FlyG – “MENNBLVCK II” review

This is the 7th EP from Washington, D.C. emcee of Nigerian descent FlyG. Properly introducing himself to the underground last spring off his inaugural extended play Soulful Journey, SPCL_CHRCTRS would fully produce the next one Serenade Symphony at the end of February & rising French producer Drega33 helped him turn more head with MENNBLVCK this spring. He has since dropped an EP dedicated to the 10-time WCW World Tag Team Champions & WWE Hall of Famers Harlem Heat, reuniting with Drega for MENNBLVCK II after going back-to-back with SHRPNDBLDS & A Righteous Tale.

The title track begins with a drumless chipmunk soul instrumental talking about being thankful for his patience this Thanksgiving whereas “GO@T” works in this prominently heavy vocal sample referencing WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson. “LFNTMS” soulfully talks about his father being a huge influence on him & a coward forcing him to an exit early while “TIMECOP” tells his dad that he wishes that he got to spend more time with him.

“CMBKHM” starts the 2nd half with crooning sampling chops talking about the concept of returning home while “B.R.T.$.” talking about his music being his calling & being the type to wind up on your favorite hip hop sites. The soulful “T.P.O.P.” confesses to things getting hectic missing his father & raising daughters of his own now just before “SHWNPRV” ends the EP making the game-winning touchdown with a chipmunk soul outro.

Harlem Heat & SHRPNDBLDS were both enjoyable for their own different reasons but considering that MENNBLVCK became my introduction to FlyG this past summer, I could’ve only expected MENNBLVCK II to join the ranks of it’s predecessor & I can confirm that it very much does. Drega33’s drumless production focuses less around the jazz rap elements of the original & prioritizing the chipmunk soul undertones, getting more personal than previously in terms of penmanship.

Score: 4/5

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Tha God Fahim – “Slam Dump” review

Atlanta, Georgia emcee/producer Tha God Fahim shaking things up a bit with his 67th EP. Starting as an affiliate of Griselda Records & being 1/3 of the Dump Gawds alongside Mach-Hommy & Your Old Droog, we also can’t ignore the massive discography that he’s managed to build for himself, some of the standouts include Breaking Through tha Van Allen Belts & Dump Assassins. He’s been putting out amongst his best material in the past few years like the Camoflauge Monk-produced Dark Shogunn Assassin, the Nature Sounds-backed Iron Bull, the Nicholas Craven-produced Dump Gawd: Shot Clock King series, the Oh No-produced Berserko, the Mike Shabb-produced Dump Gawd: Rhyme Pays, Tha Supreme Hoarder of All Pristine Wealth, Supreme Dump Legend: Soul Cook Saga produced by Cookin’ Soul & Machine Gun Vocabulary produced by Cartune Beatz. Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap 19 on Halloween was technically his most recent solo effort until Slam Dump, starting a new series instead of doing a Lethal Weapon 5.

“Happily Ever After” jumps over a chipmunk soul instrumental talking about there being no happy endings when ever he closes a chapter whereas “All Buckets” chops up another sample cycling through an entire clip until he hears a click. The title track featuring Jay NiCE soulfully talks about this rap shit being easier than breathing prior to “Clean ‘Em Up” also featuring Jay NiCE winning championships without coaching.

Jay NiCE makes his 3rd & final appearance on “International Champs” talking about making sure your “gold” doesn’t turn out to be copper in reality while “1st Strike” make for some of the extended play’s craziest rhyme schemes continuing a legend’s story. “Professional Hits” incorporates more samples to talk about his words representing lightness & “Noble Lineage” concludes with a soulful outro explaining that trials are a part of the process.

Regardless of how long it’ll be until Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap 21 & whether or not it’ll be another collaborative effort with Jay NiCE, I have to appreciate Tha God Fahim for doing a 180° although it wouldn’t surprise me if Lethal Weapon 5 does come to fruition within the next year. Drega33’s production ranks amongst his best as he & FlyG prepare for the MENNBLVCK sequel in less than a couple weeks & the lyricism maintains Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap 19‘s caliber.

