Lil Poppa – “Wee Are Who We Are” Review

Lil Poppa is a 24 year old rapper from Jacksonville, Florida emerging in 2019 off his full-length debut Almost Normal followed by the sophomore effort Blessed, I Guess to more mixed responses. Heavy is the Head & Half Man, Half Vamp went on to be received more favorably to the point where Yo Gotti signed him to his Interscope Records imprint Collective Music Group & is making Poppa’s 4th album his official major label debut.

“Reintroduction” is a melodically drumless opener to get us started reintroducing himself to the CMG fanbase whereas “Wee” take a summery trap route instrumentally showing a more carefree side to himself. “Stop Grieving” featuring Baby Drill cloudily talks about the fact that bitches will leave with you nothing in the end just before the guitar-driven “Nowhere Fast” confesses to putting up with her bullshit because he wants her.

Meanwhile on “Bust Fire”, we have Poppa turning the rock trap hybrids up to 11 thanks to Dez Wright acknowledging that things’ll never be the same again & he knows it leading into “Feel the Same When You’re Sober” featuring DeJ Loaf has this pop rap ring to it tackling the themes of romance. “Pin a Tail” hooks up these piano chords throughout flexing that he got bulletproof car doors like Pablo Escobar, but then “Untamed” featuring a reunited Boosie Badazz & Webbie breaks down the untamable personalities all 3 of them possess.

“Quiet Storm” finishes the 1st half of the album on some delicate trap shit putting his trust in these guns while “More Than Enough” talks about feeling the stab wound from being betrayed getting deeper. “No Sympathy” drearily reveals he’s the reason these pussies be laid out on the ground while “IDK What to Say” featuring Blac Youngsta & Spinabenz keeps the trap vibes going promising the streets ain’t safe.

Nearing the end of Wee Are Who We Are, the song “Scared of It” hops over keys & hi-hats talking about showing love to those who might bust his head while “Xoxo” gives hugs & kisses assuring he don’t love these bitches. “3am in Baltimore” featuring YG Teck finds the 2 telling us what goes down in the early hours of the titular Maryland city while the 2-parter “New You < I Hate Poppa Too” breaks down the new him & people who hate him. Lastly, the closer “Letter to Jook” finishes the LP with an open letter to Poppa’s homie.

Poppa as of me writing this happens to be the most recent addition to the CMG roster & his debut under Yo Gotti’s mentorship refines himself artistically compared to his earlier material. The southern trap & pop rap production that the Floridian artist became known for gets refined conceptually building itself around understanding & acceptance.

Score: 3.5/5

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Benny the Butcher – “Buffalo Butch” review

This is the 8th EP from Buffalo, New York emcee Benny the Butcher. Being in the game for 2 decades already, 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. Harry Fraud came in for a sequel to the latter following the mature Burden of Proof & finally, Tana Talk 4 took it back to the basement a couple years back. Coming off having Hit-Boy produce half of it & leaving the other half to The Alchemist produce his Def Jam Recordings debut & my album of the year so far Everybody Can’t Go, we’re now being treated to Buffalo Butch only a couple weeks after the previous EP Summertime Butch.

“Penny & Shaq” featuring 38 Spesh starts off the brief 3 track offering hopping over an extravagant beat comparing themselves to Orlando Magic veterans Penny Hardaway & Shaquille O’Neal whereas the For All the Dogs outtake “Buffalo” featuring Drake finds the pair linking up over a sample-driven instrumental from Boi-1da talking about the fact that it’s more when you earn it being iller than the illnesses haters be wishing on them. Lastly, the closer “Hard Way” featuring Fabolous officially rounds out Buffalo Butch on some boom bap shit letting it be known this fly shit ain’t cheap whatsoever.

We’ve only gotten 2 EPs from Benny this month & 3 projects from him in 2024 altogether if you include Everybody Can’t Go, but I still happen to prefer Summertime Butch only because it’s a little longer than Buffalo Butch although that’s not to say I didn’t enjoy the 3 songs he dug up for us here. As opposed to the summer theme of the joint from 2 weeks ago, you only get 8 minutes worth of material shedding 16 minutes off the last one centering itself around Benny’s hometown mentality.

