Big B – “Welcome to the Club” review

Big B is a 47 year old rapper from Las Vegas, Nevada starting out as the frontman for 187. After the band’s dissolution, the hooligan would go on to join OPM in 2002 & become a household name for the infamous California powerhouse Suburban Noize Records just a couple years later. His first 3 solo albums High Class White Trash, White Trash Renegade & More to Hate would become some of my favorite releases that the label has ever put out. We just celebrated the 7 year anniversary of B’s previous album Fool’s Gold earlier this past week & after going on a musical hiatus since then, he’s ready to make a comeback with his 7th full-length album.

“Enjoy the Show” is a good way to start off the album as B encourages the listener to just relax on top of a fitting rock instrumental whereas the next song “It Ain’t Punk Rock” talks about being him over a more traditional hip hop instrumental with a guitar thrown in. The track “Whiskey & Women” talks about it’s hard to maintain from the things he loves over a fast tempo instrumental while the song “Band of Brothers (This is How I Roll)” is a catchy country rock cut about keeping it real.

The track “San Felipe Blues” is a road trip anthem accompanied with an acoustic instrumental while the song “Forget You” with Everlast sees the 2 talking about drinking themselves blind because of scandalous women over some summery production. The track “That’s Country” talks about how he speaks the truth over a banjo & some hard hitting drums while the song “2nd Pistol in My Pocket” tells the story of a man being on a run after murdering someone the night before over a more outlaw instrumental.

The track “Where Were You” is a powerful ballad calling out those who weren’t there for him when he was struggling while the song “It’s Too Late” takes aim at those who wanna act tough over a hard rock instrumental. The track “Down” talks about partying over over some banjos & guitars while the song “My Old Lady” of course is an endearing tribute to Big B’s mother over a more vintage country instrumental. The album then finishes off with “The Whiskey Blues”, which obviously talks about alcohol over a luxurious piano instrumental.

Now if anyone’s followed Big B’s career long enough, then you probably already know that he’s repped that white trash life in his music since the very beginning. That being said: This is pretty much his very own country album & it’s a mature one at that. Michael Bradford did a good job on the production end & you can definitely hear B has the passion again after that 7 year hiatus.

Score: 3.5/5

Che Noir – “As God Intended” review

Che Noir is a 26 year old MC from Buffalo, New York that I’ve been keeping up with for the past couple years now. I first caught wind of her through here extensive collaborations with 38 Spesh whether it be Che featured on his projects or Spesh producing a couple of her EPs. But to change things up, she’s enlisting Detroit veteran Apollo Brown for her full-length debut.

The album kicks off with “Anti-Social”, where Che talks about being a star since she was a kid over a boom bap beat with a luxurious piano-lead. The next song “Blood’s Thicker” paints a picture of what it was like for her growing up in Buffalo over a vintage soul sample while the track “Hustle Don’t Give” with Black Thought finds the 2 spitters being money hungry over an upbeat instrumental. The song “Money Orientated” lyrically needs no further explanation over a mystical beat while the track “12 Hours” tells the story of Che killing her man after catching him cheating on her with her friend Lisa over a desponding instrumental.

The song “Hold It Down” with Ty Farris sees the 2 talking about fighting until they die over an orchestral beat while the track “Daddy’s Girl” talks about her father being absent in her life on top of a spacious instrumental. The song “Worth Gold” talks bout being an adolescent over a somber boom bap beat while “The Apple” with Planet Asia finds the 2 making a dedication to black women worldwide over over a peaceful instrumental.

The song “Freedom” tackles racism in the United States over a woozy boom bap beat while the track “Follow the Wisdom” with Skyzoo displays a churchy beat & the way Apollo flips Scarface’s “My Block” on the hook is just incredible. The song “Winter” talks about how this man loves the streets more than her over a jazzy beat while the penultimate track “Live By the Code” over a tempting instrumental. The album then finishes with “’94”, which is a tribute to some of Che’s influences from Biggie to G-Unit over a meditative boom bap beat.