Score: 4/5

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Tha God Fahim – “Lethal Weapon 4” review

Brand new EP & the 65th from Atlanta, Georgia emcee/producer Tha God Fahim. Starting as an affiliate of Griselda Records & being 1/3 of the Dump Gawds alongside Mach-Hommy & Your Old Droog, we also can’t ignore the massive discography that he’s managed to build for himself, some of the standouts include Breaking Through tha Van Allen Belts & Dump Assassins. He’s been putting out amongst his best material in the past few years like the Camoflauge Monk-produced Dark Shogunn Assassin, the Nature Sounds-backed Iron Bull, the Nicholas Craven-produced Dump Gawd: Shot Clock King series, the Oh No-produced Berserko, the Mike Shabb-produced Dump Gawd: Rhyme Pays, Tha Supreme Hoarder of All Pristine Wealth, Supreme Dump Legend: Soul Cook Saga produced by Cookin’ Soul & Machine Gun Vocabulary produced by Cartune Beatz. Preluding the upcoming 17th installment of the Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap saga, Drega33’s continuing the Lethal Weapon series with installment 4.

“Never Miss” starts with a drumless chipmunk soul instrumental talking about living on in the pages of greatness whereas “The Storm” works in more sampling to put pressure on the whole rap game’s neck. “Solo Mission” continues the chipmunk soul vibes to talk about brutally slaying any opponent & “Never Full” chops up more samples so he can chill in luxury.

The song “Never Fail” begins Lethal Weapon 4’s final act with the Dump Gawd talking about only excelling than catching Ls on top of a drumless chipmunk soul sample while “So Many Rhymes” talks about the days when he used to feel trapped looking for a way out now going on a mission to inspire others. “Rage Quit” last but not least wraps things up leaving his competition dazed from a furious blaze.

Coming off FlyG’s greatest body of work Mennblvck earlier this summer & producing Che Noir’s recent single a week ago, Drega33 caught the attention of many including myself this spring by commencing the Lethal Weapon series as a bit of a quick breather in between Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap entries & that tradition is being continued with the most soulful of them all.

Score: 4.5/5

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FlyG – “MENNBLVCK” review

FlyG is a 40 year old MC of Nigerian descent based out of the Washington metropolitan area properly introducing himself to the underground last spring off his debut EP Soulful Journey. He just had SPCL_CHRCTRS fully produce his previous EP Serenade Symphony at the end of February, looking to enlist rising French producer Drega33 for his 3rd EP coming off RJ Payne’s most recent EP Triangle D’Or & who could forget the Lethal Weapon trilogy of EPs that Tha God Fahim has been dumpin’ to serve as a breather for his ongoing Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap saga?

“FRNCHCNNXN” hooks up a drumless chipmunk soul instrumental referring to this moment as the final bout with no referee in sight whereas “J@DED” chops up another vocal sample talking about No Limit Records founder Master P being his favorite hustler growing up. “POWERSTONE” takes a jazzier route instrumentally to talk about kickin’ his rhymes until the final hour of his life runs out until “DIVINE ENERGY CH@RGE” talks about those running their franchises worse than Dan Snyder.

Reaching the halfway point, “RXGHTEOUS LXRD” gets back on the chipmunk soul tip keeping the party pumpin’ sans Joe Budden while “REMAIN HE@LTHY” soulfully talks about the winning streak he’s been on. “ACTIV@TED” jazzily reflects on going from looking at the stars to owning many cars after paying the cost to be the boss leading into “DOUBLE DR@GON” figuring out the price of living in tranquility. “I’m Leaving” appropriately finishes with G bouncing out after witnessing a failed attempt it getting it right.

