Majik Ninja Entertainment – “Twiztid Presents: Year of the Sword” review

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Majik Ninja Entertainment is an underground hip hop label that was founded in 2014 by Detroit hip hop duo Twiztid. The roster has been immensely growing since it’s inception of this year specifically, they’ve dropped 1 great release after another. And now to close out such a great year for them, they’re now giving the fans a compilation featuring new songs from every artist on the label. After a 90 second intro, we then get into the first song “Heads Will Roll” by Gorilla Voltage & Jamie Madrox. Here, they‘re bragging about how their skills will amaze you over a sinister instrumental. The next track “Turn It Up” by Blaze Ya Dead Homie, Bonez Dubb & Lex the Hex Master sees the 3 MCs aggressively getting in your face over a chaotic beat while the track “Fucked” by Boondox, Gorilla Voltage & The R.O.C. talks about how crazy they all are over a haunting instrumental. After a 15 second skit with “Level Up!”, we then get into the next song “Their Fault” by Jamie Madrox & Young Wicked. Here, they’re predominantly singing about those who never gave them a chance & while the vocals during the first half seem nasal, it definitely picks up on the second half. The song “Ignite” by King Gordy, Mr. Grey & Zodiac MPrint talks about how they’re never gonna fall over a killer rap rock instrumental & then “Cut ‘Em Up” by Twiztid & Young Wicked rapidly talk about killing their competition over an abrasive yet eerie instrumental. The song “Lights Out” by G-Mo Skee, Mr. Grey & Twiztid angrily talks about getting murderous on their last day alive & the rap metal instrumental on here fits the vibe like a glove. After the 30-second “Harassment” skit, we then dive into “Don’t Fuck wit Us” by ClocworC, the House of Krazees & Lex the Hex Master. The lyrics are self explanatory, but they’re delivered fantastically over this menacing yet thumping instrumental. The song “Better Than Ever B4” by the Axe Murder Boyz, G-Mo Skee, Lex the Hex Master & Triple Threat talk knowing now than ever before about over some twinkling piano keys & an organ while “Flix ‘n Chill” by ClocworC, Triple Threat & Young Wicked is a predictably decent love song with a wavy instrumental. The song “Get High” by the Axe Murder Boyz, L.A.R.S., Mr. Grey & Triple Threat is self-explanatory weed anthem with a druggy beat while “Galaxy” by G-Mo Skee, Jamie Madrox & King Gordy sees the 3 looking for a challenge over a synthesizer-heavy instrumental. The song “Don’t Tell Me” by Boondox, Gordy & Twiztid tells the haters they’ll never listen to them over a grimy yet thunderous beat & then after the 20 second “Summon the Majik Ninja” skit, we then get into the final song in the standard edition “B.N.U.” (an acronym for Brand New Underground). It’s an explosive posse cut where everyone on the label all talk about their prowess. The “Did You Unplug It?” skit is the final track on here, but there is a bonus disc with 9 tracks. All of which are new solo cuts from each signee on the label, with the exception of Lex the Hex Master’s being previously released on his latest album Beyond Redemption. As a whole, this was a great way for Majik Ninja to end their 2017 & it’s just another example of why they’re one of my favorite labels out right now. The production is gritty as usual & everyone compliments each other fantastically. Can’t wait to see them continue their string of successfully raw releases in 2018

Score: 4/5

Miguel – “War & Leisure” review

This is the 4th studio LP from Los Angeles, California singer/songwriter, actor & producer Miguel. Introducing himself in 2010 off his moderate full-length debut All I Want is You, his sophomore effort albeit RCA Records debut Kaleidoscope Dream & the follow-up Wildheart a month after my high school graduation would both go on to become some of the most beloved alternative R&B of the previous decade. Over a couple years later, he’s ready for some War & Lesiure.

“Criminal featuring Rick Ross begins comparing their love to committing crime over a wavy yet smooth instrumental, but there are a handful of cringey lines on there. Especially the ones about Columbine & Duck Duck Goose near the end of the first verse as well as the one about 9/11 at the start of the second verse. The next song “Pineapple Skies” sees Miggy telling his lover everything will be ok over a spacey instrumental while “Sky Walker” with Travis Scott cleverly inserts many pop culture references as they brush off their haters over a druggy beat.

