Daniel Caesar – “Son of Spergy” review

Daniel Caesar is a 30 year old singer/songwriter from Oshawa, Ontario, Canada releasing his first few EPs Birds of Paradise as well as Praise Break & Pilgrim’s Paradise followed by his independently released debut Freudian through his own imprint Golden Child Recordings & a moderate sophomore effort Case Study 01 although “Frontal Lobe Muzik” remains a hidden gem. His previous album Never Enough marked his major label debut under Republic Records to widespread acclaim & his 4th studio LP looks to do the same.

Sampha joins Daniel for the gospel intro “Rain Down” asking for God to pour his blessings all over them whereas the singer/songwriter & neo-soul lead single “Have a Baby (With Me)” additionally pulls from smooth soul singing about impregnation. The next single “Call on Me” blends psychedelic neo-soul & indie rock advising to call him if one needs help getting by while “Baby Blue” featuring his father Norwill Simmons sings about his relationship with God.

“Root of All Evil” continues the heavy religious themes referencing 1 Timothy 6:10 just before “Who Knows?” reaches the halfway point singing about feeling like a total coward hiding in a disguise. The final single “Moon / Violence” featuring Bon Iver eclectically pulls from indie folk, psychedelic soul, singer/songwriter, bedroom pop, smooth soul & psychedelic folk asking who’s gonna be their Jesus while the bedroom pop inspired “Touching God” confesses to the feeling of worthlessness without the fame.

Nearing Son of Spergy‘s conclusion, Sign of the Times” sings that he’s stronger now than he ever was & remembering Frank Ocean’s brother Ryan Breaux who lost his life in a car accident while “Emily’s Song” dedicates itself to his ex-girlfriend that he was seeing in the late 2010s thanking her for helping him see clearer. “No More Loving (On Women I Don’t Love)” feels more like a 646yf4t track since his brother’s taking up a good chunk of it vocally contradicting the “Who Knows?” outro & “Sins of the Father” featuring Bon Iver closes Daniel’s 2nd major label project with a 2-parter singing about his relationship with his biological father & God.

Inspired by a reconciliation between himself & his own parents, Daniel Caesar embraces a prominent singer/songwriter & bedroom pop direction compared to Never Enough‘s heavy lenience towards contemporary R&B & neo-soul resulting in his most stripped-back body of work. You’re still getting hints of those previously mentioned styles to a lesser extent on Son of Purgy & it’s predecessor’s psychedelic/smooth soul undertones, but the alternative R&B elements get phased out in favor of indie folk & gospel tackling themes of masculinity along with faith & self-importance.

Score: 4/5

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Ian – “2005” review

St. Louis, Missouri rapper/producer Ian is back after 12 whole months for his sophomore effort, 5th EP or debut mixtape. A member of the D1shonorable collective, he got his start in 2019 producing the single “Know That” by Izaya Tiji before going on to release 3 EPs of his own: Only for a While, Remembrance & the gyo-produced Empty Suit. Akon’s brother Bu Thiam signed him to his Columbia Records imprint Buvision Entertainment this spring for his previous EP Valedictorian, which received mixed responses although I personally found to have it’s highlights like “Chauncey” & “Magic Johnson”. Goodbye Horses even had its own highs like “3.5” or “Out West”, surprise-releasing 2005 only 53 weeks later.

We get some colorfully peppy synthesizers during the intro “Go Ian” taking a boastful approach to the lyrics feeling like that people have a bad impression on him ever since signing to a major label whereas the rage-inducing “Aw Shit” talks about keeping it 100 even if he isn’t perfect. The self-produced “You Told Me” reserves the drums for the final minute or so not making any plans because he’s vibing while the mediocre trap/pop rap single “I Ain’t Coming Back” prior to the Bhad Bhabie interlude talks about being good all by himself, having a lot of questions for his ex-girlfriend & even more for her mother.

