Stanwill – “Stan Always Will” review

Detroit, Michigan rapper Stanwill starting the new month with his 4th studio LP. Coming up as 1/3 of the ShittyBoyz with Babytron & TR Dee signing to Lando Bando’s own The Hip Hop Lab Records, he eventually branched out on his own during the COVID-19 pandemic off the debut EP $camwill as well as it’s successor Gifted & the debut mixtape Van Gundy. He also went Full Auto for his 3rd EP & 4ever $hittin’ after Still $hittin’ celebrated it’s 1-year anniversary last weekend trying out new sounds, he’s clarifying that Stan Always Will.

“No Lol” comes out the gate referencing current AEW performer & commentator as well as former 7-time WWE world champion, 11-time WWE Tag Team Champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion & 3-time WWE Hardcore Champion Paul Wight whereas “Power” talks about not being as sweet as some think he is. “Spring Fling” keeps it in the Detroit trap style instrumentally describing a girl he met named Summer while “4th Dimension” produced by Danny G treats beef like a shish kebab.

As for “Rocky Road”, we have Stan talking about taking the dirt path & coming out icier than he ever was leading into “Lime Light” featuring Nasaan uniting both of them so they can trade verses with each other talking about hittin’ muhfuckas with the fire soon as they catch ‘em. “50 Shots” throws in a cool bar referring to the Amazon-owned Fire TV Sticks turning any television set into a smart TV just before “Kung Pao” discusses having to do no talking & let the guns fire off.

“Kelly Olynyk” has a grittier Detroit trap flare to the beat comparing himself to the New Orleans Pelicans player of the same name prior to TR Dee joining Stan on “Pushing Daisies” to talk about the paper giving them butterflies soon as they see it cruising in a 45 except they feel like they pushin’ 80. “Run & Gun” boasts that his stash is 3x the size of whatever yours is providing the soundtrack for those who be spinning the block while “Rock Lee” featuring T Bone drops people similarly to the Naruto character.

The classy sample during “Bora Bora” was pleasant to the ears telling his girl that it’s normal for his competition to be punching under their weight in a battle with him while “Villain Arc” talks about people getting him in a time where he bounces back from a tragic event in his life. “Voila” likens the way he lives now to BMF co-founder Big Meech keeping only the pros in his mind these days while “Recipe” featuring Babyfxce E claps back at people claiming that have the sauce taking it up a notch.

“Cuban Links” continues the 2nd half of Stan Always Will airing people out quicker than the greatest basketball player of all-time Michael Jordan while “GG” humorously suggests that he injures bitches the way he be smashin’ ‘em. “Mucinex” shows a bit of a Mobb influence calling anyone stupid to get in an altercation with the Dog $hit Militia while “Ding Dong” by the Dookie Brothers references former ECW World Heavyweight Champion, ECW World Television Champion, IWGPタッグチャンピオン, WCW Hardcore Champion & 2-time WCW World Tag Team Champion Bam Bam Bigelow.

The song “Powerball” reaches the album’s final moments feeling like the Warner Bros. subsidiary DC Entertainment-owned Superman ahead of the DC Universe media franchise & shared universe beginning in a couple months while “2 Easy” talks about jackin’ people in the face wearing the honorary WWE Hardcore Champion Travis Scott’s line of shoes. “By Any Means” finishes us off by hoping he runs into his enemies & cutting off people who ain’t did shit for him.

53 weeks since the most versatile body of work in Stan’s solo discography & he takes it back to a prominent Detroit trap style for this one spitting rapid fire verses on nearly every song in addition to him bringing on a more consistent guest list that delivers less misses than hits steadily keeping up with his pen. Whether he’s by himself or accompanied by either one or both of his ShittyBoyz cohorts, Stan Always Will deliver & come correct in terms of leveling up in terms of making the most exciting music in his style.