Score: 3.5/5

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OG Parker – “Moments” review

OG Parker is a 27 year old producer & songwriter from Fayetteville, Georgia who became an in-house producer for Quality Control Music in 2015. He even went on to form his own label Neutral Records in 2021 & produced DDG’s debut mixtape Die 4 Respect around that same time, except I was highly looking forward to that tape only to be disappointed by the time it officially saw the light of day. However, seeing that Parker was putting out a solo EP most certainly caught my interest.

“No Fuss” by PARTYNEXTDOOR starts with what could easily be the best song on the entire EP telling this girl to stay in her lane over a chilled out guitar passage whereas the trap-flavored “Rain Down” by Chris Brown, Latto, Layton Greene & the late PnB Rock finds the quartet continue to delve further into the themes of romance. “Still Work” by Muni Long & Ty$ is a trap soul duet singing about their numbers are both operationally functioning while the dance-inspired trap joint “All I Need” by Yung Bleu furthermore gets lustful. “In Person” by Lakeyah & Tyga ends the EP with a woodwind trap flare flexing they look better in the flesh.

Producer curated projects are generally looked at as being either hit-or-miss & there’s no question in my mind that OG Parker has the capability of pulling of an entire body of work producing songs for other artists & compiling them together. However, Moments stands out as an average beginning of treading those waters. There’s nothing with his signature take on the stylings of trap & R&B music, but some of the performances from the guests themselves are generally a mixed bag.

Score: 2.5/5

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Smallz 1 – “Defiled in the Lavender Fields” review

Smallz 1 is a 36 year old MC from Albuquerque, New Mexico who made her Lyrikal Snuff Productionz debut in 2009 off her full-length debut The Diary of a Black Widow shortly following her debut mixtape Sadistik Stylez. She has since become one of LSP’s most well-established artists putting out her sophomore effort The Crimson Kingdom, her 3rd album Mannequin, her debut EP Hourglass, her previous LP The Process of Elimination & more recently S.O.S.’ debut Blame Us. A week after the 24th annual Gathering of the Juggalos though, she’s putting her 2nd EP out on all streaming platforms.

“Gutted Eyes” starts us off with pianos & hi-hats promising to burn her competition & eventually herself asking why they judge here whereas “Way Below Average” by S.O.S. takes a bouncier trap route instrumentally talking about those who got them fucked up. “Lately” goes full-blown boom bap refusing to trust anyone always fuckin’ shit up, but then “Nevermind” brings the hi-hats back teaming up with her legion of demons to kill y’all.

Beginning the 2nd leg of the EP, the song “Lower Them Down” keeps it trap showing no mercy towards her opposition while “Garbage” ruggedly talks about doing shit better than the rest of these bitches. “Dismembered Wishes” featuring Bloody Ruckus cloudily discusses their lives going on & their haters’ being done leading into the cavernous “Trash Day” callin’ out those who really ain’t gonna do shit. “Pandora’s Box” wraps things up wishing long & enduring suffering on her enemies.

Claas so happened to give us the 3-track EP couple weeks ago In My Head centered around mental health & of the 2 new projects that LSP had to offer the gore hop heads & juggalos, I’m finding myself catering towards Defiled in the Lavender Fields more than The Summoning. Generally, it’s sound balances boom bap & trap allowing Smallz to put her own Lyrikal Snuff spin on those styles.

Score: 3.5/5

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Lee Scott – “La Scala” review

Here we have the 9th EP from Runcorn, Cheshire, England, United Kingdom emcee, producer & author Lee Scott. Introducing himself through The Wrong Bootleg Demo & the full-length debut Put on the Glasses over a decade ago under his own label Blah Records, some may even recognize him for his memberships with the Antiheroes, the B-Movie Millionaires, the Children of the Damned, Cult Mountain, the Cult of the Damned, Group, HAPPYPPL, Hock Tu Down, the Mcabre Brothers, Nobodies Home & the Supergang. Peppered Mouth Soup & Happy Sellout Shit were ok, but the sophomore effort Stupid Poignant Shit produced by Illinformed would become his most celebrated work following it up with Tin Foil Fronts as well as CactusOwlMoonGoat & the High Focus Records-backed Butter Fly being another favorite of mine. Nice Swan would become as beloved although Supergod5000plus & Oh, the Fun We’re Having weren’t as good as that or Lou Reed 2000 or Somewhere Between Here & There. I felt like Friend, Come to Me & Be Saved was alright, coming off Gates Click Shutalong with There’s a Reason for Everything & To Tame a Dead Horse to drop the self-produced La Scala only days away from Will Kaven becoming the new RPW British Cruiserweight Champion.

