Twiztid – “Herb n Legends” review

Detroit, Michigan’s demented duo & Astronomicon founders Twiztid hitting us with their 18th extended play. Consisting of Jamie Madrox & Monoxide, both of whom originally started out as part of the House of Krazees alongside childhood friend The R.O.C. in 1992 before their initial disbandment 5 years later. Almost immediately after, the Insane Clown Posse took Jamie & Mono under their wings by signing them to Psychopathic Records as who they’re known as today. They would become the label’s 2nd biggest act being their mentors off projects like Mostasteless, Freek Show, Mirror Mirror, The Green Book, W.I.C.K.E.D. (Wish I Could Kill Every Day) & Abominationz. Shortly after the latter was released, Twiztid left Psychopathic to form Majik Ninja Entertainment in 2014. Since then they’ve released 8 albums & 9 EPs on their own label, my favorites of which being /ˌrevəˈlāSH⁽ᵊ⁾n/ & even their last full-length Glyph. Their last full-length Welcome to Your Funeral produced by Rob Zombie’s engineer Zeuss was a superior Unlikely Prescription sequel & are unearthing the Herb n Legends.

After the intro, the opener “So Numb” sets things off talking about a feeling a fire burning inside of them whereas “My God” by Triple Threat describes a way they’ve never felt before. “Noid” featuring James Garcia or the artist formerly known as Young Wicked throws it back to the latter’s Axe Murder Boyz roots & “D.I.D.” ends the EP having both Triple Threat & Otis linking up to talk about smoking to escape the problems they face in the daily lives.

Conceptually inspired by a man disappearing in the forest of West Branch while getting away from friends only to be found 73 hours later carrying a 20 minute recording explaining where he had been & what had happened to him, Herb n Legends returns to Twiztid’s hip hop roots rather than continuing to expanding the rap/nu metal sounds of their previous full-length with a conceptual EP themed around their love of smoking kush with a horrorcore twizt.

Score: 4/5

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Nasaan – “Method Acting” review

This is the debut mixtape from Detroit, Michigan rapper, singer/songwriter & producer Nasaan. The son of the late D12 de facto leader & in my opinion the greatest Detroit emcee of all-time Proof, some of you may remember him for releasing the Def Jam-backed debut EP Kiss of Karma in July of 2019, which was followed up with the Error 404 extended play under Atlantic Records. Now that he’s no longer signed to a major label, he’s beginning a new chapter of his career with Method Acting.

“To My Name” made for a slick opener talking about having no reason to complain since he has $100K in his bank account whereas “All for Me” featuring Bruiser Wolf comes through with an ode for their homies who had bitches trying to play them before they were the real deal. “Calling Me” goes for a smoother vibe in general for a charming pop rap ballad leading into him admitting to not knowing how to solve his “Family Issues”.

We have Nasaan throwing it back to 80s with “Need That” playfully asking for his lover to save him to begin the 2nd half while “Man Again” soulfully talks about willing to go to war with stars. “This Close” might be my least favorite track here because of it’s distractingly heavy Drake influence but after the spacious “Sexy” admires the beauty of his significant other, “Stay Blessed” luxuriously ends the EP carrying his grandmother’s advice forward.

Celebrating what would’ve been his late girlfriend Mycah Lewis’ birthday, Nasaan spends a great deal of Method Acting getting more melodically sensual than a lot of his earlier output & finishes what she helped him start from selecting the beats to being his biggest judge critiquing the final product. It was a surprise to hear it was supposed to come out earlier within the month but nevertheless, I know Mycah’s looking down on him with his dad proud of the artist & person he’s become.

Score: 3.5/5

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Rafa – “Good Girls Don’t Exist 2” review

New surprise mixtape & the 3rd overall from Detroit, Michigan rapper Rafa. A member of the WRLD Tour Mafia, he would also begin a solo career of his own starting on Thanksgiving 2020 with his debut EP Not for Household Use & followed it up earlier this year in the form his debut tape Dog$hit & Ammunition. His eponymous mixtape was a pivotal point in his career & Good Girls Don’t Exist was a superior EP, coming off R.A.F.A. (Rockstars Are Fucking Awesome) as well as Madman & Lil Dogshit to drop Good Girls Don’t Exist 2.

