This is the sophomore full-length LP from Los Angeles emcee Maxo. Emerging in 2015 off his debut EP After Hours, his profile would continuously grow following his next couple EPs Smile & most notably Lil Big Man to the point where Def Jam Recordings backed his debut Even God Has a Sense of Humor this past spring. Now that his 1-album major label deal is finished, Maxo is looking to introduce everyone to Debbie’s Son.
After the “Juanita” intro, the first song “Playdis!” featuring ZelooperZ is a cloudy opener to the album encouraging y’all to let this shit bump your speakers whereas “2 for $10” has to be one of my favorite on the LP from the groovy Beat Butcha instrumental to the lyrics feeling closer to his grave than anything else. Following that, “Another LAnd” proves to be another highlight as The Alchemist brings in an orchestral vibe to the instrumental asking to speak for a moment leading into “What Are You Looking For?” incorporates some bare drums to get on some spiritual shit.
“#3” shoots for a tropical atmosphere musically calling out someone who felt like they were too good for him just before another standout “Eyes on Me” produced by Uncle Al fuses jazz rap with contemporary R&B sometimes wishing the woman in his life had her eyes on him. The moody title track looks to take every piece of him & rearrange it while the groovy “Boomerang” talks about spitting like all he has is his word. “F.W.M. (Fuck with Me)” ends the LP by lusciously airing out why people fuck with him.
Maxo to me yet to drop an LP on the same caliber as Lil Big Man & considering that a few of the best songs he’s ever made reveal themselves here, it makes me more than hopeful of that in the future. We still get the jazzy abstract west coast hip hop from his major label-backed debut, but more contemporary R&B & lo-fi undertones in comparison.
This is a brand new collaborative album between west coast hip hop artists Ouija Macc & Trizz. The latter hailing from Los Angeles as a Brotha Lunch Hung protégé briefly signing to Madesicc Muziccwith the other taking the underground wicked shit scene by storm since signing to Psychopathic Records in 2017 & forming his own subsidiary of the Insane Clown Posse’s label that runs beneath the streets Chapter 17 Records over 2 years ago. Both of whom have crossed paths with each other a couple times in the past even though they’ve already made a name for themselves with stellar albums like Stalewind or Baseline Cavi. But with Ouija coming fresh off the 3-Headed Monster’s sophomore effort Rampage last week, he & Trizz are teaming up to make Coronella quite possibly the best collab project in his whole discography ahead of his upcoming 4th solo LP Darcc Planet.
The intro sets it off with an uncanny trap instrumental talking about they been down before & remain 10 toes down in spite of it all whereas “Pedigree” works in some horns & hi-hats declaring this to be a robbery with their destiny being the death of them. “Dead Presidents” gives off a murkier atmosphere acknowledging all these bitches want & Ouija taking a shot at Donald Trump just before the cloudy trap banger “Round the Way” talking about you waiting in Hell for them referencing WWE Hall of Famer, former 3-time WWE Champion, 11-time WWE tag team champion, the inaugural WWE Hardcore Champion, CWA World Tag Team Champion & TNA World Champion Mick Foley.
“Smoke Dope” gives off a nocturnal edge to the beat of course providing an anthem for all the smokers out there leading into the cavernous “International” produced by Devereaux talking about both of them being known on a global scale at this point in their careers. “Vegan Caviar” works in these rattling hi-hats promising to fuck you up, but then “Outcast” is a spacious boom bap ballad dedicated to everyone out there listening who’s been rejected by society.
Golden BSP on “Spokes” is ok despite the eerie trap production along with the subject matter of how this shit’s a game & they’re getting paid about it instead of playing about it while the cloudy “Black Card” calling out those who be frontin’ that they hard when we all know they’re not whatsoever. Brotha Lynch Hung gives one of the best feature performances throughout “The Opera” solemnly declaring that the homies will deal with any problem while “Too Many” has more of a traditional west coast sound to it talking about being surrounded by more than enough of the wrong people.
