King Kong Bundyy – “Tales from Castle” review

This is the 3rd EP from Spring Valley, New York emcee King Kong Bundyy. Originally starting off under the moniker G-Field, he would put out 2 mixtapes Street Credibility & Bail Money before Benny the Butcher signed him to his ever-growing indie label Black Soprano Family Records for his 2019 debut EP Living Life Bundyy. A follow-up EP The Lost Files happened to be unearthed by B$F last Black Friday & now that the 1-year anniversary of the predecessor coming next month, Bundyy’s returning a week after the 4th quarter of 2024 began so he can tell some Tales from Castle.

After the “Heavyweight” intro, the “Where Was You At?“ remix featuring Funch the Camden Kid truly starts the EP with both artists over a piano-trap beat talking about almost giving up wanting to know where the homies were at their lowest whereas “Do or Die” featuring SuperChilly takes a cloudier approach instrumentally asking nothing more than trust. “Gotta Get Mine” works in a soulful boom bap beat to put his life on the line taking risks while “Mozart’s Keys” grittily talks staying in the trap since it doesn’t get boring. “Kan’t Sleep” ends the Tales from Castle soulfully discussing being unable to sleep these days.

Living Life Bundyy & The Lost Files are both good places to start for any B$F fan who has yet to familiarize themselves with King Kong Bundyy, but I’d recommend Tales from Castle since you get a better idea as to who he is & where he comes from in to addition to him artistically himself to a new level. Even if both of the features are ok, the Spring Valley artist gives the listeners a glimpse of the personal experiences that’s he’s had on Castle Avenue with the production healthily balancing the boom bap & trap sounds.

Score: 3.5/5

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Elcamino – “Millionaire” review

Buffalo emcee & singer Elcamino staying busy with his 3rd EP of 2024 & the 17th of his discography overall. Blowing up in 2017 off his self-titled EP with Griselda Records, his profile increasingly grew after being followed up by Walking on Water mixtape in the summer of 2018 along with dropped 2 studio albums & a few EPs the year after that.. They Spit on Jesus proved to be a well received Black Soprano Family Records debut the first Camino project that I had covered since On the 3rd Day & that much like No Weapon Formed Against Me was an improvement over some of the material we’ve gotten from him in recent memory. 6 months after having Real Bad Man produce The Game is the Game followed by Ill Tone recently producing Built for Cuban Links named after Raekwon’s iconic solo debut Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…produced by RZA, Meech looking to start the final quarter of the year flexing his Millionaire status.

“Money Mayweather” featuring Estee Nack sets the tone of what’s to come with it’s luxurious boom bap instrumental & the lyrics tryna cause a head-on rainstorm whereas “Chill Lord” kinda gives off a psychedelically dusty vibe feeling more like an actual song rather than an interlude talking about your whole entire style being animated. “Paid in Full” featuring Estee Nack works in some vibraphone sampling mixed with kicks & snares admitting at least 10 people in the Griselda camp have become rich prior to “Gambino Family” featuring Estee Nack hopping over a classy beat looking to do big business.

Starting the final leg of the EP, “The Gold Elephant” returns to the boom bap with more of a soulful flare letting y’all know that this rap shit can do you right since he ended up eating after several years of negligence while the beat on “Maybach Muzik” most definitely feels inspired by Rick Ross allowing Elcamino to talk about having a hunger for more ever since he was a youngin’. “Wu Level” finishes Millionaire on a drumless note with it’s crooning sample & discussing not being structured to be mad at one’s personal decisions.

Camino’s been teasing Millionaire for the past 3 weeks or so & only a month after Built for Cuban Links, I do hear some improvement from him compared to the EP that he gave us back in September although I did very much enjoy it & could be my 2nd favorite EP of the 3 that we’ve gotten from him behind The Game is the Game. The production continues to balance boom bap & drumless so Elcamino can portray the gangsta lifestyle for only 16 minutes.

Score: 3.5/5

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Elcamino – “Built for Cuban Links” review

Here we have the 16th EP albeit his 2nd to be released this year from Buffalo emcee & singer Elcamino. Blowing up in 2017 off his self-titled EP with Griselda Records, his profile increasingly grew after being followed up by Walking on Water mixtape in the summer of 2018 along with dropped 2 studio albums & a few EPs the year after that.. They Spit on Jesus proved to be a well received Black Soprano Family Records debut the first Camino project that I had covered since On the 3rd Day & that much like No Weapon Formed Against Me was an improvement over some of the material we’ve gotten from him in recent memory. 6 months after having Real Bad Manproduce The Game is the Game though, Ill Tone’s now producing Built for Cuban Links named after Raekwon’s iconic solo debut Only Built 4 Cuban Linx… produced by RZA.