Buffalo has really been taking over the hip hop scene in recent years thanks to Griselda & this album only proves that Che Noir is on her way to becoming one of the illest female spitters out today. Throughout its 51 minute runtime, you’ll find some of her best songwriting to date accompanied by Apollo Brown‘s ever-so-phenomenal set of production.

Score: 4.5/5

Coops – “Crimes Against Creation” review

London, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer Coops ending his High Focus Records tenure with an extended play full of material. Introducing himself during my adolescence off his full-length debut What Do You See? as well as Lost Soul, & God Complex, his High Focus debut No Brainer would be welcomed to mixed reception & Life in the Flesh was later received more positively a few months later. To begin the 2nd half of what has already been a disastrous 2020, he looks to outdo both in the form of Crimes Against Creation.

“Boom Biddy Bye” breaks the gate down with this old school boom bap instrumental from Talos dismantling all lyrical opponents in his path whereas “Factory Reared” jazzily talks about being fed up with all these rappers to the point of wanting to kill them. “Bring the Fire” works in a vibraphone with some kicks & snares talking about blazing the spot up just before “Piss Poor” eerily tackles the fear he has of becoming broke from a financial point of view.

Starting the 2nd half, “Laws of Nature” blends jazz rap & boom bap once more talking about being seen as either a threat to humanity or a savior just before the title track turns up the jazzier elements telling his story the way it happened refusing any other negotiations. “Profile” takes the lo-fi boom bap route stylistically recalling the time a woman gave him a number of her’s to dial & “End Times” jazzily finishes by talking about living in the middle of the apocalypse beginning.

In the midst of COVID-19 shutting the whole entire world down for 4 months & counting, Crimes Against Creationcomes across significantly darker than what Coops has done previously providing the soundtrack for these times of uncertainty we’re experiencing all across the globe. Taking inspiration from the greats instead of what’s current, the jazzy boom bap production feels nostalgically reminiscent of 90s east coast hip hop such as Mobb Deep facing issues like the current state of hip hop & politics directly.

Score: 3.5/5

C.O.N-Vers – “Way Too Patient” review

Croydon, South London, England, United Kingdom emcee C.O.N-Vers dropping his debut extended play on the 4th of July 2020 fully produced by local veteran Micall Parksnun. The latter of whom has been making himself known for decades from his early Low Life Records output to his more recent material under Boot Records & the other has been fresh off a lengthy sabbatical with a new purpose to create music in a different direction, enlisting Micall behind to the boards to explain the feeling that he’s been Way Too Patient.

“Dead & Buried” begins talking about taking his style that made him a staple in the UK underground hip hop scene for what it is over a heavenly raw beat whereas “As I See It” embraces a boom bap vibe instrumentally & spits nothing but lyrical heat for 3 minutes straight. “My Monologue” suggests he might pop things off sending 21 shots while “M.I.A” finishes the 1st half talking about knowing what you’re running from.

Kicking off the 2nd leg of Way Too Patient, “The Conversation” brings a symphonic boom bap atmosphere to the table warning to never interrupt him when he’s deep in the middle of a discussion leading into “Mad Ramblings” swaps out the orchestral elements in favor of a jangly guitar loop rapping an fascinatingly long verse start to finish. The title track finishes up with a 2-parter maintaining a boom bap sound the whole time including after the beat switch.

Notable for being 1/2 of Write 2 Speak as well as 1/3 of The Last Elect & a member of the D.S.o.t.M. collective respectively, C.O.N-Vers makes his long-awaited solo debut in a time of uncertainty & would say Way Too Patient does the finest job it could of encapsulating his growth since his early days in the garage scene. Micall Parknsun’s boom bap production greatly compliments C.O.N’s knack of thought provoking bars & smooth flows, holding off on having any guest verses accompanying him to give more room for his own.