“Cabin Roof” begins with a boom bap instrumental Lee made himself confirming Cult Mountain’s disbandment due to Milkavelli scamming people whereas “Acme Point” talks about not wanting to hear any bullshit. “Starfish” speaks of having no time for chit chat if it has nothing to do with the rhyme or if it doesn’t match the money on his mind while “Next Door” asks himself why the individual he’s thinking of wants to be exactly like him & the rest of the Cult.

The song “Merry Karma” continues the final moments of La Scala by giving the B-Movie Millionaires a few minutes in the spotlight responding to people telling them they need to slow down when they’ve only gotten on the road while “Intrusive Thoughts” talks about being too old to play the nuisance & make excuses, yet he still does & will continue to do so. “Cathedral Breeze” finishes by going for a more compositional approach, taking a backseat vocally so he can whip up a ghostly boom bap beat clocking at 72 seconds.

Marking a conclusion to his most recent solo output using these kind of tempos, Lee Scott writes & self-produces another hardcore philosophical ignorant UK hip hop extended play. His production focuses around the boom bap elements There’s a Reason for Everything had ditching the secondary influences of drumless & chipmunk soul for a 17 minute statement primarily themed around what he can only describe as an insatiable & sometimes inadvertently destructive compulsion he has to create.

Score: 4/5

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Ka – “The Thief Next to Jesus” review

Here we have the 9th full-length solo LP from Brownsville, New York emcee, producer & firefighter Ka. A former member of the Natural Elements roughly 3 decades ago, he eventually went solo in 2008 off Iron Works followed by Grief Pedigree & The Night’s Gambit. Honor Killed the Samurai in 2016 became his most well received body of work as did Descendants of Cain & A Martyr’s Reward, but the frontman of Dr. Yen Lo and Hermit & the Recluse is coming off both Languish Arts & Woeful Studiesto fully produce The Thief Next to Jesus by himself.

“Bread, Wine, Body, Blood” starts by cautioning not become the weapon they use to harm you & that there’s a sheer struggle we all go through over an organ sample whereas “Beautiful” takes the soulful route instrumentally continuing the art of sampling hoping everyone listening lives a nice, long life. “Tested Testimony” hooks up a crooning drumless loop boasting that he doesn’t have any money in the safe because he took the safest lane just before the bluesy “Borrowed Time” hoping for exactly that when his time comes.

Moving forward, “Collection Plate” keeps the drums out the fold hopping over another soul flip pointing out that he would’ve had the titular item by now if anyone really wanted to bless him while “Broken Rose Window” brings the bluesier flare from earlier back in effect talking about being economically disadvantaged. “God Undefeated” samples gospel once more assuring that God sides with the winners leading into “Soul & Spirit” keeping it drumless suggesting to build fences instead of needing bridges.

“Lord Have Mercy” works in some pleasant keyboard passages to talk about needing real freedoms, but then “Such Devotion” gets back to the gospel sampling telling everyone that they ain’t ever see this much loyalty or devoutness. He later expresses the hope that every “Cross You Bear” is gold accompanied by a bare organ while “Fragile Faith” talking about being born air-prepared for ground war over crooning background vocals.

Nearing the conclusion of The Thief Next to Jesus, the penultimate track “Hymn & I” comes the straight out the gate discussing hearing so many Christians using the “n” word as well as gathering strength on the daily & learning heartbreak from the most loyal prior to “True Holy Water” perfectly finishes up what could very well be the most religious body of work that Ka has ever made with 1 more drumless cut letting everyone know he’s here for all y’all.

Literally every single album in Ka’s discography has their own distinctive concept & after going back-to-back a couple years ago, he unsurprisingly carries on that tradition throughout The Thief Next to Jesus to the point where I firmly believe it can hang with Honor Killed the Samurai as my favorite solo effort of the 9 he’s given us in the last 16 years. Heavily building its drumless sound around samples of both gospel & a hint of blues music, the production makes for some of the best in Ka’s entire career as he puts his uniquely poetically spin on the themes of religion.

