Action Bronson – “Planet Frog” review

Yes, we have a brand new LP & the 9th altogether from New York City emcee, songwriter, chef, wrestler & television host Action Bronson. Blowing up with release of his debut album Dr. Lecter in 2011, he then landed a joint venture with VICE Music & Atlantic Records while following up his debut with a couple EPs & mixtapes. The most notable being the Blue Chips duology, Saab Stories & my personal favorite: Rare Chandeliers. He then put out his major label debut Mr. Wonderful in 2015 & it has some of his best songs on there, but the end result would be a more glitzy mixed bag. He fulfilled his contracts by dropping Blue Chips 7000 & celebrated his freedom the next year in the form of White Bronco which were both solid, but didn’t reach the caliber of Lamb Over Rice the Thanksgiving after. Only for Dolphins though was pretty mid given that some of the production choices were questionable & Cocodrillo Turbo was a bounce back. Coming off having Daringer & The Alchemist producing Johan Sebastian Bachlava the Doctor in 2024, he’s taking us all to Planet Frog.

“LeBron Hennessy” after the titular intro begins with this soulfully drumless opener produced by Daringer calling out artists who go for the same old meal whereas “Olympic Vince Carter” has a funkier boom bap vibe talking about how to know when there’s trouble in the water. Harry Fraud blends & rap rock so Bronson can compare his life to a “VHS” flick while the lead single “Triceratops” featuring Lil Yachty & Paul Wall still feels like a fever dream.

Roc Marciano appears for the 2nd & final single “Peppers” so they can talk about taking it easy over a boom bap instrumental with a prominent woodwind prior to “Condor” kicking off the 2nd half stripping the drums again explaining that tomorrow’s another journey. “Mandem” featuring Meyhem Lauren emphasizes the rock influences a bit to get boastful with each other just before the 90 second “My Blue Heaven” heads towards jazz rap territory thanks to Kenny Beats referencing WWE Hall of Famers & former WWE Tag Team Champions The Natural Disasters.

“Iguana” references former AEW World Tag Team Champion, 2-time NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion, TNA Hall of Famer, 4-time TNA World Champion, TNA World Tag Team Champion, 8-time WCW world champion, WCW World Television Champion, 3-time WCW World Tag Team Champion, WWE Hall of Famer & 2-time WWE United States Champion Sting while “Mutations” hops over a guitar to talk about taking the sword out the stone. After the compositional “Chutney” intermission, “Simoné” featuring Clovis Ochin sends it all off realizing that love changes.

Despite being thankful that the original AI artwork Action Bronson had posted on social media weeks earlier wasn’t used, I still feel like Planet Frog could’ve been better than what we wound up getting because I’d say this is the most average thing I’ve heard from him since Only for Dolphins. I respect the concept of it being this deep sea odyssey set in a dystopian world, but some of the production doesn’t impress me compared to Johan Sebastian Bachlava the Doctor & Cocodrillo Turbo.

Score: 3/5

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Black Milk – “Ceremonial” review

Detroit producer, MC & songwriter Black Milk back for his 9th LP after leaving Mass Appeal Records. Making his presence known as a member of the B.R. Gunna production trio, he eventually went solo 2 decades ago with Sound of the City & followed up on 313 Day 2007 with Popular Demand. The following year, he would dabble with electronic music on Tronic & would later start incorporating live instrumentation on Album of the Year in 2010. His next album No Poison No Paradise eventually became Black Milk’s darkest work yet & it would see a solid sequel If There’s a Hell Below the year after. FEVER became some of his most politically charged material & he’s looking to follow up Everybody Good? with a Ceremonial return.

After the “Fazes” intro, the first song “Feel Sum’n Heal Sum’n” begins by talking about either paying the standard price or double without bargaining over a self-produced instrumental whereas “In the Sky” brings a funkier vibe to describe feeling like the furnace has gone from hot to frozen. “Crash Test Dummy” has this summery boom bap flare so he can talk about slowing down prior to hitting the ground running just before “Dreams Not Only Made at Night” strips things back for a story that ends in people getting arrested.

“Act Like” after the compositional “Lift Off” interlude takes a few minutes to confront a woman who’s switching up on him & after “Never Never” talks about being made for the moment in addition to living a good life being the only thing that he’s ever wanted, “Ceremony” continues the 2nd half of the full-length in the form of this 3 minute instrumental jam session that blending this breezy guitar & drums for the soundtrack to a warm summer day.

