Truly Young – “Dear Joshua” review

Los Angeles, California bedroom pop singer/songwriter Truly Young releasing her debut extended play after turning 25 this month. Known for being the daughter of Dr. Dre, she would eventually get herself involved in music by making a few guest appearances on Kevin Abstract’s 6th album blush under X8 Music a couple years ago & was actually more impressed with the performances she had on there than I initially thought. That said: She’s making a bigger artistic splash with Dear Joshua beyond her debut single “Room 64”.

The self-produced title track begins singing about this guy who’s easily influenced by doubt & her not being his type of woman over an indie pop instrumental whereas “fear the reaper” goes for a summery vibe asking who’d she be if she didn’t give into danger. “forever” ends the 1st half realizing Joshua will miss her while “shadows” describes escaping her feelings. “boy” dabbles with dance-pop airing him out for not being the man she thought he was & “you 2 deserve each other” colorfully ends singing about him recognizing her weaknesses.

Putting aside the fact her father’s the Quincy Jones of hip hop, Truly Young spends the 16 minutes of her inaugural EP Dear Joshua sending an audio letter to her now ex-boyfriend pretty much airing out her grievances towards him. It made me happy learning she produced the entire thing rather than having other producers on board much like her “Room 64” aside from “shadows”, establishing herself in the indie pop world channeling all that anger she had stemming from that failed relationship exploring dance-pop & contemporary R&B for what I consider the real beginning of her solo career.

Score: 3.5/5

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Jorjiana – “5 Elements” review

Jorjiana is a 21 year old rapper from Michigan City, Indiana who came up in 2024 off her breakout single “ILBB2”. She would later sign to Atlantic Records the following spring & would release her debut mixtape Project 219 roughly 7 months later to moderate reception mostly due to the underwhelming selection of beats rather than the performances from her or the guests. Recently joining Buvision Entertainment whilst retaining her Atlantic contract, she’s continuing to prelude her full-length studio debut with an extended play.

“Talk” opens up with a bassy instrumental that includes a switch-up midway through letting her detractors know she could care less of their feelings whereas “Indiana 2for2” talks about entering her old money era even if the beat’s generally uninteresting. “I’m the One” embraces a rage-inducing vibe making her guy nervous because she loves money more than him & after “808-Wish” moodily explores the downsides of relationships, “Rich Finally” cloudily ends 5 Elements talking about achieving wealth.

Neither of the previously mentioned tracks that were both released as singles building up anticipation for 5 Elements blew me away, but I still gave Jorjiana the benefit of the doubt thinking the other 3 songs would make up for it & I unfortunately liked this EP less than I did her debut mixtape last Black Friday. She’s a capable performer but as I had mentioned, Project 219 lacked in the production department & a great deal of her Buvision debut’s beats remain dull.

Score: 2.5/5

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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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Marilyn Manson – “1 Assassination Under God 2” review

This is the 13th studio LP from Ohio singer/songwriter, actor, painter & writer Marilyn Manson. Signing to Nothing Records & Interscope Records, his debut Portrait of an American Family proved to be a passable industrial rock/alt-metal debut although The Triptych launched him into international stardom. Said triptych including Antichrist Superstar, Mechanical Animals & my favorite Holywood: In the Shadow of the Valley. The Golden Age of Grotesque & Eat Me, Drink Me were both received to mixed responses as was his final Interscope offering The High End of the Low & the Loma Vista Recordings debut Born Villain. However during my senior year of high school, The Pale Emperor made his true return to form followed by Heaven Upside Down & the Shooter Jennings-produced We Are Chaos wrapped up his Loma Vista contract. Marilyn hasn’t been around musically in a while because of psychological & sexual abuse allegations, which I can’t speak for myself on whether they’re true or false. Coming off his Nuclear Blast Records debut 1 Assassination Under God however, he’s back for a sequel.

“Unalive” begins with a goth rock intro singing about his eyes never weeping & being the only enemy we need whereas “Don’t Answer the Door” shifts towards an industrial rock vibe speaking of the tongues coveting us & consuming every last thing they see. “Front Toward Enemy” was a rebellious industrial metal/rock single with secondary influences of alternative metal demanding those on the ground to get up & right while “All the Vilest Things” dismisses revenge because those who tried to destroy him made him stronger.

