13° – “Ghetto Hipster” review

Brand new sophomore effort from Chicago, Illinois rapper 13°. Emerging only a few years ago off his first couple mixtapes Urban Junkie & Metropolitan respectively, he would go on to follow both of those up with Uptown Dropout as well as Clique City & it’s sequel. His debut EP Cyber Sundayz caught the attention of Island Records & they helped introduce him to a wider audience with the positively received full-length studio debut Black Fridayz, now declaring himself to be the Ghetto Hipster nearly 2 months since CM Punk became a 9-time WWE world champion.

“A Gloomy Morning” hops over a synth-driven boom bap beat to kick things off talking about being the king of his city & his life soarin’ past him whereas “Lordz Never Worry” gives off some Graduation vibes declaring himself to be a superstar. “White Sox Capz” psychedelically represents his hometown advising to get the fuck out his face unless one’s looking for him to put them to shame while the cloudily poppy “Pistolet” flexes of dating every model & comparing the head to blowing the smoke off a fired pistol.

We have some crazy sampling techniques being pulled off on “Membership” talking about not needing a patch because he’s already a gold member leading into “Ridiculouz” maintains the euphoria confessing he kinda digs people detracting him for being a golden ticket. “Poetry Jamz” stood out to me for it’s unignorable throwback to when The Neptunes dominated the airwaves in the early 2000s just before the poppy yet cloudy “Juene O.G.” poses the question of whether his not his name will be brought up in discussions a century from now.

“Northside Synonymz” begins the 2nd half likening life to another public assembly with the background vocals sticking out the most to me regarding the instrumental while the cloud rap/pop rap-infused 2nd single “Dwntwn Luv” intoxicatingly talks about trying to fuck a bouncer. “Lyricz” made for a solidly cloudy pop rap lead single making a cold reference to the late Juice WRLD at the end of the hook hoping this woman can heal his heart while the Ye-inspired “Brand New” talks about life giving him body shots.

Trippie Redd makes Ghetto Hipster’s sole guest appearance during the penultimate single “Emotionlezz” dedicating itself to all the weirdos & having apathetic pulling from future bass thoughts while the 3rd single “Hipster Encore” talks about his love of skinny Vogue models who do coke. “Microphone Fein” ironically lager includes a bar referring to 17-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, 5-time WWE United States Champion & 4-time WWE tag team champion John Cena while “Journalistic” atmospherically concludes the album clapping back at the way fraudulent blogs be acting.

Black Fridayz was a solid farewell to the Clique City sounds 13° blew up off of & to begin this new chapter of his career, his 2nd major label offering initially stemming from a highlight off his debut last fall dethrones it’s predecessor & the Clique City mixtape series for the bragging rights of becoming his finest collection of material so far. The production’s significantly cloudier than the debut & he’s having more fun with his music taking inspiration from the likes of Nas, Westside Gunn, the late Capital STEEZ & A$AP Rocky.

Score: 4/5

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Ransom – “The Price of Clarity” review

I believe this might be the 7th solo LP from Jersey City wordsmith Ransom. Coming up as 1/2 of the short-lived duo A-Team alongside Hitchcock, he branched out on his own in 2008 following their disbandment beginning with the full-length debut Street Cinema & the Statik Selektah-produced sophomore effort The Proposal. These last several years have been his biggest so far whether it be the 5 EPs that he put out produced by Nicholas Craven & 7 based around the 7 deadly sins, Heavy’s the Head entirely produced by Big Ghost Ltd., the Rome Streetz collab album Coup de Grâce, Chaos is My Ladder, Director’s Cut 4 & Deleted Scenes 2. Lavish Misery produced by Harry Fraud was a step above Spare the Rod, Spoil the Child & MadeinTYO producing Smoke & Mirrors last summer was an exciting surprise, coming off The Reinvention produced by DJ Premier & The Uncomfortable Truth produced by Conductor Williams to explain The Price of Clarity.

After the “Ignorance Was Bliss” intro, “The Prime Example” works in some horns to talk about being nothing these caricatures chasing applause whereas “Good Mournings” produced by Mike & Keys soulfully asks why he should go out on a limb for a dumb muhfucka who fed sharks. “Sorry My Love” featuring Nick Grant finds the pair over a chipmunk soul instrumental talking about putting their lives in these raps while “Dr. Manhattan” strips the drums to transcend weak thoughts & fashion trends.

