J.I.D – “DiCaprio 2” review

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J.I.D is a 28 year old MC from Atlanta, Georgia who released his 1st mixtape Cakewalk in 2010 & joined EARTHGANG’s Spillage Village collective that same year. He dropped 2 more mixtapes as well as then an EP (to which this serves as a sequel to) after that & signed to J. Cole’s Interscope Records imprint Dreamville Records last year, dropping his full-length debut The Never Story just a few weeks after the deal. But now as we reach the end of November, he’s delivering his highly anticipated sophomore album: a sequel to his 2015 EP.

After the “Frequency Change” intro, we go into the first song “Slick Talk”. Here, J.I.D brags about his skills over a haunting beat. The track “Westbrook with A$AP Ferg is a charismatic club banger with some nocturnal bells throughout while the song “Off Deez” with J. Cole sees the 2 viciously attacking their critics over a decent trap beat. The track “151 Rum” vividly describes life in the streets over a trap beat with a prominent vocal sample while the song “Off da Zoinkys” is an anti-drug anthem with a wavy instrumental. The track “Workin’ Out” vents about depression even with his newfound success over a prominently beautiful sample of Helen Merrill’s 1954 rendition of “Don’t Explain” while the song “Tiiied” with 6LACK & Ella Mai is a drab & corny love ballad.

However, the track “Skrawberries (For da Ladies)” does a better job at being romantic than the previous cut does. Especially with the mesmerizing instrumental from J. Cole & the late Mac Miller. The song “Hotbox” with Joey Bada$$ & Method Man is about smoking weed over a punchy piano instrumental rap while the track “Mounted Up” celebrates where he is now over a boom bap beat with some sinister piano chords.

The song “Just da Other Day” discusses his rise in the game over a bland trap beat while penultimate track “Despacito Too” angrily talks about being whatever he wants over this murky boom bap beat. The album then finishes with “Hasta Luego”, where J.I.D lets go or his painful past to become the artist he is know over a nocturnal beat from WondaGurl & Cubeatz.

Overall, this is just as solid as The Never Story & I’ll even say it’s better than the first DiCaprio. The production has stepped up for the most part & lyrically, J.I.D continues to prove each & every single one of us that he truly is the future of Dreamville Records.

Score: 3.5/5

6ix9ine – “DUMMY BOY” review

6ix9ine is a 22 year old rapper from Brooklyn, New York who has become arguably the most polarizing figure in hip hop today from his guilty plea for using a minor in a sexual performance to his beefs with The Game & Chief Keef. He dropped his 1st mixtape DAY69 at the beginning of the year, which showed how 1-dimensional he truly is. He has since been teasing his full-length debut over here with a handful of singles.

The album kicks off with “STOOPID”, which is an confrontational anthem carried by the Bobby Shmurda verse & the trap production from Tay Keith. The next track “FEFE” is a hideous attempt at going pop rap wasting a pretty great Murda Beatz instrumental & with an awkward Nicki Minaj verse. The song “TIC TOC” gets boastful, but the beautiful Scott Storch instrumental with some laid-back guitar strings & even Lil Baby are the only things that make it a fun listen. The track “KIKA” is a tropical-tinged banger referencing 16-time WWE world champion, 4-time WWE tag team champion & 5-time WWE United States Champion John Cena while the song “MAMA” is pretty much an awful sequel to “FEFE” except with a Kanye West verse in the middle.

The track “WAKA” with A Boogie wit da Hoodie sees the 2 spitting bland bars about stealing your chick over a spacey instrumental that’s actually very chilling & even though I like Anuel AA’s performances as well as the reggaeton inflicted Ronny J production on the song “BEBE”, 6ix9ine’s delivery on here is hilariously awful. The track “MALA” is pretty much the exact same thing as ”BEBE” except worse while the song “FEEFA” with Kanye is another corny sex tune with a slow Murda Beatz instrumental. The track “KANGA” with Gunna sees the 2 getting more introspective over a somber beat while the song “TATI” returns to his signature style over an alluring Boi-1da instrumental. The penultimate track “WONDO” over a bass-heavy trap Scott Storch beat & then it finally finishes with “DUMMY”, where he & TrifeDrew come together for a painful auto-tune ballad with a spacey beat.