“Talk About It” brings the synths back in effect thanks to Internet Money Records in-house producer NASH so he can reflect over a relationship prior to “Remember Me” continuing to delve deeper into the topic of love accompanied by a piano instrumental. “Have My Back” proves a comparison Tyler, The Creator had made between Ian & Future clear as day, although “Soul Provider” produced by FNZ could be his most emotional track ever & “Friends from Everywhere” ends with Ian shouting out his homies all around the world.

Serving as a prelude to Valedictorian 2 coming out a couple months ago as revealed via an Easter egg in the artwork, 2005 finds Ian returning behind the boards since he didn’t produce anything on the original Valedictorian or Goodbye Horses & I can appreciate that to the highest extent because Ian can be likened to ΠΔV in the sense that I enjoy his production work more than a good chunk of the major label material. Will he capitalize on his production skills more a couple months from now? Only time will tell.

Score: 2.5/5

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CupcakKe – “The BakKery” review

CupcakKe is a 28 year old rapper & singer/songwriter from Chicago, Illinois releasing her first couple mixtapes Cum Cake & S.T.D (Shelters To Deltas) alongside her full-length debut Audacious almost a decade ago already. Queen Elizabitch, Ephorize & Eden were all welcomed to the same moderate reception as her 2016 material although Dauntless Manifesto last summer showed a lot of growth compared to her earlier output. Roughly 16 months later & she’s pushing herself even further creatively with her 6th album.

“The Silverback Wife” begins with an explosive diss track aimed towards the crowd of people who don’t take her seriously whereas the crunk-inspired “Ballerina Coupe” flexes that she was born legendary. “1 of My Bedbugs Ate My Pussy” blends pop rap, hip house, future house, phonk house, nursery rhymes & ghetto house using shock humor & comedically absurd imagery while “Fist Me” takes her kinkiness to whole new levels over a hip house instrumental.

Meanwhile on “Rubik’s Cube”, we have CupcakKe comparing her heart to the popular 3D combination puzzle & addressing the ongoing Gaza genocide just before “New N***a Now” gives a shout out to the freedom of men suggesting that she doesn’t necessarily needs a guy to start a relationship. “UFO” stylistically gives her flowers to Charli XCX & the late SOPHIE humorously talking about abducting male genitalia leading into the halfway point “Go Get ‘Em” nicknaming bitch ass males The Simpsons after the iconic Fox Corporation’s flagship property’s long-running animated series.

“Moan-a Lisa” begins the 2nd half of The BakKery tour getting goosebumps all over her body simply from her lover while “Akeelah” takes it’s inspiration from the 2006 drama Akeelah & the Bee. The nursery rhyme interpolations that we heard during the single make their way back onto “Snowman” poking fun at a guy who isn’t exactly her type while “Cat in the Hat” does the exact same thing savagely comparing giving a cornball oral to sucking on a cotton swab.

The raunchiness gets turned up during “Rapunzel” talking about pubic hair the entire time while “Alcoholic” describes somebody who’s addicted to getting hammered & CupcakKe pretending to be drunk with them. “Sloppy Joe” winds down the final 6 minutes talking about being taken from the back & “Soccer Mom” finishes by experimenting with afrobeats a little describing a vicious kind of woman who chills on the side for the sole purpose of kickin’ it with the young male she’s been speaking to for a while now.

Dauntless Manifesto‘s secondary influences of Jersey club rap & funk brasileiro are being replaced with elements of hip house, electropop & dance-pop although the hardcore hip hop, pop rap, trap, experimental hip hop & contemporary R&B styles remain in tact all over what could be the most musically bold & hilariously written entry in CupcakKe’s discography so far acknowledging her city’s history of originating house music whilst sharpening her witty pen.