“Richer Prior Life” continues from there discuss washed up artists who be rambling about one potentially becoming musical prodigies just before “Swan Song” speaks of trying to make himself a bride rather than getting along with a woman. “The Boule’” wraps up the 1st half of The Price of Clarity talking about everyone wanting fame until it becomes difficult over a funky beat while “The Temptations gets the 2nd act going discarding all the haters who’ve been despising his God given talents.

Freeway & Young Chris both appear on “The Coldest Winter” providing their own answers to the question of “Where do you go from love?” over a soulful Nicholas Craven instrumental while “MK Ultra” tensely talks about seeing things too clearly. The title track explains there always being a lesson inside our own tragedies while “Circumvention” featuring Lloyd Banks lavishly talks about clapping joyously at the blessing in disguise called pain.

“Hollywood Squares” brings back the soul courtesy of The Heatmakerz recalling what his mother warned him regarding common crooks being portrayed by corny actors & after the “Crystal Clear” interlude, “The Ultimate Betrayal” responds to claims of the devil being a lie wondering what if his greatest trick was the bible wasn’t his. “Confessional Booth” wraps up The Price of Clarity talking about his belief of letting out all the hardships we bottle up.

The general consensus amongst our time’s greatest thinkers & philosophers is that we cannot put a price on clarity, so Ransom comes off the Salvation for the Wicked collaborative EP he did with Boldy James going solo for the first time in 9 months admirably challenging those claims despite not being my favorite thing he’s done. My main critique lies with some of the production falls flat compared to his recent output, but the powerful messaging can’t be ignored.

Score: 3/5

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Action Figure 973 – “Souled Out” review

Belleville, New Jersey emcee/producer Action Figure 973 celebrating his born day with his 14th expedited play. For a while at this point, his first couple mixtapes followed by his last 13 EPs & the full-length debut DOOM Was Right over a year ago giving flowers to one of my all-time personal favorite albums Madvillainy have each established himself as a promisingly skilled luchador who so happens to rap. The Most Interesting Man in the World got with Machacha for his sophomore effort last October, coming off What Would Harley Race Do? as well as 24 Hours in Switzerland & the baseball-themed Polo Grounds produced by DiMaggio to announce Souled Out hours prior to it’s release.

“8 Hour Paris Flight” after the titular intro kicks things off with a drumlessly soulful opener talking about forever plotting outside of the country whereas “London Traffic” soulfully discusses the vitality in what he does. “William Regal” shows some love to WWE’s current VP of Global Talent Development, former 4-time WCW World Television Champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 4-time WWE tag team champion & 3-time WWE Hardcore Champion of the same name.

We have “Eyeful” kicking off the 2nd half incorporating more soul sampling referencing 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, former 16-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, 6-time WWE United States Champion, 6-time WWE tag team champion & 9-time NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion Ric Flair leading into “Ashley Massaro” remembering the late WWE diva who was not only a sexual abuse victim of Vince McMahon’s, but also took her own life.

“No Fly Tipping” immediately succeeding the “Paris Baguette” skit winds down the last few moments of the EP bringing a rap rock vibe to the table so Act-Lo can assure everything he does going forward becoming symbolic for their own justifications & the outro “Flight Home” spends the last 127 seconds of Souled Out hooking up a crooning soul sample talking about none of these rappers being safe for the remaining 4 months of 2026.

Polo Grounds to me still remains a breath of fresh air for people who felt like Action Figure 973’s discography was getting stale & Souled Out continues that trajectory recapping trips he took to London, England, United Kingdom & Paris, France over mostly soulful production. I can’t forget to further mention the claims of symbolism behind his future output & no one being safe for the rest of the year, hinting he has more music coming down the pipe soon that I’m interested in hearing.