Kicking off the 2nd half, “None of the Suns” takes it back to the goth rock sound singing about being in the black now at the end of everything while “Lucifer’s Teardrop” goes industrial rock again likening his heart to a loaded gun. “The Arsonist” sings about being the poison one can’t ever take over an industrially alternative rock crossover & once “Exit Wound” tolerably culminates all the general sounds explored to get resilient, the outro “Enantiomorph” concludes 1 Assassination Under God 2 singing about refusing to let people kill him or break his love.

Regardless of where Marilyn Manson goes beyond the 1 Assassination Under God duology, I can confidently say I enjoyed this final chapter more than its companion which felt like a cross between Mechanical Animals & Holywood. The darker production primarily leans towards the industrial rock side of things than 1 Assassination Under God 2‘s predecessor did retaining elements of alt-rock, alternative metal, goth rock & industrial metal using each stone he had thrown at him to sharpen his edges & outgrow purgatory.

Score: 4/5

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The Musalini – “The Don & Eye 3” review

New York emcee & Jamla Records signee The Musalini running it back with 9th Wonder for his 14th studio LP. Taking the underground by storm since 2018 after dropping his debut mixtape Musalini Season, he went on to release 3 full-lengths & another tape before signing to TCF Music Group. Since then, he’s made himself home by dropping a few EPs & Return of the Oro in the early part of this decade. In God We Trust produced by 38 Spesh, The Don & Eye alongside its sequel fully produced by 9th Wonder & Pure Izm produced by Khrysis have all quickly become his best material over the past 4 years. Mackaroni produced by Cookin’ Soul and Live & Let Fly produced by DJ Fresh were really enjoyable too, now looking to properly conclude The Don & Eye trilogy.

After the “Musalini’s Stroll” intro, “Lay Low” featuring Le$ links up for a funky opener talking about playing to win & likening themselves to Rick James without the coke whereas “2 Letters” instrumentally takes a more soulful synth-based approach suggesting one would do better if they knew better. “Shrimp Lo Mein” shifts towards a boom bap direction talking about the long nights making him who he is while “Can You Stand the Rain?” featuring Silent Snipers, Swank & Sweata poses that very question.

“Game Cold” takes the opulent boom bap route assuring his partner it’s all love while “Pocket Full” has a groovier approach talking about him & this woman who he quite a bit in common with. “Off the Books” gives off a more chilled out mood explaining he’s only here to win & the eagerness of showing those new around the operation leading into “Memories” combines elements of soul & boom bap talking about a woman he sees in his dreams.

Kicking off the 2nd half, we have Mu$ on “Salt Box” trying to bring balance to the game while “Pretty Lady” featuring Swank reunites the pair goes for a chipmunk soul direction promising their lovers they could be sitting right beside them in the Porsche rollin’ blunts if they really want to be. “Owe It All” takes some elements of jazz rap & soul talking about having to take some time outta his prime to live it up whole “Car Keys” featuring King Draft links up so they can discuss still standing in true fashion.

“Fast Life” flashily dedicates itself to the hustlers doing numbers while “Picture Me Rollin’” featuring Silent Snipers talks about leaving at sunrise like real pros. “Capital Grille” featuring Eli tha Don speaks of always staying at the top of the hill while “Live from Tokyo” talks about reporting directly from Japan’s capital. “Premium Plush” featuring Jaewon & Smoke DZA finds the trio jazzily explaining their preference for everything while “Time Travels” soulfully sends it off making his paper increase.

A huge reason I felt like The Don & Eye 2 was weaker than it’s predecessor was because almost every track having a feature & although not every guest appearance The Don & Eye 3 does the same, I can still put this new chapter above the previous installment since I can appreciate The Musalini being given more room to rock it by himself than he did when he & 9th Wonder last got together in 2022 for what could likely become his finest 2026 solo effort.

Score: 3.5/5

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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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