Paul Wall – “The Tonite Show” review

West coast producer DJ Fresh tapping in with Houston, Texas emcee, DJ & businessman Paul Wall for the latter’s 16th studio LP. An affiliate of Swishahouse Entertaimment & a co-founder of The Color Changin’ Click, his sophomore effort albeit major label debut The People’s Champ propelled him as an H-Town veteran 2 decades ago & has since been steadily dropping music whether it be Bounce Backs Over Setbacks becoming the best album of his from the previous decade to the mixed reception of The Great Wall a year & a half ago. Once Upon a Grind dropped on my birthday weekend last winter making up for The Great Wall’s divisive feedback by homaging the city who made him the person he is presently & DJ Fresh has brought back The Tonite Show to make Paul the most recent guest.

“Wake Up” blends jazz rap & trap together so the Oiler Mobb Entertainment founder can talk about getting his mind right the second he gets up every single morning whereas “It’s Necessary” turns the jazz influences up even higher to discuss doing what’s obligated & his legendary grind. “Dedicated to the Game” gives off a west coast Mobb vibe with a hint of trap talking about his loyalty to this shit leading into the piano-driven “Husslin’ For Eons” boasting his hustle.

We get a bluesy guitar sample on “Same Ol’ P” talking about nothing changing with him a little over 2 decades into his career while “Drink 1st” fuses cloud rap & trap opting to take a sip from his cup before he heads out. “Blanton’s Tonite” takes a smoother approach instrumentally for an ode to my personal favorite alcoholic beverage bourbon whiskey while “Out Yo Mind” talks about the crowd who thinks he ain’t paid tweaking.

“Riding with the Top Down” whips up a breezy anthem for the California & H-Town to blast in their whips on a sunny day while “Money on My Mind” shifts his focus towards the bag. “Still Froze” hooks up some synthesizers to show off the watch on his wrist while “Get the Paper” talks about grinding to the utmost. “Whatchu Really Kno” concludes The Tonite Show with a dirty south outro advising to keep a clear vision.

Approximately a couple days following Wednesday’s season premiere of South Park on Comedy Central poking fun at the Paramount Skydance Corporation cancelling The Late Show in 2026 because of a joke Stephen Colbert made regarding his show’s parent company settling a $16M lawsuit, Paul Wall & DJ Fresh get together to make a highly successful attempt at capitalizing their chemistry 7 months ago & my favorite late career entry in Paul’s catalog.

Score: 4.5/5

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Bronze Nazareth – “Funeral for a Dream” review

Grand Rapids, Michigan emcee/producer Bronze Nazareth enlisting Detroit veteran Apollo Brown to produce his 6th solo album. Known for being a member of the group Wisemen alongside his late brother Kevlaar 7 & eventually the Wu-Tang Clan’s in-house production team the Wu-Elements, he would also go on to build a solo career for himself beginning with The Great Migration almost 2 decades ago & School for the Blindman only 5 years later. Bundle Raps & Ekphrasis produced entirely by Leaf Dog & Roc Marciano respectively became his strongest output since his debut, coming off producing Things I Seen for Termanology a few months ago to deliver Funeral for a Dream.

“Banshee Walk” after the “Next Dream” intro chops up a vocal sample for a boom bap instrumental with synthesizers talking about the streets being alive & keeping the cannon sharp prior to “Enough Lord” sampling gospel music asking God to chill in the same week Malcolm-Jamal Warner predeceased WWE Hall of Famer Ozzy Osbourne of Black Sabbath and the inaugural IWGPヘビー級王座, former 12-time WWE world champion, WWE tag team champion, 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, Real American Beer founder, Real American Freestyle Wrestling (RAF) co-founder & known racist Hulk Hogan.

Apollo removes the drums completely on “Right There” talking about a person he knows having it all in front of him & fucking it up somehow while “Blue Albacore” gets back on the boom bap vibes slowing down the pitch of the sample used comparing success to a diamond suggesting that you gotta be moving mountains sometimes. “Lavender” goes for a heavier chipmunk soul direction tapping in with Love Jones on the outro hoping for critics to withdraw once he pivots the law while “Wheels of Misfortune” flexes about no one having bars like him.