Score: 3.5/5

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God’s Hate – “Won’t Be Disgraced” review

God’s Hate is a metalcore band from Los Angeles, California consisting of bassist Alec Faber, guitarist Taylor Young, guitarist Martin Stewart, bassist Anthonie Gonzalez, drummer Colin Young & current 2-time AEW World Trios Champion Brody King performing lead vocals. Introducing themselves in 2014 off their debut extended play Divine Injustice followed by Under the Knife & their full-length debut Mass Murder, they eventually would go on hiatus following their eponymous sophomore effort in 2021. I was however interested in their 3rd extended play after former 3-time AEW World Champion, AEW International Champion, CMLL Mundial de Peso Semicompleto Campeon, CZW World Heavyweight Champion, アイアンマンヘビーメタル級チャンピオン, MLW World Middleweight Champion, MLW World Tag Team Champion & ROH World Tag Team Champion MJF tweeted about it.

The title track begins incorporating elements of groove metal into their signature metallic hardcore sound asking where everyone’s rage went & those who don’t have shit still having them in the end while “I’m the Cure“ treads the beatdown hardcore waters explaining the straight edge get to decide the way they die. Won’t Be Disgraced finishes with a cover of “Warriors Will Reign” by Harm’s Way & although I’m personally not the biggest fan of covers, I give them all the respect in the world for doing it out of remembrance of Bo Lueders in light of his passing several months ago.

For only 2 newly written songs & a cover: God’s Hate have made a fierce comeback driven by grief as well as the state of the greater hardcore community & the world at large. The former AEW World Tag Team Champion, NWA World Tag Team Champion, PWG World Tag Team Champion, ROH World Tag Team Champion & ROH World 6-Man Tag Team Champion recaptures the beatdown metalcore style of their self-titled album & sprinkles elements of groove metal along the way kin to Mass Murder encouraging those listening to make a change using their hatred.

Score: 3.5/5

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Ice-T – “Criminal Migraine” review

Ice-T is a 68 year old MC, actor, songwriter, producer & author from Los Angeles, California by way of Newark, New Jersey known for pioneering gangsta rap with his 1987 debut Rhyme Pays under Warner Records. Poweras well as The Iceberg: Freedom of Speech…Just Watch What You Say! & O.G. (Original Gangster) were all equally praised, dropping the underrated Home Invasion through Priority Records. Ice-T VI: Return of the Real & 7th Deadly Sin both came out independently to lukewarm reception, returning 2 decades after the poorly received Gangsta Rap for the Body Count frontman’s 9th studio LP.

After the intro, “It’s What You Say” produced by Charlemagne begins with a piano-driven boom bap opener talking about kicking game every time he’s on the mic whereas “No Competition” aggressively asks why he should stop when most of these bitches are trash over an Afrika Islam beat. “Keep It Gangsta” featuring Kenny Ivy, Treach & Zieme goes for a summery vibe instrumentally getting on their gangsta shit lyrically just before “Hardcore Motherfucker” ruggedly talks about being a badass.

“California” featuring Fedie Demarco unites the pair over a beat Dr. Dre would’ve made in the 2000s representing the west coast leading into the title track returning to the boom bap talking about him cautioning not to look inside his head when one already has. “It’s All About…” links up with P.A. Dre fresh off Inspectah Deck’s 5th album Dragon’s Breath tackling materialism while “You Can Get It” featuring Smoothe da Hustler & Treach unites all 3 of them so they can discuss achieving your dreams.

As for “Follow the Leader”, we have Ice-T leaning towards a rap rock sound talking about having a plan for your life unless you want to spend the rest of your days on the lamb while “Shut the Fuck Up” disses artists making podcast appearances snitching on themselves. “Hustle Hard” reaches the midway point of Criminal Migraine talking about always grinding no matter what while the romantically eye-rolling “Kick Rocks” gets the 2nd half going dismissing women who didn’t want to give him a chance now showing up in his DMs.

“Jewel Lick” featuring CJ Mack joins forces to put ourselves inside of the shoes of 2 jewel thieves while “The Hate’s Real” featuring Smoothe da Hustler reunites over a key-woven instrumental talking about fake love. “No One Ever Wins” tells the story of a woman who ends up burnt out, alone & broke wishing she was one of her friends happily married with kids while “Ego” shifts towards an atmospheric trap direction talking about egotism.

