Atlanta, Georgia up-&-comer 9 Vicious gearing up for his upcoming sophomore effort Tumblr Music by releasing his 4th EP. Breaking out last summer off his debut single “U Fancy”, he would go on to further introduce himself on B4SA & the debut album Studio Addict helped him gain more exposure to the point where Young Thug has been trying to sign him to YSL Records since. Coming off both TM 1.5 & TM 2.9 from earlier in the month, the time has come for B4TM ahead of the main course later on in the year.
“R.I.P. Keed” kicks things off with a cloudy trap intro he, Jwade & Patrick Garza made together paying homage to the late Lil Keed whereas “Slime Bidness” boasts about making your hoe throwing it back for him keeping a stick & a mag on him over a 406ahmad beat. “Conversating” takes a soulful trap direction instrumentally addressing those who thought he was gay while “You Said” asks if this woman remembers if she told him she loved him. The outro produced by Taurus finishes the EP telling his life story.
Studio Addict was welcomed over a month ago to mixed reception although I could very much hear what 9 Vicious was capable of doing artistically & the prelude EP to his next LP here only provides 11 & a half minutes of what Tumblr Music has in store at a later date. The trap production gets refined here compared to both of his previous projects showing a hint of cloud rap thrown in the mix & he shows the world more of who he is lyrically.
Livingston, New Jersey emcee & 10k Global founder MIKE ending the first month of 2025 with his 7th studio LP. Breaking out a decade ago off his debut mixtape Winter New York, he would continue to make a name for himself by churning out 4 more tapes as well as his previous 4 albums & 8 EPs full of amongst the finest abstract hip hop that you’ll hear within the last decade. Standouts include May God Bless Your Hustle, War in My Pen & even the Faith is a Rock collab effort with Wiki entirely produced by The Alchemist. Burning Desire has become his best work yet & 10 months after Pinball, he’s back in Showbiz!.
“Bear Trap” strips the drums with some jazzy & abstract elements thrown in to get us started talking about his future being in the music industry whereas “Clown of the Class (Work Harder)” works in some heavily sampling to break down him still hustling during a new day. “Then we could be free..” turns the jazz rap influences up again explaining there’s shit you can’t replace for the cheese like a bracelet just before “Watered down” soulfully talks about those reducing the force or effectiveness of their styles.
As for “man in the mirror”, we have MIKE going for a peppier vibe instrumentally to discuss his adaptability leading into “Artist of the Century” hooks up a prominent flute so he can talk about putting his life on the fact that he’s the best making music in the 21st century. “What U Bouta Do? (A Star was Born)” featuring 454 sees the pair coming together suggesting that being in their shoes is a scary route referencing the Paramount Skydance Corporation, but then a personal standout “Belly 1” produced by Harrison talks about shit being cruel & never deter.
“Da Roc” kinda has this glitch hop/trap vibe throughout admitting to feeling like JAY-Z at times & that doesn’t necessarily mean he’s rockin’ with y’all while “The Weight (2K20)” takes the drumless jazz rap route taking about struggling with the shade & the passive abusiveness. “Lost Scribe” smoothly cautions a war going every time he’s scribing wanting his respect when he’s throwing the dice while “You’re the Only One Watching” gets on the drumless, chipmunk soup tip thanking God whilst talking to the sky.
To get the other half of Showbiz! started, “Lucky” hops over these crooning background vocals making his mission clear that he’s out for every bag as he can possibly take while the woozy “#82” assures that he can piece a broken heart together. After the “Too Hot” interlude, “Pieces of a Dream” experiments with some dub undertones throughout the jazz rap lead single acknowledging the rain ain’t done while the groovy “Strange Feeling” talks about tryin’ to skip the jump rope of life & puttin’ his life into this shit since it’s only 1 go.
“Zombie 2” entrancingly picks up right where the Burning Desire highlight left off conceptually reflecting on when he was once blind not seeing shit & leaving it up to the God’s since he’s tired of achieving while “Burning House” goes for a soulful, psychedelic 2-parter talking about learning how to be a part of something rather than the whole thing. The drumless title track warning that people know better than going against him while “Spun Out” suggesting having too much heart for this shit & possibly running out.