Even though the production on here is more dynamic than DAY69’s & the features are mostly ok, I can’t think of anything else to compliment on this album because literally nothing entertaining about it has anything to do with 6ix9ine. He does try to step out of his comfort zone occasionally, but he fails miserably at it each time. I legitimately don’t know where he goes from here because you can’t be constantly outshined by your guests & producers on damn near every song of your album.

Score: 1/5

Benny the Butcher – “Tana Talk 3” review

Benny the Butcher is an MC from Buffalo, New York known as the leader of the Black Soprano Family. He then signed to his cousin Westside Gunn’s label Griselda Records last year, with the Butcher on Steroids mixtape dropping on his birthday. But almost a year later, he’s ready to make his full-length debut on the label serving as the follow up to his 2005 mixtape Tana Talk 2.

The album starts off with “Babs”, where Benny & Keisha Plum talk about their hometown over an boom bap beat from Griselda’s in-house producer Daringer with some horns & a flute. The next song “Goodnight” gets murderous over an somber beat while the track “Scarface vs. Sosa 2” serves as a grimy sequel to the joint from the Tommy DeVito’s Breakfast EP that Benny dropped last year. The song “Rubber Bands & Weight” talks about the coke game over an Alchemist instrumental with some sinister guitar licking while the track “Fast Eddie” talks about how he’s the last person you wanna see over an alluring beat. The song “Broken Bottles” once again details the drug dealing life over a dark boom bap beat while the track “Echo Long” with Meyhem Lauren talks about loyalty in the streets over a sinister beat.

The song “‘97 Hov” is pretty much Benny charismatically comparing himself to the legendary JAY-Z back in his mafioso days over a boom bap beat with some gloomy piano chords while the track “Joe Pesci 38” sees Benny spitting battle bars over an eerie beat. The song “Who Are You?” with Royce da 5’9” sees the 2 getting introspective & Benny comparing himself to a mix of Marvin Hagler & WWE Hall of Famer as well as the 2nd longest reigning WWE Champion and WWE Tag Team Champion Bob Backlund over a bass guitar & background vocals while the track “51” with Westside see the 2 talk about life in the hood over a haunting beat. The song “Rick” talks wanting what’s his over a somber boom bap beat while the penultimate track “Langfield” is a dedication to his brother Machine Gun Black over an ominous beat. The album then finishes “All 70” with Conway the Machine, where the 2 talk about their grind over a killer guitar riff with some keyboards in the background.

As expected, this is Benny’s best work yet. His lyricism is grittier than ever with the production that both Daringer & The Alchemist bringing to the table suiting it near perfectly. If you wanna hear one of the rawest MCs from one of the illest camps out right now getting the shine that he finally deserves, then give this a listen.

Score: 4.5/5

Anderson .Paak – “Oxnard” review

Anderson .Paak is a 32 year old rapper, singer/songwriter & producer from Oxnard, California who first came onto the scene under the name Breezy Lovejoy at the beginning of the decade. He released 2 albums in 2012 but then after changing his moniker & releasing Venice in 2014, that’s when he started getting more recognition. He landed a handful of features on my all-time favorite producer Dr. Dre’s 3rd & final album Compton: A Soundtrack by Dr. Dre in 2015 as well as forming the duo NxWorries with Knxwledge & signing to Stones Throw Records together that same year. Then to kick off 2016, he dropped one of the best R&B albums of the decade with Malibu & that lead to him officially signing with Dre’s Interscope Records imprint Aftermath Entertainment as a solo act a couple weeks after it’s release. He would then link back up with Knxwledge to put out NxWorries’ debut album Yes Lawd! & now 2 years later, .Paak is delivering his long-awaited major label debut.

The album kicks off with “The Chase”, where .Paak talks about this girl being with him in spirit over a blaxploitation film-inspired instrumental. The next track “Headlow” talks about hanging out with this woman over a smooth instrumental while the song “Tints” sees .Paak teaming up with Kendrick Lamar to talk about fame over an infectious synth-funk instrumental while the track “Who R U?” is is a charismatic challenge to .Paak’s competition over a thunderous instrumental from the Quincy Jones of hip hop himself. Despite the fact that Dr. Dre’s made so much money off the headphones that he really doesn’t really need to be making music anymore, it’s very refreshing to hear him producing again with this joint. The track “6 Summers” gets conscious over a settle instrumental while the song “Saviers Road” tells the story of a drug dealer over a boom bap beat from 9th Wonder with some settle guitar licking. The track “Smile / Petty” is a 2-part odyssey about deceiving women over an instrumental that starts off slow, but then cleverly switches up into something more trunk knocking.

