Ice Cube – “Man Up” review

Los Angeles emcee, songwriter, actor, film producer, CubeVision founder & BIG3 founder Ice Cube not slowing down musically with his 12th album. The cousin of Del the Funky Homosapien & Kam, he started as part of the C.I.A. gained notoriety as a member of N.W.A until departing after their historic debut Straight Outta Compton. Cube later got his own Priority Records deal as a solo artist, teaming with The Bomb Squad for his own debut AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted & later Kill at Will. Death Certificate went on to become another west coast hip hop landmark due to some of its racially & politically charged content, with his Lench Mob Records debut The Predator mainly addressing a lot of the racial tensions in the United States at the time. Lethal Injection was more g-funk heavy and the War & Peace double-disc effort marked the end of the former Westside Connection member’s Priority contract. Laugh Now, Cry Later distributed by Virgin Music & EMI Records was a solid comeback almost 2 decades ago next summer after mainly focusing on acting during the first half of the 2000s & then Raw Footage had it’s highlights although it was decent as a whole. I’m the West became his most negatively received body of work & the Interscope Records-distributed Everythang’s Corrupt showed to be an improvement although still average. Man Down last fall was a pretty great homage to his Day 1s & the sequel Man Up is here 10 months later.

“Man Power” produced by E-A-Ski starts by asking if one has masculine abilities from within whereas “What You Gonna Do About It?” disses the kind of people who only speak of doing things instead acting upon it. “Freedumb” consciously discusses how people are getting spied on through their smartphones while “Guess What?” talks about being in the cut figuring out if the targeted suspects are either for or against him.

We have Cube making it clear as day that one should “Forget Me If You Ain’t wit Me” leading into the only single “Before Hip Hop” featuring Chuck D & LL Cool J on the remix talking about life prior to making music over Hallway Productionz cooking up the original instrumental & DJ Premier handling the remix. “Act My Age” featuring Scarface dabbles with trap a bit for an ode to MCs over 35 just before “Ratchet Ass Mouth” cautions about the kind of women you shouldn’t date.

“Respect My Space” poses the question if anyone wants to battle him while “California Dreamin’” gives off a g-funk vibe for a tribute to the sunshine state. “That Salt & Pepper” shows off his grown man status for 115 seconds over a funky Erick Sermon beat & after “Bring Everybody” charismatically talks about being untouchable, “All Work No Play” finishes with a message to the O.G.s who feel the same way he does.

In spite of what others have to say about Ice Cube’s music in past 2 decades or so & don’t get me started with War of the Worlds flopping, I’d say that Man Down is the better of the 2 albums we’ve gotten from him in the past 10 months although Man Up’s very much decent. I appreciate that he only got 1 guest on here in contrast to the amount Man Down had, but the production here is a little weaker as a whole.

Score: 3/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Jermaine Dupri – “Magic City” review

Jermaine Dupri is 53 year old songwriter, producer, rapper, DJ, entrepreneur & music executive from Atlanta, Georgia notable for founding So So Def Recordings mentoring the likes of Kris Kross & Da Brat. He also released his full-length debut Life in 1472 in the summer of ‘98 & later Instructions on Devil’s Night 2001, both under a distraction deal with Columbia Records at the time. Neither of which were received favorably, but is returning now that So So Def signed a new distribution deal with the HYBE Corporation for his 3rd studio LP. Not only his first in a quarter of a century, but also over 3 & a half years after introducing former 2-time WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Jade Cargill during her reign as inaugural AEW tbs Champion.

“Tryna Beat the Thrill” by Skooly starts JD’s comeback with a rich trap instrumental representing Atlanta & after the “Conversation with Big Meech” skit, “This or That” by the late Rich Homie Quan has to be one of the best songs of his career from his bittersweetly catchy performances to the infectious beat. “She’s a Freak” by Bow Wow & Travis Porter talks about their preference in women while “Magic Money City” by Bankroll N!, BunnaB, J Money & Sean P East shouts out the ATL strip club the album is named after.

Cee-Lo Green’s appearance on “Atlanna” gives off a trap soul vibe that I really enjoy to it propping up the city that he, the Goodie Mob & the rest of the Dungeon Family hail from leading into “Ass Shake” by Ludacris & Quavo sampling “Mercy” by Big Sean, Pusha T, Ye formerly known as Kanye West & 2 Chainz for another club anthem. “Pussy Got Me” by Akeem Ali, T.I. & Young Dro co-produced by BoogzDaBeast & FNZ blends soul & trap to get sexual while “Get It” by Rocko talks about letting in those who stay paid.