“Meeting in the Clouds” combines chipmunk soul & boom bap together for a crushing tribute to his late brother Kevlaar 7 until “Faded Pictures” talks about envious individuals watching him shine wanting to turn him into a distant memory. “Smorgasbord” continues the distinct sampling to get on his luxurious fly shit & after the chipmunk soul collab “Lemon Glue” featuring Eddie Kaine talking about teaching you unexpected lessons, “The Quiet Years” drumlessly ends the LP by talking about being unbreakable.

Marking the longtime Mello Music Group in-house producer’s debut under his own label Escapism Recordings after leaving MMG this past winter, Apollo Brown & a close friend since his childhood Bronze Nazareth have caught up with one another for an obituary regarding the bond they’ve had for 4 decades strong beginning their individual careers simultaneously as teenagers saying goodbye to the dream itself because of them realizing the goals they had have been achieved by now.

Score: 4.5/5

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Quadeca – “Vanisher, Horizon Scraper” review

Quadeca is a 24 year old singer/songwriter, producer, YouTuber & rapper from Los Angeles, California whose early mixtapes Work in Progress, Nostalgia for the Now, Bad Internet Rapper & Out of Order were all received negatively as was the full-length debut Voice Memos. His sophomore effort From Me to You proved to be decent, with both I Didn’t Mean to Haunt You & Scrapyard under deadAir Records garnering widespread praise for artistically reinventing himself. Recently starting up his own label X8 Music distributed by Virgin Music, the founder is making his official debut under the imprint in the form of his 4th album a month after Kevin Abstract signed with him to put out blush.

Chico Buarque gets sampled during the post-rock, modern classical, chamber music, neo-psychedelia, totalism, progressive folk, folktronica, art pop, avant-folk, choral, MPB & capoeira intro “No Questions Asked” repetitively singing about being there when no one else is just before “Waging War” gets split up into 3 different sections built around neo-psychedelia, art pop, folktronica, glitch pop, glitch hop, progressive pop, post-rock, chamber folk, deconstructed club, experimental hip hop & experimental rock as he tries to calm himself down & attempt to take his own advice. The lusciously gentle “Ruin My Life” carries forward by talking about an existential crisis leading into art pop, jazz pop, folk pop, Bossa nova, chamber folk, lounge, progressive folk, jazz rap, progressive soul all culminating in the lead single “Godstained”.

“At a Time Like This” continues the first half of Vanisher, Horizon Scraper talking about keeping his soul on high alert centered towards experimental hip hop, neo-psychedelia, art pop, glitch pop, glitch hop, cloud rap, alternative r&b, abstract hip hop, post-rock, wonky & progressive pop while the 2nd single “Monday” combines folk pop, baroque pop, art pop, chamber folk, chamber pop, folktronica & Waltz reflecting on a relationship that didn’t last. “Dancing Without Moving” has gotta be the catchiest moment on the entire LP balling pop rap, experimental hip hop, neo-psychedelia, art pop, alt-pop, alternative r&b, jazz rap, nu jazz, neo-soul, boom bap & chamber pop into 1 looking at the night sky to copy what he does until “That’s Why” speaks of life not getting any better than it is at this very moment.

After the “I Dream About Sinking” instrumental, we have the distortion gradually increasing over the course of “Natural Causes” suiting the increasing paranoia while “Thundrrr” blends hardcore hip hop, industrial hip hop, deconstructed club, funk mandelão, glitch hop, grime & wonky. “The Great Bakunawa” featuring Danny Brown makes for a breathtakingly industrial hip hop, hardcore hip hop, neo-psychedelia, illbient, abstract hip hop, post-rock & horrorcore collab while the final single “Forgone” divided in 3 parts speaking of remaining through it all. “Casper” by Maruja frontman Harry Wilkinson ends with a melting pot of post-rock, experimental rock, post-industrial, art punk, post-hardcore, space rock revival, nature recordings, totalism, noise rock, poetry, chamber jazz, jazz-rock & noise to talk about death.