The song “Terror” featuring HEXXX mixes trap with g-funk sampling “High Powered” by RBX reminding everyone of their gangsta backgrounds & C17’s first signing spitting as hard as Brotha Lynch did a couple joints ago the penultimate track “Spiral” featuring Ricky Hil gives off an airier tone instrumental with smoking weed & drinking tequila being what they’re about. To finish Coronella, former Strange Music in-house producer MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 cooks up the psychedelic closer “I’m Outside” admitting they’re feeling like losing their minds.
2 & a half years ago by now when Ouija Macc teamed up with Baby E on We Never Forgot, it quickly became my favorite collaborative project that the hatchet’s biggest solo act had ever done even though it was a new sound for him. That being said: Ouija & Trizz have just dethroned that tape in favor of Coronella as his best collab effort & Trizz’ too. The guests are 50/50, but both MCs help bring the best out of one another as far as chemistry goes & the production is more eclectic from trap to boom bap & g-funk.
Joey Cool is a 38 year old MC from Kansas City, Missouri starting out as a long-time affiliate of local independent hip hop powerhouse Strange Music dropping a total of 4 mixtapes & a studio album on his own until Tech N9ne decided to officially sign him to the Snake & Bat in 2017. He then dropped an eponymous sophomore album the next spring followed by Old Habits Die Hard as well as Coolie High & I Tried to Be Normal Once. But with the 1-year anniversary of The Chairman of the Boardpassing by a couple months ago, Joey’s beginning the fall by enlisting Mario Casalini to fully produced his 7th album.
After the “It’s Rare” intro, the first song “Oh God” is a gospel trap crossover to start off the album declaring that he is who he is & that he will help teach you what to say on your journey whereas “Kingdom” featuring Tech N9ne is a more rap rock infused cut calling out those trying to bring their paradises down. “Kansas City Classic” shoots for a more playful vibe aesthetically talking about continuing to drop exactly that in you bastards leading into “Flickin’” giving off a bit of a west coast feel sonically reminding that he isn’t going anywhere.
“Sweet” featuring Lex Bratcher starts off with a wavy trap sound prior to a triumphant beat-switch during the 2nd half both being at a level that’s not near, but then “At My Expense” takes a groovier approach refusing to the back & forth tonight. After the “Please Tip Your Ushers” interlude, “Hallelujer” goes full blown gospel rap telling you to ask anyone if he’s been that dude just before “Closer Now” featuring K.A.A.N. & King Iso talks about how they was all supposed to drown there over a moody instrumental.
Meanwhile, “Sink” blends some keys & hi-hats tackling the concept of depression even further while “I Bet” featuring Wennely Quezada comes through with more of a pop rap duet accompanied by an spacious beat explaining that they just can’t go down the river. “Peanut Butter Jealous” featuring X-Raided pointing out how no one wanted flicks with him now that they’re well established with a bouncy trap instrumental while the lead single “Great Time”drops off a club banger for the 1-time.
“Buckets” gives off an eerie tone to the beat feeling like he’s on today while spirit-lifting “We Got Us” talks about how his mom told him there would we be days like this & that all his family as his each other specifically with his father Bill Johnson being featured on here as he’s been in the past. The penultimate track “Buddy Effyn” hops on top of a pitched sample explaining that too many tried to shade or change him & “American Swankster” closes out the album on a jazzier note declaring himself to be just that.
Now the deluxe has 8 bonus tracks & I’ll touch base on them. The first of which “Swank You Very Much” is this empowering trap rock cut talking about knowing that his mother is proud of him while “Big Cool” looks to add another title over more guitars & hi-hats. “Give ‘Em Hell” has this cool gospel flip throughout telling everyone to stop talking to him like it’s 2012 while “Oxygen” featuring Jehry Robinson gives off a peppier trap tone advising to get back.
“Chai Tea” featuring Lex Bratcher goes into a futuristic direction talking about being off the titular mixed-spice tea while the piano-driven “Don’t Cry” featuring Mac Lethal talks about not shedding tears for them. The “Kingdom” remix adds 2 new verses from King Iso & High Deafinician of the unConventionAl KingZ that make it better than the original & “Do-Over” ends the deluxe by having Matt Phoenix help Joey go full-on rock down to the Swankiest of Strangeland flexing his singing voice predominantly.