Score: 4/5

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Mike Shabb – “Fight the Power!” review

Montréal, Québec, Canada emcee, producer & engineer Mike Shabb returning with his 3rd studio LP. Coming up in the spring of 2018 off his full-length debut Northwave, he would continue to make his presence known by putting out 6 EPs & his last couple of mixtapes before gaining notoriety for engineering Boldy James’ 5th album Fair Exchange No Robbery along with producing “Switches on Everything” off Hitler Wears Hermes X & enlisting his mentor Nicholas Craven to fully produce his 5th EP Shadow Moses from top to bottom. Hood Olympics & Sewaside III were both solid in their own rights, following up this spring’s Shabb Van Gogh to Fight the Power! ahead of Hood Olympics 2.

“Neighborhood Sniper!” opens with a drumless soul sample talking about sniping white supremacists whereas “Supercat!” gives his flowers to the dancehall icon of the same name. “Ol’ Dirty!” chops up a psychedelic guitar passage talking about being a completely different breed while the drumless “Kool G!” villainously discusses catching toe tags with a firearm dropping bodies 1-by-1.

Meanwhile on “World’s Mine!”, we have Shabbo passionately flexing that he’s been rockin’ mics since he was back in high school leading into the 2-parter “Lord in the Sky! + Nightmares!” talking about staying the same even after the cash flow picked up. “Tank!” blends a vocal sample & hi-hats so he can get in dumpin’ mode beyond rap just before “Crickets!” talks about staying in the bushes.

“Gotti!” starts the final leg of Fight the Power! with heavier sampling boasting that he’s validated everywhere he goes & bagging himself a stallion while “Rock Steady!” featuring 12kgotti finds the pair joining forces for an ode to the Rock Steady Crew of b-boys. The title track talks about looking to make the most out the plans he sticks to & “Terminator X” sends off the album with an instrumental outro.

Needless to say that we’re most likely gonna have to wait until 2026 for Hood Olympics 2 to come, Fight the Power! still presents itself as the most militant musical opus of Mike Shabb’s entire career. Cooking up some of his most creative batch of drumless beats yet, he takes up a good bulk of the half hour justifying that he’s the top underdog of this rap shit & he won’t ever kiss ass to be apart of “the industry” since he is his own industry.

Score: 4.5/5

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BabyBartier – “Terror” review

This is the 4th EP from Los Angeles, California rapper BabyBartier. Introducing himself to the underground trap scene off his debut EP Baby Blanco earlier this spring followed by Diablo a little over a month later, his popularity would continues to grow in the summer with Awe$ome receiving co-signs from the likes of Internet Money Records founder Taz Taylor along with both of YSL Records’ newest artists 1300SAINT & 9 Vicious although they fell out with one another recently. Almost a week away from Halloween, he’s looking to reek some Terror.

“Grave” starts off by hopping over a cloudy instrumental assuming that he’s suicidal the way his diamonds be cutting his wrists & once “Big Dope” locks in with Patrick Garza to talk about smoking the loudest of loud, the lead single “Marilyn Monroe” produced by Rio Leyva & Vendr reaches the halfway point comparing his girl to the iconic actress & model along with looking to up the score in Los Angeles with his homies beside him.

The 2nd & final single “New Age 2Pac” talks about himself being a madman although it’s titular comparison has become increasingly cliche over time & after “Maybach Minivan” spends the next 90 seconds detailing his lifestyle posting in Malibu on top of a Jwade beat, “Long Time No See” finishes up talking about a woman selling her soul for gold over a Cadeinstrumental.

Looking to get his scare on in preparation for the spookiest time of the year, Terror elevates BabyBartier’s artistry even further with the greatest EP of the 4 that he’s given us in these past 6 months & coming closer to the BabyBoyRecords founder’s full potential being realized. In only 10 minutes, the production is quite stronger than all 3 of its predecessors & the west coast artist lyrically steps his whole game up with ease.