Saba appears on the 2nd & final single “Ok…Nah” sending a direct message towards the people who thought they were safe or trying to escape from either artist prior to some rap rock undertones being hooked up so he can talk about waiting for the “Right Time” to come explaining that this shit’s bigger than merely accomplishments from his perspective. “YOUIT (Truth Be Told)” ends the album drumlessly talking about going from sitting on porches to sitting inside of Porsches.

Gearing up to fully produce Fat Ray’s upcoming 6th album Food From the Gods II set to drop somewhere between the next 7 months, Black Milk rocks the mic for the first time in 3 years for a Ceremonial reflection of how far he’s come as an artist since Sound of the City. Not only does his production exemplify this through displaying his creative evolution, but his subject matter’s more introspective than it is political this time around.

Score: 4/5

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AZ – “Doe or Die III” review

Here we have the 11th studio LP & Mass Appeal Records debut from Brooklyn, New York veteran AZ. Most notable for his longtime association with Nas being the only feature on the latter’s iconic debut illmatic with the song “Life’s a Bitch”, he would later go to signing with EMI Records & drop a full-length of his own Doe or Die a little over a year later becoming one of the greatest mafioso hip hop albums of all-time. Other standouts in his discography include Pieces of a Man, Aziatic, A.W.O.L., The Format, Doe or Die II & the Buckwild-produced Truth Be Told. In light of Quiet Money Records’ new distribution deal with Mass Appeal however, Doe or Die III looks to complete the trilogy.

After the “Origin” intro, the opening track “No Need for Lactose” hooks up a boom bap instrumental from Ron Browz to get things going sending a shoutout to his hype homies & those serving 25 to life behind bars whereas “Gimme the World” demands what others can’t give back over a Large Professor instrumental. The 2nd & final single “Uniqueness” chops up a sample thanks to Mike & Keys questioning life while the lead single “So High” continues the reflective lyrics over a smooth Bink! beat.

“Still Jackie” after the “Hoe Happy” skit kicks off the 2nd half with a sequel to “Ho Happy Jackie” off the original Doe or Die accompanied by an exuberant Statik Selektah instrumental backing him but after “Surprise” featuring Nas teams up over a soulful Mike & Keys beat so they can talk about the mafioso shit they became known for 3 decades earlier, Bink! continues sampling soul music during “Fresh Water” for Sosa to preach some ghetto gospel.

The track “Winners Win” produced by Buckwild nears Doe or Die III’s backend cautioning for people not to get shit confused & simply do what you do over a laidback boom bap instrumental while “I Was Once There Too” jazzily talks about understanding the perspective of people who aren’t getting what’s due. The final song “Love My Life” preceding the “We Made It” outro takes up the album’s last couple minutes expressing the gratitude he has for the way his life turned out.

It’s surprising to me that AZ didn’t put anything out through Mass Appeal Records sooner considering the rich history between him & Nas, but Doe or Die III joins Truth Be Told & of course Doe or Die II in revitalizing his career 3 decades since his revolutionary debut as well as concluding one of hip hop’s most satisfying mafioso trilogies whether it be the cinematically polished boom bap production or the intricate storytelling.

Score: 4.5/5

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Royal Terms – Self-Titled review

Royal Terms is an east coast superduo consisting of Queens, New York emcee Royal Flush alongside Lawrence, Massachusetts emcee/producer Termanology. One of whom became the de facto leader of the ST. da Squad collective & the other’s debut Ghetto Millionaire became amongst the most underrated albums of the 90s. Neither of them have crossed paths with each other musically up until this point, so an eponymous full-length debut of their own as a fan of each artist only seemed fitting enough.

“Terms of Royalty” produced by Statik Selektah begins with this inspiring boom bap intro talking about the legendary statuses they’ve earned for themselves whereas “Baby Don’t Leave” soulfully explains how the trunk & rap games are both the same. “Legendary Blocks” featuring Tek & UFO Fev finds the quartet talking about growing up in their respective home states while “Crack Era Survivors” looks back at when cocaine flooded the streets in the 80s.

Dru Hoffa joins Royal Terms on “Angel Whispers” talking about them getting it out the gravel over an araabMUZIK beat leading into “Problem” describing hotel parties where the room gets turned upside down. “Bedtime” hops over a gritty Cartine Beatz instrumental to talk about protecting what’s theirs & the closing track “Impossible” takes up the last few minutes of the EP chopping up a soul sample discussing not needing a globe to show the world is theirs’.

