pull up soon as you can referencing Rocky’s upcoming 4th album Don’t Be Dumb. “Fuck Cancer” talks about being on the run like he’s Foxy Brown & his girl being on the daily grind, but then “Skipping Class” sampling “Genesis” by Grimes cuts straight to the chase that he’s done being bad with this specific person.

“Beach Leak” is another favorite of mine from the drill instrumental from Evilgiane to him likening himself to a Gen Z version of Future while “Shut Up” gets back on the hypertrap tip talking about feeling like it’s a glitch considering how big he is on ‘em & being the shit. “Bird Box” bombastically makes an interesting comparison to the 2018 film that it’s named after while “Drop the Blunt” playfully steadily stays smoking dope.

The song “Perc Soda” begins the encore of Badass Fucking Kid talking about lacing his pop with percocets & he’s the baddest kid of 2024 while the energetic penultimate track “Laughin’” wants to know exactly why these fuckboys be bluffin’ out here. The closer “Say Please” finishes Nettspend’s debut fusing cloud rap & drill talking about how it ain’t his fault he got as much swag as he does.

Announcing his arrival officially, the Virginia up-&-comer hailing from the same city that made Pharrell from the greatest production duo of all-time The Neptunes as told in Piece by Piece a couple months ago showcases his promising future with the production ranging rage to cloud rap, drill & trap in addition to Nettspend giving us a look at who some of his influences are musically.

Score: 3.5/5

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Roy Wood$ – “Rolling Stone” review

Roy Wood$ is a 28 year old rapper & singer/songwriter from Brampton, Ontario, Canada whom Drake signed to OVO Sound a decade ago already. He has since gone on to release a total of 3 full-length studio LPs & 3 EPs, with the most notable of the handful being the 2015 debut EP Exis & of course the debut album Walking at Dawn the following winter. Following the sophomore effort Say Less, his output since then has been welcomed to generally mixed to negative responses across the spectrum & I wanted to go into his 4th EP open minded.

“Solo” is this mediocrely melodic trap opening talking about the way this bitch be freakin’ him whereas “She Don’t Care About My Name” feels like a throwback to his earlier stuff from the atmospheric instrumental to the heartbroken lyrics explaining that this particular romantic interest could give a fuck less of getting to know him more. “Rockstar Baby” hooks up some pianos & hi-hats to talk about his new chick being so down while “Outside” hops over a generic trap beat tryna take this woman out of the party.

The song “Hold Still” reaches the starting point of Rolling Stone’s final leg by heading for a cloudy direction instrumentally & laying these thirsty ass lyrics on top of it prior to “Bring It to the Room” hilariously ripping off The Weeknd, who Drake almost signed to OVO & fell out with him after dissing on the We Still Don’t Trust You highlight “All to Myself” this spring. “Nobody Else” featuring 03 Greedo ends the EP talking about a woman who doesn’t want anyone else loving her & Greedo going the hardest.

My opinions on some of the OVO artists’ latest output including Majid Jordan’s 4th album Good People named after the singer/producer duo’s original moniker or Naomi Sharon’s debut album Obsidian & namely PARTYNEXTDOOR’s 4th album PARTYNEXTDOOR 4 haven’t really changed, but Rolling Stone has to be the most underwhelming body of work that the camp has put out in a while. The production is generally subpar & Roy himself sounds like as if he’s uninterested for at least 60% of the time.

Score: 2/5

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Stress Eater – “Everybody Eats!” review

Stress Eater is a newly formed east coast hip hop supergroup consisting of The Bronx, New York emcee/producer Kool Keith alongside Boston, Massachusetts emcee/producer duo 7L & Esoteric. They’ve collaborated with each other plenty of times whether it be “Daisycutta” off the penultimate 7LES album to date A New Dope or multiple CZARFACE projects since, so to hear that they were forming a new trio together & putting out a full-length debut of their own as a way of preluding CZARFACE’s next studio LP was only a matter of time. Only a day after WWE Hall of Famer Eric Bischoff gave CozyMax a record-setting 2nd reign as MLW World Tag Team Champions.