Self-titled & Old Habits Die Hard are my personal favorite albums in Joey’s catalog, but Enjoy the View has to be my favorite that he’s done in a while in my opinion. Mario Casalini’s production gives off a different vibe of its own & the American Swankster himself happens to be the most emphatic he’s ever previously as far his performances go. Couple underwhelming features too, but it should be noted that most of them stick the landing.
Crossworm is a 42 year old recording artist & producer from Grand Rapids, Michigan starting as 1/2 of 2Korpse before branching out on his own for the full-length solo debut Phoenix. This was followed up by a sophomore LP Ready to Burn alongside 2 EPs Mouth Full of Dirt & jaws: Deciduous respectively. Crossworm took a few years off after the latter only to return in the summer of 2014 by dropping 4 more albums: Parasite Avenue, Drowning in Restricting Thought, Finding X & Eat the Weak. Coming off his 3rd EP Gōst this past spring, that was all building up to the 7th LP in the Dirtcore Music founder’s discography & the 10th solo effort overall if you include all 3 EPs that I previously mentioned.
After the “Play” intro, the first song “Finally Alive Again” opens the album by setting the tone for it singing over synthesizers that he took a lesson from the brave whereas “Everything Changed” delves further into synth-pop territory singing that he needs his significant other here with him. “It’s Unheard Of” gives me a bit of an industrial vibe continuing to sing that he doesn’t know how it all came to him just before the quasi-funky “Candy” talks about trying to find something sweeter.
“Your Misery” points out that there’s no one out here in the street other than you & him over another synth-pop beat leading into “Get Out of Here” by Bodies Below Sea Level talking about finding themselves in these long waters they’re treading accompanied by an electro-pop instrumental. “Slovenly” makes it clear people tried to turn him at the stake again & he barely made it out alive with some rock undertones musically, but then “Burn” featuring Oblivia bringing back the funk a little covering The Cure joint of the same name.
The penultimate track “Protogeist” shoots for a spacier approach to the beat admitting that he’s on the fence of someone he used to be & someone that he’s actually never been in the past prior to “Feel” featuring Good Spells rounding out the LP on a cloudier note talking about feeling this woman whenever he breathes & knowing from when he sees it that them being a couple wasn’t meant to be.
This dude has always displayed his versatility over these past couple decades & for ANTI, he makes a stylistic departure from the horrorcore sound that he came up on in favor of drawing inspiration from synthpop music. His singing is reminiscent to that of the late LINKIN PARK frontman Chester Bennington & the production he cooks up is more reminiscent to that of Depeche Mode.
Paradime is a 48 year old MC, producer, DJ & hype man from Detroit, Michigan who was discovered by WWE Hall of Famer Kid Rock in 1996 signing to Bobby’s very own Top Dog Records. He eventually made his full-length debut few years later with Paragraphs, but the sophomore effort Vices in the fall of 2001 would go on to become his most celebrated body of work yet. Following 11 Steps Down & Spill at Will however, Dime would mainly take a step back from music & is returning after 16 years by signing to Mello Music Group for his 5th album.
After the “Porch” intro, the title track sets the tone of what’s to come with a piano-heavy instrumental from Pig Pen & DJ Los on the wheels of steel flexing his penmanship whereas the self-produced “It’s Ok” works in a gospel-flip talking about how he used to hit a 5th a day praying for the IRS to go away. “Same Planet” ruggedly discusses being on the same plane as these other cats with the help of Middle Finger Music in-house producer Peace of Mind just before “Annie” is a cloudy boom bap tribute to his daughter laced by Chanes.
“This High” featuring A-Minus works in some lavish keys, kicks & snares courtesy of Apollo Browncalling out those who didn’t think they could take it as high as they could leading into “Heart on Tape” blends some acoustics & hi-hats coming from a more emotional place with his delivery. “Diahubeetus” is a woodwind-trap hybrid produced by Charlie Beans taking about diabetes with a speedy flow of course, but then “Wolf of Greys” featuring Marv Won & Ty Farris finds the trio over a soul sample getting on their hardcore shit.