Score: 4.5/5

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Diamond D – “The Diam Piece 3: Initium” review

The Bronx, New York emcee/producer Diamond D preparing the final installment of The Diam Piece trilogy by splitting it into 3 EPs & giving us the first Initium ahead of Duo in November as well as Tria in February 2025. A mentor of Jazzy Jay, he would then form the D.I.T.C. collective alongside Lord Finesse & Showbiz in ‘92 only to put out his classic full-length debut Stunts, Blunts & Hip Hop shortly after. D went on to drop 6 more albums & a couple mixtapes of his own, the latest being Gotham’s acclaimed self-titled effort & The Rear View. The Diam Piece & its sequel left most of the rhyming to the guests, so I get why he’d return to that formula coming off The Rear View.

“Fire & Water” by RJ Payne & Skyzoo starts off ruggedly bringing hardcore lyricism over boom bap production whereas “The King” by KRS-One was a great lead single & another one of the best Blastmaster songs I’ve heard in recent memory taking the crown as rightfully his. “Merk” by Bishop Lamont & Torae keeps it in the basement instrumentally getting bloodthirsty, but then “Bosses” by Lord Tariq & Sauce Money finds the 2 getting on the mafioso tip for 4 minutes.

Fatman Scoop & Static the Prodigy hop on the playful sounding “Death B4 Dishonor” promising that you don’t wanna test either one of them leading into “Codes” by Agallah, David Bars & Royal Flush rawly reminding not to trust anyone in the streets. “Lay Me Down” by Inspectah Deck & Shyheim aggressively details the life of crime while “Blue Sunshine” by E-A Ski & 38 Spesh brings the respective west coast & east coast producer/MCs dustily getting on the battle rap tip. “My People” by Bonecrusher ends with a jazzy tribute to his kinfolk.

In the digital era where a lot of people’s attention spans are incredibly short, it’s more than understandable that the D.I.T.C. co-founder didn’t want to release a 29-song album & decided to split The Diam Piece 3 into a trilogy of EPs. Initium itself with its versatile list of performers over Diamond D’s signature sound is more than enough to hold everyone over until Duo at the end of 2024 & finally Tria early next year.

Score: 4/5

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38 Spesh – “Mother & Gun” review

Rochester, New York producer/MC 38 Spesh is back for his 5th solo LP. Known for being the leader of the Trust Army & founder of TCF Music Group, he’s been steadily busy throughout the last few years whether it be him producing projects for the likes of Planet Asia & Elcamino or his own solo output. Coming off lacing Grafh’s 4th album God’s Timing a few weeks ago however, Spesh’s hopping back on the mic for Mother & Gun almost a year after the Gunsmoke EP.

“Early Morning” is a soulful opener to the album talking about the fact that they didn’t believe him when he initially said he was gonna be rich whereas “Sacrifice” works in some hi-hats sampling soul music once again thanks to STREETRUNNER hustling hard. “Spesh is Back” moves forward going for a self-produced orchestral vibe instrumentally to talk about him returning to the mic while “Del Lago” shifts gears back in trap territory flexing his power was imposed.

Havoc & Lloyd Banks join Spesh for the rugged “Had It Coming” cautioning to build the ark because they gonna be flooding shit just before “Burn Marks” asks how he couldn’t hold a grudge towards his cuzz since the opps been chillin’ with him lately. “Speshal Methods” introduces the world to the titular east coast duo over boom bap production applying lyrical pressure, but then we’re treated to the latest installment of the “Can’t Show Love” trilogy.

“Only You” featuring Klass Murda nears the conclusion of Mother & Gun hooking up a crooning sample responding to the bitches who say they got them clarifying that they aren’t idiots while “Underestimated” featuring Benny the Butcher & Che Noir wraps things up with all 3 of them talking about people estimating them lower than they actually are.