The song “Banana Clip” talks about protecting this woman in a war on love over a funky instrumental & the song “Wolf” compares himself to just that over a guitar & explosive drums from Raphael Saadiq. The song “Harem” encourages this woman to follow him to see the world in a new way over a mellow instrumental & then the track “Told You So” talks about setting his lover free over a Jeff Bhasker instrumental kin to Michael Jackson’s output during the 80’s.

The “City of Angels” is a vividly told story of Los Angeles fictionally getting destroyed & Miguel expressing his remorse of cheating on his girlfriend prior to her getting killed in the bombing over a down-tuned guitar. The track “Caramelo Duro” (“Hard Candy” in Spanish) is Miggy’s first predominantly Spanish song, but he does it fantastically over this funky beat.

The song “Come Through & Chill” is pretty self-explanatory, as both Miguel & J. Cole encourage their ladies to swing by their cribs to have sex all night over a tropical Salaam Remi instrumental. The track “Anointed” is pretty much Miguel telling his woman that she makes him feel like a God over some bass & then the album then finishes off with “Now”,’ where he gives his take on the world today over a twangy guitar.

Given that I still may have enjoyed a great deal of War & Leisure, I wouldn’t put it in the same discussion as Kaleidoscope Dream or Wildheart. The contemporary/alternative R&B production with minor influences of synth-funk & neo-soul doesn’t feel as ambitious as both of it’s predecessors were during my adolescence with the subject matter getting more political than Miguel has ever been previously.

Score: 3.5/5

Big Hoodoo – “asylum” review

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This is the 4th studio LP from Detroit, Michigan emcee Big Hoodoo. Originally coming up as Doe Dubbla. Under that original moniker, he put out a double-disc full-length debut in 2008 called Stack’n & later followed it up with Hiatus in 2012. However it wouldn’t be until 2013 when Dubbla signed Psychopathic Records, put out his 3rd album Crystal Skull that summer & became the black magic practitioner that he is today. 3 years later, he’s taking y’all through the asylum.

After a 2 minute intro, we finally get into the first song with the title track. Here, Hoodoo gets confrontational over a haunting instrumental. The next song “Runnin’ from My Magic” telling the listener to witness his illumination over some creepy keys & a super funky bass-line. Also, the Mystikal nod at the beginning of the first verse was really cool. The next 2 songs “I Bring Death” & “The Yard” get murderous over eerie beats, but I think the first one does a better job at it minus the nasal hook from Young Wicked.

Then on “Out My Mind”, he talks about insanity over a semi-druggy instrumental. Also, the line about a hoe telling him his jizz was delicious at the beginning of the final verse was pretty hilarious to me. The track “Boom Boom Piggy” disses crooked cops over a menacing instrumental & the song “Go Get ‘Em” sees Tha Hav Knots angrily attacking at their enemies with an instrumental & hook that will get you in the mood to fight. The track “Calm Down” may have uplifting instrumental, but everything else about it is just alright outside of that.

“Monster Squad” with Anybody Killa, the Axe Murder Boyz, DJ Paul & the Insane Clown Posse is a gritty Psychopathic posse cut with a haunting instrumental while “Psycho Love” is a predictable Bonnie & Clyde-esque love song, it’s not that bad. The song “Shadows” talks about the end coming over an eerie instrumental & then the penultimate track “I’ve Seen Pain” vents about the world of sin over a sinister instrumental.

The album then closes with “The Passage, where Hoodoo & Blac gets ambitious over some keys. However, Blac didn’t really captivate me & it didn’t need to be 9 minutes long. Honestly, this was an improvement over Big Hoodoo’s debut. It sounds a lot more darker & Hoodoo really improves himself as an MC.

