Addison Rae – “Addison” review

Addison Rae is a social media personality, singer, actress & dancer from Lafayette, Louisiana know for temporarily being a member of the Hype House collective of TikTokers for a mere 5 months. Her debut EP AR was welcomed to moderate feedback & caught the attention of Columbia Records, who signed her following an appearance on the remix of “Von Dutch” off Charli XCX’s 6th album brat last summer. Coming off a string of well-received singles however, she’s taking it further on her major label debut.

We get a heavy dosage of dance-pop during the intro “New York” singing about her affinity for the City of Dreams itself whereas “Diet Pepsi” blends contemporary R&B, alt-pop, chillstep, alternative R&B & downtempo for a lead single calling back to Lana Del Rey’s 5th album Lust for Life. “Money’s Everything” takes a complete 360 from what “Diet Pepsi” did asking taking on a more satirical tone while “Aquamarine” combines dance-pop, deep house, garage house & melodic house to sing about her transforming & realigning.

“High Fashion” after the “Lost & Found” interlude fuses alternative R&B, alt-pop, post-dubstep, chillstep, future bass & wonky preferring the luxurious lifestyle over drugs leading into the breezy “Summer Forever” singing about loving Omer Fedi so much that she forgets what’s going on. “In the Rain” kicks the synthesizers into full gear turning her tears into gold until the dance-pop, electropop, synthpop & electro house track “Fame’s a Gun” recaptures the ethos of Sheila E.’s biggest hit “The Glamorous Life”.

The song “Times Like These” uses the sounds of contemporary R&B, downtempo, trip hop, alt-pop, UK street soul & alternative R&B to sing about her life moving faster than herself while “Headphones On” after the “Life’s No Fun Through Clear Waters” interlude finishes off with a trip hop, contemporary R&B, pop, UK street soul, alternative R&B & hip hop soul single sampling “What I Am” by Edie Brickell to touch base regarding situations that cannot be resolved.

Of the 2 full-length albums we have from the Hype House so far, Addison puts Huddy’s debut Teenage Heartbreak to shame by revealing Addison Rae as the most musically talented of the bunch by cooking up a more passionately conceived LP than Alex Warren’s recent singles ahead of his own debut You’ll Be Alright, Kid next month. We get a better understanding of herself with her background as a competitive dancer bleeds all over the production pulling from alt-pop, contemporary R&B, downtempo, dance-pop, alternative R&B, electropop, pop, trip hop, UK street soul, hip hop soul, electro house, synthpop, post-dubstep, chillstep, future bass, wonky, deep house, garage house & melodic house.

Score: 4/5

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9 Vicious – “B4FN” review

The newest YSL Records signee 9 Vicious coming straight outta Atlanta, Georgia preluding his upcoming 3rd album For Nothing with a new EP. Breaking out last summer off his debut single “U Fancy”, he would go on to further introduce himself on B4SA & the debut album Studio Addict helped him gain more exposure to the point where Young Thug signed him to YSL after B4TM dropped & Tumblr Music wasn’t that bad of a debut for the label other than “Clout Demons”. Over a couple months later, B4FN gives a taste of what the LP’s gonna be.

“So For Nothing” was a delicate trap intro produced by 406ahmad looking back on when he was suicidal during his college days & having to read the Bible after putting his trust in God whereas “I Miss You” cloudily talks about missing his ex. “Movin’ On” works in a plugg instrumental finding himself not looking back on his previous flings while “Fuck Yo Gang” with Patrick Garza talks about these opposing “gangs” ain’t being shit. “Me N Slime” flexes that he & the whole squad stay stealing hoes until “A Song” finishes with a 2-parter asking why his partner’s love is this crazy.

Putting the “Clout Demons” controversy aside, 9 Vicious’ popularity in the trap underground has grown enough to the point where he & Opium’s newest signing ApolloRed1 are putting out a collab tape soon called YVLFN. But if For Nothing is gonna sound anything remotely like B4FN, it could really reach or surpass Studio Addict in his discography. What he delivers here is a mix of that debut & The Life of Pablo.

Score: 4/5

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Destroy Lonely – “See U Soon </3” review

Atlanta, Georgia recording artist Destroy Lonely preluding his 2nd mixtape </3³ with his 12th EP. The son of former Disturbing tha Peace Records signee I-20, he’s released a total of 11 EPs since originally breaking out through SoundCloud in 2019 prior to Playboi Carti signing alone to his Interscope Records imprint Opium Records to surprise drop his last tape No Stylist in light of his ongoing tour with fellow label-mate Ken Carson last summer followed by the full-length debut If Looks Could Kill. Love Lasts Forever was disappointing in comparison & hoped See U Soon </3 would at least surpass it.