Score: 4/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Kanye West – “DONDA 2” review

Chicago, Illinois rapper, singer/songwriter, producer, fashion designer, former G.O.O.D. Music founder & YZY SND’s sole proprietor Ye or formerly known as Kanye West finishing his 11th studio LP. Someone who I personally have considered a top 10 producer of all-time up until this point with 3 perfect 10s in his discography: The College Dropout, Late Registration & My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy. However since late 2022, he has been on a mission to destroy his legacy by identifying as a Nazi on Alex Jones’ fake news platform InfoWars. He’s been taking it up a few notches for the past couple months on Twitter owned by Tesla CEO, SpaceX founder, Neuralink founder & fellow Nazi Elon Musk making comments that’re antisemitic, ableist, homophobic & misogynistic or dissing numerous celebrities including showing envy towards Kendrick Lamar since he’s on the throne of the rap game. Coming off his vile interview with child groomer DJ Akademiks earlier this month, Ye has randomly decided to finish Donda 2.

“True Love” was an average pop rap, alternative R&B, emo rap & boom bap intro produced with Mike Dean talking about how genuine romance shouldn’t be complicated with a surprisingly great hook from the late XXXTENTACION whereas “Broken Road” pondering what it means to find your soul on top of a doleful beat that original G.O.O.D. Music in-house producer Brian “AllDay” Miller had a hand with Ye in making & Don Toliver’s hook on here is so catchy. “Get Lost” goes a cappella looking back on all the good & bad memories of his life so far with an excessive amount of auto-tune slathering his vocals leading into “Flowers” throwing it back to the Graduation days in terms of sound courtesy of Digital Nas encouraging to send him $100k rather than the titular object.

As for “Too Easy”, we have Ye embracing a bit of a glitchier quality to the production thanks to Dem Jointz & Beach House discussing his trials & tribulations just before “Pablo” featuring Future follows it up with a trap cut that ATL Jacob, FNZ & $crim of the $uicideboy$ helped laced except Ye uses AI or what I like to call YeI for his verse. “Mr. Miyagi” featuring Future & Playboi Carti takes the drill route instrumentally likening themselves to the wise sensei from the Karate Kid films using more YeI until Future sticks around for “Happy” & it’s WAY better than “Pablo” other than the YeI from the peppier flare Wheezy delivers behind the boards to the subject matter asking the world if they look like they’re doing fine to them.

“Security” asserts that nothing can get in the way of him being with his family & Digital Nas’ production here almost reminds me of Yeezus in a way except Ak’s intro at the start was a sickening move while “Sci-Fi” works in some string sections as Sean Leon joins Ye in addressing his divorce from Kim Kardashian or The Hobbit now romantically involved with a Tesla robot. “Louie Bags” starts off great with its hypnotic beat & talking about boycotting LV after Virgil Abloh’s passing except Jack Harlow’s verse & the YeI ruin it. Can’t forget to mention the fact that Ye tweeted “Fuck Virgil” this February when his meltdowns began to worsen & has a song coming out at some point in the year called “Virgil Let Me Down” telling Ak it’s all because he’s evil.

Baby Keem appears with Quavo & Offset on “We Did It Kid” with Tom Levesque of Vanguard Music Group supplying additional production addressing the hardships they endured to achieve their current success & the product of their constant grind while the industrially drumless “Maintenance” talks about those who’s preservation or upkeep is constantly high. “Lord Lift Me Up” is a decent Vory solo cut BoogzDaBeast helped Ye cook up asking for God to lift up his spirits & “First Time in a Long Time” featuring Soulja Boy ends with them talking about Ye’s faith in God & his feelings stemming from his divorce from Kim using YeI as well as Big Draco’s humble beginnings & everything he’s done to achieve success. “Jesse” starts the deluxe run with a bubbly trap beat butchering it with YeI vocals while “Suzy” reminds me of Graduation minus the YeI. The final bonus track “City of Chi” gets plagued with YeI again talking about being closed for business.

Hearing the original version of this that came out 3 years ago, I’m happy & furthermore shocked than anything regarding Donda 2 finally getting to see the light of day except I don’t think those who won’t find themselves forgiving Ye for initially abandoning it won’t find themselves satisfied with it & I’ll argue the final product isn’t even that much better than the original was. The pop rap, trap, contemporary R&B, alternative R&B & gospel sound hasn’t really changed all that much except that the mixing is considerably worse since Mike Dean literally hasn’t had anything to do with Ye in 2 & a half years by now.