“Turn Around” by T.I., Young Dro, 2 Chainz and 8Ball & MJG was an outstanding choice of a single from the dirty south instrumental to the killer verses from all 5 performers while “I Wanna” by K CAMP & YFN Lucci doesn’t really captivate me the same way many other tracks do despite the glamorous beat. “More Than Me” by Belly Gang Kushington & Swavay throws it back to the snap era almost 2 decades ago while “Married to the Game” by Killer Mike & Jagged Edge meshes pop rap & R&B well.

Hollywood YC, Lil Scrappy & Skooly all team up on “The Kids from the Neighborhood” to talk about knocking on doors for the purposes of shopping people & stopping them while “We da Shit” by Lil Jon, Pastor Troy & Princess of the Crime Mob finishes our tour of Magic City with the trio throwing it back to when crunk was all over the airwaves in the early/mid 2000s hyping themselves up thematically with some simplistic keyboard melodies all over the instrumental.

Not too much of a fan of either Life in 1472 or Instructions as full-lengths outside a handful of songs from each of them, but Magic City switches it up entirely by focusing more on Jermaine Dupri’s production talents & that works out greatly in the long-run of his comeback. Recruiting a bunch of Atlanta artists, the So So Def founder’s beats here rival Metro Boomin’s on A Futuristic Summa with the exception of this being a love letter to the 770’s most famous strip club as opposed to the futuristic swag era in general.

Score: 3.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Ty Fontaine – “LOV3NDL13S” review

Maryland recording artist Ty Fontaine teaming up with Internet Money Records in-house prouder Rio Leyva for his 10th EP. Coming up in 2019 off the strength of his debut EP Waiting on Ascension, he would go on to follow this up with the full-length debut We Ain’t the Same alongside a couple of mixtapes & 3 more EPs, the previous being The Revive preluding a sequel to his Internet Money-backed debut mixtape Ascension & Black Truck Life. He signed to MNRK Music Group for his 7th EP 264 & more specifically Ascension 2, tapping in with one of his former label’s biggest beatsmiths for LOV3NDL13S.

“O V E R L Y – G O I N” is a bit of a hyper intro to the EP talking about his girl going stupid & calling him fine shit quickly whereas Fuk! Type! Shi! U! On! Bih?” desires legitimacy from his partner from the best to the worst. “I Shouldn’t Be Here” talks about finding him in places he’s not to supposed be while “b o d y tlk” if you couldn’t tell takes on the theme of intercourse. “errythang” finishes LOV3NDLI3S by explaining that everything becomes easier when it comes to his lover.

Somehow someway, LOV3NDLI3S manages to raise the bar higher than Ty Fontaine did on Ascension & Ascension 2 moving Virtual World to the side for his finest extended play as well as becoming quite possibly my newest favorite entry in his whole entire discography. Rio Leyva’s production is a lot more detailed than some of the previous material we’ve gotten from Ty in recent years & it’s what he needed for some time already.

Score: 4.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

4Batz – “Still Shinin’” review

The full-length studio debut from Dallas, Texas singer/songwriter 4Batz is finally here. Earning co-signs from one of my top 10 producers of all-time Ye formerly known as Kanye West to even Drake, the latter of whom signed 4Batz to OVO Sound for a 1-EP deal although his debut EP U Made Me a St4r was released independently through gamma. last spring. Buvision Entertainment & 10K Projects later bought 4Batz out of his OVO deal once he landed a spot in the 2024 XXL Freshman Class & eagerly anticipating Still Shinin’ to clear both of Ian’s recent output on the label Valedictorian & Goodbye Horses.

“too dam young” kicks it all off with a drumless 67 second intro singing about not being old enough to become this chick’s “main one” whereas “n da mornin” made for a decent R&B single with the biggest criticism lying with the repetitive & songwriting. “she ain’t no angel” featuring Leon Thomas III finds the pair teaming up for a duet about their lovers tryna justify their ways while “big on u” expresses the love he has for Anycia, whom he married in secret last weekend.