“Nylon” produced by Clayco throws it back to Lone’s early days for an intro preluding his upcoming 3rd album Drop Dead Gorgeous whereas the cloudy “SDP” courtesy of Cade homages an interlude off Travis Scott’s sophomore effort Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight that I personally find the original version of being far superior to the shortened final version you can hear on whatever streaming platform you use.

The instrumental on “See Ur Face” kinda feels reminiscent of “Tryna Get Down” by Carti despite the themes of love while “Super Serum” keeps his head up after some personal stuff he dealt with in 2024 unbeknownst to the public. “SRTBBL” featuring Ken Carson finishes by showing a back-&-forth chemistry over a beat from F1LTHY of Working on Dying ahead of the 00pium Twins’ upcoming collab tape.

Some feel that Lone’s output since his label deal hasn’t really lived up to the hype </3 & most of those in his fanbase will find themselves satisfied with what See U Soon </3 has to offer giving a taste of what </3³ will sound like when he feels the time is right for him to put out the tape: A return to his roots musically except he has a new perspective of things since he’s gotten older & the popularity continually growing.

Score: 3.5/5

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Niko B – “people” review

Brand new EP from Newport Pagnell, Buckinghamshire, England, United Kingdom recording artist Niko B. Starting at the very beginning of this current decade off the strength of his debut single “Marry Berry”, he popularity began to grow exponentially a few months later after putting out his next track “Who’s That What’s That” & the full-length debut album dog eat dog food world last spring being well received enough where people were recommending it to me. A whole year later, Niko’s preluding an upcoming sophomore effort by holding fans off with people.

“Hairclips” was a tight hip house intro telling this woman he’s hitting on how much he loves her hair being able to tell she doesn’t give a fuck by the way she cuts it while “I Like the Way You Talk Looking at Me” fuses hip hop with house & funk music asking if his partner enjoys how he speaks when they’re making eye contact with one another. “What Am I to Do?” rounds out peoplewith 1 more hip house jam talking about optimism being amazing from his perspective.

You know? It’s actually pretty awesome that people dropped on the same day as Little Simz’ brand new album Lotus because Niko B a lot like Simz sticks out to me as one of my favorite UK hip hop artists of the current decade. The production on this one is prominently centered around the hip house sound & you get to see a more optimistic side of Niko.

Score: 4/5

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D2X – “Boy in the Blue Hoodie” review

Chicago, Illinois emcee D2X coming off his first EP The Hunger Era last summer to put out a 2nd one. Releasing his full-length studio debut album The Color Blue in the spring of 2021 & later the sophomore effort Hotel 1105 a couple summers later. Like I said earlier: The Hunger Era was essentially a love letter to the Windy City that made him sending bigger shockwaves in the underground than his first couple LPs did & was wondering if Boy in the Blue Hoodie could reach or surpass that same level.

The harps at the start of “‘Twas the Day” are pleasant to the ear until the chipmunk soul instrumental comes in full effect making way for the Chicago MC to tell the story of a young boy’s dream & finding his peace in mine for the next album whereas “Light Up the Lake” takes a jazzier approach with the horns & a soulful sample making a love letter to a better version of himself. After the spoken word jazz “Miles Away” interlude, “Blue Ocean Water” sends off the tale of the Boy in the Blue Hoodie with a beat kin reminiscent of The Heatmakerz calling himself a future hall of famer.

Understandably, D2X’s continuation of The Hunger Era goes from paying homage to the City that made him giving the world an idea of where he’s from to a more introspective side of himself letting people inside of who he is as a person & his background. One of the coolest things Boy in the Blue Hoodie is that he balances the jazz rap sound he’s always been known for with the chipmunk soul style of production that RZA, Ye or formerly Kanye West, Just Blaze & as I mentioned earlier The Heatmakerz have all pioneered & popularized retelling his life’s story.

Score: 4.5/5

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SK da King – “No More Mr. Nice Guy” review

Baltimore, Maryland emcee SK da King returning after almost 2 years for his 3rd EP. Emerging as a member of the Checkered Flag Boyz under the original moniker Paul Skola, it wasn’t until a few years ago where he signed to Conway the Machine’s very own Drumwork Music Group as a solo act as announced by his debut single “Actions” & would go on to introduce himself to the Drumwork fanbase that fall in the form of the debut EP Horus. His full-length debut studio album Made 4 This came after Before the Album & is back once again to put his foot down saying No More Mr. Guy.