Similarly to Teknology’s self-titled album a year & a half earlier, Royal Terms unites 2 veterans who’ve spent decades making names for themselves in their own separate lanes to make an introductory opus that’s guaranteed to satisfy fans of both Royal Flush & Termanology. Outside of a couple guests, they spend a majority of the EP trading hardcore verses over quality boom bap production & honing in on their artistic chemistry.

Score: 4/5

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Vstylez – “The Final Boss Pai Mei” review

Here is the 4th studio LP from Detroit, Michigan underground veteran Vstylez. Being introduced to him through his feature on “Clash of the Titans” off of eLZhi’s 3rd mixtape The Leftovers, he eventually put out a debut album of his own At Oddz ‘Til I’m Even in late 2014 & the sophomore effort Thornton Melon about 4 years later. The acclaim of the latter resulted in V temporarily signing to Middle Finger Music & returning in 2024 with Buddy Revell, coming back almost 2 years later for The Final Boss Pai Mei.

“Capricorn” after the intro begins with this angelic boom bap intro talking about his zodiac sign whereas “Fenkell Ave.” recalls his experiences growing up near that road leaning towards a much dustier & hardcore vibe. “Iron Sharps Iron” featuring The Bad Seed unites both of them over more boom bap instrumentation talking about both of them being forged for the fight while “My Prime” dabbles with rap rock feeling like he’s in his best possible quality.

The self-produced “YNz” sends a message to all the younger artists out there incorporating some prominent synthesizers leading into “The Raid 2” featuring eLZhi reuniting both MCs to talk about having the ability of putting holes through chests via rhyming. “Introvert” instrumentally brings a triumphant aura to the picture advising everyone to let him be while “Golden Arms” featuring Isaac Castor & Ruste Juxx brings all 3 of them together for a cutthroat hardcore hip hop anthem.

Black Milk gets behind the boards for a profound ode where V looks to stand for “The Fallen” ones in his life & having scars within his soul that no one can visibly see but once “Denmark Vesey” tells the audio story of the late Charleston abolitionist whom the Detroit emcee/producer was named after, Sadat X accompanies V on the mic during “Dumb” for all of these idiotic muhfuckas out here getting high off percocets to acknowledge what they’ve done for the culture.

“Changing My Ways” wraps up the last leg of The Final Boss Pai Mei talking about having liquor on his breath & leaving rumble all over the mess of regrets he’s made while “No One” puts a soulful twist on the traditional boom bap sound thanks to Bronze Nazareth detailing him becoming his own provider & every move being self condition. “Patricia” produced by Marv Won finishes up the full-length sampling gospel for a crushing boom bap tribute to his late mother.m of the same name.

The Final Boss Pai Mei carries over the ethos of both Thornton Melon & Buddy Revell in the sense of Vstylez naming his albums after characters from classic movies, with this one being Gordon Liu’s portrayal in Kill Bill 2 & dropping some of the greatest material of his career for nearly a decade. Even if I personally prefer the latter half, it’s already been confirmed that Walter Sobchak will finally arrive next & this will hold off fine until then.

Score: 3.5/5

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iyrus – “Hottest in Philly” review

New surprise EP & the 5th overall from up-&-coming Philadelphia, Pennsylvania rapper & producer of Nigerian descent iyrus. Emerging in the summer of 2024 after doing an On the Radar freestyle, he would later introduce himself more properly a year ago off his debut EP Resurgenceuntil continuing to make waves with I as well as II & of course III. Not even a couple months since the trilogy’s conclusion & the Hottest in Philly does look to slow down anytime soon.

“$$$Talk” starts us off boasting of him putting diamonds in his mouth hence letting the money do all of the speaking for him over a sinister trap instrumental whereas “Shamu” has a more vibrant approach to the beat talking about walking in masked up with a chopper. “Eagle” gets the 2nd half of the EP going flexing how fly he is coming from the northern side of his city while “Rolling Stone” spends the last minute & a half proving all doubters wrong.

I’ve already made it pretty clear since the beginning of 2026 that iyrus was somebody to keep an eye out for & would certainly say he’s one of the Hottest in Philly alongside slayr, but I still think he hasn’t fully reached his potential yet & I came away from it enjoying it a bit less than the other 2 extended plays we’ve gotten from him this year. Mainly because I don’t find the trap/plugg production to be anything all that groundbreaking although I firmly believe he’ll very much get there.