Score: 4/5

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Planet Asia – “King’s Dominion” review

Celebrating the birthday of Fresno, California veteran Planet Asia with either his 27th full-length studio LP. Emerging as 1/2 of the duo Cali Agents, he would also go on to have a very successful solo career & has made a lengthy yet consistent discography for himself. This includes The Grand Opening, The Medicine, the DJ Muggs-produced Pain Language, Abrasions, the Apollo Brown-produced Anchovies & Sardines backed by Mello Music Group, the 38 Spesh-produced Trust the Chain & it’s sequel, the Evidence-produced Rule of 3rds and the Snowgoons-produced U.Z.I. (Universal Zeitgeist Intelligence). It’s already been 14 months since Trust the Chain II & my anticipation for King’s Dominion increased once it was announced DJ Scratch was fully producing the whole thing.

“Not Allowed” aggressively opens by talking about sucka shit not being permitted around his premises while the title track works in some strings to compare his rhymes to words sent from an angel. “Big Guns” talks about sending his shooter at anyone who speaks badly on his name & after the spoken word “Knowledge is Power” interlude, he doesn’t waste a split second “Coming for the Title” with his authenticity.

Starting the 2nd half, “You All Know” soulfully talks about possibly charging for reflections leading into “Produce a Seed Through You” chops up more soul samples & discussing wanting to knock up a Hispanic woman. “St. John’s Park” brings some rap rock undertones to the table murdering mics while Rigz & Rome Streetz appear for the closer dropping off some “Ghetto Gospel”.

Reminding the world of what a hip hop project’s supposed to sound like, Planet Asia teams up with the former disc jokey of EPMD & the Flipmode Squad for an album coinciding with celebrating the west coast lyricist turning 49 that rivals Trust the Chain II last summer. DJ Scratch’s production exemplifies why he’s considered amongst the most underappreciated beatsmith within the culture today & lyrically, the Fresno penman makes another example of his own getting sharper with time.

Score: 4.5/5

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Reuben Vincent – “Welcome Home” review

Here is the highly anticipated 3rd album from Charlotte, North Carolina emcee Reuben Vincent. Emerging under the original moniker Esau, his debut tape IDOL.escent would catch the attention of 9th Wonder & would sign Reuben to Jamla Records in 2016. His debut album Myers Park would be released the next fall followed by the previous EP Boy Meets World, the latter of which resulted in Roc Nation Records handling distribution for Reuben’s future output much like fellow Jamla signee Rapsody beginning with the sophomore effort Love is War almost 3 years ago continuing to elevate his popularity. General Admission was ok in comparison, coming off the well received Hit Me When You Get Here earlier this spring to finally drop Welcome Home.

“Homecoming” promises over a slick boom bap instrumental that the blood, sweat & tears he puts into his music won’t be in vein whereas “Day by Day” works in a soul sample to send praises to the most high on the daily. “God’s Children” featuring Ab-Soul finds the 2 nostalgically homaging Ahmad’s hit single “Back in the Day” just before the charming “Gotta Get It” talks about getting paid.

As for “Queen City”, we have Reuben observes the excessive wannabes out nowadays in addition to dismissing the crowd who stays in his ear telling him what he can & can’t leading into the triumphantly funky “Get Up (Get Down)” talking about being here to flip the pages. “Issa Dee” takes a summery approach to the beat facing the concept of insecurity directly leading into “Anything” talking about doing whatever makes his partner happy.

“So I Pray” featuring Heather Victoria teams up for a luxurious ode to both Jamla artists’ spirituality while “Dre & Sydney” finds himself trying to figure out how this man & woman are so close yet so far sampling soul music once again. “Get It Girl” featuring Wale shows a flirtatious side to themselves over some synthesizers while “Sweet & Good” continues the theme of love over an orchestral boom bap instrumental.

Jourden Cox joins Reuben on the soulful “Just 4 Me” talking about God making their soulmates solely for them while “Cup of Love (Fools)” explains his preference of living like a country boy instead of winning awards. “I’m Good” featuring Marco+ links up for 5 & a half minutes assuring everyone concerned of them that they’re doing well while “In My Life” wraps things up with a line referring to my favorite Roy Ayers track “Searching”.