“Toxic Lovers 4L” opens up with a pluggy intro talking about being a poisonous coupling until the end whereas “Love the Way” atmospherically boasts that this female’s ex is mad because of him stealing her. “The Game” continues the cloudy vibes talking about treating this shit like it’s a monopoly & people biting him while “All In” asks why some waited for him to reach the top to fuck with him.

Moving on from there, “Get Rich or Die Trying” has this peaceful trap instrumental with a guitar talking about his primary mission while “No Rules” produced by WTM Niketech admits that he’s been feeling someone out of place recently. “RAFA vs. RAFA” hops over a distorted beat to talk about scooping up a chick from Texas just before “Tell Me Lies” discusses him putting his whole life on the line for his music career to take off.

“Broke Bitch K / Seasick” comes through with a 2-parter that has a cloudy beginning & a pluggier 2nd half talking about not being the same ever since he lost a homie of a his until taking another shot at those who’re trying to ride off his coattails but after “Overlyyy” flows over a LulRose instrumental talking about never going back to his old life again, “Everyday is Valentine” incorporates some 808s promising to show his partner the world.

The song “Stuck in the Past” cloudily talks about taking his own path & not going anywhere since he’s constantly in the studio while “Ball Player” psychedelically observes the way some of these artists switch up on each other a lot similarly to NBA players who wind up being apart of several teams in the league. “Not Mad” however spends Good Girls Don’t Exist 2’s final 2 & a half minutes melodically talking about his love no longer being angry at him for always traveling.

Originally teased 7 months ago literally days preceding Lil Dogshit’s release, Good Girls Don’t Exist 2 revisits everything that made it’s predecessor so special a couple years ago from the plugg/cloud rap production to Rafa’s lyrics continuing to further explain the belief he initially expressed regarding there being no such thing as faithful women & pulls it off in a manner that I would consider to be superior to it’s predecessor along with the most I’ve enjoyed something from him since R.A.F.A. (Rockstars Are Fucking Awesome).

Score: 4.5/5

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Sonnyjim – “Rob Ford” review

2nd extended play of 2026 & the 19th overall from Birmingham, West Midlands, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer Sonnyjim. Making his debut in the summer of 2011 with The Psychonaut, he would go on to drop 8 more albums as well as his last 18 EPs & a mixtape. Most notably the No Vi$ible Means of Income trilogy produced by Giallo Point, the Buckwild-produced Coke Le Roc, the Illinformed-produced The Chemistry Must Be Respected, the Leaf Dog-produced How to Tame Lions, the Camoflauge Monk-produced Money Green Leather Sofa, White Girl Wasted and finally the Lee Scott-produced Ortolan & Armagnac. Coming off the Sumgii-produced Chinatown Chicken Tour a couple months ago, he’s reuniting with Lee for Rob Ford.

“Tuscan Pleather” starts by talking about his phenom status whereas the only single “Krayzie, Layzie, Flesh, Wish-N-Bizzy” featuring Shyheim gives Bone Thugs-n-Harmony their flowers. “Lump Sum” featuring Jehst & King Grubb references 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, former 6-time WWE Champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 2-time WWE United States Champion, 5-time WWE Tag Team Champion & NWA World Tag Team Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin while “BOGOF” talks about being literature practitioner.

As Serious as Your Life 2 last month ago felt a lot more like a single with a b-side than an actual EP, so I was grateful to see that Rob Ford was somewhat longer. And despite not putting it in the same conversations like I would Chinatown Chicken or Ortolan & Armagnac, I’m sure a great deal of the fans who enjoyed the latter will still come away from this satisfied considering how well it recaptures the chemistry between Lee Scott’s production & Sonnyjim’s distinctive lyrical style.