We get some heavier alternative R&B vibes on “my lil shootah” asking if he & his soulmate can get it on leading into “twerksongggg” appropriately following through with a tack for the strip clubs. “could we last 4ever?” shows a prominent alternative R&B influence again singing about wanting to sleep with a woman he feel like he can’t trust while “247” featuring Flo unites the quartet for a collaboration where a couple makes each other feel like heaven every day & hour of the week.

“done sippin’” featuring Maxo Kream gets together for a track discouraging the usage of lean putting the cups down for good while “getUwet” sings about going crazy alongside his newlywed wife in the middle of the evening. “yo typical lovestory” opens up to feeling like he done hit the lottery bagging Anycia comparing her to a model while “u” sings about needing the love of his life by his side.

The song “can u” begins the final moments of Still Shinin’ to assure that he’ll get any woman right if they show him what they can do with the cake while “ms. walker” featuring Zillionaire Doe meshes R&B & hip hop to talk about how they love the way their partners move. “let’s press play” finishes 4Batz’ debut with him recalling the first time he saw Anycia in her wedding dress.

In hindsight, it was probably a good thing that 4Batz’ 1-EP deal with OVO fell through because songs like “there goes another vase” & “i hate to be alone” contradict Rolling Stone’s claim that U Made Me a St4r had no purpose of existing. The R&B/trap soul star is Still Shinin’ in the midst of all the pressure he’s been receiving since blowing up becoming prideful of his home state down to Chopstars co-founder OG Ron C’s mixtape-esque narrations in time for Mads Krügger ending Matt Riddle’s reign as MLW World Heavyweight Champion tomorrow at Fightland VII.

Score: 3.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Daz Dillinger – “Retaliation, Revenge & Get Back 3” review

Long Beach, California rapper, producer & songwriter Daz Dillinger releasing his 22nd solo LP. Some of his cousins include Brandy & her brother Ray J, WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg & the current AEW tbs Champion, CMLL Mundial Femenil Campeon and RPW British Women’s Champion Mercedes Moné. He eventually signed to Death Row Records & became an original in-house producer under the guidance of its co-founder Dr. Dre, forming Tha Dogg Pound with Kurupt not too long afterwards. Daz finally made his solo debut on ‘98 by putting out Retaliation, Revenge & Get Back on Death Row until departing rather quickly to put out 20 more LPs of his own with almost 3 decades of experience in the game. Retaliation, Revenge & Get Back 2 took it back to the essence of his debut earlier this summer & is looking to recapture that feeling once more.

“It’s Automatic” starts with a hybrid between trap, rap rock & gangsta rap talking about staying strapped wherever he goes whereas “We Shoot Bacc” continues to portray the gangsta lifestyle assuring he’ll ship the bullets right back to it’s original sender. “Initiation” welcomes all to a battlefield where loyalty is law & love is weakness prior to “B4 I Let Go” throws it back to the g-funk era talking about having the west behind him.

The gospel direction of “Better Get It Right” suits the theme of having to keep one’s composure & offering a slice of a man who’s lost it all while “Glock 19z & Caskets” gives off a vintage west coast vibe talking about keeping his Glock on him until he gets buried 6 feet day. “It’s a Murder Rap” finds himself ready to go complete 187 on the whole rap game leading into “Kidnap, Robbery & Homicide” breaking down criminal activity over a g-funk instrumental.

“I Can’t Fucc wit U” begins the 2nd half of the album with a shot at all these suckas who did it for the paper having the nerve of snitching on each other while “What U Really Want” talking about the people asking for something not getting shit outta him. “Get Money on a Bad Day” optimistically speaks of making a paycheck regardless of how his day’s going while “In My 64” serves as an ode to his impala.

The song “Fucc Y’all” packs up Retaliation, Revenge & Get Back 3’s final leg with him giving a middle finger to the haters who don’t want him to shine & after the Beefy Loc skit, “We Gangsta” properly finishes up the RR&GB trilogy with a g-funk/gangsta rap outro talking making causing static on every block because of the environment he came from where the shots were always ringing loud.

Contrary to the reports a couple weeks ago claiming Daz Dillinger had fallen out with Snoop Dogg & that this was gonna be a whole project dissing him, he has since confirmed a couple days ago that isn’t the case & clarified his issues lie more with Death Row Records’ past when Suge Knight was at the helm of things & his own complicated history with the label instead of Snoop himself. Retaliation, Revenge & Get Back 3 feels more aggressive than Retaliation, Revenge & Get Back 2 was a few months earlier with the exception of him looking for closure instead of conflict.