Score: 2/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Death Row Records – “Altar Call” review

Death Row Records is the infamous west coast hip hop record label based in Beverly Hills, California founded by Dr. Dre, Suge Knight, The D.O.C., Dick Griffey & Harry-O. A dominant force in the sunshine state during the early & mid 90s, the label began to decline due to Dre departing for starting up Aftermath Entertainment in addition to Master P fresh off his AEW Dynamite appearance during The Opps’ celebration as the new AEW World Trios Champions this past week signing WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg to No Limit Records & of course 2Pac’s murder currently investigating to see if disgraced Bad Boy Entertainment founder Puff Daddy a.k.a. P. Diddy or Diddy was involved in ahead of his upcoming sex trafficking trial. Snoop would buy Tha Row from MNRK Music Group the week of his Super Bowl LVI halftime show performance & has cleaned the label up by reviving it from the gamma. distribution deal to signing O.G.s like Tha Dogg Pound & Danny Boy or newcomers such as Merkules & D Smoke. Commemorating what would’ve been Snoop’s mother Beverly Tate’s 74th birthday, Death Row is releasing their 10th compilation album as a sequel to the RCA Records-backed Bible of Love.

“Mother I Miss You” by John P. Kee is this self-produced gospel intro dedicated to Snoop’s late mother whereas “No Backsliding” by Michael Bereal continues the Sunday Service thanks to his brother Charlie behind the boards singing about being too blessed to be stressed. “You Can Win” by Flintstone & Lisa Santa Cruz brings the duo together over a DJ Green Lantern instrumental promising victory if you keep your hands to the sky while “Redeemed” by Jane Handcock & Kanobby finds them achieving redemption over a Soopafly beat.

Curt Chambers makes his plea to God over some churchy choir vocals & organs for “Ready, Willing, Able” declaring his willingness to depend on the higher power just before “Been to Good to Me” by Flintstone sings about how great the Lord has been to them over a slow Mike & Keys instrumental. “Won’t He Do It” by Jazze Pha blends gospel & trap talking about putting God above everything always leading into “Grandma’s Hands” by Jamie Foxx acoustically remembers his grandmother.

“Help Me Jesus” introduces The Death Row Choir calling for the Son of Christ himself to help them during the hard times they’re going through while “Just Believe” by Jane Handcock mixes some organs & synthesizers singing about one having a lot on their mind with difficulty trying to find happiness. “Grace & Mercy” by Charlie Bereal gives off the Curtis Mayfield flare he’s known for asking for those 2 things respectively, but then “Like I Know God” by October London sings over pianos about not knowing God the way he does.

Uncle Snoop himself joins Charlie & Reo Varnardo whose daughter is the current AEW tbs Champion, 新日本プロレス STRONG女子チャンピオン & RPW British Women’s Champion Mercedes Moné on the gospel rap hybrid “Brand New” feeling reborn while “Call His Name” by Camille Grisby encourages to call for God & Jesus’ names whenever you’re lonely. “A Still Mind” by mR. pOrTeR formerly of D12 with Robert Glasper on piano confidently declares he’s got his feet set on the ground while “Never Failed Me Yet” by Mali Music sings about God never failing them.

“Yes” by Laura Wilson Johnson passionately gives in to the ways & will of the higher power while “Good Day” by Lil ½ Dead has a funkier soul approach keeping their peace of mind when it’s all said & done. “Done” by Charlie Bereal & Mali Music acoustically admits they don’t know what to do without God while “He is God” by Michael Bereal sings about healing when wounded. “Make Time” by Flintstone ends by smoothly asking if time can be made for.

My expectations for Altar Call were pretty low since Bible of Love wasn’t that good at all in my respectful opinion & the sequel surprisingly reflects on Beverly teaching Snoop to use his voice & his platform to spread love & heal the world similarly to his 2013 pop reggae album Reincarnated produced by Major Lazer back when I was a sophomore in high school. Some interesting names pop up during the production credits & the list of performers are stronger than they were 7 years ago.