“Learn to Swim” starts the deluxe run by throwing it back to the I Didn’t Mean to Haunt You era while “A Little Too Much” puts his range on display with him singing the first couple verses & rapping the final one. “Touch the Sky” feels it it could’ve been placed between “Ruin My Life” & “Godstained” as an interlude but after the “Horizon Scraper” compositional piece, we’re treated to a “Forgone” prelude subtitled “Not Enough” & the “Sundown” instrumental cut. “Burns Down” uses a flow similar to Lucy Bedroque’s except it feels reminiscent of brakence’s stuff aesthetically & the final bonus track “Wind Catcher” excluding the “Godstained” demo happens to be another composition.

Conceptually focused around a lone traveler sailing into the ocean alone pursuing freedom & cosmic understanding with his own self-destruction subconsciously motivating it, Quadeca’s musical evolution in recent memory continues with the most ambitious entry in his discography thus far & the finest of this redeeming trilogy arc. His masterful production goes outside of the box showing influences of art pop, folktronica, jazz pop, folk pop, Bossa nova, chamber folk, lounge, progressive folk, jazz rap, progressive soul, baroque pop, chamber pop, Waltz, singer/songwriter, progressive pop, neo-psychedelia, post-rock, psychedelic folk, experimental hip hop, ambient music, hardcore hip hop, industrial hip hop, deconstructed club, funk mandelão, glitch hop, grime, wonky, illbient, abstract hip hop, horrorcore, experimental rock, post-industrial, art punk, post-hardcore, space rock revival, nature recordings, totalism, noise rock, poetry, chamber jazz, jazz-rock, noise, modern classical, chamber music, totalism, avant-folk, choral, MPB, capoeira, nu jazz & neo-soul coordinated in ways to pull you deeper into the story.

Score: 4.5/5

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Freddie Gibbs – “Alfredo II” review

Yes, the 6th studio LP from Indiana emcee Freddie Gibbs has finally arrived. Blowing up initially over 2 decades ago with his debut mixtape Full Metal Jackit, he would sign to Interscope Records for a brief period of time until he left without dropping an album with them. This was made up for with the mixtapes The Miseducation of Freddie Gibbs & Str8 Killa No Filla, which would catch the attention of Jeezy & land Freddie a contract with CTE World in 2011. However, Gibbs eventually left CTE the following year after releasing the tapes Cold Day in Hell & B.F.K. (BabyFace Killa). In 2013, he decided to form his own label E$GN Records & finally dropped the full-length album E.$.G.N. (Evil $eeds Grow Naturally). He & iconic Oxnard producer Madlib would drop their MadGibbs debut Piñata the year after that, which is EASILY one of the greatest hip hop albums of the previous decade. Gibbs continued to grow his profile after that with Shadow of a Doubt, You Only Live 2wice, Freddie & the Curren$y collab EP Fetti & who can forget MadGibbs’ sophomore effort Bandana or Alfredo produced by The Alchemist? $oul $old $eparately made for a valiant major label debut under Warner Records & You Only Die 1nce returned to his independent hustle, recapturing the magic of Alfredo for a sequel of it’s own.

“1995” opens with a jazzy, drumless 2-parter picking up exactly where “1985” left off talking about being ok regardless of haters & bitches snaking whereas “Mar-a-Lago” swaps out the drumless elements in favor of boom bap making it clear that the feds ain’t gettin’ nothing after tryna hit his shit. “Lemon Pepper Steppers” turns the jazz influences up a bit talking about people tryna block his blessings prior to the silky “Ensalada” pleading to get away from this place he’s in.

Jim Jones gets dissed during “Empanadas” stripping the drums once again just before “Skinny Suge II” talks about being the last don & looking to body every last person whenever he’s in the middle of a job. “Feeling” featuring Larry June chops up a soul sample for both of them to keep it trill leading into “I Still Love H.E.R.” homaging the テリヤキ・ボーイズ single of the same name featuring & produced by Ye or the Nazi formerly known as Kanye West.

“Shangri La” soulfully airs his grievances towards a woman that he deems to be “sneaky”making better use of an unused verse recorded during the Vultures sessions when ¥$ was still together at the beginning while “Gas Station Sushi” addresses his falling out with Curren$y not too long after Fetti was released. I found both the “Pee on city girls like P. Diddy” line & the DJ Akademiks diss not even a minute into “Lavish Habits” to be pretty funny while “Gold Feet” featuring J.I.D finds the pair getting together talking about feeling great.