Score: 4/5

Pop Smoke – “Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon” review

Pop Smoke was a 20 year old rapper from Brooklyn, New York who released his debut mixtape Meet the Woo last summer. He put out a sequel this past February but unfortunately, he was murdered 2 weeks after said-sequel came out. But with the help of 50 Cent, they’re continuing Pop’s legacy with his full-length debut.

The album kicks off with “Bad Bitch from Tokyo”, where Pop Smoke brags for 50 seconds over a woozy beat. The next song “Aim for the Moon” with Quavo sees the 2 talking about their high statuses over an instrumental that sounds like it could’ve been on Travis Scott’s ASTROWORLD while the track “For the Night” with Lil Baby & DaBaby finds the trio getting raunchy over a beat kin to Young Thug’s Beautiful Thugger Girls. The song “44 Bulldog” gets confrontational over a mournful beat while the track “Gangstas” talks about how legit he was over a rubbery piano instrumental.

The song “Yea Yea” is a trite, buttery sex anthem while the track “Creature” with Swae Lee sees the 2 describing their rich lifestyles over a spacious beat while the track “Snitching” with Future & Quavo is pretty much them talking about not breaking street code over a shimmery, skeletal instrumental. The song “Make It Rain” with Rowdy Rebel sees the 2 talking about fakes over an aggressive instrumental while “The Woo” with 50 Cent & Roddy Ricch sees the 3 talking about bitches over another Beautiful Thugger Girls inspired beat.

The song “West Coast Shit” with Tyga & Quavo lives up to its name down to Mustard’s production while the track “Enjoy Yourself” with Karol G is a weird, Latin-flavored piece about relaxation. The song “Mood Swings” with Lil Tjay is a horrific auto-crooner while the track “Something Special” is literally a 2 minute freestyle over Tamia’s “Into You”.

We have more tiresome lovey dovey shit on the songs “What You Know ‘Bout Love?” & the King Combs featured “Diana”, but then “Got It on Me” is pretty much a modern take on the classic 50 Cent joint “Many Men (Wish Death)” & it’s actually pretty cool. The final song “Tunnel Vision” talks about how nice he is over a mesmerizing instrumental & then we get “Dior” off Meet the Woo as a bonus track, which is easily one of the best songs he ever made.

I’m usually 50/50 on posthumous releases because they can either turn out amazing like Circles or end up horrendously like Pac’s Life. However, this kinda falls in between for me. The cuts that’re done more in Pop Smoke’s signature UK Drill style are fine, but almost all the poppy sex songs except for “Something Special” are just fucking terrible. If we’re getting a follow-up, here’s to it being better.

Score: 2.5/5

Westside Gunn – “FLYGOD is an Awesome God II” review

This is the 5th full-length album from Buffalo emcee/entrepreneur Westside Gunn. Breaking out in 2016 with his near-perfect debut album FLYGOD, he would go on to take over the hip hop scene with his brother Conway the Machine & their cousin Benny the Butcher as they’ve consistently dropped a slew of high quality releases both solo-wise & as a trio. However, Westside has stated on numerous occasions that 2020 will be his final year rapping & kicked it off just this spring with Pray for Paris. But with the 1 year anniversary of FLYGOD is an Awesome God approaching this weekend, Westside is celebrating with a sequel preluding his Shady Records debut Who Made the Sunshine? set to drop next month.

After the “Praise God” intro, the first song “Michael Irvin” finds Westside talking about how no one’s flyer than him referencing WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson over a jazzy beat whereas the next track “Jose Canseco” with Stove God Cook$ sees the 2 talking charismatically boasting including a reference to WWE Hall of Famer, former 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion & WCW World Tag Team Champion Curt Hennig over a soulful instrumental from STREETRUNNER. I was surprised to see the loosie “1 More Hit” appearing on here, but I’m glad it did & the new Stove God Cook$ verse added on is a nice touch to it as well.

After the first “Sadhu Interlude”, the song “Lil Cease” with Griselda Records’ newest signee Armani Caesar finds the 2 rightfully proclaiming their thrones as King & Queen of Buffalo over a creepy boom bap beat from JR Swiftz. After the “Fuck the Police” skit, the song “Buffs vs. Wires” with Benny the Butcher & Boldy James of course gets on the drug dealer tip over a classy ass loop from Daringer.