The song “Miss U” officially reaches the final moments of Showbiz! with MIKE taking a backseat vocally allowing duendita to demonstrate her singing chops for a minute & a half R&B joint serving as a bridge to the track “When It Rains” apologizes for his lyrics getting dark wondering if it’s bad the feelings he once had for this woman departed me since he hardly hits her line anymore. “Diamond Dancing (Broke)” closes the album hoping to stay close before he feels a certain way & there being no better way to cope once going separate ways.
Considered as a spiritual successor to Disco!, Showbiz! lifts the curtain on the everyday realities of life on tour absorbs an era of influence with MIKE’s use of lounge music records whether it be pitching up neglected soul singles & ultimately creating his own style as opposed to the predecessor moving to the rhythm of carefree dancefloors. The sounds of drumless, experimental hip hop, jazz rap, trap & dub pair up with MIKE’s abstract lyricism to make his point that he’s more than an artist.
California City horrorcore duo Madopelli back together again for their 4th studio LP. Consisting of M.A.D & Ant Dog, the pair have also gone on to drop a couple of mixtapes & EPs ever since forming in 2016. Their sophomore effort albeit Lyrikal Snuff Productionz debut No Bluffin’ proved itself to be Madopelli’s most refined work to date both lyrically & sonically to the point where they were instantly accepted within the Gorehop realm. The follow-up Stories from the Sanctum later resulted in both members making their LSP debut as solo artists with Sadistic Symphony & M.A.D (Me Against Death), coming off their feature on IOUz couple weeks ago with Suffer Not Dishonor.
After the intro, the title track is an uncanny opener talking about rather dreaming on than losing all their love for the game whereas “Breaking the Mold” samples blues music telling everyone listening to never give up the fight since it could be worse. “O.M.G.W.T.F.Y.D.” (Oh My God, What The Fuck Y’all Drinking?)” shows a more carefree attitude dedicating this to all the drinkers & after the “Descend into Madness” skit, “Save Some Time” dabbles with trap waiting for the rain to come down & wash them away.
“Murder Glow” aggressively breaks down their mission of getting LSP on top of the underground leading into “Bad Side” featuring Scum bringing the trio together for a skull-smashing trap metal cut talking about putting you out our misery once you’ve crossed the line with them. “Perfect Place” brings a regular trap flare to the table feeling like you’re gonna die while “This Life” sends prayers to the lost souls hoping they find peace.
Mikahl Lawless joins Madopelli on “Superstitious” stacking up dead bodies on the 13th floor talking about everyone who’s said the trio has always had an irrational belief or practice that is based on magic or chance rather than reason & prior to the outro, the final song “Really Mid Faces” rounds out Ant Dog & M.A.D.’s first body of work together in a year & a half.
Both halves of the duo spent 2024 focusing on crafting the finest solo efforts of their careers last spring with their respective LSP debuts & 10 months later, they’re linking back up to drop off their 3rd album since signing to the Gorehop powerhouse & reaffirming their ever-rising status as one of the biggest acts on the label. The production draws from trap music to trap metal, sampling blues music & hardcore hip hop bringing the type of wicked shit that’ll make the squeamish suffer.
EST G is a 30 year old rapper & songwriter from Louisville, Kentucky who put out his first 3 mixtapes independently until Interscope Records signed him for his 4th tape I Still Don’t Feel Nun & later signing with Collective Music Group the next summer to put out Bigger Than Life or Death. His debut album I Never Felt Nun finally came after Bigger Than Life or Death 2 & the Last Ones Left collab tape with 42 Dugg, following it up with Mad & El Toro 2. Couple years later, he’s returning for his official sophomore effort.
“Free Rico” is this Detroit trap intro wanting everyone that’s listening to follow his lead whereas “The Streets” was a decent 2nd single building up anticipation for I Ain’t Feeling You bringing trap & gangsta rap together. “Houstonatlantaville” featuring Lil Baby & honorary WWE Hardcore Champion Travis Scott blends horns & hi-hats recommending y’all to take your time when you gettin’ it out the oven while “Right Now” brings the Detroit trap vibes back talking about someone who ain’t learn shit.