“Fuck Being Humble” was exactly how I could’ve imagined it starting off from the boom bap instrumental to the confidentially boastful lyrics never selling out unless it’s weight whereas the title track goes for a darker atmosphere so he can take the gloves off on being generous. “Not at All” switches it up in favor of a trap direction talking about putting rubber bands on the cash like lobster claws while “Hustle or Starve” grittily takes on the familiar theme of survival of the fittest.

The drums get stripped on The New King” stepping up his rhyme schemes off the dome until SK drops dime on what he’s learned in the streets & the music industry in general during “The Game 101” giving advice from his own personal experiences. “They Don’t Love You” finishes No More Mr. Nice Guy with 1 last boom bap track talking about there being nothing worse than receiving fake love from fake thugs you for everything you’ve got.

Gearing up for an upcoming sophomore effort since last summer when SK da King’s last EP Guns N Butter came out, No More Mr. Nice Guy gives me a strong feeling it could surpass Made 4 This & hopefully get more attention from heads in the underground whenever the next LP is ready. Holding the fort by himself unlike the predecessor having a few features, the penmanship of the Checkered Flag Boyz’ strongest link feels notably sharpened from when he initially signed in 2021 & the boom bap production packs a bigger punch.

Score: 4/5

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yoon – “wounds” review

yoon is a 19 year old rapper from Broward County, Florida turning heads for blending emotional grit with distorted clarity in a sound that’s entirely his own. He introduced himself in the fall of 2023 by releasing a 3-track debut EP Eternal giving glimpses of what his potential looks like. It’s been 18 months since & we haven’t really heard much from him in that extended period of time, taking further steps to cement himself as an artist by putting out a 2nd EP to keep warming up for a full-length studio debut album.

My favorite song here happens to be the intro “relocate” from the Rio Leyva of Internet Money Records instrumental to the lyrics about having to move to a new place on top of not doing any favors for no hoe whereas “shouldertoleanon” goes for a piano-trap direction asking for his partner to tell him what it is & what it ain’t. “itsgonbealright” turns up the rage a little wanting his girl to tell him he loves him leading into “it’s rags, hoe” talking about the love he has for the bag & his homies lessens the hypertrap influence.

“cut cut, cut” hops over some hi-hats & bass flexing that he’s rocked out despite all the fair share of pain in his life just before “showuimtheone” fuses pop rap & trap talking about wanting to stop by this woman’s house to prove they’re a good fit. “putmyprideaside” brings a cloudier vibe to the table feeling spaced out as of late refusing to fuck hoes who listen to him while “yeah, I’m cut” talks about the cuts he has from many dark days.

The song “cauterize” kicks off the final minutes of wounds observing the irony of a bitch not wanting anything to do with him until he started making a little money & maintaining his cool even with the feeling that his detractors are plottin’ on him until “deadmanwalking” wraps up the EP by talking about having no other option than to stack his paper higher as well as his popularity steadily growing.

As opposed to Eternal offering a brief taste of yoon’s artistry, he capitalizes it with another EP that’s significantly introspective than the predecessor a year & a half ago by now. Heavily catered to the rage subgenre of trap in terms of production, the Atlanta underground performer’s personal struggles he’s endured whether it be recently or in the past all gets unpacked in a way that seems more endearing compared to his previous output & it lives up to all the hype I’ve been hearing.

Score: 4/5

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Aesop Rock – “Black Hole Superette” review

Here we have the 11th studio LP from New York emcee/producer Aesop Rock. Universally revered for his massive vocabulary, the man has put out a handful of underground hip hop essentials throughout the decades whether it be his solo catalogue or his membership of groups like Hail Mary Mallon or Malibu Ken. As far as his solo stuff: I recommend his sophomore effort & Definitive Jux Records debut Labor Day alongside The Impossible Kid, which was his 2nd album with Rhymesayers Entertainment whom Aesop had made himself home with for over a decade at this point. Blockhead had fully produced Garbology to acclaim & Integrated Tech Solutions has quickly received the same love The Impossible Kid, returning for a trip to the Black Hole Superette.

“Secret Knock” opens up shop with a quirky & futuristic self-produced instrumental advising to walk with him & opting to not go on any signal taking it in his own hands whereas “Checkers” works in elements of abstract conscious subject matter, space ambient, boom bap & illbient that made for a promising lead single. “Movie Nights” turns up the boom bap influences even more talking about his blue eyed dog & his cat prior to the synth-driven “EWR – Terminal A, Gate 20” explaining that vandals are unordinary now.