After the “Hunt for CZARFACE” intro, the first song “Rocket Science” is this slowly produced opener that The Czar-Keys laced as always declaring D-Day on all these wack MCs whereas “Here’s Some Homicide” featuring Ice-T takes the boom bap route instrumentally talking about stepping in front of a bus being a better option than fuckin’ with ‘em. “Cold Wave” moves on with a 81 second 7L & Esoteric solo cut returning to their battle roots & after the “People Want Sugar” interlude, “Willrow Hood” reunites the trio for a funky lyrical driving courses including a reference to WWE Hall of Famers D-Generation X.

“Top Men of Rap” makes their claim in the titular position 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 “Mecha & the Sole Brother” if you couldn’t tell homages Pete Rock & CL Smooth’s iconic debut album Mecca & the Soul Brother. “Genuine Lifestyle” dustily talks about the way they live not being phony, but then “Off the Bones” feels like a passable Czar-Keys instrumental interlude.

“Space Cowboy” returns to the boom bap nearing the conclusion of Everybody Eats! referring to themselves as the sheriffs of this town while the song “Aladdin’s Castle” featuring Mega Ran notable for making the entrance theme of 12-time WWE tag team champions The New Day mixes an organ with kicks & snares making way for a 4-minute nerdcore banger. “Giving Back to the Universe” properly finishes Stress Eater’s debut on a mellow boom bap note coming in as if it’s a Mecha-Godzilla.

Creating a funky full-length adventure, Kool Keith and 7L & Esoteric become a counterpart character that can even give the mighty CZARFACE a run for his money after working together for nearly 2 decade by giving fans a rich blend of what makes both underground acts so special whether it be the block-rocking beats that The Czar-Keys cook up or the bizarre & mind-bending lyricism from both MCs.

Score: 4.5/5

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Lateef the Truthspeaker – “Experimental Slap” review

Oakland, California emcee Lateef the Truthspeaker tapping in with Nick Andre for his official sophomore effort. A member of the Quannum Projects collective in addition to their subgroups Latyrx alongside Lateef & the Chief and The Mighty Underdogs, his first few solo mixtapes Ahead of the Curve including Truth is Love & Truth at Sea were all decent ahead of his official 2011 solo debut FireWire surpassing them in quality. 13 years later, he & Nick got more of an Experimental Slap for the underground.

“Show Love” is this sample-driven trap opener demanding his flowers considering that he’s been in the game for 3 decades already whereas “Tic Tac Toe” taking a much calmer route instrumentally relying heavy on drums talking about holding his own. After the first of 3 “Slap” skits, “Things Never Seen Before” psychedelically reminds everyone that he’s the coldest with the pen while the bassy “Watch What You Say” featuring Phesto from the Hieroglyphics subgroup Souls of Mischief puts everyone in their place.

As for “California Sober”, we have Lateef putting it down 7 times for the struggle on top of a playfully fun beat that Nick cooked up just before “Snake Bite” featuring the late Zion I frontman Baba Zumbi & Deuce Eclipse airs out every last individual who happened to turn a blind eye to them. “Guns 2” featuring Jumbo & nOOdy Oddy after another “Slap” skit serves as a sequel to a 2018 joint picking up right where the predecessor left off leading into “Freed Up” featuring Baba Zumbi & Deuce Eclipse setting out to convert nonbelievers.

“Started Dreaming Again” featuring Aima the Dreamer pairs both of them talking about their recent dreams of coinciding within them starting to feel their pens while the crooning boom bap “Waiting on My Time to Come” featuring the late Blackalicious frontman Gift of Gab eerily expresses the self-awareness of his demise quite possibly coming soon. After the final “Slap” skit, “Not Asking” feels like a cool homage to one of my favorite groups A Tribe Called Quest while “Last Night” featuring Slug takes it back to the basement talking about how ain’t nobody tryna eat off your peace.

Latyrx gets together with Baba Zumbi, Casual of the Hieroglyphics crew, The Grouch of the Living Legends & finally Lil B the Based God formerly of The Pack for a sequel to “Life is Awesome” showing their gratitude regarding the way life’s been treating them at this point in all of their careers & “Almost as Blue” finishes Lateef’s long-awaited follow-up to FireWire with this heartfelt tribute to Baba Zumbi, who passed away in the summer of 2021 following the 48 year anniversary of hip hop culture’s formation.