Estee Nack joins Elcamino for the opener “Stash House Legends” starting Built for Cuban Links by reaffirming both of their statuses in the drug game over a bare soul sample whereas “Mill Prep” puts the drums in the equation promising to stay the same with or without money. “Estate” feels like a 73 second freestyle accompanied by a drumless instrumental while “Red Room” featuring Flames Dot Malik goes boom bap detailing the gangsta lifestyles they live.

“Gold Plated Benz Wagons” classily talks about being upper echelon just before “Cuban on Cuban” works in more kicks & snares flexing that hip hop got him iced up. “Zip Lock Olympics” luxuriously gets back on his hustler shit leading into the flute-tinged “God’s Favorite” declares he’s done doing & selling percs. The title track strips the drums again to talk about coming from a dark street & “I Knew” returns to the boom bap 1 more time winning standoffs instead of awards.

The Game is the Game still remains the best I’ve heard from Camino ever since signing to B$F, but Built for Cuban Links nonetheless finds him going on a 3-peat since I enjoyed it as much as I did They Spit on Jesus when he joined the label’s roster 11 months ago. Ill Tone obviously ain’t no Real Bad Man yet his takes on the boom bap/drumless sounds get elevated thanks to the stories Meechy tells in only 20 minutes.

Score: 3.5/5

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Benny the Butcher – “Buffalo Butch” review

This is the 8th EP from Buffalo, New York emcee Benny the Butcher. Being in the game for 2 decades already, it wouldn’t be until 2016 where he alongside his cousins Westside Gunn & Conway the Machine would take the culture by storm off projects like Tana Talk 3 & The Plugs I Met. Harry Fraud came in for a sequel to the latter following the mature Burden of Proof & finally, Tana Talk 4 took it back to the basement a couple years back. Coming off having Hit-Boy produce half of it & leaving the other half to The Alchemist produce his Def Jam Recordings debut & my album of the year so far Everybody Can’t Go, we’re now being treated to Buffalo Butch only a couple weeks after the previous EP Summertime Butch.

“Penny & Shaq” featuring 38 Spesh starts off the brief 3 track offering hopping over an extravagant beat comparing themselves to Orlando Magic veterans Penny Hardaway & Shaquille O’Neal whereas the For All the Dogs outtake “Buffalo” featuring Drake finds the pair linking up over a sample-driven instrumental from Boi-1da talking about the fact that it’s more when you earn it being iller than the illnesses haters be wishing on them. Lastly, the closer “Hard Way” featuring Fabolous officially rounds out Buffalo Butch on some boom bap shit letting it be known this fly shit ain’t cheap whatsoever.

We’ve only gotten 2 EPs from Benny this month & 3 projects from him in 2024 altogether if you include Everybody Can’t Go, but I still happen to prefer Summertime Butch only because it’s a little longer than Buffalo Butch although that’s not to say I didn’t enjoy the 3 songs he dug up for us here. As opposed to the summer theme of the joint from 2 weeks ago, you only get 8 minutes worth of material shedding 16 minutes off the last one centering itself around Benny’s hometown mentality.

Score: 3.5/5

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Benny the Butcher – “Summertime Butch” review

Buffalo, New York emcee Benny the Butcher putting out his 7th EP full of summer anthems. Being in the game for 2 decades already, it wouldn’t be until 2016 where he alongside his cousins Westside Gunn & Conway the Machine would take the culture by storm off projects like Tana Talk 3 & The Plugs I Met. Harry Fraud came in for a sequel to the latter following the mature Burden of Proof & finally, Tana Talk 4 took it back to the basement a couple years back. Coming off having Hit-Boy produce half of it & leaving the other half to The Alchemist produce his Def Jam Recordings debut & my album of the year so far Everybody Can’t Go, we’re now being treated to Summertime Butch.

“1 Verse Butch” starts us off with the Butcher over a piano/boom bap hybrid speaking that slick, street, intellectual drug shit whereas the soulfully dusty “The Most” talks about making it out of the hood alive & taking a lot for him for that to even happen. After the “Sundress & Sandle Season” interlude, “Knightfall” keeps the kicks & snares in tact advising not to let any static stop your business & the only single “Summer ‘24” gives off a symphonic boom bap flare instrumentally looking to shut the block down.

