Snoop Dogg – “Missionary” review

Long Beach emcee, songwriter, media personality, actor, entrepreneur, record executive & WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg reuniting with his mentor Dr. Dre for the 20th studio LP in his discography. His 1993 debut album Doggystyle is widely regarded as a west coast essential, but his output since has been hit or miss whether it be Tha Last Meal & Tha Blue Carpet Treatment almost reaching the same caliber of his debut or Da Game is to be Sold, Not to be Told & Bible of Love falling flat on their faces. He purchased Death Row Records from MNRK Music Group days ahead of the Super Bowl LVI halftime person hence why he’s been B.o.D.R. (Bacc on Death Row) since, so it’s completely understandable that he & Dre are finally putting out Missionary through a historic joint deal between Death Row & Aftermath Entertainment/Interscope Records.

After the “Fore Play” intro by BJ the Chicago Kid, the first song “Shangri La” samples “Stakes is High” by De La Soul with the help of Sam Sneed talking about the time coming to start trouble whereas “Outta da Blue” featuring Dr. Dre goes back-&-forth with each other on the mic over Dre, BoogzDaBeast, Dem Jointz & FNZ sampling both “Saturday Night” by Schoolly D & “Scratchin’” by Magic Disco Machine. “Hard Knocks” finds Dre & Focus… flipping “Another Brick in the Wall” by Pink Floyd to talk about taking the long way, but then the pop rap/neo soul crossover “Gorgeous” co-produced by Blu2th & Fredwreck doing the wildest shit at 6am.

“Last Dance with Mary Jane” featuring Jelly Roll heavily samples “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” by Tom Petty suggesting to not even bother asking them giving up smoking weed just before “Thank You” aggressively talks about Uncle Snoop thanking everyone listening for letting him be himself. “Pressure” takes a funkier route instrumentally addressing the pussies getting frisky soon as the Dogg gets let out leading into the worst single “Another Part of Me” featuring Sting sampling “Message in a Bottle” by The Police to talk about both of them keeping money on their mind.

Method Man joins Snoop on “Skyscrapers” going for a triumphant flare altogether telling the young black entrepreneurs to turn their cap into capitalism stackin’ their bread high ahead of the groovy “Fire” referencing Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and WWE Hall of Famer, the shortest reigning WWE Champion & former WWE Tag Team Champion André the Giant. “Gunz N Smoke” featuring Eminem & 50 Cent flips “Dead Wrong” by The Notorious B.I.G. also featuring Eminem flexing their street ties in Long Beach, Detroit & New York respectively while “Sticcy Situation” shows a brand new strategy.

“Now or Never” featuring Dr. Dre pushes towards the conclusion of Missionary by shooting for the stars with something so unforgettable & trying to leave something that’ll live forever while the song “Gangsta Pose” featuring Fat Money keeps the gangsta rap vibes going asking where were y’all when they were in the middle of a war & keeping it on regardless of that. “The Negotiator” wraps things up with a poker face & talking about his legacy being everlasting.

By no means necessary did I go into Missionary expecting it to be another Doggystyle like some of the delusional comments that I’ve seen on a few of Snoop’s social media posts in the last few months simply based on the 3 singles we got building up to it. However, I do think it’s on par with Tha Last Meal & Tha Blue Carpet Treatment in being one of the best albums that he’s put out since his debut. From the lyricism to Dre’s production, you can very much hear the maturity between them both over the last 3 decades & testifies to their longevities in the west coast.

Score: 4.5/5

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Valee – “Great Sky London” review

New York producer Evilgiane teaming up with Chicago, Illinois rapper Valee for the latter’s 7th EP. Making his name known by releasing 3 mixtapes & a couple EPs from the span of 2015-2018, it wasn’t until one of my top 10 producers of all-time Ye formerly known as Kanye West signed him to a joint deal with G.O.O.D. Music & Def Jam Recordings. The next 2 EPs G.O.O.D. Job, You Found Me & Runnin’ Rich helped spread plugg music to a mainstream audience despite both receiving mixed reception to the point where he would go his own way from Thersday onward. I should also mention that Valee additionally has 2 EPs with AYOCHILLMAN as the duo The TrAppiEst as well as 2 more with ChaseTheMoney as the duo VTM & 2 with Stan Lane as the duo Vlane. His full-length debut Virtuoso produced by Harry Fraud from last summer won me over on him & Partridge produced by Black Noi$e from this spring reached that same caliber & increasing my excitement for Grey Sky London.

“Why Not” is this sample drill opener that he & WTM Niketech put together talking about being in Malibu & a bitch gotta catch him even though this ain’t the MLB whatsoever in addition to taking the backstreet whereas “Up Here” co-produced by Harrison takes a cloudier direction instrumentally asking the hoe what type of time she on since he has the same clock. “Hi Hater Maino” promises that he’ll break up with his girl if he finds out she’s broke & “Elbow” kinda has a plugg vibe to the beat from Eera talking about pulling a hoe for lean, but then “By da Way” ends the EP by refusing to chase a hoe & stopping at Chase Bank instead.