Mostly made during the pandemic, Experimental Slap was made during a time of great change, turmoil & personal revelation composed with fun and love as well as terror & tragedy. It’s emotional, intelligent & irreverent & while we’ve never really been for the drama. And there is in fact some drama because this album is a reﬂection of the time it was recorded. Personal & political. Intense polarization & isolation, coupled with extreme communal connection & service. Humanity in the face of death.

Score: 4.5/5

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Wordsworth – “2 Kings” review

This is the 6th solo LP from Brooklyn, New York emcee Wordsworth. A member of the duo Punch n Words & the trio eMC, he officially made his solo debut 2 decades ago already with Mirror Music followed by The Photo Album & the Donel Smokes-produced New Beginning. After JSOUL went on to produce his debut EP Blame It on Music & later Sam Brown doing Our World Today respectively, the next EP Undivided Attention would be an improvement over Blame It on Music & the last album The Fragility of Life was overloaded with too many features. That said, hearing that Stu Bangas was lacing 2 Kings had me anticipating it in being Wordsworth’s magnum opus.

The title track kicks the door down with a warmongering boom bap instrumental & flag-planting territories & never giving up whereas “Day 1” by Punch n Words featuring Ali Vegas menacingly talking about being prepared for when your day comes. “Embarrassed” works in a soul sample with some kicks & snares suggesting your money ain’t enough to keep your habits leading into “Yearbook” talking about some people he knew becoming career crooks.

“Start the Madness” featuring Breeze Brewin’ keeps it in the basement altogether for both MCs to come together to deliver lyrical insanity for nearly 4 minutes just before “Mother of My Kids” featuring C-Red finds the pair over a somber boom bap beat talking about finding another way to happiness. “Oh!” has a funkily raw flare throughout addressing the alliance of 2 giants while “Which One Are You?” featuring eLZhi wants to know if one is either fake or true.

To begin the final leg, “Something Strange” has a classy piano flip noticing a problem when the ID didn’t have the same name at all prior to “Solidified” confidently talks about his status in the game. “Hard Times Don’t Last” provides optimism for those struggling right now promising that it will get better, but then “God’s Mailbox” finishes the LP talking about sending letters to the Higher Power.

The history this guy has with Punch n Words & eMC alongside his first couple solo albums has proven to me that he’s very much skilled on the mic, yet 2 Kings feels like something I’ve always wanted from him. Stu Bangas’ production from the moment you press play to the final moments is perfect, the guests are all well chosen & Wordsworth himself sounds passionate on the mic.

Score: 4.5/5

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Crimeapple – “This, Is Not That” review

New Jersey lyricist Crimeapple enlisting Apollo Brown to produce 15th full-length album. Becoming a fan of his in the fall of 2017 with his 4th EP Sweet Dreamsalong with the Big Ghost Ltd. produced full-length debut Aguardiente that following spring, his profile in the underground grew exponentially from there. Discography standouts include the DJ Skizz-produced Wet Dirt, the DJ Muggs-produced Medallo, Cartagena, Breakfast in Hradec & Sin Cortar. El León produced by Preservation from the beginning of this year became the most I’ve enjoyed Crime’s music in a while & the official Aguardiente sequel Bazuko was a tad bit better, which raised the stakes for the Mello Music Group-backed This, Is Not That.

After the titular intro, the first song “Mercy” is this rap rock opener telling everyone who wants to take a portion to take precaution & to press your luck since you wanna press buttons whereas “Superstitious” takes the boom bap route instrumentally talking his passport lookin’ like a part of a prison gang. “Wonderful Feelin’” featuring Willie the Kid works in some strings detailing the mafioso life while “Know No Better” soulfully talks about a select few needing to stay inside.

“The Problem” goes for a drumless yet crooning vibe to the beat enjoying the fruits of his labor when he started & being in the tropics these days just before “Pitiful” ominously talks from a distressing place for roughly 3 minutes. “Almanacs” featuring Sonnyjim brings the pair together over pianos with some kicks & snares addressing those who need more than help, but then “Coke with Ice” strips the drums & keeps the keys in tact to talk about the way it be crackin’.