Score: 3.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Fordio – “Fordi Milligrams” review

Michigan rapper Fordio releasing his full-length studio debut. Emerging in 2022 off his debut EP Foreva$camz, the follow-up Blame It on My Cup resulted the ShittyBoyz making him a member of their Dog $hit Militia collective signed to Lando Bando’s own The Hip Hop Lab Records dropping the Made & $tyle collab project with MJPaid & recently the Forever Juggin’ EP almost a year ago already. We literally got MJPaid’s own debut Paid Ponzi at the beginning of 2025 & here we are 3 months later with Fordio applying pressure on Fordi Milligrams.

“Rackz on Rackz” made for a cloudy Detroit trap intro imaging the YC & Future single of the same name whereas “No Lol” completely blocks out all the hate being spewed from the nosebleed section. “Aha” gives a spacious yet funky feeling to the beat making those who’ve turned on him regret their decisions while “Tell Me Sum” puts his faith in the drugs since he can’t trust a soul.

That subject matter gets delved deeper onto “Ain’t Feeling Luv” talking about taking percocets to help put him in a better mood leading into “Tryfe Lyfe” featuring Babytron refusing to give slices of their cheese since they’re too stingy with it. “Hot Boyz” featuring G.T. brings the pair together suggesting that people out here are more broke than they are tough while “Not Too Long” produced by Danny G talks about pouring up with 5 folks.

“Run” reaches the halfway point of the LP vowing to sprint until his legs don’t work anymore & counting his bread up until his hands go numb while “Dirty $oda Club” if you clearly couldn’t tell speaks of his love for sippin’ lean. “Jugg Anthem” experiments with plugg advising not to come around him if the loot isn’t a priority while “Y.N.B.W. (You N****s Better not Wait) talks about seeing millions coming in his dreams.

As for “IDK”, we have Fordio dismissing what others gotta say since he’s been in the v-cut & “PA All-Stars” featuring MJPaid & 72 Reezy unites the trio to talk about being the worst nightmare of any individual with nothing in their pockets until Baby Ghost outraps Glockboyz Teejaee on a song named after 6-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE tag team champion, 2-time AEW World Champion, inaugural ROH Hall of Fame inductee, ROH World Champion, 2-time ROH World Tag Team Champion, 5-time IWA World Champion & former UFC fighter “CM Punk” finally getting his WrestleMania main event last weekend.

“Leanin’” featuring Certified Trapper kicks off the 4th quarter of the tape trading verses over a lowend instrumental while “Overtime” suggests not to mind him or the crew whenever they pull up to your town. “72mg” oozes of psychedelia explaining that his heart is beating fast due to the drugs he’s consuming while “NeedDat” finishes the album talks about not being a fool whenever it comes to the bag.

Not too far off from Paid Ponzi several months back, Fordi Milligrams similarly to what that previously mentioned debut had done displays what Fordio has to offer by himself & makes me hope the other 2 members of the collective catch up to them with projects of their own. The production is a step up from that early material & despite a few features I could’ve done without, many of their verses rival Fordi’s.

Score: 4/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Roy Wood$ – “Dark Nights” review

This is the 5th EP from Brampton, Ontario, Canada rapper & singer/songwriter Roy Wood$. Signing to Drake‘s very own OVO Sound a decade ago already, he has since gone on to release a total of 3 full-length studio LPs & 4 EPs, with the most notable of the handful being the 2015 debut EP Exis & of course the debut album Walking at Dawn the following winter. Rolling Stone back in December felt like a bunch of uninspired Weeknd runoff & is looking to take us on a journey through the Dark Nights nearly 2 months since Drizzy followed the current 4-time WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Liv Morgan on social media regardless of her on-screen relationship with the newest WWE Intercontinental Champion Dominik Mysterio.