Taking it back to the foundation of Reuben Vincent’s artistry, Welcome Home represents a full-circle moment from the standpoint of 9th Wonder being the person to give him 1st chance in this game & they back to where it all began for them simultaneously elevating their artistic bond. He might’ve lost friends & family to get to where he is presently, but he gained things worth more than living in the process finally seeing the fruits after remaining focused.

Score: 4/5

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Monie Love – “Love Notes” review

Monie Love is a 55 year old MC, actress & radio host from London, England, United Kingdom making her full-length debut on Devil’s Night 1990 under Warner Records with Down to Earth. Her sophomore effort In a Word or 2 produced by Marley Marl & surprisingly the late Prince would leave fans divided over 3 decades ago although I personally like it more than Down to Earth. Returning to music 10 days ago after appearing on 7xvethegenius’ new album Self 7xve 3, the Native Tongues member looks to take her comeback to newer heights by dropping off a brand new EP of material a day prior to former AEW Women’s World Champion Blake Monroe becoming the new NXT Women’s North American Champion.

“Sho Luv” produced by Baby Paul formerly of Da Beatminerz bestowing the new level that she’s elevated herself to after over 3 decades of being gone whereas “Cape Vinny” takes the soulful boom bap route instrumentally to talk about clarity settling in because of her thoughts getting crowded. “Jus We” featuring Ruste Juxx & T3 continues the sampling of soul for a romantic direction topically while the lead single “Divine” featuring Skyzoo & Tuff talks about memories taking center stage onstage of fading.

The 3rd & final single “Mo’ Skillz” featuring Amil starts the backend of Love Notes marking the return of Roc-A-Fella Records’ 1st Lady herself joining Monie in ripping it over a sample of “Shadows” by The Mysterious Flying Orchestra for a nod to the Gang Starr single “Skills” leading into “Atonement” incorporating strings & synthesizers talking about reparations along with handing people the same rope she was given. The 2nd single “1 People” featuring Nana Fofie to me serves as the official closer excluding the “Sho Luv” remix experimenting with dancehall.

Originally teased in the fall of 2021 under the title Lovestruck, we finally got Baby Paul convincing one of hip hop’s pioneering women in Monie Love to come back after pursuing a radio career since In a Word or 2 because of surface pressure that a lot of artists can undergo now & the shape of the forever evolving industry we’ve all come to cherish so greatly. Together, their attempt at a grassroots level extended play makes up for it’s lengthy delays speaking from the heart with a handful of well-picked guests having 0 worries regarding who’s gonna stream or buy it.

Score: 4/5

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The Alchemist & Hit-Boy – “Goldfish” review

Beverly Hills producer, DJ & rapper The Alchemist joining forces with Fontana producer, rapper & singer/songwriter Hit-Boy for their long-awaited collaborative LP. Both of whom have respectively become amongst the most in-demand beatsmiths, with Uncle Al ranking amongst my top 10 producers ever. They’ve crossed paths with each other on multiple instances whether it be producing Benny the Butcher’s 4th album Everybody Can’t Go or Big Hit’s sophomore Blacks & Whites, but are finally dropping Goldfish a little over a couple years in the making.

“Doing My Best” finds the 2 trading bars with one another over a sumptuous Hit-Boy beat they cooked up together to begin while the jazzy single “Business Merger” turns up the watts whilst beating up the pots. “Show Me the Way” takes the drumless chipmunk soul route instrumentally thanks to Uncle Al feeling confident they won’t ever be the same people they once were prior leading into the Conway the Machine solo track “Mick & Cooley”.

Alchemist & Hit-Boy get back on the mic during the soulful “Ask for Me” talking about being on the low with the only thing you gotta do is simply ask while “Ricky” hooks up an pretty orchestral sample so Uncle Al can reflect that a 2-parent household is all he & his siblings ever knew. “Groupie Love” brings back the drumless chipmunk soul vibes getting rotation on the radio after doing a freestyle just before “Celebration Moments” talks about wanting the crown now.