Meanwhile, “September 22nd” tackles the significance of this day to him on top of a dreamy trap instrumental while “Resurrection of Lemmy” returns to the boom bap thanks to Middle Finger co-founder Foul Mouth being able to see through all the cap that comes towards his way while “Could Be” is a groovy rap rock jam with Marv Won behind the boards reflecting on when he used to tell them he knew life would be this good & that he feels like he truthfully didn’t in the grand scheme of things.
“Folded Hands” hooks up these pianos, keys & snares talking about having questions that need to be answered up until “The Trap” interlude brings back the hi-hats to switch up his flow a bit. “Rock a Bye” featuring Guilty Simpson dives back into boom bap turf getting on murk mode while “Dumb” comes through with a club banger produced by Eminem’s current hype man mR. pOrTeR from prior D12 fame. The penultimate track “Phlegm” featuring production & verse from Copywrite hooks up a sample with kicks & snares continuing to bring it hardcore, but “Make My Way” is a heartfelt closer about having to do exactly that.
After setting his solo career aside to treat music strictly as a profession previously having no plans to ever rap again, what mattered more was cultivating a strong family & a thriving DJ, production & songwriting career. However, he’s back after 16 years like he never left with a lot to say. The production balances some old sounds with some new in a healthy dosage & Dime’s just rapping like getting sucker-punched in the nose by a fist.
Torae is a 46 year old MC from Coney Island, New York emerging in 2008 off his debut mixtape Daily Conversation & the follow-up Allow Me to Reintroduce Myself. Fast-forward to the next spring/summer, he enlisted Toronto, Ontario, Canada beatsmith Marco Polo for his next 2 tapes Armed & Dangerous and Double Barrel before preluding his full-length debut For the Record on Valentine’s Day 2011 by releasing the debut EP Heart Failure. For the Record would come that fall & a 2nd EP Off the Record consisting of outtakes from that debut LP arrived about 9 or 10 months later. Torae then put out his 5th mixtape Admission of Guilt a week before spring & eventually released his sophomore effort Entitled when 2016 started. He’s been pretty much doing features since then, but is re-emerging with Marco Polo returning behind the boards to unleash the 3rd album in his discography.
“Reloaded” is a grimy boom bap opener looking to aim at your spot whereas “The Return” works in an orchestral sample as well as some kicks & snares talking about being back up in this bitch after 7 & a half long years. “Makin’ Up” takes the soulful route asking if you rockin’ that ill shit just before “Oh No” flips “Remember(Walking In The Sand)” by The Shangri-Las a thousand times better than TikTok did talking about how he can’t be fucked with lyrically.
Meanwhile, “Grey Sheep” is another rugged boom bap talking about being here for the cash money & to last leading into “Life Behind Bars” shoots for a tender approach atmospherically talking about his personal experiences of what it was like for him to be incarcerated. “Mardi Gras” blends more horns, kicks & snare so than describe the way they mob the streets, but then “Rap Shit” is another sample-based boom bap cut talking about taking this seriously.
I think the gospel flip on the penultimate track “Days of Your Lifetime” is pretty dope as are the subject matter revolving around the fact that the days that we live don’t even compare to his on any circumstances whatsoever & “More Danger” is an incredibly raw closer paying homage to one of my all-time favorite KRS-One cuts ”Rappaz R.N. Dainja”.
As someone who got into Torae during my freshman of high school when For the Record came out & enjoyed that album as much as I did Double Barrel, I’m very happy to hear that he & Marco reunited here because this could very well be better than the body of work they did together 14 years ago. The signature boom bap production from the Toronto maestro & hardcore lyricism from the Coney Island wordsmith have always sounded great together, but they elevate it here over a decade later.
This is the 3rd full-length album from Los Angeles, California recording artist Doja Cat. Blowing up in 2018 off her viral novelty single “MOOO!”, was followed up the next year with her debut mixtape Hot Pink which was decent as a whole despite the fact that “Say So”solidified that she wasn’t going away anytime soon. Planet Her showed some improvement compared to her previous works by delivering a pop rap/R&B concept album based around a self-originated world. However, my expectations for Scarlet were higher considering that it was confirmed to be a full-blown hip hop effort.