The soulfulness of “2 Be a Man” enhanced the mature themes explored breaking down his definition of a grown man while “N***a Please” featuring Money Reeks, Murkemz & Ras Kass gets cutthroat together with The Waterproof MC having my favorite guest verse. “Bangerz” featuring Freddie Foxxx boasts themselves amongst the ultimate but “Lost My Mind” featuring Smoothe da Hustler & Treach talks about insanity, “No Regrets” preceding the outro ends the album showing 0 remorse.

Everything Ice-T said regarding hip hop having no age limit was 100% accurate considering veterans from Rakim to the Juice Crew making musical comebacks & now Big Daddy Kane prepping his final full-length within the coming months. Nevertheless, I adamantly believe Criminal Migraine’s some of the O.G.’s most salvageable material mostly because the production’s at it’s best since Home Invasion regardless of a few being skeptical of it’s runtime.

Score: 3.5/5

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Montez Ford – “AFTERTHETIDES” review

Chicago, Illinois professional wrestler & rapper Montez Ford dipping his toes in music again with a brand new extended play. Someone who’s become a 6-time WWE tag team champion in addition to marrying 3-time WWE women’s world champion & 2-time WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Bianca Belair, dropping his full-length debut God is Good & the sophomore effort Happy Birthday Tez! to poor reception despite guest appearances from former TNA Digital Media Champion A.J. Francis & even Consequence surprisingly. Coming off Jacy Jayne & the other 2 members of Fatal Influence respectively becoming WWE Women’s United States Champion & WWE Women’s Tag Team Champions this past weekend however, AFTERTHETIDES has arrived.

After the “Any Second.” intro, “Madvillian.” made for a soulful opener to drop average hardcore bars dismantling cosplayers of the game whereas “Tides.” continues some interesting sampling techniques flipping soul music once again so he can discuss themes of fatherhood. “Stairway to Heaven.” continues from there with an orchestral boom bap beat talking about being black excellence leading into “Fooling Around.” reaches the midway point taking a more boastful approach over a cloudy sample.

“Late Nights.” kicks off the 2nd half of AFTERTHETIDES on an underwhelming note slowing down Tez’ vocals over a woodwind instrumental just before “Silk Road.” hooks up some luxurious piano chords talking about trying to show his soulmate a different live from sitting in a cubicle to being married. “Iced Out.” had a questionable bar regarding him spending money made from the dope game when I’m not sure if there’s any truth in that regardless of the diss towards 7-time WWE world champion Roman Reigns until “Sandcastles” jazzily ends the EP talking about being mimicked because of his likability.

AFTERTHETIDES is far from being one of the groundbreaking EPs I’ve heard all year, but I’ll still take it over Pat McAfee’s new bro-country album The Diary of a Polarizing Figure. Regardless of his average songwriting, Montez Ford clearly put more care in this than Pat did because the production choices are actually pretty interesting varying between chipmunk soul or boom bap & jazz rap reminiscent to Griselda following the inaugural 4th Rope Heavyweight Champion Zilla Fatu’s debut in the WME Group-owned TKO Group Holdings division WWE’s primary developmental brand NXT.

Score: 2/5

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Sweeping Promises – “You Say I Romanticize” review

Sweeping Promises are a post-punk/art punk duo from Lawrence, Kansas consisting of guitarist & drummer Caufield Schnug as well as bassist & vocalist Lira Mondal. Making their debut in the summer of the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic with Hunger for a Way Out, they would go on to follow it up in 2023 with the sophomore effort Good Living is Coming For You & the positive reception both of those receive landed the pairing a deal with Sub Pop Records. The teasers building up towards their 3rd studio LP gave me hope of them getting the exposure they deserve & I had to find out if that’s the case or not.

The lead single “Shooting Shadows” wasn’t too bad of an artsy post-punk intro describing one’s personal space being invaded whereas “My Friend’s an Entomologist” sings about having a colleague who’s an expert regarding invasive species. “Last Man” thematically bases itself around Mary Shelley’s novel of the same name discussing a cholera outbreak & after the “Rapture, Or…” takes inspiration from Siouxsie Sioux to tackle apocalyptic themes, “Abduction on Camera” keeps the post-punk vibes for a powerful anti-ICE anthem.