The song “Mansa Musa” vents the frustrations with the music industry today over a suiting instrumental & even though Cocoa Sarai’s verse at the start is just ok, the following verses from Dr. Dre & Anderson .Paak take it out the ballpark. The track “Brother’s Keeper” sees .Paak getting spiritual & Pusha T addressing the current status of Clipse over a guitar & these faint, skittering hi-hats while the song “Anywhere” with Snoop Dogg talks about ghetto love over an infectious funk instrumental. The track “Trippy” with J. Cole sees the 2 talking about how their significant others will always be somewhere in between over a settle instrumental & the song “Cheers” sees Paak paying an endearing tribute to Mac Miller while Q-Tip comforts the mothers of his now deceased friends over a luscious instrumental from Focus… with co-production from both Tip & Dre. The penultimate track “Sweet Chick” talks about hooking up with all kinds of women over some horns & then the closer “Left to Right” is an awkward tropical banger complete with .Paak employing a fake patois.

I’ve been waiting for this album all year & at the end, this is on the same level as Malibu. The personal stories are just as compelling, Anderson .Paak’s versatility is more present than ever & the production is almost more vibrant. We all know how much of a perfectionist Dr. Dre is & that’s resulted in multiple Aftermath artists leaving because of their albums being shelved, but I really think this is gonna give .Paak a lot more of the exposure that he truly deserves.

Score: 4.5/5

Jam Baxter – “Touching Scenes” review

London, England, United Kingdom emcee Jam Baxter of the Dead Players & Contact Play hitting us with his 5th studio LP. Signing to High Focus Records, his 2010 solo debut Rinse Out Friday / Spack Out Monday was received positively & the sophomore effort The Gruesome Features would see a lot more critical acclaim. …So We Ate Them Whole in 2014 remains amongst High Focus’ most celebrated releases ever, coming off Mansion 38 a year & a half earlier to make some Touching Scenes come to life musically a month after 石井智宏 won the RPW British Heavyweight Championship from 鈴木みのる.

“Guillotine” starts off with this abstract grime intro produced by Sumgii talking about the hotel staff being sick of his shit whereas “Gone” speaks of being his own boss & being remembered for eternity over a Telemachus beat. The lead single “Saliva” talks about his eyes being detached at 4am & conveying his disappointment over the woman he’s seeing being psychotic over a Ghosttown instrumental but after the titular skit, “Right Here” talks about immortalizing a deceased loved one as a cartoon playing in the dark.

As for “Feeding Frenzy”, we have Jam likening himself to a piranha devouring its own prey & seeing crimson faces flicker neon green with envy while the 3rd & final single “S.S.A. (Strong Swimmers Anonymous)” calls out hypocrites telling them what they do they’re not the ones back in their own people for tenners. After the “Burma” skit, “Know by Now” featuring Stinkin’ Slumrok finds the 2 joining forces to talk about being slum boys who keep it crunk just before “‘Bout U” begins the 2nd half giving a fuck less regarding others.

“Mask” featuring Durrty Goodz & Rag’n’Bone Man finds the trio coming together for a heavy-hitting UK hardcore hip hop track talking about wearing ski masks on stage because they’re getting old while the 2nd single “Vulture” sends a clear message to all the culture vultures swinging at their shoulder blades. “Guilty” talks about the relatable feeling of the whole world trying to take him for a fool over a Sam Zircon beat leading into “Unsubscribe” featuring Kae Tempest uniting the pair to discuss skinning oneself alive.

The song “Bodyslam” winds down Touching Scenes’ final moments referencing the wrestling move popularized by the inaugural IWGPヘビー級王座, former 12-time WWE world champion, WWE tag team champion & WWE Hall of Famer Hulk Hogan while “Husk II (Tale of the Possessed Pinky)” finishes with a sequel to a song off the 2nd half of …So We Ate Them Whole, recapturing the same moods of it’s predecessor 4 years earlier listening to the screams of an individual seeking wonder.

Blurring the lines between grime & abstract hip hop lyrics taking inspiration from William S. Burroughs to Young Thug surprisingly, Jam Baxter’s final offering under his High Focus Records contract finishes 1 chapter & begins a new one with the most polished statement of his entire solo career. The production goes for a more high tempo direction in comparison to Mansion 38, sounding more evolved than that last album & further establishing Jam amongst the most gifted songwriters in the entire UK hip hop scene.