Of the 3 EPs in the FlyG canon & a 4th one produced by SPCL_CHRCTRS called HRLM Heat coming out soon following some delays, I’m fairly confident in MENNBLVCK satisfying fans of the Lethal Weapon trilogy & Triangle D’Or who’re simultaneously looking for a new artist to broaden their musical horizons. The largely drumless sound that Drega33 became known for on the original Lethal Weapon a few months ago & that previously mentioned EP from the Reign Man carries itself over to the flyest’s direction to unleash his hunger.

Score: 4/5

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Tha God Fahim – “Lethal Weapon 3” review

This is the 60th EP from Atlanta, Georgia emcee/producer Tha God Fahim. Starting as an affiliate of Griselda Records as well as being 1/3 of the Dump Gawds alongside Mach-Hommy & Your Old Droog, we also can’t ignore the massive discography that he’s managed to build for himself, some of the standouts include Breaking Through tha Van Allen Belts & Dump Assassins. He’s been putting out amongst his best material in the past few years like the Camoflauge Monk-produced Dark Shogunn Assassin, the Nature Sounds-backed Iron Bull, the Nicholas Craven-produced Dump Gawd: Shot Clock King series, the Oh No-produced Berserko, the Mike Shabb-produced Dump Gawd: Rhyme Pays, Tha Supreme Hoarder of All Pristine Wealth, Supreme Dump Legend: Soul Cook Saga produced by Cookin’ Soul & Machine Gun Vocabularyproduced by Cartune Beatz. He & Jay NiCE linked for their 2nd collab EP Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap 12 last weekend & Drega33’s back to produce Lethal Weapon 3.

“Against the Grain” was a piano-driven boom bap intro talking about contrasting the natural inclination to slay wack rappers by the boatload whereas the soulful “Caught My Eye” became an unexpected yet welcoming turn of things getting in his sensual bag lyrically. “Free Speech” embraces a heavily jazzier sound showing gratitude he’s still alive by the ocean side while “Carnage” gets back on the chipmunk soul tip telling us how he lives.

The song “DNA” gets the ball rollin’ on the final 10 minutes of Lethal Weapon 3 fusing chipmunk soul & jazz rap into 1 talking about being supernatural while “Foot the Bill” talks about watching these chumps squeal in their own blood. “Each Passing Day” heads for a chipmunk soul direction once again suggesting opposites detaching as much as they attract & the crooning outro “Championship Status” talks about the proper steps it takes to become a champion.

Compared to both its predecessor, the trilogy chapter in the Lethal Weapon saga preludes Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap 13with the most detailed entry of the series. Drega33’s production is more jazzier than Lethal Weapon 2, harking back to the original Lethal Weapon except he’s meshing it with chipmunk soul to backdrop a deadlier Fahim.

Score: 4/5

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RJ Payne – “Triangle D’or” review

This is the 15th EP from New York emcee & revered battle rapper RJ Payne formerly known as Reign Man. Building up an extensive solo catalogue for himself with 24 mixtapes as well as well as his last dozen EPs & 4 full-length albums, Benny the Butcher even signed RJ to Black Soprano Family Records for a brief period of time & putting out some of best material like Leatherface & Square Root of a Kilo under Benny’s ever-growing indie label of his own. My Life’z a Movie produced by Stu Bangas quickly became my favorite LP in RJ’s discography & Enemy Soil Entertainment in-house producer C-Lance went on a trip with him to The Barbershop, coming off Erick Sermon producing a 3-Piece to have Drega33 fully produce Triangle D’or.

“Quinconces” is this soulfully drumless intro talking about being in the top 10 conversations when it comes to checking off all the boxes whereas “Paris Attack” keeps the drums out of the equation asking not to anger the Lord since he’s giving everybody heavenly music. “Brings to Me” maintains a chipmunk soul vibe likening his flow to the strength of cocaine while “Coffee or Tea” talks about the world waking up recognizing the Payne.

The song “Elegant Payne” starts the 2nd & final half of Triangle D’or by aggressively making it known to these other rappers that they’re levels behind him lyrically while “Splendid” pulls from chipmunk soul once again talking about leaving the red carpet covered in DNA if anybody crosses him. “Final Boss” concludes Triangle D’or with 1 last drumless track boasting about his soul not being for sale & his appetite being elite compared to others.