Score: 4/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Miz Korona – “…I Forgive Me” review

Detroit, Michigan emcee/producer Miz Korona returning after 3 & a half years with her 3rd EP. Releasing her debut album The Injection in 2010 produced by Chanes, she would return a decade later dropping her first EP The Virus during the 2020 COVID-19 pandemic followed by The Healer & The Heartbreaker approximately 24 months later. Coinciding with her born day however, she’s releasing …I Forgive Me on her Bandcamp almost entirely producing the whole thing by herself except for the halfway point.

“Echoes of My Heart” featuring Neco Redd takes 3 & a half minutes to give everybody glimpses of their hearts real quick over a summery guitar instrumental whereas the title track asks God for self-forgiveness. “Space” takes the boom bap route stylistically feeling like she’s flying in a spaceship while “Last Goodbye” soulfully gets in her storytelling bag.

I felt threat “Melody of the Sun” was a highlight even for a single coming right out the gate back in her lane over more boom bap production & “Weather the Storm” featuring Na Bonsai & Neco Redd finishes with a stylistic departure from hip hop in favor over singing about nobody else being able to hold you down except yourself.

Said to be releasing a sequel EP called Travel in Peace dedicated to her mother later this weekend, Miz Korona celebrates her birthday with a more introspective side to herself than some of her previous material guaranteed to take itself further on Sunday & her growth as a producer since she made her first beat in the summer of 2021 is another key takeaway from it.

Score: 4/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Ho99o9 – “Tomorrow We Escape” review

This is the 3rd studio LP from Newark, New Jersey punk rap trio Ho99o9. Consisting of theOGM & Eaddy, they originally emerged on the scene over a decade ago off their debut EP Mutant Freax & have since gone on to follow it up with 3 more EPs as well as 3 mixtapes & even a full-length debut. blink-182 drummer Travis Barker would sign them to his Elekta Records imprint DTA Records entirely producing Skin & their MNRK Music Group debut Tomorrow We Escape is here 3 years later.

“I Miss Home” featuring Moruf begins with a Yeezus influenced industrial hip hop opener talking about shit never changing if one doesn’t ever take risks whereas “Escape” embraces a complete hardcore punk vibe with hints of melodic hardcore during the first verse & punk rap during the other. “Target Practice” blends rap rock & industrial hip hop together to talk about not fucking around in the jungles while “Ok, I’m Reloaded” makes for an energetic hardcore hip hop/EDM experimentation.

We get some psychedelic synthesizers all throughout “Psychic Jumper” talking about trying to keep their heads up prior to the experimental hardcore hip hop single “Incline” featuring Pink Siifu further pulling from big beat, industrial hip hop & trip hop advising that no one wants to find out with them. “Upside Down” combines alt-metal, rap rock, industrial metal & post-hardcore talking about people being meant to sin prior to “Tapeworm” featuring Greg Puciato fusing drum & bass, alternative metal & hip hop together seamlessly.

“Immortal” featuring Chelsea Wolfe nears the conclusion of Tomorrow We Escape by colliding the sounds of gothic rock, industrial hip hop & trap talking love starting to hurt when it leaves a trial along with healing now that the weight’s off their shoulders while the commanding punk rap song “LA Riots” addresses the protests that took place in the west coast earlier this summer. “Godflesh” finishes up the album with double bass drums & punky guitar riffs talks about seeing nothing but fire.

Wanting to take a more honest approach lyrically, Ho99o9’s inaugural release under MNRK Music Group focuses less regarding the political aspect of their lyrics for the most intimate opus they’ve ever put their names on. Tomorrow We Escape’s range of old & new sounds varying from digital hardcore to rap rock, rap metal, industrial hip hop, trap metal, industrial metal, hardcore punk, nu metal, horrorcore & trap offers something for everyone whether regardless of when one started listening to them.