The song “Jean Claude” gets the final 7 & a half minutes of Alfredo II started with a drumless jazz rap track comparing life to the 1988 martial arts film Bloodsport & recommending to take the role of Frank Dux in that situation as a way of survival while “1,000 Mountains” closes the album with 1 last boom bap cut arguing that the only person who he feels can outrap him is André 3000, taking it a step further by contemplating taking a flute & hiding out similarly to what the Prince of hip hop did.

Don’t want to take away from the highlights $oul $old $eparately & You Only Die 1nce both have even if I lean more $oul $old $eparately, but Freddie Gibbs reunites with one of my top 10 producers of all-time for a successor to make an Alfredo successor that takes it back to what made that original LP the most beloved solo effort in the E$GN Records founder’s discography as he prepares for his next project fully produced by KAYTRANADA.

Score: 4.5/5

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Insane E – “E.A.R.T.H. (Energy, Alchemy, Reality, Technology, History)” review

East Palestine, Ohio emcee & graphic designer Insane E celebrating his birthday with a brand new EP. Starting out as 1/4 of the No Clue Crew in the early 2000s, he branched out in favor of a solo career releasing The Fine Line at the very end of that decade & subsequently became the Head of Graphic Design for Majik Ninja Entertainment & a graphic designer for the label’s founders Twiztid in November 2013 only 11 months after the demented duo had departed from Psychopathic Records to do it themselves. Scales came a decade after The Art of Blaowww & became the Astronomicon graphic designer’s most fleshed out work, looking to speak on the E.A.R.T.H. as we know it today from a conceptual standpoint.

“Energy” opens with the trap metal experimentations that we got hear to Scales only 14 months ago pleading to feel again & be taken away whereas “Alchemy” finds Fritz the Cat instrumentally throwing it back to some of Twiztid’s earlier material talking about being out of his mind & from another time. “Reality” goes for a straightforward rap rock vibe thanks to Stir Crazy advising to stop & think of what you’re doing while “Technology” talks about humanity becoming infected by a disconnected system.

The song “History” hooks up a guitar passage & some occasional synthesizers appearing during the hook explaining that only love will remain with the past slowly fading away as time continues to slip faster as well as being open to the change once the system is broken while the closing track “With You” finishes E.A.R.T.H. (Energy, Alchemy, Reality, Technology, History) off with an acoustic boom bap crossover talking about being in his car riding with the windows unsure of where his destination is.

In preparation for Insane E’s upcoming 4th solo LP Neon Jesus & the No Clue Crew set to reunite with new music of their own, E.A.R.T.H. (Energy, Alchemy, Reality, Technology, History) offers a range of styles from the rap rock to trap metal influences within the production that we get on that previous album carrying itself over & holding down the microphone by himself for 23 & a half minutes or giving an open-minded or perhaps extra-terrestrial perspective on topics encompassing the state of our planet’s past, present & future.

Score: 4.5/5

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Estee Nack – “B.R.A.P. 2 (Big Rifles & Pistols)” review

Pretty sure this has to be the 14th proper full-length studio LP from Lynn, Massachusetts emcee/producer Estee Nack. Emerging as a member of the Tragic Allies, he also branched out 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. Commemorating the 2-year anniversary of B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties) this spring, Nackman & V Don are looking to pull out the Big Rifles & Pistols for a follow-up.

The title track was a jazzily drumless intro talking about haters casually ducking headshots whereas the 2nd & final single “LAKOTA DREAM CATCHER” heads for a soulful boom bap direction speaking on trying to wake up those who prefer to sleep on him. The lead single “CARVEL” finds himself properly executing a plan that cannot fail leading into “EZBRED” featuring Al-Doe links the 2 up to talk about being centuries ahead of the rest.

“OGFIRE” nears the end of the 1st half of the album by telling those who think they know him to cut that shit out just before the atmospheric “HIGHTECHNOLOGY” featuring al.divino, BoriRock & Shaykh Hanif finds the trio talking about running the game in a vice grip. After the “TRUE ESSENCE” interlude, “COLDER” featuring Ty da Dale returns to the boom bap so both of them can talk about their pockets being full of bloods & crips just before we get a treated to a “PAPERCHASIN’” sequel pulling from rap rock.