The 3rd single “R.I.P. Lu Mike” remembers a friend of his who was tragically taken from us last summer just before the lead single “Go” sticks to a general trap sound altogether talking about being too high to the point where he can barely even think. “Plug Motivation” admits it didn’t hurt when someone who lied to him regarding being turnt died since he changed on him, but then “Do My Own Stunts” likens himself to the late Evel Knievel.
TM88 saves what’s by far my favorite instrumental on the album for “Crash” turning baby-mama drama into opportunities while “Slime” talks about having too much on his mind & the time for another killin’. The final single “My Love” featuring CBFW Records labelmates Rylo Rodriguez & Veeze finds the trio wishing their love was good enough on top of Veeze having the best verse of the 3 & the outro makes a clear-eyed accounting of his imperfections or mistakes that make him even more relatable.
“Flash” featuring Bloodhound Q50 gets the deluxe run going with both of them sampling “Flashing Lights” by Ye formerly known as Kanye West promising that their chains won’t ever get snatched while “Free Z5” talks about being raised way differently than the average person in the streets. “Free Leaf” calls for the squad to point out an opp whenever they come across one trappin’ viciously & the final bonus track “It Ain’t Work Yet” talks about using percocets to unsuccessfully numb the pain.
Keeping up with the CMG camp’s rise in popularity for almost 4 years now, I’ve given praise to a handful of their artists in that span of time whether it be 42 Dugg or Mozzy & more recently Glorilla. That in mind: I Ain’t Feeling You maintains the mixed reception of his output in the last few years due to it’s relatable themes getting drowned out as a result of uninteresting production.
New York producer V Don curating his 3rd EP after signing to Black Soprano Family Records & Roc Nation Records. In the past 15 years, he has become one of the most in-demand producers that the underground has seen working with the likes of Willie the Kid to Ransom & Estee Nack in addition to his small handful of solo efforts including the debut album The Opiate & his last EP Better Than Money. The latter celebrated its 3-year anniversary earlier this month & is returning with Sent For.
“Mafia” by Eto is this gritty boom bap opener talking about never sitting in a spot if he could never landlord it whereas “Fortunate” by Hobx & WhoisBravy hooks up some strings along with kicks & snares to discuss staying putting in orders in order to maintain the baller mentality of theirs. “The Same Day” by Benny the Butcher & Conway the Machine finds the pair talking about goals coming together doing something to your soul leading into “Episode” by Lloyd Banks boasting that his life’s complete.
The song “Too Much” by Al-Doe & Willie the Kid reaches the backend of Sent For by going drumless suggesting you should take it if you like what you see from them while “Old Kemba” by BabyMaine & Ty da Dale returns to the boom bap talking about staying hands on with the work. “Know Me” by Elcamino & Sule closes V Don’s debut with B$F/Roc Nation with both MCs giving headshots as if they’re photographers & that you better act as if you know what the deal really is.
Whether it be the Deutsche Marks saga or B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties) & the Chaos is My Ladder duology, V Don’s case in being one of underground hip hop’s most in-demand producers has already been made clear as day in the past 15 years & his Black Soprano Family/Roc Nation debut takes it a step further introducing himself to a wider audience. His signature hardcore boom bap sound remains the same & he recruits a mostly high tier list of performers to kill his beats.
Coast Contra is a jazz rap/trap group from Los Angeles, California consisting of RioLoz, Eric Jamal & Ras Kass’ twin children Taj Austin & Ras Austin. Their debut album Apt. 505 in the spring of 2022 received significant acclaim & their debut EP The Old Way the next fall, coming off being featured on Masta Ace & Talib Kweli’s latest albums Richmond Hill & The Confidence of Knowing respectively followed by the Austin twins’ appearance on Kamasi Washington’s 5th album Fearless Movement a year ago by teaming up with Toronto, Ontario, Canada producer Marco Polo for their 2nd EP.
“Mountain Climbers” begins with this jazzy boom bap intro wanting everyone who’s working all day to know that their time is on the way & to keep climbing making way for “‘08 Obama” co-signed by one of my top 10 producers of all-time Ye formerly known as Kanye West to work in a soul sample referencing WWE Hall of Famer, former 3-time WWE world champion, 3-time WWE United States Champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 9-time WWE tag team champion, 8-time WWE Cruiserweight Champion, アイアンマンヘビーメタル級チャンピオン & The Crash’s inaugural Mundial Pesocompleto Campeon Rey Mysterio.