Score: 3/5

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O.T. the Real – “Villain” review

Philadelphia, Pennsylvania emcee O.T. the Real staying busy beyond Show No Mercy to hit us with this 10th solo LP. Getting his start in the underground nearly a decade ago after coming home from prison & releasing his debut single “Papercuts”, his profile began to grow from there after showcasing his skills on radio stations or dropping his last 9 albums as well as a mixtape & his 9 EPs. My favorites being the Heatmakerz-produced 3rd EP The Irishman & the DJ Green Lantern-produced 3rd album Broken Glass that dropped on my 25th birthday & the Statik Selektah produced Maxed Out. No Matter What, Desperation of December, It’s Almost Over & Red Summer were all hit or miss for me until O.T. finally signed to Black Soprano Family Records & enlisted araabMUZIK for Zombie to critical acclaim. Prepare for War & Pale Horse were ok, following up Moving Base O.T.’s eponymous debut showed improvement as did the Nickel Plated produced Cost of Living & The Devil You Know. Coming off 38 Spesh fully producing Possession with Intent & Chop-La-Rok flexing The Wars I’ve Won with Rare Scrilla, the Villain has come back.

“750” works in a synth-driven boom bap beat so he can talk about him being back whereas “Evil Eye” instrumentally turns up the suspense looking to deepen the odds although leaving an open verse during the backend of it makes it feel somewhat incomplete. “Sent Out” warns for everyone to get down when he trips out spitting nothing but killa shit leading into “Bad Guy” talks about his willingness of becoming the villain one wants him to.

Regarding the song “Silent”, we have O.T. over some prominent piano chords suggests to bring a fun if one so happens to walk inside the same room as him while “Gary V” featuring Flames Dot Malik angrily puts themselves inside the shoes of narcotic merchants to reach the halfway point. “Mint Leaves” gets the 2nd half going hopping over more keys to talk about shit getting shifty around his parts just before “Mr. Ozempic” boasts his nickname earned by getting the weight off.

“B.O.T.R.A. (Back On The Run Again)” featuring SKNJ finds the pair rounding out 3rd looking to even the score although O.T. had the better verse with all respect while “F.T.S. (Feed The Streets)” hungrily talks about his constant artistic hunger despite constantly putting out music at his prolific rate. “Strike” featuring Murkemz takes a couple minutes to spit gritty verses without the need of a hook while outro finishes the album talking about “The Last Time” we ever saw a Villain like him.

Admittedly: I wasn’t the biggest fan of Show No Mercy earlier this year, but Villain will certainly appeal to anyone who enjoyed You Are Who You Eat With or Cost of Living & The Devil You Knowsince O.T. the Real generally nails it whenever he locks in with Nickel Plated. It significantly darker than all of that previously mentioned output from the production to the antagonistic lyricism even if the guest list can be somewhat inconsistent.

Score: 3.5/5

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Estee Nack – “Al-Andalus” review

Brand new LP & the 16th regarding his solo material from Lynn, Massachusetts emcee/producer Estee Nack. Breaking out as a member of the Tragic Allies, he also branched off on his own my senior year of high school off his Purpose-produced solo debut 14 Forms: The Book of Estee Nack & has since built a lengthy yet impressive discography for himself. Other highlights include the Sadhugold-produced Surfinongold.wav alongside it’s sequel The Order of the Golden Fleece, the Giallo Point-produced Papitas & it’s sequel, his collab efforts with al.divino, the V Don-produced B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties), the Griselda Records debut Nacksaw Jim Duggan, the Mike Shabb-produced Live at the Tabernackle, the Futurewave-produced Stone Temple Pyrex & B.R.A.P. 2 (Big Rifles & Pistols). But upon hearing Cookin’ Soul was fully producing Al-Andalus, the chances of it becoming his best material in almost a year were increased.

“Santeria” opens up with this luxuriously mafioso boom bap intro talking about hustling by serving customers to get the dreams right whereas “Inbound” brings a funkier vibe instrumentally so he can detail the gangsta lifestyle. “La Bomba” has a jazzier boom bap approach to the beat talking about him being meant to have the world in his palms just before “Touchin’ Base” turning up the grittiness for Nackie Chan to get on his coke rap shit topically.

Yung Beef appears on the bilingually jazzy 2nd & final single “Telex Free Trap” talking about shooting bums in the face leading into “More or Less” reaching the halfway point of Al-Andalus emphasizing the boom bap elements boasting how fat his pockets have become. “Bread & Wine” featuring Lil Supa finds the pair talking about their unstoppable profiles even if Estee’s verse stood out the most personally while “Carlito’s Way” takes inspiration from the Edwin Torres novel of the same name.