Score: 4/5

Fabolous & Jadakiss – “Friday on Elm Street” review

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Just when it seems it would never come out, Fabolous & Jadakiss finally deliver their long-awaited collab album just in time for Black Friday. The intro sees the 2 MCs comparing themselves to Freddy Krueger & Jason Voorhees respectively over a haunting beat that switches up during each verse. The song “Stand Up” is an ode to the “real niggas” over an abrasive trap beat & a decent Future hook. The song “Theme Music” sees Fab & Jada going back & forth about rising up from the bottom over a Swizz Beatz instrumental with a beautiful Marvin Gaye sample & then “Ground Up” tells all the frauds to be careful around their hoods over a gritty instrumental. The track “Soul Food” gets insightful over a fittingly soulful instrumental & while the song “Principles” does talk about the g-codes from their perspectives, the execution of the hook isn’t all that great. The track “Talk About It” intelligently gets conscious about the world today over a wavy instrumental & the Teyana Taylor hook is on point as well. The song “All About It” sounds like a failed attempt at a radio hit from the production & the French Montana hook to Jada & Fab starting off their verses by singing for a bit. The track “I Pray” sees the duo sincerely asking God to forgive them, but the Swizz Beatz hook kinda gets annoying after a while. The song “Ice Pick” is a gritty Jadakiss solo cut with Styles P on the hook & the penultimate track “Nightmares Ain’t as Bad” is a Fabolous telling the listener to make their dreams meet real life over a somber instrumental. The album closes out with an unnecessary remix of “Stand Up” which is pretty much the same thing as the original with the exception of a Yo Gotti verse where he copies Jeezy & then a verse from the actual Jeezy. This thing has been hyped up for a while now & I think it lived up to it. Despite some weak moments, Fabolous & Jadakiss show quite a bit of chemistry together during it’s nearly 45 minute run-time

Score: 3.5/5

Hopsin – “No Shame” review

With his last album Pound Syndrome being release in Mid-July of 2015 & his previous label Funk Volume going defunct at the beginning of 2016 due to a falling out with his former business partner Damien Ritter, California rapper/producer Hopsin is back on the scene yet again with his 5th full-length album & his first under his new 300 Entertainment imprint Undercover Prodigy. The album opens with “Hotel in Sydney”, where he passionately vents about his arrest for alleged assault over a symphonic instrumental. Unfortunately after that, the album takes a drastic nosedive. The next song “Right Here” basically tells the audience he isn’t going anywhere & while it’s just ok, the hook is annoying as fuck. The track “Twisted” informs the listener to respect him over a generic trap beat & then after a 1-minute skit, we then go into the song “All Your Fault”. Here, he disses his ex-girlfriend Alyce Madden along with his former label mate SwizZz & his haters in an angsty fashion over a Middle Eastern influences instrumental, but I think SwizZz was a tad bit uncalled for & the hook is annoying as fuck. The track “Money on the Side” has a nice flow, but the beat is synthetic & the lyrics about fingering a hooker’s asshole ruins it. The song “I Wouldn’t Do That” talks about being in his zone over an eerie trap beat, but calling yourself “the only MC in this wack genre” is flat out disrespectful to all of those who came before you. The track “Black Sheep” talks about being the titular idiom albeit in a corny fashion over a somber instrumental & then “I Must Be On Somethin’” talks about being crazy over a hard hitting beat. The song “Tell’em Who You Got It From” disses Alyce yet again, but the delivery is cliché as is the hook. The song “The Purge” talks about Hop’s return over an eerie trap beat & his rapid-delivery on here is insane. As for “Happy Ending”, it could very well be the worst song I’ve heard all year. It’s supposed to be a “humorous” tale about Hopsin getting fucked by an Asian woman in a massage parlor, but it’s actually in horribly bad taste. Especially with the God awful stereotypical Asian accent he does during the hook. The song “No Words 2” is a follow-up to the song “No Words” off his last album & while the original was funny, it’s hypocritical that he’s dissing Migos on this sequel considering the fact that he’s rapping over their type of trap beats on a lot of the other tracks on here. The track “Panorama City” talks about grinding over a g-funk beat that actually isn’t too bad & then “Ill Mind of Hopsin 9” is the new installment of Hopsin’s popular song series. This one is Hopsin talking to his newborn son that he can’t see due to being banned from Australia & while I can see where’s getting at about gold diggers, the lines towards Alyce make it this message come off as bitter. The penultimate track “Marcus’ Gospel” sees Hopsin getting vulnerable over a a churchy instrumental & then the nightmare finally ends with “Witch Doctor”, where he’s telling the listener not to fuck with him over a tribal instrumental. Over the course of it’s 73 minute run-time, I can say that Hopsin has only come through with SLIGHTLY better album. I will give him credit for him improving his delivery & flow but I can’t say the same for his lyrical topics, production & hooks. There are a few decent moments, but Hopsin still comes off as corny as ever on here