“So Obvious” begins by talking about clearly seeing this woman in pain advising her to lay her problems out in front of him whereas “Stay with Me” after a brief interlude asks for his lover not to leave him & asking what he has to do for their love. “Whatchu Mean” comes off as another Weeknd bite addressing an individual who has no love for themselves just before “What I Used to Get Into” produced by Drumma Boy talks about being different as of late.

To start the 2nd half, “Like You” embraces an alternative R&B vibe continue to copy The Weeknd singing that he’s as fucked up as his romantic interest is while “You” asks how did he ever let this relationship go wrong. “Disrespectful” speaks on a woman who’s constantly talking over him & “Tell Me What I’m Living For” responds by saying respect isn’t hard to show.

Roy initially saying that Dark Nights was gonna mark a return had me hoping that he would improve from the lackluster reception his most recent output has been receiving, but it’s still the same ol’ generic alternative R&B & pop rap we’ve been getting from him in who knows how long at this point. I understand the situations of betrayal he’s been through are very much real, the execution of it is what leaves little to be desired.

Score: 2/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Salami Rose Joe Louis – “Lorings” review

This is the 6th studio LP from San Diego, California singer/songwriter & producer Salami Rose Joe Louis. Coming up almost a decade ago off her full-length debut Son of a Sauce!, the subsequent sophomore effort Zlaty Sauce Nephew caught the attention of Flying Lotus & he wound up signing her to Brainfeeder Records distributed by Ninja Tune. Her debut for the label Zdenka 2080 would become the most revered entry of her entire catalog, coming off Chapters of Zdenka & Akousmatikous to invite us all on a personal exploration of her own through Lorings.

“Inside” begins with a 2nd single fusing elements of neo-psychedelia, art pop, indietronica & space ambient singing about being lost inside this person’s love whereas “Motorway” finds Flanafi bringing in a guitar & some percussion to express hope of those roaming the unfamiliar streets having mercy on her. “That Must Be Hard for You” sticks out to me as a least favorite of mine & it has to do with the repetition than the subject matter until the 5th & final single “A Sauna Sized Pill” sings about Michael Caine hiding under a rock in plain sight.

Meanwhile on “I Dunno Ways”, we have Lindsay spending 72 seconds repeatedly singing about her being unable to play the game because she doesn’t know the way while the minimalistic “I’ll Never Say” finds herself refusing to show this person what’s really deep inside of her mind. “Crow, Friendship” sings about carrying a loaf of rye on here trying to befriend a group of birds she regularly sees outside of her apartment leading into “Hobbies” opening up regarding her stepfather telling her to find a pastime, which I’d have to assume is music.

“Basketball” ends the 1st half with this 2 & a half minute composition that feels bittersweet just before the lead single “Arm Fell Asleep” blends neo-psychedelia, art pop, indietronica & ambient pop sings about an experience she had when going boat sailing. The 4th single “Fill the Void” kinda reminds me of Toro y Moi in a way explaining that she likes to ride on faith until “Upstairs” relies itself upon its dreamy instrumentation.

One of my favorite tracks would be “Wet Log” simply because of the raw emotion packed into only a minute & a half while “Dribs & Drags” sings about getting up off the ground & wanting to see the person she’s addressing being content with life. After the melancholic “A Pool to Cry In”, the final song “Farewell” preceding the “ Fill the void // house by the lake // coda” outro ties up all loose ends confessing that she wants to start a family in addition to making her family proud & wanting her partner to be more stable.

Compared to Zdenka 2080 & Akousmatikous, I’m a bit disappointed to say Lorings could be the weakest opus of the 3 she’s dropped since signing to Brainfeeder since I’d rank it above it’s predecessor & place Zdenka 2080 above it. I have no issue with the vulnerably introspective approach to indietronica, neo-psychedelia, art pop, ambient pop, bedroom pop & glitch pop carving out her personality over the course of 43 minutes. That said: There are a handful of moments where it feels like I’m listening to half baked demos due to the amount of ideas that sound incomplete.