To start the final leg of B.R.A.P. 2 (Big Rifles & Pistols) the song “OFFTHEPLANE” takes it back to the basement looking at taking his competition down rather quickly while “RINGWALK” talks about being in tip top shape for the purchase. “ELEGANTDELINQUENT” featuring al.divino reunites the duo 1 last time over pianos providing something flavorful for their customers while “ILDUCE” caps it all off with a hardcore hip hop closer talking about being victorious without violence.

V Don’s been staying busy all year whether it be his 2nd EP albeit Black Soprano Family Records/Roc Nation Records debut Sent For at the end of January or producing Boldy James’ 14th album Alphabet Highway over 2 months later, but his production during B.R.A.P. 2 (Big Rifles & Pistols) feels a little jazzier than the original B.R.A.P. (Born Rewards & Penalties) not to mention the guest list being a step down from the predecessor.

Score: 4/5

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Tyler, The Creator – “Don’t Tap the Glass” review

New surprise LP & the 8th overall from California emcee, singer/songwriter, producer, actor, visual artist, designer & comedian Tyler, The Creator. Emerging as the de facto leader of Odd Future, his evolution both artistically & personally since the collective’s disbandment last decade has truly been amongst the most fascinating ones I’ve ever witnessed in my lifetime going from the bratty edginess of Bastard & Goblin to the undeniable maturity & versatility shown on Flower Boy & Igor. Call Me If You Get Lost happened to be his best lyrically & Chromakopia was a mature refinement of Cherry Bomb, releasing Don’t Tap the Glass in the middle of his ongoing tour.

“Big Poe” featuring Pharrell instrumentally throws it back to something The Neptunes would’ve made in the early 2000s with both of them introducing us to this new alter-ego possibly homaging the late Big Moe of the Screwed Up Click whereas “Sugar on My Tongue” takes on a more sexual tone with the lyrics experimenting with hip house. “Sucka Free” lyrically carries over the confidence of his “hey now” freestyle last Christmas except for a g-funk beat backing him until “Mommanem” drumlessly compares his haters to children.

One of the craziest instrumentals Tyler has ever made lands on “Stop Playing with Me” fusing Miami bass & electro calling for detractors to hop off his dick while “Ring Ring Ring” gets on a synth-funk/neo-soul vibe singing for his lover to pick up the phone & hoping they’re well. The title track boastfully laughs at the idea of him losing touch with the regular folks when he’s never been regular his whole career & “Tweakin’” brings back the synths to find himself trippin’ making the first 2-parter since Call Me If You Get Lost.

“Don’t You Worry Baby” lets DAISY take over the vocal performances singing about having the time & giving it to him before he falls asleep showing a Miami bass influence again while “I’ll Take Care of You” comes off as more of an interlude heavily sampling both Killa C & Princess’ verses during the Crime Mob’s biggest hit “Knuck If You Buck” for 3 & a half minutes. Including the Cherry Bomb title track’s drums. “Tell Me What It Is” ties up the half hour experience with a closer reminiscent of IGOR feeling skeptical of opening up his soul for love since he doesn’t know exactly how to.

Tyler, The Creator commemorates the 8-year anniversary of Flower Boy by straying away from the conceptual themes throughout a bulk of earlier material & whipping up a candidate for Album of the Summer with only a couple months left. It’s more centered around the pop rap & dance styles than anything he’s done previously pulling further inspiration from synth-funk, Miami bass, electro, neo-soul, dance-pop, hardcore hip hop, hip house, Atlanta bass & contemporary R&B doing what Drake thinks he did on Honestly, Nevermind but far superior.

Score: 4.5/5

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Joyner Lucas – “ADHD 2” review

Here is the 3rd studio LP from Worcester, Massachusetts rapper & singer/songwriter Joyner Lucas. Somebody who first came to my attention in late 2016 with an incredible verse on “Sriracha” off of Tech N9ne’s 17th album The Storm, he exposure would increase the following year with the single “I’m Not Racist” along with a verse on “Lucky You” off of Eminem’s 10th album KAMIKAZƎ the year after that & his full-length debut ADHD was released during the COVID lockdowns to negative feedback from both critics & fans. Not Now, I’m Busy came out a year & a half ago to more mixed reception & basically half of ADHD 2 was already released as singles like literally every other rollout he’s had in the past.