Then after the “Mr. Maino” skit, we’re treated to a remix of another old WSG loosie “Bubba Chuck” with Stove God Cook$ being added on once again & I actually like this a lot more than the “1 More Hit” remix that I discussed earlier. Including the bar about WWE Hall of Famer, former WWE Champion & 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion The Ultimate Warrior. After the final “Sadhu Interlude”, the song “Drive By Love” is a gangsta sex tune over a savory Chuck Inglish instrumental.

The penultimate track “Rebirth” namedrops both WWE Hall of Famers & former 3-time WWE tag team champions The Road Warriors alongside former CZW World Jr. Heavyweight Champion, PWG World Champion, record-setting 3-time ROH World Champion, ROH World Television Champion, the longest reigning NXT Champion, the inaugural NXT North American Champion & NXT Tag Team Champion Adam Cole on top of the peaceful instrumental. The album then finishes with “Steve Behr”, where Westside enlists Rome Streetz to talk about pushing coke over a hypnotic sample.

It’s not as good as Pray for Paris, but I still think this is a solid album regardless. In contrast to the predecessor seeing Westside Gunn experimenting & trying new things, he pretty much takes it back to the basement on here. Beyond excited to see where he takes things on Who Made the Sunshine?.

Score: 3.5/5

Damo the Great – “Sacred Geometry” review

Damo the Great is an MC from Dearborn Heights, Michigan who debuted in 2018 with Order Out of Chaos. He had also put out an instrumental album called Now You Know the year prior but as we approach the 2nd half of this hectic year, he’s starting off the new decade with his sophomore effort entirely produced by Invectrum.

After the unsettling “Poison the Toad” intro, the first song “Shoot 1st” talks about how he don’t fuck with haters over a gloomy boom bap beat whereas the track “Valaryian Steel” with Aztek the Barfly & Guilty Simpson finds the 3 coming through with vicious battle bars over a rugged instrumental. The song “Evil Kanevil” with DZK & Green Children sees the 4 talking about how they’re all demonic on the mid over an spine-tingling beat & after the “Ouroboros” interlude, the song “Eloise” talks about insanity over a bleak instrumental

After the “Intro to Geometry 101” interlude, the the title track comes through with some good for the mind over a clever violin loop while the song “Murderers Row” with Diabolic sees the 2 proclaiming themselves as lyrical assassins over a demented beat. The track “Dream” with Sankofa finds the 2 pondering about life over a forlorn instrumental while the song “It Ain’t Over” with Mastamind sees the 2 challenging their opponents over a suspenseful instrumental. The album finishes off with “Wetwork”, where Damo is pretty much saying he could care less about a number of things over a supernatural instrumental.

As much as I liked Order Out of Chaos, I think I enjoy this new album just a little bit more. There are a couple features I could’ve done without, but Foul Mouth did a great job on the mixing & I really dig how Sacred Geometry is a lot more darker from Damo’s lyrical topics to Invectrum’s production

Score: 3.5/5

Substance810 – “The Definition Of” review

Substance810 is an MC/producer from Port Huron, Michigan who first made his mark in 2006 with his debut album The Definition under his original moniker Tekneek. 14 years later & 5 more projects later, he’s returning with a sequel to the album that started it all titled The Definition Of.

The opener “All My Life” speaks about being a righteous man now & for this to be the only song not to be produced by Substance810 himself, the psychedelic boom bap production Know It comes through with is a great touch. The next song “Fuck You Talmbout” is about how he’s more concerned about bars than radio play over a chilling instrumental while the track “Midnight Oil” finds him contemplating about getting bread over a nightly beat. The song “U Should Kno” with Rudy Will sees the 2 talking about earning medals for how they run joints & comparing their lyrics to a movie script over a delicate instrumental while the track “Just Ridiculous” comes through with some nasty battle raps over a ghostly boom bap instrumental.