My favorite track here “Kitchen Table” hops over a smooth Harry Fraud beat continuing to discuss the dope game & after the “Peachtree” interlude, “The Blue Building” brings the soul vibes back in the fold mixed with hi-hats from STREETRUNNER playing more than simply a distributor role. “The Warehouse 3” featuring Elcamino, Fuego Base & Rick Hyde is this guitar-laced successor to both “Warehouse” tracks off Fuego’s debut Biggest Since Camby & “Higher” luxuriously ends the EP taking y’all to a greater level.

Everybody Can’t Go still remains my album of the year so far 8 months later & yet, Summertime Butch still stands out on its own going for a completely different vibe than the Def Jam debut did at the very beginning of 2024 telling us the biggest lesson Benny’s learned. The balance between boom bap & trap remains prevalent, he’s simply giving us 24 minutes & 8 songs for you to enjoy with only little time left of summer itself.

Score: 3.5/5

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Moving Base O.T. – Self-Titled review

Moving Base O.T. is an east coast hip hop duo consisting of Fuego Base & O.T. the Real. The latter of whom has been making noise in the underground for the past several years now whether it be The Irishmanor Maxed Out & the other made his debut over a year ago signing to Black Soprano Family Records & becoming Hartford, Connecticut’s Biggest Since Camby. O.T. eventually signed to B$F, enlisting araabMUZIK to produce his debut for the label Zombie last fall. Fast forward 8 months later, he & Fuego are teaming up to put out their debut together.

After the “Real Sopranos” intro, the first song “Arithmetic” starts off the album jumping over a raw boom bap instrumental talking about every dummy wanting to be an earner as well as 2 rappers getting stuck 1 night & it wasn’t them whereas “Battle Scars” featuring Benny the Butcher finds the trio morbidly cautioning that those who think they’re safe are done in actuality. “Hometeam” keeps it boom bap talking about jumping bail & breaking the bond while everyone else was playing Pokémon, but then “Bodies” goes rap rock to catch 1 body after another.

“Overpass” featuring Rick Hyde tensely advises to let the junkies free since it’s already rampant out here leading into “Pirouette” featuring Allstar da Great grimily talking about a brick that’s all natural & a bitch breaking her neck after taking a sniff. “John Doe” featuring Sule brings the trio together over kicks & snares airing out dudes driving their girls’ cars like they own it themselves just before “BrownStone” aggressively tells the listener it’s either us or them & to pick a side. “Keith Sweat” ends the LP ruggedly detailing how strong the coke is.

These guys have always crossed paths with one another since obviously they’re both signed to the same label, so I wasn’t opposed to the idea of bringing both of them together throughout the duration of an entire album & hopefully Moving Base O.T.’s debut here is the first of more to come. The production is consistently centered around the traditional east coast boom bap sound, 75% of the features bring their own flavor to the table & each MC elevates one another lyrically.

Score: 4/5

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Struggle Mike – “Honor” review

Struggle Mike is a 42 year old producer, curator, record executive & audio engineer from Buffalo, New York who introduced himself at the end of 2019 off the strength of his full-length debut Great Escape followed by Next Up as well as Wall & Progress. He eventually kept his consistency going on Ties & Struggles until signing to Black Soprano Family Records as an artist after becoming an A&R of theirs, who put out his previous couple albums IYKYK & IYDK last spring showing considerable improvements above his previous output. And with that in mind, I had a feeling the 9th LP in Mike’s could plausibly become my new favorite of his.

After the intro produced by DJ Benoit, the first song “Escobar” by Benny the Butcher & Heem brings them together over bongos from the late DJ Shay talking about feeling as if they stuck in the game whereas the title track by Lo Profile alongside Lucky 7 & Smoke Bulga goes boom bap to boast about getting bills like the Buffalo team. “Sleepless” by B.A.R.S. Murre, Eto & GoToMar$ hooks up solemn keys with kicks & snares seeing what type of man you are in daylight prior to “Body” by Jeru the Damaja, Lucky 7 & Planet Asia dustily reassures everyone how they do it all day everyday.