To begin the final leg, “My Own Good” has this atmospheric boom bap approach admitting that he still rides through his old hood time to time when he really shouldn’t be while the drumless “Favoritism” talks about being around the world & not seeing any other fix like his babies. “Mis Amigos” nears the conclusion of the LP clarifying that he’s the biggest in the county & “New Dreams” ends it with a guitar comparing it to the blind leading the blind.

This, Is Not That marks the rebirth of smoke-stained bars with Crimeapple playing both poet & philosopher by flipping bilingual manteca rhymes with a chef’s precision as well as stirring up the street grime & serving it with a side of sharp wit to remind the audience that there’s still beauty to be found in the decay over Apollo Brown’s dusty yet soulful sound built as if it’s ancient architecture.

Score: 4.5/5

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Chocc – “Journals to Johnny” review

Chocc is a 25 year old singer/songwriter from Los Angeles, California notable for being the daughter of Long Beach icon, Death Row Records owner & WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg. She first made her appearance on wax with the “No Guns Allowed” single off her father’s 12th album Reincarnated foraying into pop reggae & after releasing 4 singles under her original moniker Cori B in the span of over a decade, she’s dropping her debut EP ahead of her dad’s 20th album Missionary produced by his mentor & Death Row co-founder Dr. Dre next weekend.

After the “Just Like You” intro, the first song “Did You Mean It” starts with a fun dance-pop opener whereas “Johnny Don’t Break My Heart” stands out as a favorite in my personal opinion stripping the drums completely going for a R&B vibe aesthetically & pulling it off. “Move” continues to show her artistic range by dabbling with a bit of pop rock while “Escape2Vegas” properly finishes the EP singing over an acoustic guitar about escaping to Las Vegas, Nevada.

The talent has always been there & I’ve noticed that myself personally when I first heard her on “No Guns Allowed” back during my sophomore year of high school, but fast-forward a decade later & her putting out a debut EP on Death Row now disturbed by gamma. is a welcoming introduction to her musically. The production bases itself around dance-pop, R&B, pop rock & singer/songwriter showcasing how much Chocc has grown in the last 12 years & giving a glimpse of her future in music.

Score: 3.5/5

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Trapmat Savior – “1st Coming” review

This is the official proper full-length debut studio album from Montréal, Québec, Canada emcee Trapmat Savior. Emerging a couple years ago off his solo debut EP To Riches & Peace along with DozaTrap’s eponymous debut EP, he would later follow it up in September by releasing a couple more EPs Kirby & I Could Tell only a week apart. I however was unfamiliar with his music until a few weeks ago when it was announced that both Nicholas Craven & Mike Shabb were producing 1st Coming in it’s entirety since many probably know by now that I’ve been a fan of both those guys for a few years at this point.

“Had 2” is this drumless jazzy opener that Nicholas Craven laced flexing that he’s been a top dog for quite some time now whereas “Backpacking” hops over a bare soul sample talking about keeping it real & not backstabbing him. “30 Under 30” has more of a laidback approach assuring that he can’t be stopped from the dream he’s chasing while the classy boom bap joint “Batman” talks about everything coming naturally.

Meanwhile on “Scraping”, we have Trapmat over a vocal flip admitting he’s often been thinking of a certain individual in his life that he doesn’t speak to as he used to just before the soulful “December 26th” likening the first time he saw a brick to being magic. “Same Day” hooks up a heavenly Mike Shabb beat always making it back every time he took a risk, but then “Tags” strips the drums again to get those snakes out of his grass.

“Born 2 Win” maintains a soulfully drumless sound pushing towards the conclusion of his debut talking about being destined to catch Ws steadily while the song “Fair Game” is the official closer hops over pianos boasting that he’s ahead of everyone. The bonus track “LV” finishes the LP with a spacious backdrop & 808s brushing off a bitch being mad at him because of him never having to owe.

Not gonna beat around the bush by coming clean that I has never heard of Trapmat Savior up until 1st Coming was initially announced a couple weeks ago & if you’re in that same boat, you’re gonna want to peep it. Nicholas Craven & Mike Shabb’s production during the 27 minute listening experience clears his earlier material & the Montréal emcee levels up his pen-game significantly.

Score: 4.5/5

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