Armand Hammer teams up with Aesop on the collab “1010WINS” taking their consciously abstract pens to newer grounds with one another over a rap rock/boom bap hybrid while “So Be It” featuring Open Mike Eagle finds the 2 advising to not look down, sitting still & letting things fall. “Send Help” takes a jazzier boom bap approach to his sound & going nerdcore at the same time just before “John Something” brings lounge music in the fold recalling a man named John he met 3 decades ago referencing WWE Hall of Famer Muhammad Ali.

“Ice Sold Here” intricately describes how cold he is in many different ways while the funky “Costco” talks about the chain of membership-only big-box warehouse club retail stores operated by the multinational corporation. “Bird School” puts a cloudy spin on boom bap boasting his witchcraft pops up in the Atmos & everyone else’s taking practice, but then “Snail 0” wants to know what the fuck he’s supposed to do with this bagful of snails he has.

Lice gets together with Lupe Fiasco on “Charlie Horse” warning that everyone in their path should stay as clear from the streets as they possibly can while “Steel Wool” reflects on going from pairing cereals & cartoons back in the 80s to panicking in a war room turning up the quirky boom bap vibes. “Black Plums” tackles the theme of gardening admiring the way his fruit is getting fatter each summer & becoming a minute quantity of matter while “The Red Phone” talks about being the keeper of the keys.

“Himalayan Yak Chew” pushes further down the last 10 minutes or so of the album describing fish jumping in his boat whenever he pushes off of the dock without even getting a single duck in a row in addition to having a horse in the way when he gets his car without having 1 in the race & “Unbelievable Shenanigans” featuring Hanni El Khatib on the outro recalls a hamster he had almost 4 decades ago named Elizabeth as well as talking about the universe nothing if not silver lining stuffed into compartments.

Delving into the invisible forces that shape our lives & psyches, Black Hole Superette will become amongst Aesop Rock’s most technically accomplished bodies of work in his entire discography. The experimentally complex structures of his beats drawing further inspiration from space ambient, boom bap, jazz rap, rap rock & illbient attribute to that as much as his consciously abstract & occasionally nerdy lyrics portrayed from the perspective of a mad scientist seeing bigger picture of the small moments in our lives that wind up overlooked.

Score: 4.5/5

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Rome Streetz – “Trainspotting” review

London, England, United Kingdom born & Brooklyn, New York raised lyricist Rome Streetz enlisting Conductor Williams for his 10th studio LP. Emerging in 2016 off his debut mixtape I Been Thru Mad Shit, this was followed up by a plethora of projects with the most notable being the Noise Kandy tetralogy & Headcrack. These past couple years however we’re probably his biggest ones yet, as he dropped some of the best work of his career from the DJ Muggs-produced Death & the Magician or the Futurewave-produced Razor’s Edge to the Ransom-assisted collab effort Coup de Grâce & the Griselda Records deal that followed. His debut with the Buffalo powerhouse Kiss the Ring alongside the Big Ghost Ltd.-produced Wasn’t Built in a Day both made the top 10 spots of my last couple Best Of lists & Hatton Garden Holdup produced by Daringer became a flawless spot in my top 5 of 2024 last winter. Mass Appeal Records in the midst of their upcoming 7 album series has locked in with both GxFR acts to go Trainspotting.

“Andre Agassi” sets the tone with a gully boom bap instrumental making reference to one of the greatest tennis players of all-time whereas “M*A*S*H” homages the Paramount Skydance Corporation-owned CBS sitcom of the same name holding the record for the most-watched series finale of any TV show. “Runny Nose” dustily gets in his pyrex bag talking about moving weight until “Ricky Bobby” featuring Method Man takes it’s name after the main character of the classic film Talladega Nights.

Meanwhile on “Blood in Boogers”, we have Rome running more laps around the whole game lyrically maintaining the traditional boom bap sound instrumentally while the single “Rule 4080” reiterates what A Tribe Called Quest taught everyone 3 decades ago. “Died 1,000 Times” aquatically suggests to stack more instead of spending the income quickly just before “Heartbreaker” chops up a soul sample to talk about breaking another hearts once again.

“10 Toes” featuring Jay Worthy psychedelically unites the pair to discuss their commitment to the game leading into “Connie’s Revenge” talking about putting your favorite rapper’s neck on the chopping blocks. “99 Attributes” soulfully gears up to smoke whole entire record labels comparing his bars to coke while “Joe Pesci” makes comparison to the actor & best friend of Robert De Niro in the Martin Scorsese classics Goodfellas, Casino & The Irishman.