“Home Improvement” primarily has a smooth drumless sound until the drums come in full gear near the end of both verses delivered from a deeply introspective place while “Recent Memory” talks about their only competition being themselves. “Walk in Faith” continues the sampling until a switch-up during Hit-Boy’s part freezing because of the cold world we’re in & “Not Much” featuring Boldy James soulfully flexes their own individual spaces as MCs.

Continuing to holding it down by themselves “Drawing Bridges” talks about there being nothing to take because nothing was given in the beginning while “All Gas No Breaks” featuring Big Hit & Jay Worthy finds the quartet applying pressure to the pedal. “God’s Great” officially ends Goldfish giving praise to the most high over a pitched sample while “Morrissey” starts the deluxe run comparing their lives to theatrical films.

“The Main Event” structurally is built a lot similarly to “Slipping Into Darkness” where Hit-Boy’s rhyming over an Alchemist instrumental & vice versa with the exception Johnathan Hulett’s briefly sung verse following Uncle Al’s & the final bonus track “Don’t Be Gone” flips a Chicago Gangsters deep cut going back-&-forth with each other on top of drumless sampling for a little over 3 minutes.

Goldfish isn’t really any different from what The Alchemist has done with Oh No under the Gangrene moniker for the past 15 years aside from the Conway joint & that’s not a criticism because Hit-Boy has already proven himself to be a capable MC on Surf or Drown alongside it’s sequel. The west coast veterans gel with one another exceptionally on the mic as they have in the past producing for other artists.

Score: 4/5

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Slaine – “A New State of Grace” review

Boston, Massachusetts veteran Slaine has returned with his 6th LP. Most notable for being a member of La Coka Nostra, he released an EP & a total of 4 mixtapes before coming through with his debut album A World with No Skies in 2011 under Suburban Noize Records. This was followed up with The Boston Project in 2013 as well as The King of Everything the year after that, but the man went took a 3-year hiatus following the release of the Slaine is Dead EP in 2016 & returned by dropping the mature 1 Day in 2019. It’s been a while since The Things We Can’t Forgive, but he’s locking in with Statik Selektah to enter A New State of Grace.

The title track opens up by jumping over some synthesizers & a vocal sample talking about going places there usually isn’t any coming back from whereas “Cancel Culture” by La Coka Nostra tackles that very subject on top of a boom bap instrumental. “Listen Up” meshes these quirky synths with kicks & snares for a b-boy anthem just before “Ambition of the Crown” featuring Millyz talks about playing with fire being a dangerous thing when aiming at the king.

“It’s All Good” continues with an apology for someone he hurt whilst thanking them for being a true friend of his while “Ain’t Been the Same” talks about waking up saying hello to his new life & adios to his old one. “Coka Grillz” by La Coka Nostra featuring Paul Wall was a great single with everyone spraying lyrical bullets at those looking to battle them while “Crumbled God” featuring Rasheed Chappell & 1982 takes a more conscious approach topically.

“The Real Shit” featuring Masta Ace & O.C. starts A New State of Grace’s final leg with the trio over a piano-tinged boom bap instrumental talking about times eternally changing while “Gusto” featuring O.T. the Real & Statik KXNG samples “In Memory Of…” by Gang Starr to see who can spit the illest verse. “World Don’t Stop” concludes with a heartfelt outro talking about the future making sense in hindsight.

Capturing the energy of A State of Grace original whilst carrying the weight as well as the wisdom & scars of everything that’s happened since, A New State of Grace seems like a homecoming of sorts regarding Slaine & Statik Selektah’s friendship dating back 2 decade. From the latter’s signature boom bap sound to the sharp lyricism balancing bravado with the maturity of 1 Day & The Things We Can’t Forgive, the sequel to Slaine’s most beloved tape raises the bar both it’s predecessors have set in the late 2010s/early 2020s.

Score: 4.5/5

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