Megan Thee Stallion – “Traumazine” review

This is the surprise sophomore album from Houston, Texas rapper Megan Thee Stallion. Rising to prominence in the spring of 2019 with the release of her debut mixtape Fever, I myself was very impressed with how it displayed Megan’s knack for catchy songwriting, dirty south/Memphis inspired production & a unique personality. Her popularity began to rapidly increase off her 3rd EP Suga & the full-length debut Good News, but Something for thee Hotties: From thee Archives was a bit underwhelming in my opinion. However, I was optimistic going into Traumazine over here given how much I genuinely enjoyed the singles she’s dropped recently.

“NDA” is a horn-laced opener asking where the real bitches at whereas “Ungrateful” with Key Glock calling out the fake shit over a piano/trap hybrid from BandPlay, which is just mild in my personal opinion. “Not Nice” takes a cloudier route getting on her fuck you shit just before Latto tags along for the OG Parker-produced “Budget” talking about upping their prices.

Meanwhile on “Her”, we have Megan embracing a dancier sound thanks to CashMoneyAP & YoungKio acknowledging that she’s pretty as fuck leading into “Gift & a Curse” weaves some keys back in provided by Murda Beatz talking about how fuckin’ with her is both a gift & a curse at the same time. “Ms. Nasty” is a cloudier cut declaring herself as such, but then the Pooh Shiesty-assisted “Who Me” has a more nocturnal trap vibe that Internet Money Records founder Taz Taylor brings to the table talking about fucking.

“Red Wine” shoots for a sensually glossy aesthetic asking to give her some time while “Scary” with Rico Nasty finds the 2 best females in the mainstream right now (not the best right now overall period. That would be Rapsody) over a spooky instrumental sending shots to the hoes they got beef with & even though “Anxiety” is a bit oxymoronic given the playful production & Megan’s lyrics about having bad days too, it’s good.

Moving on from there, “Flip Flop” throws in an incredible sample in the mix going on that she’s fightin’ tears behind her smile while “Consistency” with a clever Isley Brothers flip from Bongo getting romantic. “Star” is a funky ballad rightfully rubbing her superstar status in the noses of everyone while “Pressurelicious” has a weirdly mixed verse from Future despite the Memphis rap undertones & the subject matter about their affluence & shared toxicity.

The song “Plan B” weaves a killer JoDeCi sample into the fold to deliver an passionate female empowerment anthem which is needed because of the Roe vs. Wade overturning while the Juicy J/Mr. Lee-laced “Southside Royalty” freestyle with Big Pokey, Lil’ Keke & Sauce Walka is an immaculate ode to H-Town. “Sweetest Pie” however ends the album on an Atlanta Bass note promising the ride of her man’s life.

If you were disappointed with Something for thee Hotties like I was, then I definitely think you’re gonna like Traumazine a bit more. The production is just as varied as Good News was almost 2 years ago at this point & how Megan decided to move on from the whole Tory drama to remind everyone that she’s gonna win regardless.

Score: 3.5/5

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Megan Thee Stallion – “Something for thee Hotties: From thee Archives” review

Megan Thee Stallion is a 26 year old rapper from Houston, Texas who rose to prominence in the spring of 2019 with the release of her debut mixtape Fever. I myself was very impressed with how it displayed Megan’s knack for catchy songwriting, dirty south/Memphis inspired production & a unique personality. Her popularity began to rapidly increase last year off her 3rd EP Suga & the full-length debut Good News but in light of Megan on the verge of graduating from Texas Southern University with a bachelor’s degree in health administration, she’s compiling together a bunch of old freestyles & some unreleased joints to celebrate.

“Tuned In” sets the compilation off with a bouncy Juicy J & OG Parker instrumental clapping back at those speaking ill of her name whereas “Megan Monday” takes a more rubbery approach rightfully flexing her spot as the illest female rapper in the mainstream (not the illest overall, don’t get it twisted). After the “Trippy” skit, “Southside Forever” eerily details her famous lifestyle just before “Outta Town” works in a xylophone & some snares telling people to call her Dr. Miami the way she bodies cats.

Meanwhile on “Megan’s Piano”, we get a fitting keyboard loop throughout with a bass-line on top of it & Megan talking about making moves in silence leading into the “VickeeLo & DinoBtw Skit”. Following this is the kinky “Eat It” with a bombastic Murda Beatz/FNZ instrumental & then Buddah Bless works in a chipmunk soul sample for “All of It” talking about wanting a scammer.

“Warning” thunderously cautions all the broke dudes out there while “Kitty Kat” almost takes a funkier approach & even though I appreciate the message behind it calling her haters pussies, the hook is annoying. After the “Tina Snow” interlude, “God’s Favorite” admirably weaves in a down-tuned guitar instrumental despite sounding underwritten & the DJ scratches throughout the grimy “Lemme See It” are really cool talking about being a female pimp.

I think the vocal sample throughout “Opposite Day” really enhances the energy of it saying she likes making bitches mad & “Freakend” gets back on the raunchy shit with a bit more moodier sound. “Bae Goals” is a touching dedication to her boyfriend Pardison Fontaine, but then “Pipe Up” melodically talks about both of them making their own paper & being in love.