”Paint the Town Red” stars off the LP by pulling from snap & chipmunk soul saying what she said whereas Demons” is an underwhelming no melody trap metal/horrorcore hybrid d.a. got that dopehelped put together laced asking if bitches are shook now that her pockets are on swole. “Wet Vagina” takes a roudier approach hilariously declaring herself to be the queen of drip, but then “F.T.G. (Fuck the Girls)” comes through with a trunk-knocking instrumental from Beat Butcha charismatically giving a middle finger to the hoes hating.
Meanwhile, “Ouchies” is a 2-minute riot starter laced by London on da Track & Sean Momberger with her popping it all off referencing WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson just before “‘97” takes lavish route thanks to Jay Versace talking about how it looks like she genuinely doesn’t give a shit whatsoever. “Gun” moves the album forward with a cloud trap joint clarifying that she does in fact know how to use a firearm leading into the atmospheric “Go Off” flaunts the new materialism such as ice that she had recently acquired.
“Shutcho” ends the first half of the LP with a dreamier instrumental calling out those who be running their mouths nonstop while “Agora Hills” blends these hi-hats & icy synths getting on the more romantic side of things conceptually. “Can’t Wait” goes into luscious boom bap turf eager to being next to that special man in his life while “Often” gives off a funky neo-soul tone talking about this guy must do the bullshit he pulls on her quite frequently. Moving on from there, “Love Life” spaciously makes it clear that she loves when her life’s like this while “Skull & Bones” goes for a ghostly feeling sonically talking about the only thing she folds under is pressure.
“Attention” fuses jazzy boom bap with trip hop & neo-soul courtesy of Rogét Chahayed embracing herself as she disses the people who’ve disliked & hated her for her change in appearance in the public eye while ”Balut” pulls from g-funk a little bit too comparing it to takin’ candy from a baby. The “WYM” freestyle that rounds out the new best full-length album in Doja Cat’s discography finds her kicking it off the top for a couple minutes over an orchestral loop & hi-hats.
DJ Camper’s soulful beat on “Acknowledge Me” is a good way to get the deluxe rolling hating herself when you get under her skin while “Disrespectful” talks about a hustler who ain’t getting funds over piano chords, kicks & snares. “URRRGE!!!!!!!!!!” featuring A$AP Rocky draws inspiration from the Memphis scene fighting the urge to keep gettin’ rich while the playful trap cut “OkLoser” addresses a chick who left the team. “MASC” featuring Teezo Touchdown talks about being too grown for bullshit backed by a rich trap instrumental while the pop rap/trap crossover “Piss” produced by CashMoneyAP likens her diamonds to urine & “Headhigh” mellowly ends the bonus track run talking losing faith in humanity.
Doja Cat has proven before that she could rap her ass off so when it was announced that Scarlet was going to be predominantly built around that style, I knew it had to be better than Planet Her & sure enough: it is. She delivers some of her most passionate performances to date, the production is refined compared to the last LP & I like how she ditched to features to hold down the fort all by herself.
This is the sophomore full-length album from New York rapper, singer/songwriter, producer & Galactic Records founder Lil Tecca. Blowing up in 2018 after signing a distribution deal with Republic Records & the viral single “Ran$om”, it would later be included on his debut mixtape We Love You Tecca that same year & would receive lukewarm reception although it’s truthfully grown on me a tad bit over the course of time. His debut LP Virgo World was released during the pandemic & is widely considered to be the weakest entry in his discography. The last time we heard from Tecca was a couple summers ago when Internet Money Records founder Taz Taylor executive produced a worthy sequel to We Love You Tecca & is looking to give a listeners a closer at Tec.