Score: 3.5/5

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Kehlani – Self-Titled review

Kehlani is a 31 year old singer/songwriter & dancer from Oakland, California who introduced themself in 2014 off their debut extended play Cloud 19 followed by the debut mixtape You Should Be Here during my senior year of high school. They would later make their full-length debut SweetSexySavage under Atlantic Records & later appeared on RƎVIVAL, which is universally accepted as the shittiest thing Eminem’s ever made. It Was Good Until It Wasn’t, Blue Water Road, the While We Wait series & Crash were all moderately received too & it seemed like their eponymous 5th LP might change that.

After the intro, the opener “Anotha Luva” featuring Lil Wayne begins with both of them talking about not wanting to love anyone else than those they’re currently with whereas “No Such Thing” featuring Clipse samples “Runnin’” by The Pharcyde to let their soulmates know how special they are to each of them. “Folded” made for a great contemporary R&B/smooth neo-soul single singing about the end of a relationship while “I Need You” featuring Brandy produced by Jimmy Jam & Terry Lewis surprisingly details the aftermath of a breakup.

“Oooh” moves on from there singing about nothing mattering when they & their romantic interest start fucking with the windows open while “Back & Forth”fuses contemporary R&B & pop rap although the interpolation of a song R. Kelly did of the same name with the late Aaliyah was ok. “Shoulda Never” featuring Usher links up over a Babyface instrumental Tom Levesque of Vanguard Music Group co-produced for a duet about wasting each other’s time until “You Got It” describes their partner as heaven sent.

Hip hop soul & contemporary R&B collide on the 2nd single “Out the Window” revisiting the themes of “Folded” pleading for their ex-girlfriend not to throw everything they had away while “Still” gets over a DJ Camper beat to sing about this person they’re addressing eventually apologizing for losing them. “Call Me Back” featuring T-Pain joins forces depicting a couple trying to contact each other cellularly while “Pocket” featuring Cardi B talks about needing someone to lift up them up.

“Lights On” featuring Big Sean goes for a smoother R&B/pop rap vibe thanks to both Jermaine Dupri & Allen Ritter getting sexual topically while “Sweet Nuthins” featuring Leon Thomas III continues the themes of lust together, wanting nothing but to make sweet love. “Cruise Control” sends a message to a partner who’s trying to go a bit too fast in a new relationship & “Unlearn” ends with them singing about the difficulty of loving an individual who’s still healing.

A lot of Kehlani’s previous output to come out in the past decade are average at best but looking at the list of guests appearing on their eponymous album, it’s an improvement above everything she’s done previously although there have been other full-lengths in the R&B genre in 2026 that’re significantly better. The production furthermore takes secondary influences from the hip hop soul, neo-soul & pop rap styles to provide a sweet glimpse of their artistic evolution.

Score: 3.5/5

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Billy Danze – “The Answer” review

Brooklyn, New York emcee Billy Danze dropping his highly anticipated sophomore effort. Known for being 1/2 of M.O.P alongside Lil’ Fame, he would put out a 6 Pack in 2019 & following it up with the full-length solo debut The Listening Session entirely produced by TooBusy & his 2nd extended play Top 5 respectively. All of which were moderately received, but each had songs that I appreciate. He’s been teasing The Answer for a couple years already & it’s finally arrived fresh off a handful of singles.

After the intro, the soulful title track sets it all off talking about showing y’all how to move when catching Ws whereas “Got Time” featuring Jadakiss finds the 2 teaming up to explain that they’re ready to give us what we need. “Brooklyn Confidential” goes for a luxurious trap vibe instrumentally talking representing what Gang Starr referred to as “The Planet” while “Let It Be” featuring B-Real shows off both of their O.G. statuses.

“Gotham 2” featuring Ghostface Killah links up for an ode to all the real believers of their home state just before “Beginnings” featuring Busta Rhymes talks about nothing changing with either of them other than the vision. “Blessing & Prayers” ends the 1st half explaining that things would be easier for people if they believed in themselves while “What If” featuring Conway the Machine passionately brings both of them to talk about their own individual family members who they obviously cherish.