Score: 0.5/5

CyHi the Prynce – “No Dope on Sundays” review

CyHi the Prynce is an MC from Atlanta, Georgia & this is long awaited full-length debut. The album opens with “Amen”, where CyHi’s talking about staying in your environment over a fittingly churchy instrumental. The next track is the title track, where he & fellow G.O.O.D. Music signee Pusha T talks about trappin’ another other day than the Lord’s day & the beat change from Lex Luger is phenomenal. The song “Get Yo Money” speaks on the drug game over an eerie instrumental & the track “Movin’ Around” with ScHoolboy Q isa weed anthem with a decent trap beat. The track “Trick Me” gets braggadocious over a mellow piano instrumental& the 2 Chainz verse isn’t all that bad. The song “Murda” talks about life in the streets over a decent reggae instrumental while the track “Don’t Know Why”gets conscious over a somewhat spacey instrumental. Also, the Jagged Edge feature on here is pretty great as well. The song“God Bless” is pretty much about being thankful & I️ absolutely love how it samples my favorite Roy Ayers song “Searching”. The track “Dat Side” with his mentor Kanye West sees the 2 attacking their haters over a dreary instrumental while the song “Looking for Love” is a self-explanatory love song with a decent trap beat & a mediocre auto-tune hook. The song “Nu Africa” gets pro-black over a nice boom bap beat & the track “Free” seems to be a diss towards Def Jam Recordings over a dreamy instrumental. The song “80’s Baby” speaks through the point of view of an unborn child over a jazzy instrumental & a beautiful BJ the Chicago Kid feature while the penultimate track “Closer” talks about maintaining a relationship with Jesus Christ over an instrumental with an uplifting atmosphere to it. I know both of these song topics sound corny, but CyHi’s actually able to pull both of them off. The album then closes with “I’m Fine”, which pretty much talks about livin’ life to the fullest & I really wish Travi$ Scott had a verse instead of just doing the hook. CyHi the Prynce has been long overdue with an album & I think this should give him the credit he finally deserves. Despite a few mediocre beats & hooks every here & there, it sounds focused, the features are on point & it’s just as smart as ever

Score: 3.5/5

Milkavelli – “Cult Member” review

London, England, United Kingdom emcee Milkavelli making his solo debut. Originally known under the moniker Monster Under the Bed, he was also a former member of both the Children of the Damned & the Piff Gang collectives in addition to him presently comprising 1/4 of Cult Mountain & 1/2 of the Mcabre Brothers. Although he’s considered to be more of an affiliate of the Cult of the Damned, he’s telling us what it was like being a Cult Member a year after the 616god extended play.

“Spaceman” begins with him talking about having vices because he’s hellspawn & giving middle fingers to the enemy at war whereas “Rehab” featuring Suspect OTB finds the 2 comparing the feeling of being inside of a studio to that of rehabilitation. “Lock & Load” continues with him talking about feeling comfy by himself carrying a pistol in his hand leading into “Jamaa” produced by Sumgii talking about his enigmatic profile & feeling trippy after taking a few tabs.

Nobodies Home jumps behind the boards on “Cold Outing” speaking of treating his weed sack religiously in sense to people telling him he raps sacrilegiously & winning when he’s never won while “ZZZ” featuring the late Lil Peep talks about each of their own relationships with drugs. “Foul Mouth” has a more chaotic trap vibe instrumentally talking about him going all in while “There It Is” tackles drugs, relationships, success & spirituality over a Reklews beat.