“My Anchoress” kicks off the 2nd half conceptually centering itself around Julian of Norwich leading into the final single “Cocoon” develops a concert staple of theirs written after the Hunger for a Way Out sessions in a disarmingly dead-simple way. “Accent” maintains a post-punk sound singing about words not landing when falling out of their mouths & once “Does He Want to Be the Weatherman?” cheerfully uses meteorology as an unusual metaphor, “Write Lightly” concludes the album responding to those saying their perspective’s compromised.

Conceived during an 18 month period, the Sweeping Promises take the ethos they’ve developed & turn it upside-down for debatably the most frenzied half hour of their 6 year career marking their debut for Sub Pop Records. The post-punk influences are significantly minimized within the production compared to their earlier material, emphasizing the art punk & indie rock elements for a tribute to the chaos of creation & collaboration under shifting circumstances.

Score: 4/5

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Open Mike Eagle – “Doomed!: Rap Songs About a Relationship That Ends in Every Possible Universe” review

Open Mike Eagle is a 45 year old MC, producer & comedian from Chicago, Illinois known for being a member of the Project Blowed collective. His full-length debut Unapologetic Art Rap wouldn’t arrive until 2010, following it up with Rappers Will Die of Natural Causes & 4NML HSPTL preceding his Mello Music Group debut Dark Comedy. Paul White would later be brought in to produce Hella Personal Film Festival & would depart MMG after Brick Body Kids Still Daydream to form his own label Auto Reverse Records. Anime, Trauma & Divorce alongside Another Triumph of Ghetto Engineering and Neighborhood Gods Unlimited each had their own highlights but I thought his 10th studio LP marking his debut for Backwoodz Studioz distributed Rhymesayers Entertainment would be something special considering Kenny Segal’s involvement.

“Out to Lunch” makes for an outstanding jazz rap intro advising not to let him make your day if that favor cannot be returned whereas “Streets of Rage: Public Arguments Edition” featuring Gothic Tropic hooks up a vibraphone mixed with kicks & snares talking about tapping x to hold the block back like a video game. “Doomed!” turns up the jazziness referencing WWE Hall of Famer, former 2-time WCW World Heavyweight Champion, 3-time WCW World Tag Team Champion, 2-time WCW World Television Champion & 5-time WWE United States Champion Lex Luger.

Hemlock Ernst shows up on the soulful “Unfinished Concrete Initials” talking about the apartment & wallet being left empty when it’s all said & done just before “Don’t Go Look (Battleworld Focus Prayer)” comes to the realization of possibly getting what he asked for over a synth-driven boom bap instrumental. “She Swear I’m Colorblind” featuring billy woods saves my favorite guest appearance for last talking about everyday thing becoming fashioned into weapons while “Science Fiction (Fantasy)” suggests to protect your peace if you want it.

“The Irredeemable Magic Man” kicks off the 2nd half with some bluesy licks talking about a magician who can never return because of his inability to improve while “The Many Hustles of My Lonely Time Traveling Uncle” returns to the boom bap discusses building an empire off selling nokia phone cases. “Trying to Remember What I Aimed At” psychedelically talks about executives & this industry at large being bullshit while “Schrödinger’s Green Room (There But Uninvited)” brings some horns in the picture telling the story of an intrusive man.

After the “It Happens In Every Universe” interlude, “Sweetheart Jail” dustily talks about a cruel & unusual person sitting behind bars who was arrested on a Friday night while “Infinity War Spoilers” gets in his nerdcore bag a bit spoiling the greatest Avengers flick. “Watching a Movie Called Freedom By Myself” concludes Mike’s official Backwoodz/Rhymesayers debut Doomed!: Rap Songs About a Relationship That Ends in Every Possible Universe on a dreamier note talking about the green chasing his blues away.

From the very moment Rhymesayers Entertainment began their distribution partnership with Backwoodz Studioz a year earlier, the whole label’s been on quite the run & Doomed!: Rap Songs About a Relationship That Ends in Every Possible Universe adds to that, joining Dark Comedy along with Hella Personal Film Festival & Brick Body Kids Still Daydream to become a top 5 statement in Open Mike Eagle’s catalog mostly because of the way he uses Kenny Segal’s experimentally jazzy production to paint his impression of a dead world through his abstract lyricism.