Score: 3/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

M.M.M.F.D. – “Horrorcore” review

M.M.M.F.D. or Make My Muthafuckin’ Day is a horrorcore superduo consisting of Los Angeles, California wicked shit pioneer Cyco a.k.a. Insane Poetry alongside Denver, Colorado emcee & Lyrikal Snuff Productionz founder Scum. Introducing themselves off Random Acts of Violence as well as Unsubs & Butcher Brothaz, they would later begin the Deadly Drug trilogy with the 1st entry & the sequel Overdoze. Preluding the final chapter, they’re diverting from the concepts of both predecessors on their 6th studio LP.

“Then It Gets All Quiet” kicks it all off with a dark trap instrumental showcasing a back-&-forth deliver from both members suggesting to turn down the sobbing that only they can hear whereas “Monsters Among Us” works in some pianos talking about the inside of a book potentially being worse than it’s cover. “Devil’s Trident” by the trio of same name finds them fucking people up with no mercy prior to “On That Sick Shit” keeps it wicked.

As for “Vengeance”, we have M.M.M.F.D. getting back on a trap vibe to get their revenge just before “Corpse of a Foe” heads for a boom bap direction suggesting that their enemies should’ve never tried to come at them in the beginning. “D.W.T.D (Dance with the Devil)” maintains a dusty edge to the beat telling everyone to observe them & Satans dancing in the pale moonlight, but then “Never Be the Same” talks about your chances of survival changing you forever.

“Brazen Bull” produced by Gibby Stites gets the 2nd half of Horrorcore started with another boom bap instrumental proclaiming that they’ve come to commit torture & the flames being hot while “In & Out” solemnly talks about punchin’ muhfuckas in the face in the middle of stab ‘em. “Soon” promises those being kept to rest will awaken & most will not survive while “Obey” brings a trap flare back to the table wanting a hostage to tell them what they know.

Hitting the final leg of the album, “2 Pumps & a Black Mask” assures they still have the Deadly Drug secured in a black bag & overdosing off the sick while “Let the Beasts Out” unleashes the demons from within to leave their opps hangin’ from a hook. “Head on a Spike” cautions their competition to stay away from them if they know what’s best & the closer “Stampede” puts the final nail in the coffin by talking about seeing only red.

Continuing to celebrate 25 years of Snuff, M.M.M.F.D. comes off this past Easter weekend by delivering what I consider to be the best offering from the LSP camp thus far this year & hope whatever they have planned to drop in 2025 maintains this caliber of gore hop. The production is generally a mix of boom bap & trap except the lyricism from the duo truly is Horrorcore at it’s purest in response to people now watering down the style & trying to pass it off as such.

Score: 4/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Cappo – “Houses” review

Here is the 9th studio LP from Nottingham, East Midlands, England, United Kingdom emcee/producer Cappo. Known for being 1/2 of Oblique Strategies & 1/3 of VVV, he also has all 8 of his previous full-lengths as well as 8 extended plays & the YNR Productions-backed Fortune Cookie mixtape under his belt over the course of his career spanning a quarter of a century. S.T.A.R.V.E. (Striving To Achieve Real Values Everywhere) came out 8 months earlier conceptually building itself around the idea of isolation & Houses looks to mark a new chapter in the CAPStone trilogy.

The self-produced “Ghosts” asks whether one would blame him for his flaws or stay with him if he bared his soul whereas “Lyfe” produced by Sam Zircon discusses laying wide awake after lying to himself & hibernating. “HMRC” recalls a letter he got from His Majesty’s Revenue & Customs when he was in the middle of cleaning his kid’s room just before “Neutral” drumlessly talks about needing a minute or 2 so he can weigh the options he has.

“Funeral” moves on from there explaining that the more we move backwards, the more we’ll dwell upon it leading into “Unborn Seed” pens an open letter to an embryonic sibling to our protagonist’s children who would’ve looked similar to either his son or daughter. “Will We?” ends the 1st leg of Houses on some psychedelic trap vibes combining hi-hats & a pitched vocal sample suggesting to say how you really feel when the chance comes while “Sessy Lu” talks about trying to keep tabs of wheee he came from.