The track “Bless the Booth” brings in an airy backdrop & a rubbery bass-line calling out those who see her as a threat while the final song on the comp “Thot Shit” is a decent little strip club banger. But to end the entire thing, “To Thee Hotties” comes through with a spoken word outro thanking all of her fans for sticking by her throughout all these years.

I still maintain my claims that Megan is the illest female rapper in the mainstream right now but truth be told, I wasn’t really expecting much from this compilation to begin with. Lo & behold: I’m kinda on the fence with it. I think the freestyles are a reminder of how lyrically skilled she is, but the outtakes have slightly more hits than misses.

Score: 3/5

Megan Thee Stallion – “Good News” review

This is the full-length debut from Houston, Texas superstar Megan Thee Stallion. Rising to prominence last May with the release of her debut mixtape Fever, I myself was very impressed with how it displayed Megan’s knack for catchy songwriting, dirty south/Memphis inspired production & a unique personality. She just dropped an EP at the beginning of 2020 called SUGA but almost 9 months later, were finally being treated to Good News.

The album kicks off with “Shots Fired”, where Megan puts the final nail in the coffin in regards to Tory Lanez shooting her in the foot earlier this year over a Buddah Bless instrumental sampling “Who Shot Ya?” by Biggie. The next song “Circles” talks about her haters over a chipmunked-soul sample provided by Cool & Dre while the track “Cry Baby” with DaBaby sees the 2 getting on some Bonnie & Clyde shit over a spooky d.a. got that dope beat. The song “Do It on the Tip” with the City Girls finds the trio of course talking about sex over a knocking instrumental from Lil Ju while the track “Sugar Baby” talks about being just that over a Helluva beat clearly inspired by Mannie Fresh.

The song “Movie” with Lil Durk finds the 2 getting together for a strip club anthem backed by a nocturnal Tay Keith instrumental while the track “Freaky Girls” talks about being kinky over a glossy beat from juicy J. The song “Body” talks about being thick over some moaning & heavy bass and even though the track “What’s New?” talks about giving the middle finger to her haters, the instrumental on here might be my least favorite on the entire album.

The song “Work That” talks about riding it like a rodeo over a playful beat while the track “Intercourse” with Popcaan needs no further explanation over a moody DJ Mustard instrumental. The song “Go Crazy” with Big Sean & 2 Chainz sees the 3 talking about wilding out over a hyphy instrumental from J.R. Rotem of all people while the track “Don’t Rock Me to Sleep” talks about wanting her man to tell her what he really means over a funky ass beat.

The song “Outside” talks about she ain’t for the streets over an instrumental perfect to cruise down too while the next track with Beyoncé is a sequel to “Savage” that’s just as hard as the original. The penultimate song “Girls in the Hood” talks about being a hit girl over a Scott Storch instrumental sampling the Eazy-E classic “Boyz-N-the-Hood” & then the closer “Don’t Stop” with Young Thug finds the 2 getting braggadocious over an industrial beat.

I’ve been saying for quite a while now that Megan Thee Stallion is the illest female spitter in the mainstream right now (with Rapsody being the illest female spitter right now PERIOD) & if this album doesn’t further prove my point, I don’t know what will. On all fronts from the catchy songwriting to the versatile production, it’s pretty much her equivalent to So Much Fun.

Score: 4/5

Megan Thee Stallion – “SUGA” review

Megan Thee Stallion is a 25 year old rapper from Houston, Texas who rose to prominence last May with the release of her debut mixtape Fever. I myself was very impressed with how it displayed Megan’s knack for catchy songwriting, dirty south/Memphis inspired production & a unique personality. However despite being entangled in a lawsuit with 1501 Certified Entertainment earlier this week, I was still very curious & excited to see what she would do on her 3rd EP over here.

The album kicks off with “Ain’t Equal”, where Megan talks about how she isn’t like any other over a cloudy yet dark trap beat from Helluva. The next track “Savage” talks about how wild she is over a J. White instrumental with a keyboard lead similar to that of the Star Trak days while the song “Captain Hook” finds Megan over some bass lead by the sound of a sword being pulled out as well as some pots & pans. The track “Hit My Phone” featuring Kehlani is your usual bedrocker tune with Jake One behind the boards while the song “B.I.T.C.H.” interpolates 2Pac’s Ratha Be Ya Nigga” over a classy sample of Bootsy Collins’ “Rather Be With You”.

The track “Rich” talks about her newfound wealth over a quirky instrumental & speaking of Star Trak, the song “Stop Playing” is one of 2 cuts on the album produced by The Neptunes. This first one has a nightly yet calming vibe to it whereas Megan & Gunna both declare that they ain’t messing around. The penultimate track “Crying in the Car” is pretty much Megan melodically firing back out at those who’re mad at her elevation over a more lusher instrumental from Pharrell & Chad Hugo then the closer “What I Need” gets more flirtatious over a sensual Timbaland beat.

For a while I’ve been saying that Megan Thee Stallion is the best female rapper in the mainstream right now (with Rapsody being the best female rapper right now PERIOD) & this just proves my point. There are a few weak spots, but the catchiness of Fever is being quadrupled on here with her best songwriting & instrumental choices to date.

Score: 3.5/5