The first half of the EP ends with “Shanghai Tower” gets romantic over a luxurious boom bap instrumental prior to setting out to make it right with their partners on “Been a Minute” backed by strings, kicks & snares. “Sunday Regulars” realizes obedience bringing a gospel/boom bap twist & the dusty, piano-driven title track wraps up Coast Contra’s finest work as a group with that shit you can’t fuck with.
These guys’ rise to notability has served as a breath of fresh air to hip hop fans due to the raw talent, complex lyricism, camaraderie & infectious personalities of all 4 members celebrating a decade together with the project that I’ve always wanted Coast Contra to make capitalizing on what makes the group so special. Marco Polo’s production strongly caters to boom bap, jazz rap & samples of gospel & soul music perfectly backing the quartet in reminding everyone who they are.
Farma G is a 40 year old MC/producer from Canonbury, London, England, United Kingdom known for being a member of the Mud Family collective & 1/2 of the Task Force alongside his brother Chester P. He would go on to produce for several big names within the underground from Rome Streetz to Vinnie Paz & the latter’s Heavy Metal Kings cohort Ill Bill. However after signing to High Focus Records as a solo artist, he’s ready to show the world what he’s capable of doing on the mic & dropping a full-length solo debut a month after Michael Oku became a 2-time RPW British Heavyweight Champion.
“Cats & Dogs” begins with a cumbersome beat from Relense referring to the titular idiom used when it’s raining really hard just before “Bearskin Coats” shifts towards a boom bap direction so he can liken himself to a walking killer carrying a harpoon. The self-produced “Junkyard” sticks out to me as a favorite of mine from the overall mafioso vibe to the lyrics detailing the kind of business you can’t get out of once you’re in while “Say How You See It” speaks of calling things the way they are.
Moving on from there, “Classic Tech” instrumentally somewhat reminds me of Griselda’s late 2010s output talking about a bad moon rising & a new sun’s quest to take it’s 1st breath leading into “Here Come the Gods” works in a gritty piano flip to explain that he was born to rock clubs. “Peet” samples an organ so he can a couple minutes to remember his late father while “In Between the Lines” talks about how he feels trapped whenever he’s writing songs over a Cuth & DJ Jazz T beat.
“Found That Funny” laughs at rappers who only have money on their minds while “Angels” talks about hearing messengers of God speaking to him. “Me Oh My” dustily offers an easy listening experience for the drug dealers & their victims while “Goat Shit” featuring Jehst finds the 2 over a woodwind instrumental talking about ranking amongst the greats. “The Start & End” finishes up the LP by jumping over a drumless loop suggesting death runs the numbers until our time comes.
Hanging up the mic in 2013 following the completion of the Task Force’s 6th & final album Music from the Corner 5 so he could focus more on his production skills, How to Kill a Butterfly thematically connects itself to Farma G’s origins as part of the Mud Family duo he & his younger sibling formed 3 decades ago officially closing that chapter of his life & beginning anew. I understand him only producing a few cuts so he can let his pen shine, but I’d love to hopefully hear the guy fully produce a future sophomore effort all by himself now that his solo career’s begun.
Michigan rapper MJPaid dropping off a sophomore effort. Coming up off the 6 Mile Trend$etter EP along with it’s sequel & the debut album 6 Mile Mi$fit respectively, Detroit trap group the ShittyBoyz would make him a member of their Dog $hit Militia collective signed to Lando Bando’s own The Hip Hop Lab Records dropping the Made & $tyle collab project with Fordio celebrating it’s 1-year anniversary last week. Coinciding with a deluxe version of that tape in the near-distant future, Paid Ponzi coming out made for an exciting prelude with 1 of the 2 performers handling the mic by himself.
“Ian Feelin’ That” pops it all off with a Detroit trap intro expressing his desire for $1B like he’s JAY-Z & shit not being hard to get if you put your mind to it whereas “Flavors” talks bitches chasing him & him chasing the money. “Dave Blunts” likens his pockets to the morbid obesity of a collaborator on Tronicles almost 3 months ago that I’m not too much of a fan of leading into “On Bro” featuring Babyfxce E exchanging brief verses with one another.