The 2nd half of the album continues with “Undigested Sweetcorn” incorporating a woodwind instrumental discussing him being free to focus on his intellect without any mental burdens getting in the way of it & after “Forces” talks about trying to shake off the pessimistic negatives he’s experience throughout his life, “Sprt Lvls” brings some ominous keyboards in the picture looking to move quickly due to him running out of time.

“Solitaire” pushes further towards the conclusion of Houses returning to the boom bap talking about prioritizing his own steez & him not co-signing anyone for money while “Lay Your Head Down” talks about him accepting that he & a polar opposite will forever be strangers to each other. The closing track “While You Sleep” brings Sam Zircon behind the boards 1 last time assuring a loved one who’s asleep that he’ll always be there for them.

Houses leaps 2 decades forward from it’s predecessor telling the story of a working-class early-middle-aged father of 2 struggling to come to terms with the societal restrictions, conformities & benefits of fatherhood in addition to making some commentary on the state of contemporary British society as opposed to continuing S.T.A.R.V.E. (Striving To Achieve Real Values Everywhere)’s portrayals of alienation informed by other depictions of the issue.

Score: 4/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Double Dragon – “Big Trouble with Double Dragon” review

This is the sophomore effort from underground superduo Double Dragon. Consisting of Louisville, Kentucky emcee & Mobstyle Music founder Bukshot as well as San Jose, California goth hop pioneer Kung Fu Vampire respectively, these guys made their eponymous debut as a unit in the beginning of 2021 taking their chemistry to new heights after making a name for themselves individually for the past few decades & collaborating with one another on several instances. 3 years later, they’re reforming to break down the Big Trouble with Double Dragon.

After the “Dragons of the Black Pool” intro, the first song “Big Trouble” produced by MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 works in a Chinese sample & elements of horrorcore getting pleasure of tasting blood whereas “Ruthless” ominously talked about the ruthlessness of the duo that has been absent for 4 long years. “Out the Mud” featuring C-Mob reflects making it after coming from absolutely nothing just before “Creatures” talks about leaving the Double Dragon imprint in your forehead when it’s all said & done.

“Nemesis Me” hooks up a prominent vocal sample during the hook breaking down the concept of being your own worst enemy leading into “Mushroom Clouds” talking about having a blast & turning the speakers all the way up loud. “Gods of War” featuring Str8jaket dabbles with trap metal letting it be known we’re in the middle of the apocalypse while “Lurkers” talks about Double Dragon being creators & advising to respect the shooter.

As for “In the Void”, we have Bukshot & Kung Fu Vampire wickedly discussing the clouds turning black & hearing white noise until “Where the Pieces Fit” brings Buk Norris at the altar looking for forgiveness figuring put the placements of these metaphorical puzzle pieces. “Sun Don’t Shine” featuring Gorilla Voltage brings both duos together to bring karma on your doorstep, but then “Cooler in a Coffin” suggests one would look better off dead.

“Never Say Die” hooks up these pianos & bells throughout that I find to be pretty infectious asking to be taken back during the days of Saturday morning cartoons during the 1980s & the Golden Era of the WME Group-owned TKO Group Holdings division WWE coming off WrestleMania XLI with John Cena defeating Cody Rhodes to surpass Ric Flair as a 17-time WWE world champion & the current TNA World Champion Joe Hendry being 14-time WWE world champion Randy Orton’s mystery opponent.

The song “Black Smoke” warns where those who’ll be disrespecting the Double Dragon will be taken & the closer “Stranger Things” featuring Joey Cool wraps up the final moments of Big Trouble with Double Dragon by homaging the hit Netflix sci-fi, horror, drama, mystery & coming-of-age series created by The Duffer Brothers currently finishing & gearing up the release of its upcoming 5th & final season at some point later on in the year.

When you look at the fact that both members of Double Dragon grew up in the 80s, it only makes sense for them to do a sophomore effort inspired by the film Big Trouble with Little China because the listening experience will be enhanced for anyone who’s seen that movie. Any huge fan of 1980s pop culture & hidden Easter eggs can say it does a little extra for you if you familiarize yourself with the movie on top of 7’s quality production & the chemistry feeling tighter.