Score: 4.5/5

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October London – “Love Me for Me” review

South Bend, Indiana singer/songwriter & producer October London returning for his 4th studio LP. Coming up in 2013 off his debut EP The Introduction & both installments of the Color Blind series, he eventually caught the attention of WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg & signed to Doggystyle Records for his 4th EP Please Leave a Message before moving over to Death Row Records not too long after Snoop bought the label he started out at & teamed with gamma. for a new distribution deal. October Nights has since become his most celebrated material & he’s asking his partner to Love Me for Me coming off the holiday-themed For You, My Love nearly 8 months ago.

“Your Girl” passionately sings about temptation knocking at his door over a buttery beat from both Uncle Snoop & Soopafly whereas “My Favorite Song” works in some finger snaps showing off his crooning chops. “Silent Treatment” works in a funky groove & some pianos to sing about a woman who ain’t saying shit to him but once the title track wants his girl to love him for who he is, “Family Ties” reaches the halfway point explaining he makes music for this loved ones.

Meanwhile on “Hooked (A Cougar’s Anthem)”, we have October coming through with a mediocre ode to cougars just before “Dance & Mingle” takes a peppier approach instrumentally making something the audience can move to. “Body Talk” & after “Like a Canvas” incorporates some pianos to compare the love his partner has to woven fabric surface stretched over a wooden frame, the closer “Pencil Me In” concludes Love Me for Me singing about trying to get with a woman with children upstarting her business.

There weren’t any real concerns I had going into Love Me for Me since For You, My Love was created specifically for the most wonderful time of the year & October Nights remains October London’s most celebrated collection of material although I ended up enjoying this album as much as it’s predecessor nearly a couple years earlier. Snoop Dogg & Soopafly’s production is heavily rooted in the neo-soul sound exploring topics including love, commitment, vulnerability & self-discovery in only a half hour.

Score: 4/5

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Pat McAfee – “The Diary of a Polarizing Figure” review

Pat McAfee is a 39 year old sports analyst, color commentator, former professional wrestler, former professional football punter & kickoff specialist from Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania by way of Indianapolis, Indiana who played in the NFL between 2009-2016 for the Indianapolis Colts. He would later spend the next decade establishing himself as a sports analyst & had a run in the WME Group-owned TKO Group Holdings division WWE until WrestleMania XLII this spring. Including a feud with former AEW TNT Champion, record 3-time ROH World Champion, ROH World Tag Team Champion, ROH World Television Champion, the longest reigning NXT Champion, the inaugural NXT North American Champion, NXT Tag Team Champion, PWG World Champion & CZW World Jr. Heavyweight Champion Adam Cole. However, he’s having country star ERNEST helping him out for a full-length studio debut.

“Pitbull & Mugshot” pretty much begins with what you can expect singing over a country trap fusion about his dog Valerie who passed away whereas “Blue Collar Symphony” treads the country rock waters for a tacky ode to the working man, calling for the rest to get out their way. “Good Times” radiates a heavy bro-country vibe singing about wanting to drink whiskey in a smokey room with a guitar & a fiddle just before “Young Me” incorporates some pianos for an audio letter to his younger self.

Meanwhile on “Polarizing Figure”, we have Pat asking himself whether he’s amongst the greats or the opposite mutating elements of trap & country once more leading into “Outlaws” turning the country rock influences back up to declare himself a renegade. “Oops” wraps up the 1st act hitting us with a gross country rap experimentation talking about stirring the pot like he usually is while “Smokin’” discusses his love for weed although he certainly ain’t no Willie Nelson.

“No One Ever Knows” sings about life being good since he woke up today while “Rich as Shit” annoyingly gloats about ESPN giving him a $65M raise. “Big Rain Coming” sings about no longer wasting mornings worrying over the evening while “You’re Alive” ponders if anyone’s actually living these days. “Click Clack” has a piano-driven trap flare to it talking about stealing the show & “Cheers to the South” discusses celebrating life at every opportunity.

As someone who used to watch The Pat McAfee Show on YouTube until ESPN picked up the syndication rights, it wouldn’t be a surprise to me whatsoever if The Diary of a Polarizing Figure winds up becoming 2026’s worst country album. From the bro-country production to the songwriting & grating vocal performances, I sincerely didn’t get a single second of enjoyment outta this & would prefer if Pat McAfee stuck to sports analytics than making music ever again.

Score: 0/5

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