The vibraphones & pianos on “I Got It!” are peppily pleasant to the ear shrugging off any help some thinks he may need since he has it all taken care of while “6 Times” featuring Certified Trapper finds the pair asking how you a scammer when you ain’t even seen $10. “My Story” chops up a vocal sample for MJ to give everybody some backstory regarding himself just before “Elon Musk” feels like bad timing in light of the Tesla CEO, Twitter owner, SpaceX founder & Neuralink founder’s recent sieg hail.
“Y.N.W. (Young N Wild)” featuring DaBoii brings the pair together so they explain what kind of individuals they are while “3 Peat?” talks about everyone asking him for a handout being hoes. “Dracula” gives off a cloudier approach to the beat wanting red as if he’s a vampire while “OT7” talks about being out here with 7 hoes like he’s Quanny when I’d personally prefer him more than Quanny.
Babytron joins MJ on “It Depends” doing the back-&-forth execution of the verses better than the “On Me” single while “Don’t @ Me” produced by Danny G & Jakesand talks about mastering the art of cracking backs & going ghost when you need people the most. “Home Team” featuring Fordio recaptures the energy of that Made & $tyle tape we got 53 weeks earlier while “Dr. Doom” references the Fantastic 4 antagonist in light of his brief First Steps appearance.
“MJPaid Type Beat” pushes the 2nd leg of Paid Ponzi even further talking about trying to get his homies rich while “Scuba Dive” blends jazz & Detroit trap in a unique fashion talking about what he does every time a wave comes in his direction. “Bandz = Band-Aids” swaps out the jazz influences in favor in Mobb feelin’ like shit gonna be stayin’ the same while “Cold Summer” talks about how shit gonna be several months from now.
The song “What I Say?” speaks of having shit on his chest that ain’t gonna come out refusing make cheap convos with anyone broke while “Dog $hit” represents his team & talks about getting married to the money with Ben Frank becoming his best man. “Shhh” closes the album incorporating a chipmunk soul flip addressing the individuals who have no dedication wanting the lifestyle he’s experiencing.
Nearly 4 years since the 6 Mile Trend$etter properly introduced him within the Detroit trap realm, MJPaid makes his solo debut as part of the Dog $hit Militia once that pushes himself compared to his previous material & has me keeping my fingers crossed of the other members showing us what they’re capable of doing by themselves in the coming months. Even with 6 Mile Mi$fit having a stronger guest-list, the production is a big improvement from that earlier output & MJ channeling the energy of my 2nd favorite basketball player Kobe Bryant.
FKA twigs is a 37 year old singer/songwriter & dancer from Cheltenham, Gloucestershire, England, United Kingdom notable in the art pop scene for her XL Recordings subsidiary Young Recordings debut EP2 after her eponymous debut EP along with her full-length debut LP1 & her 3rd EP M3LL155X. Her sophomore effort Magdalene was also acclaimed with many saying it’s better than LP1 & the same goes with her Atlantic Records-backed debut mixtape Caprisongs, heading into Eusexua maintaining the classic caliber of both it’s predecessors.
The title track produced by Koreless brings together trance, art pop, progressive trance, melodic techno, ambient techno & minimal techno describing a feeling of momentary transcendence whereas “Girl Feels Good” desires men to listen to the passion of women unashamedly displaying the power women hold. “Perfect Stranger” works in elements of 2-Step, dance-pop, Euro house, alt-pop & future garage content with living with some mystery while “Drums of Death” with deconstructed club, UK bass, glitch pop, IDM, alternative R&B & glitch sings about you being her main character in your life.
“Room of Fools” sees her tempt the idea of love against this room of fools dances without a care of the real ongoings of the world while “Sticky” finds herself in the aptly titled kind of situations over & over again in attempts to express herself sexually since deep down she knows it’s a punishing cycle, but yet she can’t let go. “Keep It, Hold It” admits to feeling like wanting to turn the other way sometimes asking what she has to do & so just before the Jeff Bhasker co-produced “Childlike Things” featuring one of my top 10 producers Kanye West’s eldest daughter North West both going where the wild things are & North performing in Japanese better than she did “Bomb” off Vultures 2.