“Yves” is a cloudy trap opener produced by BNYX of Working on Dying asking the the fuck is you on & that his shawty knows he’s a Don whereas “H.O.E. (HVN ON EARTH)” featuring Kodak Black works in a cloudy pop rap atmosphere talking about the women in their lives behind Heaven to them. “Gist” goes into plugg territory a bit courtesy of Rio Leyva & Taz Taylor feeling like they tried to stab him in the back when all he did was count the bread, but then “500lbs” blends some synths & hi-hats talking about not trusting a single thing he’s told.
On the other hand, “Fell in Love” featuring Ken Carson finds the 2 getting boastful over some rage beats just before the title track talks about regretting but not receiving accompanied by cloudier instrumental from Taz. “Salty” has a spacey, orchestral trap quality to it that Dynox provides with Nick Mira as well as Rio & once again Taz ballin’ regardless leading into the summery “Real Discussions” looks to never take this shit for nothing.
“Dead or Alive” shows off his wealth & looks back on his upbringings over a glossy instrumental while the dancehall-inspired “Want It Bad” is soured by mediocre romance-inspired subject matter. “U Don’t Know Tec” gives off a moodier vibe dissing those try to associate themselves when it only benefits them while “Used2This” talks about switchin’ hoes like switchin’ the channel over an incredibly colorful ass beat.
To start the final leg of the LP, the piano-driven “Trippin’ on U” admits he can’t change this bitch & is unwilling to do so while “Either Way” promises to never switch sides with a somewhat afrobeats inspired sound. The penultimate track “Need Me” returns to a trillwave groove keeping his day going & “Monday to Sunday” concludes Tecca’s sophomore effort by doing this shit early every day over synths as well as hi-hats.
I’m going to have to take back my previous statement when Virgo World dropped that this guy was a 1-hit wonder because as I mentioned: We Love You Tecca has grown on me with time & the sequel was cool. That being said: Tec beat the sophomore slump allegations on here because I can truly say it’s the best full-length LP to date. The production compared to the debut 3 years before is more consistent & Tecca profoundly shows us how much he’s grown up.
This is the 4th full-length album from Detroit trap trio the ShittyBoyz. Consisting of BabyTron alongside Stanwill & TR Dee, they emerged off their debut mixtape 3-Peat under Lando Bando’s own The Hip Hop Lab Records in the summer of 2019 taking the motor city by storm & following it up with another tape & 2 full-lengths with the last ones being Trifecta as well as the the sequel last summer shortly after BabyTron performed at the Gathering of Dreams with his father Mr. Sadistic of former Psychopathic Records rap metal outfit Motown Rage. Over a year later, the Boyz are now looking to close out the trilogy by completing the TRIF3CTA with a finale.
“Perfect 3” starts it all off with some flutes & hi-hats talking about how they really are an immaculate trio together whereas “Boomshakalaka” works in some horns tossing the mic back & forth with each other boasting that they’re the ones. “Triumphs & Trophies” is a 2-minute bell/trap crossover encouraging to let them get the drop, but then “Tronald & Stanley” if you couldn’t tell by the name finds the Dookie Brothers jumping over pianos for a minute & a half saying you can’t see them like 16-time WWE world champion, 4-time WWE tag team champion & 5-time WWE United States Champion John Cena.
Meanwhile, “50 Boyz” gives off a straight forward Detroit trap sound talking about how they be with the fuckery leading into “Fun & Games” gets on their hi-NRG shit betting the’ll put ‘em in the ground if it’s beef for that cheese. “Forever Lit” has a more suspenseful atmosphere declaring that they’ll always be up just before “Fly Life” beautifully kicks the hi-NRG back up going into detail of the fly shit they be doing.
“Mosh Pit” references former 14-time WWE world champion, WWE Hall of Famer, 5-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 3-time WWE tag team champion & WWE’s current CCO Triple H while “Duck! Duck! Goose!” aggressively cautions not to flex on them because they’ll embarrass you in the process. The synth-laced yet Bay Area inspired “Mood Switch” that Jakesand cooked up points out that they’re still undefeated while “Ball Players” gives off a piano-driven trap vibe chockfull of basketball players wordplay including a bar about Point Grey Pictures founder Seth Rogen, who plays Allen on Invincible.