Pharoahe Monch & Styles P both appear on the gospel-influenced “For You” passionately boasting that you can’t find anyone who’s lyrically better than either of them while “Hope” featuring Evidence soulfully dismisses the false narrative that hip hop’s dead when that correctly couldn’t be any further from the truth. I applaud the concept of “Maverick” featuring Inspectah Deck for talking about both of them showing independent thoughts & actions while “The Fix” makes it know that he’s done with the cookie cutter bullshit.

“In Case You Forgot” reunites M.O.P to wind down The Answer’s final moments responding to all the dumbasses who think they’ve broken up when by confirming that they’re still very much still friends to this very day & that not ever changing but once “Win or Lose” featuring Redman talks about putting in the work until the wheels fall off, “No Losses” finishes up the LP coming to the realization of there being no love lost when it didn’t even exist since the beginning.

It’s been said that Fizzy Womack’s long-awaited solo debut Walk of Fame is close to being done after being teased in 2018, so I completely understand why Billy Danze ran it back with TooBusy on The Answer in preparation for it & hopefully an M.O.P album entirely produced by DJ Premier now that he did Light-Years with Nas last winter. The guests all feel unparalleled to Billy’s mature subject matter & most importantly, I’d consider the production to be an improvement above it’s predecessor.

Score: 4/5

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Akon – “Beautiful Day” review

Akon is a 53 year old singer/songwriter, producer, businessman & philanthropist from Newark, New Jersey who blew up in 2004 off his Universal Music Group-backed full-length debut Trouble. His sophomore effort Konvicted under his own imprint Konvict Muzik in tandem with SRC Records would easily become his best & Freedom left people divided. El Negreeto & Akonda on the contrary were more negatively received even if the latter was the beginning of Konvict becoming the first label gamma. signed a distribution deal with. The Ain’t No Peace extended play was a mediocre response to the Big Floyd protests & wasn’t so sure what I could’ve possibly expected out of his 6th studio LP.

The title track produced by J.R. Rotem wasn’t that bad of a contemporary R&B/pop reggae intro in the context of the rest of the material here graciously thanking God for the sunshine & hoping to bring people together during these troubling times whereas “Never Really Mattered” featuring SIMIEN makes me wanna listen to “Don’t Matter” instead, butchering a sample of “Love You Down” by Ready for the World.

“Ringtone” goes for a heavy dancehall vibe singing for his lover to hit his line whenever she pleases while “Way Up Der” makes a turn into Afrobeats territory promising that everything will be alright in spite of the world falling apart. “Huawei” featuring Nektunez finds the 2 coming together for a horridly outdated attempt at afro house & the same applies to “Long Road” stylistically, which wasn’t any better.

The self-produced “Sorry” for being the halfway point of Beautiful Day that gives me déjà vu of “Sorry, Blame It on Me” while “Que Calor” featuring Ochok begins with this boring attempt at going Latin & would be better off listening to Bad Bunny instead. “Mean the Same” takes a more stripped-back approach promising to always stay true while “Let You Go” featuring Tears of Joy sings about nobody wanting to leave or drown.

“Konflicted” featuring RMR advises listeners over more house production to stay strong & face the pain while “Keys” sings about having this woman’s heart on lock. “So Ruff” featuring Jahvor mediocrely breaks down having it hard growing up & after “Your Body” featuring Ozuna yearns to be the person his lover can trust, “Just a Man” featuring Stephen Marley finally puts things to an end with a reggae outro that I’d say would be one of the better tracks here.

It’s no secret that Akon went from dominating the mid-late 2000s to putting out projects that were mid at best & unlistenable at worst, but watching his music become continuously worse ever since coming back in 2019 feels reminiscent of Katy Perry going from Teenage Dream to 143. Out of everything he’s made musically, Beautiful Day is the worst album he’s done. It has nothing to do with the Afrobeats, dancehall, pop & house influences nor does it pertain to him wanting to spread positivity in the midst of chaos. The problem is that he isn’t doing either of those ideas any justice & there being artists who’re doing it better.