Meanwhile on “Striptease”, we have FKA twigs reaching the encore of Eusexua by singing on top of this angelic trap beat Dylan Brady helped put together additionally while “24hr Dog” feels herself becoming a so-called full time ‘slave’ for her partner resolving herself as to being a domesticated ‘dog’ for them in addition to their demands & wishes. “Wanderlust” ends the album telling her love to find her even if she is ‘lost’ in the immaterial lusting for the endless voyage that both life & death have to offer.
“The 11” starts the deluxe run describing a method she developed by encouraging conscious action on repeat for the mind & body via spoken word while the vocal trance, dance-pop, hard techno, progressive house, progressive trance, UK hard house & peak time techno single “Perfectly” sings about times things were messy for her yet doing it so well. “The Dare” seems like a cross between Madonna’s late 90s output & Dido knocking at this guy’s door daring him to forgive her & after “Gotta Feel” sings of her desires to be bathed in forgiveness & trust, the final bonus track “Lonely But Exciting Road” opens up regarding her belief of heaven possibly coming her way.
Inspired by a night in the summer of 2022 where FKA twigs found her way outside the city to a warehouse rave where hundreds of strangers were dancing to loud immersive techno, her first album in 6 years is more a love letter to dance music’s emancipating powers due to her channeling through the auteur’s heady, haunting signature style. The production shows influences of electronic dance music, art pop, trance music, dance-pop, alternative R&B, downtempo, deconstructed club, UK bass, glitch pop, IDM, glitch music, 2-Step, Euro house, alt-pop & future garage, progressive trance music, melodic techno, ambient techno & minimal techno providing greater understanding to the term she created herself defined as a state of being.
Ladbroke Grove, London, England, United Kingdom rapper & singer/songwriter Central C putting out his sophomore effort & major label debut as the we approach the end of the first month in the new year. After putting out a total of 4 EPs & a couple mixtapes in addition to his Split Decision collab EP he & Dave did, the 2023 XXL Freshman Class member has seen fit to sign with Columbia Records for him to make his proper introduction reminding that you Can’t Rush Greatness.
“No Introduction” is this UK drill intro talking about women tryna pretend as if they don’t know who he is already whereas “5 Star” reflects upon his come-up in the rap game. “Gata” featuring Young Miko apologizes for not answering sooner due to spending life & time while the money-hungry “St. Patrick’s” samples “C.R.E.A.M. (Cash Rules Everything Around Me)” by the almighty Wu-Tang Clan talking about being in the trap house getting his funds up & beef going hand-to-hand in hip hop.
21 Savage joins C on the 3rd single “GBP” highlighting the contrasts between the 2 artists’ roots & dealing with the struggles of street life while “Top” premeditates a graceful exit in the midst of trying to maintain. “Up North” maintains a UK drill flare talking about the life we live being as hostile as it already is, but then “CRG” featuring Dave finds the pair encouraging everyone to slow down with the greatness because it has to take time looking back on going from financial hardships to riches.
“Limitless” produced by Einer Bankz balances ambition & emotional burdens by tackling the internal conflict between wanting to escape his past & the sacrifices required to achieve financial success just before “Now We’re Strangers” tells an ex of his that he hopes she finds her way back home. “Truth in the Lies” featuring Lil Durk flips “So Sick” by Ne-Yo admitting to feeling suicidal without their partners’ love while “10” featuring Skepta boasts that they’re in UK top 3 every year.
Lil Baby accompanies C for “BAND4BAND” dropping braggadocio together while “Gen Z Luv” serves as an open letter to Madeline Argy. The song “Walk in Wardrobe” is a 2-parter promising to do it all again if he goes broke while “Must Be” talks about what his definition of “real” is. “Don’t Know Anymore” closes C’s debut doing more than 10,000 hours for him to get into the position that he’s at currently.
Catching onto him after a string of high profile guest appearances from The Kid Laroi to J. Cole & Ice Spice, I can definitely understand why Central C has becoming increasingly popular although the way he pulls off the UK drill/pop rap crossovers doesn’t necessarily appeal to me. The sampling of R&B & even Brazilian funk music is cool & I can’t deny that he’s come a long way from his earlier output.