Score: 4.5/5

Lil Peep – “Come Over When You’re Sober 2” review

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Lil Peep was a 21 year old rapper & singer from Long Island, New York who blew up in late 2016 with the release of his 4th mixtape Hellboy & then following it with his debut album Come Over When You’re Sober last summer. Both projects were too melodramatic for my tastes, but I could see why it connected with a couple of my friends. But unfortunately, Lil Peep passed away last year just 2 weeks after his 21st birthday of an accidental fentanyl–xanax overdose right before a show in Tucson, Arizona. The rights of his unreleased music were then given to Columbia Records, who are now delivering the long-awaited follow-up to Come Over When You’re Sober a week after what would’ve been Peep’s 22nd birthday & a week before the 1 year anniversary of his untimely death.

The album kicks off with “Broken Smile (My All)”, where Peep vents about his hopes of getting back with this girl over a dark trap beat from his in-house producer smokeasac. The next track “Runaway” talks about getting away from fake people over a cloudy trap beat instrumental while the song “Sex with My Ex” truly lives up to it’s title with the instrumental containing a prominent guitar along with a heavy bass-line & rattling hi-hats. It’s ok. The track “Cry Alone” is a surprisingly solid alt rock ballad about loneliness & while the song “Leanin'” has a pretty acoustic instrumental with a cloudy backing, it’s legitimately upsetting to hear Lil Peep recalling a time where he survived what eventually killed him.

The track “16 Lines” is a drab explanation about how cocaine made him feel better over a murky instrumental with some down-tune guitar strumming while the song “Life is Beautiful” is probably his best song yet. It’s a completely unexpected positivity anthem & the hypnotic instrumental enhances the feeling of it. The track “Hate Me” has a nice bass guitar with some faint skittering hi-hats in background, but the take on his girl going off on him while he’s on the road is too melodramatic. The song “I.D.G.A.F. (I Don’t Give A Fuck)” continues the theme of the previous joint by talking about how he’s not gonna answer her calls, but it’s just boring & the instrumental doesn’t help either. The penultimate track “White Girl” is a chilling ballad about this girl who wants him back now that he’s famous over a trap beat with some sinister guitar licking & then the closer “Fingers” foresees his own death over a trap/alt rock fusion. As for the 2 bonus tracks: “Falling Down” with XXXTENTACION seems like a cash grab for the label since both Peep & X are no longer with us while the original version of that same song with iLoveMakonnen is just plain awkward.

This was honestly better than I had anticipated, but it’s still decent. I do hear an improvement on Lil Peep’s vocals, but only half of the melodrama of his last 2 projects are still present through his lyrics. The production’s just as decent as the last album too with the few incorporations of rock elements on here being the most creative move, but there are some points where the beats tend to be too overproduced. The fans will definitely love this more than me but if this is the last we’ll ever hear from the kid, then it’s a real shame we never got to hear him fully evolve as an artist because the potential of that is clearly shown on here a lot more. May he Rest In Peace.

Score: 3/5

Masta Ace – “A Breukelen Story” review

Masta Ace is a 51 year old MC who started out as a member of the Juice Crew. He released his criminally underrated debut Take a Look Around in the summer of 1990 & then after the Juice Crew’s disbandment the following year, he went on to sign to Delicious Vinyl & release 2 albums under the name Masta Ace Incorporated] He then disappeared from the music industry, returning in 2001 with one of the greatest concept albums in all of hip hop Disposable Arts. The closer on that album “No Regrets” sparked rumors that it would be Ace’s final album until he returned with A Long Hot Summer in 2004, which was a near perfect prequel to Disposable Arts. He then started focusing on his eMC crew up until 2012, when he released MA_Doom: Son of Yvonne. An album where Ace took a bunch of instrumentals from MF DOOM’s Special Herbs series of instrumental albums & made a tribute to his departed mother out of it. His last album The Falling Season in 2016 told a story of Masta Ace’s high school years, but was weighed down by an overabundance of skits. He has since been teasing his 8th full-length album over here with Marco Polo producing it in it’s entirety, a concept album about his hometown of Brooklyn.