“Yay High” featuring Jesse James Solomon gets the other half of the album going with both of them talking about having different shit within the same day over a Tony Seltzer instrumental while “Silk Tears” admits to doing this shit for the fuck of it only for people to bit him. “S!ck” has the Mcabre Brothers linking up to talk about being fed up with being too ill at everything while “Feeling Like” psychedelically discusses him only having his teammates & going up against the weekend when it’s actually a weekday.

Kicking off the 4th quarter, “Hello Kitten” shows a more flirtatious side to Don Silk telling this woman who has his attention that doesn’t play with religion despite having faith while “Mmm Bop” featuring Sniff gets together over an eerie boom bap beat the latter made himself to talk about going to Hell merely for their own amusement. “Where’s Olly?” suggests those worrying of what he’s doing to get a real hobby & “Roger Rabbit” sends it all off describing him watching The Walt Disney Company-owned Who Framed Roger Rabbit? with Zapp playing in the background.

There are a few other members from the original Children of the Damned crew who either haven’t released any solo material whatsoever like Salar or Tony Broke solely doing guest appearances for the past few years following his last EP Money in the Bag, but I’d have to say I prefer Cult Member more than 616god if this is the last we’ll hear from the Monster Under the Bed individually. The production’s an upgrade from its predecessor last Halloween, there are more guests in comparison & includes a myriad of different hip hop styles like boom bap & cloud rap.

Score: 3.5/5

Joe Budden – “Rage & the Machine” review

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53 weeks have passed since Slaughterhouse member Joe Budden gave us a near perfect ending to his Love Lost trilogy but now, he’s teaming up with araabMUZIK to give us his 8th & most likely final album. The opener “3” tells the listener what to expect going into this thing & the choir vocals in the background are just beautiful. The track “Uncle Joe” pretty much addresses the current state of hip hop over some piano chords from a personal point of view & the song “Serious” is a gritty duet with fellow Slaughterhouse member Joell Ortiz about how you shouldn’t fuck with either MC. The track “By Law” talks about keeping it real over a militant instrumental & the Jazzy hook isn’t too bad either. The song “Flex” with Fabolous is a smooth sex tune & the Troy Lanez hook fits like a glove. The track “Forget” is only 91 seconds long, but I can totally get where he’s going when he confesses about meeting so many people that he forgets them over a beautiful soul sample. The song “I Gotta Ask” gets into battle rap mode & the Into the Woods soundtrack sample was surprising, yet interesting. The track “Time for Work” is another sexual jam, but the production here is more energetic than it was on “Flex”. The song “Wrong One” has a chaotic instrumental that fits perfectly with Joe’s hardcore bars & the track “I Wanna Know” gets reflective on his life over a beautiful Manhattans sample with an equally beautiful hook from Stacy Barthe. The closer “Idols” is Joe naming all of his influences over a mellow instrumental if this really is Joe’s final album, then this was a perfect close the book. The production is on par with his previous album All Love Lost & Joe lyrically is getting into an OG’s perspective on things.

Score: 4/5

Lex the Hex Master – “Beyond Redemption” review

Almost year after his debut Contact & just in time for Halloween, Queens horrorcore MC & Majik Ninja Entertainment signee Lex the Hex Master is now dropping his sophomore album. After an 80 second intro, the title track is the first song in the track listing & it has a super ominous instrumental that fits his angry about being face to face with his fate perfectly. The track “Beast” raps about shuttin’ shit down over an energetic, but the first half of the hook is too nasal for me. The song “Joke’s Ova” with G-Mo Skee & Grizzy Hendrix is basically the 3 venting about the wack shit of today & getting back to the hardcore days over a sinister instrumental. The track “Attributes” sees Lex telling us a bit about himself & the instrumental kinda sounds like something Eminem would rap over in 2002 or 2003, but in a cool way.