The song “Electric Slide” works in a slickly drumless rap rock vibe talking about being in the best form he’s been at in his whole entire career & pushing the output in his discography to prove it, but then “Resource Room” finishes Trainspotting with a woozily jazzy reminding everyone that he’s been on for a grip & I can certainly confirm since I started reviewing him when Joyeria came out on my 23rd birthday 6 years ago already.

Verifying the reality of Rome being on the grasp of fully realizing his potential, Conductor directs the Trainspotting trip & it pushing him closer to a space where when spirited debates around “top 10 MCs lists” are being held. The Heartbreakers member’s production is heavily rooted in the boom bap sound with secondary influences of jazz rap, drumless & rap rock to make Rome’s distinct fashion of putting rhymes together the backdrop they couldn’t deserved more.

Score: 4.5/5

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Daniel Son – “Baggage Claims” review

Toronto, Ontario, Canada emcee Daniel Son with his 9th proper full-length album. A member of the Brown Bag Money collective, his profile began to rapidly increase in the underground off projects like the Giallo Point-produced debut mixtape The Gunners or the Futurewave-produced sophomore album Yenaldooshi. He just teamed up with Raz Fresco this spring for the spectacular collab album Northside paying homage to the roots of the Toronto hip hop scene & a few months after reuniting with Futurewave for the first time since Son Tzu & the Wav.God on Bushman Bodega last summer & the Finn-produced Hare Brained Schemes a few months later. He & Futurewave however are looking to make some Baggage Claims almost 3 weeks after Maple Leaf Pro Wrestling (MLP) founder Scott D’Amore crowned the longest reigning 2-time TNA World Champion, TNA X Division Champion, 2-time TNA World Tag Team Champion & former PWG World Tag Team Champion Josh Alexander the inaugural MLP Canadian Champion and former 2-time RPW British Women’s Champion Gisele Shaw the inaugural MLP Women’s Canadian Champion.

The title track is this grisly boom bap intro assuring shit ain’t always glamorous on his end & showing everyone the progression whereas “Sweet Peppers” soulfully wastes no time whatsoever to reach the penthouse views he desires. “French River” keeps it in the basement instrumentally venting over the visions he’s had ingrained in his mind as of late just before “Euthanize” featuring al.divino refuses to stop the bread income all because of hits getting put out.

“How It Goes” suggests over a flute-tinged boom bap beat to go the way it already is nowadays cheffing up the product & serving it leading into “1973” featuring Raspy teaming up for a lullaby dedicated to everyone laying their heads in the street. “Bleed the Shark” ruggedly explains that he can catch a rat from him being all the way in the field refining his chef skills at night, but then “The Fume” featuring Bito Slime cloudily yet rawly talks about moving in rare fashion.

Meanwhile on “Cold Chicken”, we have Daniel over a drumless instrumental talking about dying for what’s his & acknowledging the old fashioned tendencies he shares while “Need More Paper” returns to the boom bap expresses the necessity of making his bread stack up continuously higher. “Baylor” kicks the horns out trying to make it known to this girl he’s seeing that all he knows is the filth while “Fly the Pigeon” featuring King Bliss gives the finger to the entire world.

al.divino comes back for the dusty “Sun Lo” talking about never peaking & making sure their competition never eats again while “Crushed Stones” hooks up a vocal flip experiencing the same shit others warned him he’d experience in the rap game. “Sweet & Sour Duck” strips the drums learning to keep his mouth closed at an early age while “Run the Shop” featuring Recognize Ali finds the duo wanting to be loved for their ambition.

The jazzy “Pin Stripe” featuring Asun Eastwood feels reminiscent of the previous collaborative efforts Psychics of Filth & Bite the Bullet promises that everything they’re saying shouldn’t be taken in a metaphorical sense by any means while “Villains” talks about pushing coke. “Regular” concludes Baggage Claims on a rawly vintage note teasing more music with Futurewave to come since they’ve been cooking normally as of late.

Commemorating the 7-year anniversary of Pressure Cooker earlier this month, the Brown Bag Money standout & his go-to producer unearth 18 outtakes that were made during those sessions & compile them into a sequel of it’s own sounding like they recorded it recently. I can very much tell that Futurewave’s boom bap production was recorded during that era, except that & Daniel Son’s pen make an exciting throwback to their dual breakthrough.

Score: 4/5

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