“Hear Me” winds down the last few moments of the album talking about overcoming all the odds being stacked against us regardless of where you’re from while “La Poli” takes a few minutes to express the amount of disdain her has for the pigs. Planet Asia saves my favorite guest appearance for last during the outro “Ghost in the Lab”, going at the throats of those acting like the bread didn’t come with their penchants & not to get their statuses twisted.

It’s already been over an entire year since Big Size fully produced Ankhlejohn’s 7th mixtape The Michelin Man to widespread acclaim across the underground & despite both teasers being admirable attempts at showcasing a couple Spanish hip hop artists Estee Nack fucks with, the rest of Al-Andalus surprised me by delivering what could be my favorite thing he’s done this year considering how well he & Cookin’ Soul compliment each other’s styles excellently from the superb boom bap production to the gangsta-themed lyrics.

Score: 4/5

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Mission: Infect – “epideM:Ic” review

This is the 7th studio LP from underground hip hop collective Mission: Infect consisting of Lo Key, Badluck, Dubbs, Fia Fawn, KruX 1, Madd Maxxx, Malaria, St. Sinna & 0. They’ve released their previous 6 full-lengths together in the span of nearly 2 decades including the Chemical Threats tetralogy, XterM:Ination & Asphyxiation with quite a few other members finding success on their own as solo artists in the wicked shit scene. Returning in 2024 with their arM:Igeddon extended play, they’re returning in time for an epideM:Ic.

After the “Incoming Transmission” intro, we get a sequel to “Throw ‘Em Up” off the 2nd installment of the Criminal Threats series performed by Lo Key & Badluck whereas “Body Drop” aggressively talks about the crew slaughtering all opponents over a boom bap instrumental. “Bring the Noise” explains that this is basically chemical warfare to Neon Sermon & Dubbs rather than another song while “Call 2 Arms” lets both Lo Key & Dubbs blow off some lyrical steam for a few minutes.

“Bullets & Spraypaint” starts the 2nd half talking about LOKE & Fia Fawn’s only purpose here being to infest the brains of those listening leading into “Soldiers of Death” explains the voices in their heads telling them to kill all enemies. “Contagion” after the “Message from Grey” skit takes a more conscious approach topically over an apocalyptic beat & once “Blackout” brings the revolution live from the frontlines, the outro “Starting Over” provides an anthem for the rebellious to grab their gas masks & march to.

Originally slated to come out a year earlier, Lo Key ended up temporarily scrapping epideM:Ic for due to the lack of involvement from all the other Mission: Infect generals & I’m surprisingly overjoyed that he was able to get 6 others who’ve been around since Day 1 to be apart of the final product alongside the 2 newest additions to the crew. They’ve even jokingly said the album probably doesn’t have anything to do with the ongoing hantavirus situation & not only does M:I lyrically turn brains into black cherry slurpees, but them hinting at recruiting more artists to join & more output collectively seems like a promising beginning of making up for being inactive for long periods of time.

Score: 4/5

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Lelo – “Mastiff” review

Detroit, Michigan rapper Lelo coming off his full-length debut New Detroit last summer to drop his 7th extended play. Signing to 10K Projects a couple years ago, he would make his presence known more widely in the local trap scene by putting out his 4th EP Nightingale not too long after landing a record deal & gained even more exposure a month later by dropping the single “No Contempt” on SoundCloud. LifeAfterDogshit as well as When It’s Over & New Detroit would further increase his profile, returning 10 months since the latter to drop Mastiff.

“Hollowed Bricks” begins with a luxurious backdrop, some hi-hats & 808s talking about living before sitting in the casket whereas “Blueprint” featuring Apolloscase brings a wavier Detroit sound to the picture so both of them can trade verses with each other. “Dialect” ends the 1st leg of the EP explaining that it’s a whole different kind of talk whenever one brings up money around him & not inserting himself around those who haven’t seen shit.

To kick off the 2nd half, things got for a pluggier vibe instrumentally so he can talk about staying “Hoodrich” until his very last breath while “Monetize” brings a subdued tone to the beat flexing his ability of selling this shit back to the trap like he didn’t already begin to make some chips off it. The closing track “Down to Earth” spends Mastiff’s final 3 minutes blending a soul sample with hi-hats talking about having bigger dreams & a few telling him to die by this chain he has.

It made me happy to hear that more ears got put onto Lelo the summer prior ditching the trap elements of When It’s Over so he could make a turn towards a cloudier Detroit trap direction & create something entirely new out of interpolating many of the city’s popular sounds, swapping out the cloudier influences in favor of standard trap for Mastiff & incorporating some occasional plugg undertones to further represent the Motor City’s past & present.

Score: 3.5/5

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