“Work” by Benny the Butcher, Chase Fetti& Rick Hyde keeps it boom bap talking about growing up in a society that’s already doomed within itself & after the titular interlude, “China October” by Boons & Heem mixes a Chinese sample with kicks & snares so they can get on their east-side grimy shit for a few minutes. “Gandolfini” by O.T. the Real & Rick Hyde gives me a bit of a bluesy vibe to the beat doing shit themselves when no one else would, but then “Quick” by Flames Dot Malik & Rick Hyde jumps over guitars to talk about being hustlers.

As the end of Honor draws closer, the penultimate track “Parasite” by Fuego Base & Rick Hyde goes drumless with both of them explaining everybody getting shot like they generous on top of still riding with guns since the rap game stays sketchy & even hiding from paranoia off the drugs that is until “Well I Do” by Heem & Sule ends the album returning to the boom bap for 1 more time going at the throats of the heartless that maintain a Tin Man posture & boasting about the whole Black Soprano label being cut from the same cloth.

For any B$F fan who slept-on the last couple LPs that Mike curated a year ago, you’re gonna wanna give Honor a listen since he pretty much elevates everything that made IYKYK & IYDK his finest curations thus far to a whole different level. We’re instrumentally treated to a prominent boom bap sound that a lot of the label’s artist bare with a hint of drumless, leaving most of the mic time in-house with the exception of a couple established veterans & a few collaborators from previous material.

Score: 4/5

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Heem – “Bars & Noble” review

Here we have the sophomore full-length studio LP from Buffalo, New York emcee Heem. Catching my attention in 2020 after becoming of a protege of Benny the Butcher & signing to his MNRK Music Group imprint Black Soprano Family Records, he He also made a few appearances on the label’s showcase EP prior to dropping his debut mixtape Long Story Short & a debut EP High Art. And with his debut album From the Cradle to the Game celebrating its 1-year anniversary last weekend, it makes sense for him to follow it up by releasing Bars & Noble.

“46 Long” is a soulfully drumless beginning to the album fighting his demons with weed & Hennessy maintaining his chemistry with the killaz to whereas “Lanova’s” featuring Conway the Machine & Jae Skeese brings a jazzier boom bap flare to the table thanks to Scram Jones lethally going off top for 2 & a half minutes. “Super Gangsta” featuring Illy Foo makes a murkier turn within the instrumental talking about never backing down, but then “Pookie’s First Love” stripping the drums to profess that this crack shit got a hold of him.

Benny joins Da Steemer for “Billy Goat” hopping over a grand trap beat from Ill Tone to get back in action just before “1000 Watts” samples soul music yet again talking about doing this shit for the trenches & all the real ones that stay on the block. The title track makes a turn into eerie boom bap territory getting real with y’all leading into the dusty, hair-raising “R.N.S. (Real N***a Shit)” featuring Jay Worthy calling bluff on those who be cappin’ about the way they living.

“Life of a Gangsta” gets on his mob shit over a grim beat with kicks & snares while “The Oath” featuring Boldy James & produced by the late DJ Shay makes a soulful turn instrumentally vowing to never quit. The funky “7.62” breaks down exactly how dark & cloudy it is on his side while the piano-boom bap “1 Mic” talks about getting his mind right & his money up. “Me vs. Me” wraps things up with a soul sample dismissing any competition.

On the contrary to the idea of Heem hunkering down with a singular producer like Scram Jones or even DJ Green Lantern to fully produce an entire project for him which I think would be incredibly dope, Bars & Noble regardless stands as an enjoyable sophomore effort from the Black Soprano Family Steemer keeping the label’s continuous grind going. The production is primarily boom bap with some drumless & trap undertones, we have a brief yet mostly solid guest list & they help Heem give a dedication to the Day 1s.

Score: 3.5/5

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Duckman – “Black Soprano Eskimo” review

Anchorage, Alaska rapper Duckman releasing his debut mixtape through Black Soprano Family Records after making a name for himself in the Alaskan hip hop scene by putting out the full-length debut A Bag Boy Story: Welcome to the East in the summer of 2016 followed by the sophomore effort A Bag Boy Story II: Back to da East only 11 months later & his 3rd album The Slim Show the Christmas after that. He would subsequently put out 3 more LPs in The Adventures of Quack Poppa, Off the Grid & Off the Grid 2 until signing to B$F at the beginning of 2024 & is coming off of B.A.R.S. Murre’s comeback effort Jewelry Store Shootouts by introducing himself as the Black Soprano Eskimo.