After the “Family Therapy” skit, the first song “I Wish I Knew” opens with some pianos & hi-hats talking about inner growth featuring spoken word bits from WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg whereas “the “Fuck your top 5 ’cause I’m in the top 3 of your favorite top 5, let’s get this shit straight” on the lead single “One of Them” was laughable considering that Joyner’s discography comes nowhere close to Kendrick Lamar’s. Even if the horn-trap instrumental to be decent.

“Tear Me Down” featuring Ava Max made for a decent pop rap single tackling the theme of love hurting more than it heals & after the “Kevin” skit, “The Way That I Am” gives his flowers to Eminem much like he did with the Will Smith tribute “Will” on his debut. “Riot” is somewhat better talking about having money on his head & on the verge of getting arrested while “Hate Me” featuring T-Pain gives off a futuristic trap feeling to it coming with an 8 piece after others thought he was done.

After the “Denzel” skit, “White Noise” starts the 2nd half of ADHD 2 with a country trap fusion layering some auto-tune on his vocals feeling like his thoughts are getting too loud while “Butterfly Effect” carries the acoustics & hi-hats over to talk about going to another dimension if he could. “Anxiety Wins” featuring blackbear finds the pair getting on some emo rap shit until Ty$ probably saves my favorite feature on the album for “New Sofas” making up for typical Joyner bars like “To be Frank I don’t even do Oceans” leading into the “Therapy Checkup” skit.

Big Sean’s verse during “Active” was another highlight for me as he & Joyner talk about being outside when the lights are out while “Time is Money” featuring DaBaby & J Balvin could be the most tedious collaboration here with J Balvin’s verse at the end being my favorite regardless if it doesn’t do the rest of the song justice. “Listen to My Demo” is another favorite reflecting on trying to make it from 1999 to 2015 & the same can be said about “Momma” produced by N4 paying tribute to his mother.

Almost halfway through the current decade & ADHD is still widely considered to be amongst the worst hip hop albums of the entire decade, so my expectations weren’t all that high considering that & Not Now, I’m Busy being mediocre. And when he said “Nobody Cares” regarding his beef with Skepta, he wasn’t wrong considering that lame ass beef all drummed up in him dropping a sequel to his debut that’s slightly better than the original. Not trying to say he can’t rap because he can, he simply has a below average ear for production & the guests’ performances are equally tiring as his.

Score: 1.5/5

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Rollinthrax – “B4” review

This is the sophomore effort from The Bronx, New York rapper Rollinthrax. Delivering a slew of EPs from Fuckui<3u & 24×7 to SSX & ¡ridescentearly on in the decade, all of which built up for his full-length debut 2eZ celebrating his birthday with a fun batch of cloudy trap/rage songs. His debut mixtape One2Nun came out at the beginning of 2023 & he’s ready to take himself to the next level on B4 to the delight of many finishing up a feature run he’s been on since.

Fitting enough, “Is U Ready?” opens with synthesizers & hi-hats eagerly awaiting to run up a check leading into the cloudy “Wassup” produced by Cade feeling reminiscent of Lil Uzi Vert talking about a chick who acted like she loved him & later switched up. “It’s History” gets into his rage bag with the help of Jwade making different investments as of late prior to talking his shit during the single “Check Ur Phone” using crazy sampling techniques from n9ck.

“Almighty” pulls from the hypertrap subgenre again feeling zombified off too many drugs & wanting to be omnipotent just before “Opponent” gets back on a cloudy trap vibe talking about seeing dead bodies all around him. “VIP” hops over more rage beats comparing life to a game of chess & fucking with him being your worst mistake, but then “Irregular” fuses trap & glitch hop to talk about sticking out from the rest.