Score: 4/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!

Fly Anakin – “(The) Forever Dream” review

This is the sophomore effort from Richmond, Virginia emcee Fly Anakin. Starting out roughly a decade ago, he first caught my attention in 2018 after being featured on Ankhlejohn’s magnum opus Van Ghost & started to gain even more exposure when he & Pink Siifu dropped their collaborative effort FlySiifu’s. His full-length debut studio album Frank that celebrated its 3-year anniversary last month was a great way of him honoring his father & is coming back to address (The) Forever Dream.

“Good Clothes” starts by talking about getting his mind right around the time of the COVID-19 lockdowns in 2020 & not needing to ask for forgiveness since he’s been taking what’s his whereas “Teen Summit” strips the drums thanks to Quelle Chris so he can try to build before going back. “My N***a” featuring Big Kahuna O.G. & $ilkMoney samples “Awaking of Our Senses” by Argo for a dedication to brotherhood while “Lil One” addresses an individual who wants something when he already owes something over a Micall Parknsun beat.

Lojii appears with Fly Anakin on the drumless chipmunk soul track “Check on Me” courtesy of August Fanon asking for their romantic interests to check & see how both of them are doing just before “Not Too Shabby” featuring Nickelus F, Quelle Chris & $ilkMoney brings the quartet together to talk about being closer to their dreams. “Lord Forgives, I Hold Grudges” featuring Denmark Vessey & Pink Siifu is pretty much their way of saying “god forgives, I don’t” leading into the string-laced “The Times” talks about his squad having most of their heads screwed on.

“Forever Dream” takes the drums out of the equation again painting a picture as if he’s Vincent Van Gogh while “Corner Pocket” featuring BBYMutha produced by The Alchemist gives a shoutout to themselves since they got money on the way. “YOUGOTME!!” after the “Dr. Phil” skit discusses being heartbroken after giving this woman everything & after the “Foreverever Dream” interlude, the soulful closer ”Say Thank You” featuring Pink Siifu & Turich Benjy ends by poignantly giving all praise to God.

Starting the deluxe run, “Happiness” featuring Henny L.O. & $ilkMoney after the “Clock Intro” spits individual verses of their own over a soul sample without the need of a hook while “Sayless” featuring NoGum Hundo gets on some jazzy boom bap shit staying about their cheddar. “I Need Those” featuring $ilkMoney strips the drums taking it back to when their mothers worked days while “Big Fat Jelly Got a Word For Us” comes through with a skit.

“Sadatay” featuring billy woods takes a more abstract approach to their songwriting over a Graymatter beat while “Bloodletting” featuring Domo Genesis & Quelle Chris wouldn’t be surprising if it was recorded around the same time as World Gone Mad or Scram! although everyone very much kills it. After the “Cauldron Coochie Lucy-lude”, we have BBYMutha returning for “A Twerk Song” although the jazzy instrumental suggests anything but.

The self-produced “Got a Gun” talks about setting shit in motion while “SSX Tricky” soulfully asks how one wages war without leverage. “Socks Over the Smoke Detector” featuring Fatima, Quelle Chris & $ilkMoney hits us with a jazzily drumless posse cut rapping for 6 minutes straight while the final bonus track “Sandwich Bag Boys” featuring Domo Genesis preceding the “Clock Outro” hops over some strings to talk about counting all day.

Some of the most experimentally ambitious material of Fly Anakin’s career winds up on (The) Forever Dream bringing together a collection of bright, diverse & downright gorgeous underground hop hop hip hop that’s so light-on-its-feet to the point where it can sometimes feel like it’s sweeping you off yours. I prefer the production here a little more than Frank because of the way utilizes relentlessly sunny & imaginative instrumental flourishes tilting its tracks from laid-back to cocksure to thoughtful with the elegance of a well-executed magic trick.

Score: 3.5/5

Keep up with @legendswill_never_die on Instagram & @LegendsllLiveOn on Twitter for the best music reviews weekly!