The intro gets us started with a symphonic trap instrumental tellin’ those who’ve never been to Alaska not experiencing 20 hours of darkness & that he isn’t your average $1M person whereas “Ghetto Gospel” featuring Elcamino works in a ghostly sample mixed with hi-hats to talk about being on the brinks of being heirs to the throne. “Karma” takes the soulful trap route instrumentally talking about trying to get some paper out it leading into “Cost to Be the Boss” vibrantly getting boastful.

“I Did” has a bit of a Detroit trap flare to it admitting that he isn’t proud of a lot of the shit he’s done although he was standing on business just before the tape’s sole single “M.C.M. (Money Counter Music)” featuring Skilla Baby is a decent ode to counting your bread. “Cullinan” featuring Sauce Walka continues the soul sampling talks about losing it all only to get it right back while the cloudy trap fusion “Vlad TV” featuring Bonni Drip continues to run it up advising to stay out of the mix.

Fuego Base & Heem both join the Duckman for the penultimate track “High Noon” goes head-on boom bap telling a true story of violence & brutality revolving around the true Sopranos, but then “Locked” featuring Benny the Butcher & Rowdy Rebel properly concludes Black Soprano Eskimo with the trio over this exuberant Brooklyn drill beat talking about knowing people who eventually landed behind bars for making that dope money with the Butcher’s verse during the middle being my favorite amongst the 2 guests.

Quite probably the most exciting artist that I’ve ever heard out of the Alaskan hip hop scene has to be Duckman by far & his official B$F debut here takes himself to a higher level as an artist. Black Soprano Eskimo has a bit of a prominent trap sound to it with additional elements of Detroit trap, Brooklyn drill & a hint of boom bap discussing where he is now as well as his life involved in the biggest cocaine bust in Alaska history.

Score: 3.5/5

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B.A.R.S. Murre – “Jewelry Store Shootouts” review

New Jersey emcee B.A.R.S. Murre returning from a 4-year hiatus for the 5th full-length studio album in his discography. Signing to Black Soprano Family Records over a decade ago for his debut Chicken & Cake, he would continue to follow this up with Dead Nasty as well as Whimsical & Black Tanita respectively. However nearly 3 & a half years since the last LP Husky Marinara including the fact that B$F’s been growing as a label in recent years, Murre’s returning for some Jewelry Store Shootouts.

The title track has a funky boom bap flare to the instrumental talking about being on his way to Philly for a new piece until everything goes wrong whereas “Guess Who” featuring Rick Hyde & produced by Johnny Slash keeps it grimy asking to take a guess as to who they just served. “Like That” featuring Loveboat Luciano works in a flute with kicks & snares lookin’ to shake everything since it’s more than rap just before the symphonic/boom bap crossover “Beat Bleed” looks to son anyone who wants to step up to him.

“Gremlin” eerily likens himself to that of the titular mischievous sprite & after the “Stupid Motherfuckus” interlude, “Ralph Cifaretto” feat. Benny the Butcher finds the 2 ruggedly referencing the Sopranos character of the same name whom Tony eventually kills. “Uranus” featuring Elcamino brings a much colder atmosphere to the table instrumentally talking about being the new Patrick Swayze, but then “D’Lo Brown” turns up the rawness paying homage to the former WWE Superstar from the Attitude Era of the now Endeavor-owned division of TKO Group Holdings.

B.A.R.S. jumps on top of sinister piano chords clashing with the kicks & snares for “Boomin’” talkin’ about everything being a heater while “Cooker X3” featuring Fuego Base & even Lil’ Fame brings the trio together aggressively reminding that they done came up from a shady crew. “Yes Sir” featuring Heem comes together to grittily talk about their bloodline coming together & after the “Big G.M.” interlude, “Paranoid” gives me a mafioso/boom bap vibe admitting to switch up as a result of paranoia. Armani Caesar hops on the “Pumper” remix serving as the penultimate track for a Bonnie & Clyde anthem done in the signature GxF fashion & “The Coolest” ends the album by wickedly having the power to rule Earth.

Jewelry Store Shootouts has been in the making since for quite some time when you look at 10 of the 17 songs being released as singles over three course of 2 & a half years, but it’s most definitely a step above anything that B.A.R.S. Murre has done previously. You can hear how much he’s evolved as a lyricist over a decade of being in the game, it’s more well-produced & even the guests all add their own flavor for the latest member of the Black Soprano Family introducing himself to a wider audience in the underground.

Score: 4/5

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