Moving on from there, “Tip Off” makes me feel like blasting this in the middle of driving downtown making it no secret that they’ve been waiting just to ball while the cloudy “WrestleMania” named after the Endeavor-owned TKO Group Holdings division WWE’s marquee event makes it clear that they ain’t even gonna fight. “Game 7” gets on their back & forth shit for a minute a half over a rowdy beat calling out those in the club who ain’t throwing shit while “Juggernaut” brings back the synthesizers contemplating if this shit for them on the beach as they dancing.
“Sh!tty Pack” featuring BFB da Packman goes into a more sample-based trap direction even though BFB doesn’t do it for me not wasting bullets on their asses while “On Fire” hooks up a shimmery backdrop with hi-hats having more stripes than a referee. “Wembanyama” blends these strings, bass licks letting it be known his cousin in a suit after saying the wrong shit until “Danny & Jake” featuring GrindHard E & YSR Gramz ends the album with the latter 2 getting washed in a 3 minute cypher.
This whole trilogy has been some of the ShittyBoyz’ best material & they went on a pretty fun note to complete the TRIF3CTA. Wasn’t too big on the features personally, but the Detroit trap production never fails to interest me as do the charismatic chemistry that the trio have always had. Here’s to the next chapter of the biggest group that the local trap scene has to offer today.
This is the 13th full-length album from New Jersey emcee Cymarshall Law. Emerging back in ‘04 as part of the duo Power Man & Iron Fist alongside the late Pumpkinhead, it wasn’t until 3 years later where he branched out on his own off the full-length debut Hip Hop in the Flesh, which was followed up by the Hip Hop in the Soul trilogy & Freedom Express. He’s made a handful since, which the last one I covered being I Still Love H.E.R. couple years back. But with the 1-year anniversary of The Sorcerer’s Art Supplies coming & going over the weekend, Cymarshall’s returning as The Peaceful Warrior.
The “Warren Peace” intro is a angelic boom bap opener to the album talking about how original & different he is whereas “Burn Bright” takes a jazzier route declaring himself to be a burning sensation on the mic. “Outside Looking In” brings in more jazz horns, kicks & snares hoping better days are ahead as it’s looking grim for him right now leading into the piano boom bap infused The Orator” living up to it’s name perfectly saying just because you started your journey early doesn’t mean you have to get to the destination before them.
“Doing My Thing” gives off a groovier vibe talking about being out here doing his own shit these days prior to “The Pressure” works in some strings as well as kicks & snares talking about the pressures that he’s been dealing with in his personal life. “Find the Top” is another piano-boom bam cut saying he loves hip hop culture more than Jada Pinkett Smith loved 2Pac, but then the title track talks about being ready when the time comes over a mellow backdrop laced with kicks & snares.
Meanwhile, “Soul Mates” featuring a soulful hook from Kafeeno is a moody boom bap pop rap crossover to start of the 2nd half of the album talking to that one special woman in his life while “Competitive Man” brings it back to you raw getting on some hardcore shit. “Palm of My Hand” gets dustier sonically talking about having the game on lock while “Royalty” ends the 3rd leg of the LP with some keys, kicks & snares talking about how their spiritual intelligence could never be taken away from them.
“Speak It Into Existence” starts the 4th quarter of the album with another piano/boom bap hybrid discussing how he really spoke his good fortune into existence all from being persistent while “Lost” featuring Peter Anguira on the hook takes a dreamier approach instrumentally getting on some more personal subject matter drawing from his past. “Insecure” is another jazzy boom bap cut giving a shoutout to anyone listening who’s ever felt inconfident & “Keep Growing” featuring Talk2Francis closes out the album with both of them over a dreamy loop with kicks & snares talking about being here for growth.
Compared to The Sorcerer’s Art Supplies a whole year ago, The Peaceful Warrior is unquestionably better. Maybe even a tad bit superior to I Still Love H.E.R. the year before that. Slimline Mutha’s production ranges from jazzy boom bap reminiscent to that of one of my personal top 5 producers Pete Rock to moody pop rap with Cymarshall getting more personal on the lyrical side of things.
Legends Will Never Die 