The song “Royal Rhymes” with Jamil Honesty sees the 2 flexing their lyricism while the track “Wowzerz” talks about how hardcore he is over a flawlessly vintage boom bap beat. The song “Chop Suey” with Drip Matthews sees the 2 talking about how they’re still the same as they were in the start over a hypnotic beat while “The Rising” with Daniel Son & Rome Streetz finds the 3 wordsmiths detailing their rise in the underground over a luxurious instrumental. The penultimate track “Tunnel Vision” with Jay Royale sees the 2 talking about keeping it raw over a gritty loop. The album then finishes with “Dark Clouds”, where Substance810 talks about his inner turmoil over a symphonic instrumental.

Michigan has always been filled with bottomlessly talented hip hop acts even to this day & if you wanna get into the guy, this is not a bad place to start at all. He does a fantastic job at showing the listener how much he’s evolved in the past 14 years both as a brutal MC & as an equally talented producer.

Score: 4/5

Nick Grant – “God Bless the Child” review

This is the brand new EP from Atlanta, Georgia’s very own Nick Grant, who came onto my radar with a pretty solid debut album Return of the Cool at the beginning of 2017. It’s been a couple years since we last heard from him but with everything going on right now, he’s teaming up with Top Dawg Entertainment in-house producer Tae Beast for God Bless the Child.

Things kick off with “L.O.V.E. (Living Out Various Emotions)”, where Nick comes through with some thoughtful bars over a soulful instrumental. The next song “FEDS” talks about sending his competition to the morgue over a somewhat funky beat while the track “Bless the Child” is a well written response to George Floyd’s murder over a calming instrumental. The song “K9” talks about some dude runnin’ his mouth over a slow beat & then the closer “Black Windows” talks about haters over an instrumental that starts off tropical, but transitions into something more hard hitting about halfway through.

As much as I enjoyed Return of the Cool, this really might be Nick’s best work to date. From the dude’s ever-so-conscious lyricism to Tae Beast’s impeccably tight production, everything about this EP just comes together very well & it has me looking forward to seeing what’ll happen next on his sophomore album.

Score: 4.5/5

Skyzoo – “Milestones” review

This is the 6th EP from New York veteran Skyzoo. Rising to prominence with the 9th Wonder produced Cloud 9: The 3 Day High, the man continued to make a name for himself with a lengthy yet very consistent discography. This includes his full-length debut The Salvation, the !llmind produced Live from the Tape Deck, A Dream Deferred, Music for My Friends, the Apollo Brown produced The Easy Truth & In Celebration of Us. But I really think it wasn’t until last September where he really outdid himself & dropped his magnum opus Retropolitan, which was entirely produced by the revered Pete Rock. However with Father’s Day coming around the corner, Skyzoo is celebrating with Milestones.

The opener “Memory Serves Me” fondly looks back on the early years of his childhood over a jazzy boom bap beat & keep in mind: This is a sound that’s prominently featured all over the entire EP. Following that is the next song “At Least I Got One”, where Skyzoo speaks on being grateful for having a father figure in his life in such a profoundly fashion.

The track “Turning 10” then talks about his relationship with his father adjusting as he got older & this subject matter is continued on in the song right after “Duffel Bag Weekends” as he looks back on what it was like for him having to visit both his parent’s individual houses as an adolescent.

Then the track “Eyes Wide Shut” continues to speak from the heart as Skyzoo discusses how his father has ”been up” since the Christmas Eve he was born & that he himself has “been up” since late 2017. The song right after is a touching dedication to all fathers worldwide & then “Duly Noted” is a great way to finish things off as we delivers a long verse full of wisdom on top of a blissful piano lead.

Skyzoo has always had an impeccably consistent discography & this is no exception at all. I really love the way he incorporates the jazz elements into the production & it’s refreshing to hear an MC talk about fatherhood in a more positive fashion.

Score: 4/5