In case some of you forgot, 38 Spesh has always been as much of a quality MC as he is amongst the most in-demand producers that the underground has to offer & his first full-length in almost 4 years here has to be the most intimate of his entire career. He takes a backseat behind the boards allowing other beatsmiths to gain more exposure laying out some of the most personal lyrics that he’s laid out on wax yet.

Score: 4/5

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Pouya – “They Could Never Make Me Hate You” review

Pouya is a 30 year old rapper & singer/songwriter from Miami, Florida who’s a pioneer of the early underground rap scene that began on SoundCloud in 2012 & discovering the $uicideboy$ in their early career. His 2016 debut Underground Underdog was released to mixed reception although 5 showed considerable improvement as did The South Got Something to Say & Blood Was Never Thick as Water. 17 months after Gator was said to be his final LP, the BatKave & Buffet Boys member is returning for a 4th album.

“LORD FORGIVE ME FOR THE PAIN I INFLICT ON MYSELF” is a cloudy Memphis opener to talk about earning his stripes over a decade in the game whereas “FORGET ABOUT EVERYTHING” has a smoother trap flare encouraging to let go of the bullshit to hop in the ride with him & not getting too high. “BLAME GAME” blends jazz & trap instrumentally assuring that he doesn’t want to be pointing fingers at anyone, but then “WHERE DID I GO WRONG?” shoots for a Memphis-inspired atmosphere once again saying he’s been singing the same song.

Rick Ross joins Pouya for the single “UH OH” pulling from mobb music referring to themselves as hood rats hanging out the window of the ride just before “BACK THE FUCK UP” returns to the Memphis sound so he can talk about dying a legend. “LAND OF IGUANAS” brings a cloudy boom bap vibe to the table only waking up for money & sex while “LEMONADE (DEAD MAN WALKING)” talks needing something to numb the pain. “WHAT UU BOUT” finishes the LP crossing over trap & jazz knowing what he’s gotta do.

22 months in the making & what Pouya has given us in They Could Never Make Me Hate You has to very well be a step above his last few albums & quite possibly the biggest one of his entire career spanning over a decade long. The production ranges from trap to jazz rap, Memphis rap & mobb music flexing his underground status & breaking down the lifestyle that comes with it all.

Score: 3.5/5

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Willy Northpole – “Broadway Theatre” review

Willy Northpole is a 44 year old MC from Phoenix, Arizona who gained national exposure after Ludacris signed him to Disturbing tha Peace Records in 2007 distributed by Def Jam Recordings at the time releasing his debut album Tha Connect in the summer of 2009 to mixed reception & departing both labels in 2012. That said, he’s finally returning over a decade later joining Astray in becoming the first 2 artists to sign to Whitney Peyton’s independently owned Alpha Howse & releasing long-awaited sophomore album effort.

The title track is a jazzy opener talking about Willy’s return after so long whereas “Dear Young Willy” takes the soulful route instrumentally sending a message to his younger self. “OG” brings a jazz rap/trap hybrid to the table reminding everyone that he’s been around in the game prior to Bigshot’s awkward feature on “Rearrange” embracing the trap sound fully so both of them can talk about sex.

“1 Car” finishes the first half of the LP on some dreary trap shit feeling like giving up on everything just before “Blue Balls” embraces a hardcore boom bap flare delivering cutthroat lyricism for 3 & a half minutes. “Citizen” keeps it dusty brushing off the idea that he’s a gangsta, but then “Cook” featuring Whitney Peyton as well as Astray & Bag of Tricks Cat comes through with a trap-flavored Alpha Howse posse cut.

Nearing the encore of Broadway Theatre, the penultimate track “Cosmic Highway” strips the drums completely hopping over a bare loop telling us that he calls it a lil’ vacation as opposed to what our ancestors call it & “Chocolate Cholo” featuring Glasses Malone closes the album pullin’ receipts on them putting their respective cities on in a major way representing their Afro-Latin heritages over a Latin trap beat.

Him signing to Alpha Howse was said to be the best thing to ever happen in his entire career & it sure enough proves to be a sophomore joint that doesn’t try pandering to a mainstream audience much like his major label-backed debut did 15 years ago. The production is a healthy dose of boom bap, trap, drumless & jazz rap letting everyone know what he’s been up to after all this time & I last but not least enjoyed all but 1 feature performance.

Score: 3.5/5

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