Thrax used the horn-inflicted “How U Bomin’?” to flex that he’s always 2 steps ahead while “Pass da Cup” clarifies making it to the next level is part of the rule of survival with another creatively used sample. “Putiton” jauntily talks about living in luxury because he used to be broke while “Grey Anatomy” makes hypertrap a secondary influence telling his brothers to keep going. Regarding the closer, “Say It Say It” samples rock music to vent about giving her enough & her acting like it ain’t a thing.

Some were keeping their fingers crossed when Rollinthrax got his own track on Xavier Anthony’s debut compilation The XA Tape this past Super Bowl Weekend of him finally getting himself back out there & B4 makes his return 30 months following his debut for a comeback recapturing the sounds of trap along with rage & cloud rap summing up what he’s been up to all this time.

Score: 3.5/5

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Alex Warren – “You’ll Be Alright, Kid” review

California singer/songwriter, YouTuber & influencer Alex Warren releasing his full-length debut. Co-founding the Hype House collective of TikTokers, he would go on to sign with Atlantic Records in 2022 & teased the 2nd disc of this very LP last fall as a precursor of what we could expect to hear exactly 4 weeks after the Hype House’s disbandment. It’ll be almost 2 months since Addison Rae’s own debut Addison revealed herself to be the most musically talented of the crew & Alex looks to catch up by unveiling the full version of You’ll Be Alright, Kid.

“Eternity” was actually a decent intro culminating in adult contemporary, pop rock & pop soul singing about his father passing away when he was 9 whereas “The Outside” throws a hint of CCM in the picture asking for sign because he’s down & out of his mind. “First Time on Earth” opens up about the regret he has of holding his late mother to a perfect standard when she has her own flaws leading into the below average stomp & holler/country pop single “Bloodline” featuring Jelly Roll.

Alex’s past & memories that made him the person he is today moderately get recalled over the course of the pop rock track “Never Too Far” just before one of the worst singles of the year “Ordinary” whips up a generically corny & uninspired take on adult contemporary, stomp & holler, pop rock, pop soul & gospel. “Everything” works in some pianos to sing about feeling like he’ll lose it all if his wife Kouvr Annon leaves him just before “Getaway Car” obnoxious mutates stomp & holler with pop rock feeling like the Devil’s catching up to him.

“Who I Am” hooks up some occasional gospel choir vocals in the background with more pianos loathing in self pity wanting to know who he is in the eyes of his lover, but then “You Can’t Stop This” comes off as an overly preachy stomp & holler song about being unstoppable when the reception of his music speaks for itself. The final single “On My Mind” featuring ROSÉ was an adult contemporary stomp & holler duet that utterly fails at attempting to capture any form of chemistry between the pair to end Disc 1 while another pop soul, pop rock and stomp & holler single “Burning Down” addresses the Hype House’s demise.

Disc 2 continues with the country pop-tinged “Catch My Breath” singing about being off his head since the night he & Kouvr met on Snapchat while the open letter Alex penned to Kouvr on the day of their wedding “Carry You Home” feels ripped off from “Hey Brother” by the late Avicii swapping out it’s initial country pop & festival progressive house influences in favor or pop rock. “Troubled Waters” continues the torturous stomp & holler/pop rock mutations singing about the only thing he’s learned is that love leaves him while “Heaven Without You” promises he’ll have Kouvr’s heart in every lifetime.

“Before You Leave Me” makes another mediocre attempt at a stomp & holler/pop rock single singing about the concept of 2nd chances while “Save You a Seat” tries to go in an indie folk direction for a tribute to his parents. “Chasing Shadows” bites Lewis Capaldi a little finding himself missing his deceased mother & father while “Yard Sale” uses the concept of garage sales as a weak metaphor for letting go. You’ll Be Alright, Kid‘s title track puts an end to Alex’s debut by looking back on his 12 year old self wishing he knew back then everything would be alright.

Justin Bieber & Benson Boone both being named amongst Alex Warren’s biggest musical influences makes the most sense in the context of You’ll Be Alright, Kid being an equally unlistenable album as American Heart was a month ago & Swag surpassing them both by only a slight margin. It’s conceptually reminiscent of Chance the Rapper’s debut The Big Day with an adult contemporary stomp & holler twist, but the songwriting & vocals are more grating.

Score: 1/5

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