Score: 1/5

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Reason – “Moving Love Towards_Pink” review

Yes, this is the 6th mixtape from Carson, California rapper Reason. After releasing his first 4 tapes, Top Dawg Entertainment signed him in the middle of 2018 by reissuing the one that landed him the contract in the first place: There You Have It. However, his official full-length debut album New Beginnings received more mixed reception when it came out the fall where COVID had the whole world shut down & Anthony “Top Dawg” Tiffith’s son Moosa subsequently got into a heated exchange of words with Reason the week Porches dropped saying former employee & pgLang co-founder Dave Free regrets even signing him in the first place. I Love You Again under his own label Do More Records reignited his passion & Everything in My Soul_Blue was alright, looking to top that with Moving Love Towards_Pink.

“La La Intro_PINK” rides over a drumless loop 2 about trying to swim for once after drowning in guilt for so long over a drumless loop whereas “Give It All 4 My Bitch_PINK” goes for a chipmunk soul vibe detailing that he’d give everything for his soulmate. “If This Ain’t Love_PINK” kinda feels unfinished since the let the instrumental ride out during the 2nd half of it despite it’s playful atmosphere & melodic delivery while “Humble ‘Em_PINK” looks to put someone in the dirt for cheating on his girl for a woman who doesn’t measure up.

We have Reason refusing to let any hoe throw him off his steeze on “Something ‘Bout Us_PINK” admitting that he feels like his life’s way too open leading into “Doin Too Much_PINK” featuring Isaiah Jaay blends R&B & pop rap telling their partners not to break a sweat. “I’ll Be There Idea_PINK” starts the 2nd half with another track that seems half baked leaving another open verse towards the backend of it just before the cloudy “Money Cash Hoes_PINK” talks about trying to fuck bitches & get money.

“Tired of Fuckin’ Deez Hoes_PINK” featuring Guapdad 4000 & Kembe X brings all 3 of them together making it clear that they’re fed up with all the bitches in their circle while “Tell Me_PINK” expresses hope for this person to come back & get him. “F.U.T.V_PINK” featuring Kalan.FrFr incorporates some cool sampling chops encouraging those they’re addressing to do their thing & after “Where Do We Start_PINK” talks about wanting to protect this woman, “Who TF You Blaming Outro_PINK” airs out a chick who tore his heart to pieces.

Now that we’re official halfway through this whole color series that Reason kicked off 5 months earlier, I already made it pretty clear that I enjoyed Everything in My Soul_Blue less then I Love You Again & unfortunately came away from Moving Love Towards_Pink enjoying it no less or better than it’s predecessor last fall. There is improvement within the production department & I appreciate the cohesiveness breaking down the 4 different stages of love, but the amount of guests is a bit excessive.

Score: 3/5

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6 Feet Under – “Next to Die” review

6 Feet Under is a death metal band from Tampa, Florida consisting of bassist Jeff Hughell, drummer Marco Pitruzzella, lead guitarist Ray Suhy, secondary guitarist Jack Owen & finally frontman Chris Barnes. The latter of whom co-founded Cannibal Corpse, dropping some of the greatest material throughout one of metal music’s most extreme subgenres including Tomb of the Mutilated & The Bleeding under Metal Blade Records. Chris would eventually be fired during the Created to Kill sessions & that’s what lead to Haunted dropping. Maximum Violence however has always been my personal favorite, although the Graveyard Classics series of covers & Nightmares of the Decomposed are some of the most unlistenable death metal you could find. Nevertheless: Their 15th studio LP of original material sparked my curiosity.

The intro really opens up by advising not having any fear when it’s time to “Approach Your Grave” over some standard death metal instrumentation whereas “Destroyed Remains” describes a cold dark night where one would spontaneously combust. “Mr. Blood & Guts” keeps the traditional death metal vibes going depicting himself to be an individual who has no soul or pulse while “Mutilated Corpse in the Woods” wasn’t that exciting of a final single honestly.