The song “Shadow Army” with his mentors Twiztid alongside Gorilla Voltage & Řezník is a nice, gritty horrorcore posse cut & the track “Gangstas” talks about a chick who wants to chill with the thugs over an instrumental with a fitting gangsta rap vibe to it & the song “Broken” vents about haters as well as traumatizing your ears over another Early 2000s Eminem-esque instrumental minus the wailing guitar. The track “Bully Foot” has an instrumental kinda reminds me of “Put ‘Em in Their Place” by Mobb Deep, but Lex’s confrontational bars actually sound just fine over it. The song “Samurai” with Young Wicked sees the 2 bragging about their skills over some pounding drums & the hook is super catchy. The penultimate track “Arrival” with Young Uno, Var Francis & Bubbah Barz sees all 4 MCs taking shots at all the frauds out there over some ominous keyboards & then the closer “It Begins” is Lex vividly telling the story of a man who eventually gets murdered over a perfectly somber instrumental.

Overall, I think Lex the Hex Master outdid himself on this one. The production is grittier, Lex is continuing to improve himself as an MC & it sounds even angrier than before.I think Lex is one of the most underrated right now & if anyone’s new to him, I think this is where you should stop sleeping

Score: 4/5

Big K.R.I.T. – “4eva is a Mighty Long Time” review

A year after leaving the renown Def Jam Recordings to form his own label Multi Alumni, Mississippi MC/producer Big K.R.I.T. is finally returning with his 3rd full-length album & it actually happens to be a double disc with 11 tracks on each disc. The opener “Big K.R.I.T.” gets ambitious both lyrically & production-wise & I really love how he goes some rapping from mid-pace to a faster one halfway. The next track “Confetti” brags about his rapping prowess & dissing the wack over DJ Camper’s piano chords along with a soul sample in the background & even a guitar solo during the hook. The song “Big Bank” with T.I. sees the 2 boasting about their wealth over a soulful yet hard hitting instrumental from WLPWR. The track “Subenstein (My Sub IV)” is the new welcoming installment of his “My Sub” series the Mannie Fresh/Supah Mario beat on here SLAPS! The song “1999” is basically Krizzle with a decent Lloyd hook getting romantic & I can definitely see it being a hit from the content down to Mannie’s production.

The song “Ride wit Me” gets braggadocious with an outstanding UGK feature & as for the track “Get Up 2 Come Down”, it talks about some hustlin’ over a smooth instrumental & it was really refreshing to hear Cee-Lo Green rapping a verse near the end. The song “Layup” reflects on starting with nothing & how he’s living better now over a very relaxing instrumental & his melodic delivery is infectious. After the Classic Interlude, we then get into the next song “Aux Cord”. Here, he’s telling us some of his influences like the late B.B. King (whom he collaborated with on his debut Live from the Underground) as well as Marvin Gaye and Sly & the Family Stone over a spacey instrumental. The first disc closer “Get Away” is the last in the first disc & he’s talking about being bullshit free over a smooth soul instrumental.

The first track on the second disc “Justin Scott” is just a 4 minute instrumental that you can kick back to & the song “Mixed Messages” talks about things like loving his girl yet hating her at the same time or being rich yet simultaneously giving back & the instrumental is just beautiful. The track “Keep the Devil Off” sees Krizzle asking God to brush off the haters over a fittingly gospel-influenced instrumental & the song Ms. Georgia Fornia talks about a love/hate relationship over a smooth guitar & the Joi hook has a lot of raw passion in it. The next 2 tracks “Everlasting” & “Higher Calling” are both love songs & while they aren’t bad at all, I’d say the first of the 2 sets the mood a lot better.

After the Weekend Interlude, K.R.I.T. then gives the listener his personal take on what fame does to you on “Price of Fame” & the song “Drinking Sessions” sees him getting vulnerable over some piano keys & some trumpets. The penultimate track “The Light” gets conscious over a jazzy instrumental & the Bilal hook is just as soothing while the closer “Bury Me in Gold” talks about giving it all away to be in heaven over a fittingly churchy instrumental.

For a double disc album, this might be Big K.R.I.T.’s best work yet. It’s super consistent, it sounds focused, the lyricism is stronger than ever before, the production is immensely soulful & the passion is clear as day. I think Krizzle is amongst the most underrated right now & this double disc magnum opus could potentially be a modern classic within the next 3 years

Score: 4.5/5