The album kicks off with “Kings”, where Ace talks about unity & how the older generation’s parents were telling them the same thing they’ve been saying to the new generation these days over a punchy piano instrumental. After the “Dad’s Talk” skit, we go into the next song “Breukelen “Brooklyn””. Here, Ace links up with Smif-n-Wessun of the Boot Camp Clik to pay tribute to their hometown & all of the greats to come from there over a boom bap beat with some somber piano chords. The track “Get Shot” of course gets confrontational over a boom bap beat with a funky bass-line, keyboards, & some harmonious female background vocals while the song “Still Love Her” is a vivid yet mellow dedication to this woman from Ace’s teenage years.

The track “Man Law” with Styles P sees the 2 talking about counting your blessings over an orchestral boom bap beat while the song “You & I” is a dedication to Ace’s wife with some smooth guitar passages. After the “Gotta Go” skit, we go into the song “Sunken Place”. Here, Ace talks about being raised in the ghetto over some drums & a fair vocal sample. The track “Corporal Punishment” with eLZhi takes a jab at the industry over an eerie beat & after the “Landlord of the Flies” skit, we go into the song “Count ‘Em Up”. Here, Ace link’s up with Lil’ Fame tell the story of a raid that occurred in their neighborhood & the one sample on here where a bunch of kids are saying “1, 2, 3, 4, 5” is just flawless.

The track “American Me” talks about the current state of the United States over a soulful boom bap beat & after “The Cutting Room” skit, the song “God Bodies” is a continuation of the conscious themes of the previous joint over a druggy beat. The track “Wanna Be” with Marlon Craft talks about copycats over a chilled out boom bap beat while the song “3” is a perfect eMC reunion over a flute-heavy instrumental. Then before things finish off with the “Mom’s Talk” skit, the final song “The Fight Song” with Pharoahe Monch pretty much speaks for itself over a grimy instrumental with some angelic choir vocals.

I’ve been waiting on this for a little over a year now & the end result is one of the best albums Masta Ace has ever made. He‘s always been one of the most underrated lyricists in the history of the culture & he continues to prove that as Marco Polo’s production suits his storytelling near perfectly.

Score: 4.5/5

Metro Boomin’ – “NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES” review

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Metro Boomin’ is a 25 year old producer from St. Louis, Missouri who gained notoriety in the middle of this decade as the top producer in the trap subgenre of hip hop. He’s gone on to produce some of the best trap projects of the decade in their entireties including Future’s D.S. 2 (Dirty Sprite 2), Gucci Mane’s Droptopwop and the Offset/21 Savage’s Without Warning. But this past spring, he announced his retirement from making music & he has only produced on a couple albums since then. However, he is returning with his full-length debut.

The opener “10AM (Save the World)” by Gucci Mane talks about the famous life over an amazingly moody beat, but Wizzop‘s delivery could’ve been much better. The next song “Overdue” by Travis Scott talks about out-doing yourself over a clever ambient sample & while the track “Don’t Come Out the House” by 21 Savage gets murderous over some prominent bass & piano chords. There are even a couple points where he’s literally whispering on beat & even though it turned me off at first, I’ve come to appreciate it the more I listened to the album. The song “Dreamcatcher” by Swae Lee & Travis Scott sees the 2 getting playful over a settle instrumental while the track “Space Cadet” by Gunna gets boastful over a dreamy trap beat. The song “10 Freaky Girls” by 21 Savage is self-explanatory over an instrumental with a murky atmosphere to it while the track “Up to Something” is a sinister sounding yet melodic Metro Thuggin’ reunion.

The “Only 1” interlude by Travis Scott is an 80 second cut that sounds heavily influenced by Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak while then the song “Lesbian” sees Gunna teaming up with his mentor Young Thug to tell the listener how they both fell in love with a woman who actually happens to be a lesbian referencing WWE Hall of Famer Mr. T over a somber beat. The track “Borrowed Love” by Swae Lee & Wizkid is of course a boring love ballad & if that wasn’t enough, the song right after “Only You” by Offset & J Balvin is a vomit-inducing attempt at going dancehall. The penultimate track on here “No More” by Kodak Black & 21 Savage talks about being faded over a fittingly intoxicating instrumental & then the closer “No Complaints” by Offset & Drake is still a haunting yet fun wealth anthem despite being released as a stand alone single a year prior.