“Unmistakable Smell of Death” was a much superior death metal single compared it’s successor & one of the better songs 6 Feet Under has done in recent memory expressing the fulfillment he gets out of terror while “Wrath & Terror Take Command” reaches the halfway point describing the streets & palaces being covered in blood. “Skin Coffins” gets the other leg going talking about hearts decaying in our graves while “Mind Hell” details our deceased souls being buried long ago.

Winding down Next to Die’s final moments, “Naked & Dismembered” makes a weird reference to “Hammer Smashed Face” during the chorus despite the fact Chris had a hand in making that one of death metal’s greatest singles period. “Grasped from Beyond” on the other hand discusses a madness overtaking our souls & after the title track explains a darkness waiting forevermore, “Ill Wishes” ends with the quintet offering a glimpse of a life fading forever.

You’re not gonna get anything embarrassingly bad as Nightmares of the Decomposed but even if I do consider Next to Die to be an improvement above 6 Feet Under’s previous full-length Killing for Revenge & even Torment, it’s a subpar meat & potatoes death metal album that’s neither memorable or pushes this style forward because of the songwriting or instrumentally playing it safe. And that’s been a reoccurring theme with Chris Barnes & company for over 2 decades respectfully.

Score: 2/5

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Benny the Butcher & Fuego Base – “Ashes in the $afe” review

New collaborative EP from Buffalo, New York emcee Benny the Butcher alongside Hartford, Connecticut emcee Fuego Base. One of whom co-founded Black Soprano Family Records with City Boy & the other blew up a few years ago after signing to the label. So I had no problem with them taking their chemistry to the next level with Ashes in the $afe almost a week since former WWE Women’s Champion Stephanie McMahon, former IWA World Champion, 2-time IWGPヘビー級チャンピオン, 3-time NWA World’s Heavyweight Champion, 4-time NWA World Tag Team Champion, PWG World Champion, RPW British Heavyweight Champion, the inaugural ROH Pure Champion, ROH World Tag Team Champion, 2-time TNA World Champion, the inaugural 6-time TNA X Division Champion, 2-time TNA World Tag Team Champion, 2-time WWE Champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, 3-time WWE United States Champion & 2-time WWE tag team champion AJ Styles, former 3-time WWE Tag Team Champions Demolition, former 5-time NBA Champion Dennis Rodman, former CWA Heavyweight Champion, 4-time WWE world champion & WWE United States Champion Sid Eudy and Bad News Brown were all inducted into the WWE Hall of Fame.

After the titular intro, “Sundial” kicks things off with a sumptuous boom bap opener talking about both of them being made for the stardom whereas “Pyrex & Prayers” lets Fuego Base hold it down by himself so he can put his life savings on the stove hoping everything goes right. Benny returns on “Like It Is” so they can move the weight & tell things the way they see it while “Rev X” featuring Sule finds the trio bringing it hardcore without a hook.

“The Fighting Irish” gets the 2nd half of the EP going by talking about both of them feeling rather lucky prior to O.T. the Real & Rick Hyde appearing for “Warehouse 4”, which is a continuation of the series that began on Biggest Since Camby a few years ago. “Big Shirley” mixes some triumphant strings with kicks & snares for the last Fuego Base solo track talking about how well he goes with the game & “Castellammarese War” featuring O.T. the Real ends with them still predicting show like groundhogs who don’t see their shadows.

Tell My Momma I’m Still a Rapper was a good way for Fuego Base to start off 2026 & most people wound up preferring Benny the Butcher’s most recent tape Summertime Butch 2 over it’s predecessor including myself, but I’d put Ashes in the $afe over the eponymous Harlem Heat extended play Fuego did with Elcamino last summer. The chemistry’s stronger & the Butcher proves now’s the time for the Biggest Since Camby lets the world know his true artistic potential.

Score: 3.5/5

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