Score: 4/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Justin Bieber – “Swag II” review

London, Ontario, Canada singer/songwriter Justin Bieber returning for his 8th LP. Signing to Island Records during my time in middle school to put out My Worlds & Under the Mistletoe only to fulfill his obligations with them on Believe & Journals. He has since been on Def Jam Recordings for the past decade & Purpose marked a divisive debut for the label, although Changes & Justice was equally as bad as a great deal of his Island output. Swag coincided with Clipse’s comeback Let God Sort ‘Em Out couple months ago & a sequel has surprisingly arrived over 2 weeks away from former 7-time WWE tag team champions Adam Copeland & Christian Cage taking on former 2-time AEW World Tag Team Champions, 6-time WWE tag team champions, ROH World Tag Team Champions & IWGPタッグチャンピオン FTR at All Out V.

“Speed Demon” was an upbeat pop intro singing about him feeling as if he’s only getting better with each album & “checking these chickens” whereas “Better Man” goes for an alternative R&B vibe promising his wife Hailey no bitterness when he holds her hand. “Love Song” produced by Mk.gee colorfully sings about time only getting prettier with his soulmate leading into “I Do” venting over these feelings that won’t wash away.

Meanwhile on “I Think You’re Special”, we have JB atmospherically singing about breaking all the rules with Hailey & their love being unlike any other just before “Mother in You” observes that his son Jack looks a lot like his mom over a bedroom pop instrumental. “Witchya” vents about the feeling of being stuck in place staying by his wife if she needs him while “Eye Candy” encourages his partner to enjoy the moment with him.

“Don’t Wanna” featuring Bakar has a bit of a funkier direction to the beat from Mike WiLL Made-It singing about not wanting to give any fucks while “Bad Honey” expressed Biebs’ desire of wanting to dance with Hailey & making a scene out of it simultaneously. “Need It” moodily sings about wanting his wife to let him know if she’s feeling emotional likening her to cinnamon sugar while “Oh Man” opens up regarding him & the love of his life igniting one another.

Hurricane Chris appears for a bulk of “Poppin’ My Shit” blending pop rap & trap talking about their lil’ mamas wanting to be right beside them acting exactly the way they do while “All the Way” taps in with DJ Camper to promise Justin’s wife that he won’t ever let go of her. “Petting Zoo” finds himself drunk not wanting to fight with Hailey by any means asking why they’re arguing when he never said he was wrong or right while the indie folk-influenced “Moving Fast” sings about slowing down the ride & rollin’ the windows down for her.

“Safe Space” professes JB’s desire to take all of Hailey’s pain away from her & protect her from anything while “Lyin’” kicks the funk back in a little to sing about him telling the truth when he said he loved his wife. “Dotted Line” puts a lo-fi aesthetic on the bedroom pop style taking it slow & going back to basics while “Open Up Your Heart” featuring Eddie Benjamin pleads for their partners to tell them the way they really feel.

The song “When It’s Over” pushes towards the end of Swag II getting in over his head every time they go blow for blow, which results in his words ricocheting & cutting straight through him while “Everything Hallelujah” prior to the 8 minute spoken word outro “Story of God” praises God for everything from the Sun being out to the affection he’s consistently showering Hailee with.

Swag was one of the more admirable offerings in Justin Bieber’s discography even if I still didn’t care for it & the follow-up was as equally uninteresting than the predecessor earlier this summer. The musical palette’s similar to last time from contemporary R&B to bedroom pop, pop, pop soul, alternative R&B & alt-pop expanding on the original themes of marriage & fatherhood that still doesn’t grab me the same way as Earl Sweatshirt’s new album Live Laugh Love or Dominic Fike’s recent mixtape Rocket did.

Score: 2/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Billy Obey – “Rhymebook of the Recently Deceased” review

Portsmouth, Ohio emcee/producer Billy Obey celebrating his born day with his official solo debut. Known for being a founding member of the almighty Alla Xul Elu, he alongside Joey Black & later Lee Carver have spent the past 7 years building up their independently owned Long Live Evil record label as a brand you can trust within the underground wicked shit scene with the Super Famous Fun Time Guys & S.O.N. joining LLE’s roster. In preparation of Xul’s upcoming 7th album No Masters, the Rhymebook of the Recently Deceased is getting cracked open.

After titular intro, “Never Trust the Living” opens with an occult rap rock/boom bap crossover going 187 on all these other rappers whereas the industrially raw “Creepin’ It Real” talks about being an artist when it comes to murder. “Ugly on the Inside” poses the question of whether or not one sees a good person or someone like him when looking at the mirror while “Snake Oil Salesman” talks about searching for something that isn’t soil.