I knew something was up when those missing person billboards about Young Metro appeared about a week ago & this album is makes me really happy about his official return. Probably slightly more so than the new Swizz Beatz album POISON that came out the same day as this, because at least Metro produces every single track. He really sounds like he took his time with crafting these beats & almost every performer just nails it. If you wanna hear the hottest producer in hip hop’s most popular subgenre at the current moment making a triumphant return, then PLEASE give this a listen.

Score: 3.5/5

Swizz Beatz – “POISON” review

Swizz Beatz is a legendary 40 year old producer, DJ & “rapper” (that is if you wanna call him one) who blew up in 1998 as the in-house producer for Ruff Ryders Entertainment. He later started his now defunct Full Surface Records in 2001 & dropped a decent compilation called G.H.E.T.T.O. Stories the following year. It wouldn’t until 2007 that he would try to officially go solo with 1 Man Band Man, a solidly produced album that was unfortunately weighed down by the lack of features & of course Swizz’ horrendous rapping on every song. He has since spent the last decade teasing a sophomore album that never came to fruition up until now with J. Cole as a co-executive producer, interestingly enough.

After a spoken word intro, the first song “P.O.M.S. (Pistol On My Side)” by Lil Wayne kicks things off fantastically as Weezy gets in your face over some militant drums along with a set of eerie piano chords provided by Swizz’ ever so stunning wife Alicia Keys. The track “Come Again” by Giggs awkwardly talks about how crazy he is over a chaotic beat while the song “Something Dirty (Pic Got Us) sees Jadakiss & Styles P trading bars back & forth with each other like old tomes over an araabMUZIK instrumental with some triumphant horns. The track “Preach” by Jim Jones vividly goes into the mind of a drug dealer over a minimalist instrumental while the song “Echo” by Nas is recalls growing up in Queens over a soul sample from DJ Scratch.

The track “Cold Blooded” by Pusha T is an eerie tale about growing up in the hood that plays out fantastically & while the song “25 Soldiers” by Young Thug is honestly very gritty & adrenaline inducing from the araabMUZIK production down to Thugger’s flow. The penultimate track “Stunt” by 2 Chainz is of course a braggadocious anthem over a trap beat from Bink! with an alluring vocal sample & the closer “SWIZZMONTANA” is French Montana bragging about his wealth better than I thought he would over an instrumental that screams classic Swizz.

For a 10 year wait, this was totally worth it. I wish Swizz Beatz & J. Cole added a few more tracks & I really don’t get why the ones Swizz didn’t produce at all were included but other than that, I love how he took a huge step back from “rapping” & focused more on production. The guest MCs mostly do their thing as well with the instrumentals suiting them fantastically.

Score: 3.5/5

Takeoff – “The Last Rocket” review

Takeoff is a 24 year old rapper from Atlanta, Georgia who rose to prominence in 2013 as 1/3 of the Migos with his nephew quavo & his cousin Offset. The first of whom Quavo is arguably the most notable member & he actually happened to drop his solo debut QUAVO HUNCHO just 3 weeks prior. Now if that wasn’t enough for you, Takeoff here is now next at bat.

The album kicks off with “Martian”, where Takeoff talks about his success throughout the years over some prominent hi-hats from DJ Durel. The next track “She Gon’ Wink” by Unc & Phew sees the 2 getting boastful over a spacey trap instrumental while the song “None to Me” introspectively talks about the famous life over a gloomy beat from 808 Mafia members DY, Gezin & TM88. The track “Vacation” pretty much speaks for itself over a trap beat from Murda Beatz & Cubeatz with some faint keyboards while the song “Last Memory” is a painfully bland braggadocious tune. The track “I Remember” vividly recalls drug dealing days over an eerie Murda Beatz instrumental while the song “Lead the Wave” talks about being a leader over a vibrant trap beat from DJ Durel.

The track “Casper” talks about him & his girl cruising down in a wraith over a somber Nonstop da Hitman instrumental while the song “Insomnia” is a boring freestyle over the beat from the latest Juicy J & Travis Scott song “Neighbor”. The track “Infatuation” is an awkwardly buttery love story while the song “Soul Plane” marks a returns to the braggadocious lyrics over a bass-heavy trap beat. The album then ends with “Bruce Wayne”, where Takeoff tells the audience to picture him rolling over an atmospheric beat from Cassius Jay & Wheezy.

This was better than I had anticipated, but it’s still decent. I can appreciate Takeoff for handling a good chunk of it on his own, but it really weighs it down because it tends to get monotonous after a while.

Score: 2.5/5