It’s incredible to think that the same guy Ye signed to G.O.O.D. Music for 15 minutes nearly 7 years ago by now would be going on a full redemption arc starting with Virtuoso, only for Partridge & now Great Sky London to expand on. Evilgiane’s cloudy, sample drill & plugg-influenced production is a welcoming change of pace compared to the experimental vibes that Black Noi$e brought to Partridge over 7 months ago & Valee’s own performances maintains the laser-focus that were prominent throughout the other 2 previously mentioned projects he’s given us in the past year & a half.

Score: 4/5

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Fat Joe – “The World Changed on Me” review

This is the 11th full-length studio LP from Bronx emcee, songwriter & actor Fat Joe. A member of D.I.T.C. & the Terror Squad, his first 3 albums Represent, J.O.E. (Jealous Ones Envy) & Don Cartagena are considered by many to be the best in his discography. However, much of his output since then has been either hit or miss from the underrated The Elephant in the Room to the horrendous J.O.S.E. 2 (Jealous Ones Still Envy 2). Cool & Dre produced the What Would Big Do? EP few years back & that was the most I’ve enjoyed Joey Crack’s music in a while, giving me hope for The World Changed on Me.

“Talking Hot” begins with a drumless Cool & Dreinstrumental letting it known that they gon’ be gettin’ shit poppin’ in here whereas “Mini Birki” featuring Ty$ happens to be a decent blend of trap & pop rap telling their respective partners Lorena & Zalia that they mean everything to them. “Us” featuring Remy Ma with co-production from 808-Ray makes a cutthroat toast to hip hop music leading into the underwhelming “Dog House” continuing the themes of romance albeit not as enjoyable as “Mini Birki” was.

As for “Me & U”, we have Joe over some horns & hi-hats talking about being alone with Lorena improving on what the previous joint lacked just before “Bad Man” featuring Tuggawar gets back on the drumless tip thanks to Don Cannon flexing their authenticity whilst everyone else be with the scams. “I Got You” was another mediocre pop rap joint that I could do without despite the Babyface hook, but then “Fresh” featuring Tony Sunshine finds the pair refusing to stop until they bring home Grammies.

The song “Paradise” was an obnoxious choice of a lead single from the DJ Khaled beat heavily ruining a sample as one would expect Khaled to do & in this case “Spring Love (Come Back to Me)” by Stevie B to the lyrics about giving his lover what she wants when she wants while the title track hops over a soulful STREETRUNNER instrumental confessing to feeling as if everyone switched on him. “They Don’t Love You” ends the LP with 1 more drumless cut laying passionate verses on top of this bare loop.

I’ve been wanting Cool & Dre to produce an album for Fat Joe since I feel like they’ve been bringing the best out of him in recent memory & considering that they produced 54% of it, I’ll still take it since it’s better than I had anticipated in it being even if it’s still average as a whole. The production’s actually consistent for a good portion of it & I like that he’s recapping the last 15 years of his life, it’s that the pop rap joints are hit or miss for me.

Score: 3/5

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Autumn! – “##B4B2MR” review

Louisiana rapper, singer/songwriter & producer Autumn! preluding Back 2 My Roots with his 22nd EP. Gaining traction off all 21 of his previous EPs & a full-length debut on SoundCloud since 2018 prior to signing to Victor Victor Worldwide & Republic Records following the Not Much Left EP, he made his major label debut nearly 2 years ago with his sophomore effort Antagonist! as well as following it up with the last 2 installments of the Golden Child trilogy & Midnight Club. Wick just delivered a sequel to Solitary in the spring & You Never Was Mine over the summer, but is surprise-dropping ##B4B2MR ahead of the main course.

“Something New!” starts with a psychedelic, self-produced plugg intro talking about not doing any 9-5s since his money be ridin’ tryna show his girl some new shit while “Laws of Power!” works in some synthesizers to talk about 10 rules that he lives by daily. “Both Ways!” heads for a cloudy trap direction instrumentally likening his hoes to Cullinan doors since they’re bisexual flexing that he’s still talkin’ hot & “Did It Again!” finishes the EP by keeping it atmospheric promising that this is only the beginning for him.

Wick’s last couple offerings Solitary 2 & You Was Never Mine were both welcomed to mixed feedback having less of a plugg emphasis to them focusing more on pop rap, trap & Chicago drill containing highlights that demonstrate his artistic range. However considering Back 2 My Roots’ title & the prominent plugg direction he goes for on this prelude, these are huge indications that Autumn!’s next body of work will mark a return to form to the sound that blew him up.

Score: 3.5/5

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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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