“Saviour Save Your Breath” hits the halfway mark by suggesting that nothing can be said to change his ways since he’ll always be the same while the infernal boom bap cut “Hell’s Wear the Heart Is” talks about being a certified psycho born & raised staying higher than his city’s abortion rate. “Life Sentence” makes it a mission to let the world know he’s writing his life away when he goes while “Family Portrait” talks about still being out of place even in frame.

The song “Taking Me Places” begins the Rhymebook of the Recently Deceased’s final pages by discussing how creativity has taken him farther than he could’ve ever imagined & daydreaming of slowing down just before “When I Saw You” talks about the only way he’d ever leave this woman he’s obsessed with is in pieces. “Someone Else, Somewhere Else” finishes the LP by tackling the difficulty of accepting the timeline we’re living in no matter the hand you’re given.

It was hard to tell whether when or if Billy Obey would ever release a solo project since Lee Carver previously dropped Massacre Mask & The Backstabber’s Handbook prior to him joining Alla Xul Elu but regardless of whether or not Joey Black decides to put out a solo effort now that Xul left Majik Ninja Entertainment couple months ago, Rhymebook of the Recently Deceased makes for a properly great introduction of what Bill Now the Science Cow can do on his own with the industrial boom bap sound A.X.E. is known for & their lyrically wicked lyricism.

Score: 4.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Saigon – “Paint the World Black” review

Brooklyn, New York emcee Saigon finally releasing his 6th studio LP entirely produced by Buckwild under It Goes Up Entertainment distributed by Strange Music & Virgin Music. Breaking out in the early 2000s off his debut mixtape Da Yardfather, it wouldn’t be until 2011 when he would make his full-length debut by dropping The Greatest Story Never Told under Suburban Noize Records. The album would spawn a sequel to fulfill his contract with the Spade the following year & then a final installment on his own imprint Squid Ink Squad Records in 2014. He returned from a 6 year hiatus in 2020 by signing to It Goes Up/Strange & dropping the STREETRUNNER-produced EP 777: The Resurrection & fulfilling that deal on Pain, Peace & Prosperity the next spring. Following a quick trip back to The Jordan Era under Payday Records last spring, Da Yardfather’s linking up with Buckwild to Paint the World Black under It Goes Up Entertainment alongside Strange Music & Virgin Music.

“Yardfather Talk” after the “Over the Break” intro opens up with some horns & a guitar talking about his music being too analytic for critics while “Write Back (Hear Me Now)” after the “Dear God” skit working in some sampling to acting the exact same things he did last time. “Well Wishes” fuses gospel & boom bap talking about wanting nothing but the best for those who turned on him leading into the “Meet Raymond Riches (Fame & Riches)” skit.

We get a soul sample chopped up on “Whose 4 da Young?” providing words of wisdom to the youth & Saigon doing this music shit for them prior to the passionate “My Child” pleading God for him to let his kid grow up in the world due to the state it’s been at these past 8 months. “No Witness” featuring Benny the Butcher hooks up a dope flute sample throughout talking about being O.G.s on the lowkey while “2000Now (Crowd Go Wild) starting the 2nd half by showing us how he likes hip hop to sound.

“Toxic Love Story” blends pop rap & R&B together for a look at a relationship where he & his girl are constantly arguing with each other over & over again but after the “187.4 FM DJ Titty Toucher” intermission, “Bare Necessities” talks about his altruism contrasting the greed that these so called “ballin’” artists are so overcome by & “Dying Never Goes Outta Style” tells the story of a child running wild.

After the “Let’s Talk About Love” skit, “Any Love” winds down the last few minutes of Paint the World Black observing a whole lotta jealousy these days asking if there’s any love left in the hearts of the population & the closer is a sequel to “Yardfather Talk” talking about opportunity knocking at his door. Only for it to be Raymond Riches, who introduced himself during a skit midway through.

The Jordan Era was a big improvement over Pain, Peace & Prosperity as a love letter to the mid 80s/late 90s except Paint the World Black raises the stakes exactly how I thought he would because it moves 777: The Resurrection behind itself for the right of becoming Saigon’s best project of the 3 he has put out since signing to the It Goes Up Entertainment subsidiary of Strange Music. From the lyricism to the production, he & Buckwild are merely doing what they felt was normal to them & pulling it off excellently.

Score: 4.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!