Coming off the 4th installment of the Leatherface saga a couple weeks ago, Drega33 comes fresh off producing both entries of the Lethal Weapon series of EPs by making Triangle D’or the most I’ve enjoyed a body of work from RJ Payne in a couple months. The production heavily draws upon the sounds of drumless chipmunk soul lyrically spitting some of that international Payne ahead of his upcoming collab effort with Method Man.

Score: 4/5

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Tha God Fahim – “Lethal Weapon 2” review

In front of us is the 57th EP from Atlanta, Georgia emcee/producer Tha God Fahim. Starting as an affiliate of Griselda Records as well as being 1/3 of the Dump Gawds alongside Mach-Hommy & Your Old Droog, we also can’t ignore the massive discography that he’s managed to build for himself, some of the standouts include Breaking Through tha Van Allen Belts & Dump Assassins. He’s been putting out amongst his best material in the past few years like the Camoflauge Monk-produced Dark Shogunn Assassin, the Nature Sounds-backed Iron Bull, the Nicholas Craven-produced Dump Gawd: Shot Clock King series, the Oh No-produced Berserko, Dump Gawd: Rhyme Pays produced by Mike Shabb, Tha Supreme Hoarder of All Pristine Wealth. Supreme Dump Legend: Soul Cook Saga produced by Cookin’ Soul & Machine Gun Vocabulary produced by Cartune Beatz. Taking another break from the Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap, I totally get why Drega33’s coming back in the picture for a Lethal Weapon sequel.

“ATK on Titan” is this jazzy intro likening his wraps to the dark fantasy anime series 進撃の巨人 whereas “Analytics” featuring Jay NiCE talks about their styles being a mix of the almighty Wu-Tang Clan & It Was Written. “Sacred Tablets” strips the drums creating his own lane & overcoming the rough patches in his life while “Lethal Force” hooks up a pitched vocal sample to talk about specializing in spreading viruses.

The song “Final Justice” starts the 2nd leg of Lethal Weapon 2 by hopping over these prominent horns telling everyone to move out his way unless you want chaos to ensue & him having something to prove just before “Ain’t No Way” blends chipmunk soul & drumless talks about having 0 distractions in his path. “Aura Farming” ends the EP with a jazz rap single he dropped this past weekend referring to himself as hip hop royalty.

Much of the discourse centered around Lethal Weapon a few weeks ago were generally mixed & I can’t be too mad at the successor here being much more well received from what I’ve been seeing across the spectrum. Drega33’s production still relies on samples dabbling with drumless, chipmunk soul & jazz rap this time around on top of the lyrics feeling like a long lost scroll getting deciphered in the middle of the Sahara desert.

Score: 4/5

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Tha God Fahim – “Lethal Weapon” review

Atlanta, Georgia emcee/producer Tha God Fahim dumpin’ his 53rd EP ahead of Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap 7 tomorrow. Starting as an affiliate of Griselda Records as well as being 1/3 of the Dump Gawds alongside Mach-Hommy & Your Old Droog, we also can’t ignore the massive discography that he’s managed to build for himself, some of the standouts include Breaking Through tha Van Allen Belts & Dump Assassins. That said: He’s been on a CRAZY ass run since 2023 with the standouts being the Camoflauge Monk-produced Dark Shogunn Assassin, the Nature Sounds-backed Iron Bull, the Nicholas Craven-produced Dump Gawd: Shot Clock King series, the Oh No-produced Berserko, Dump Gawd: Rhyme Pays produced by Mike Shabb, Tha Supreme Hoarder of All Pristine Wealth. Supreme Dump Legend: Soul Cook Saga produced by Cookin’ Soul & Machine Gun Vocabulary produced by Cartune Beatz. We got a 2nd AND a 3rd installment to Tha Myth Who Never Quit. Taking a breather from of the Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap saga, Drega33 is being brought in to produce Lethal Weapon.

“Leave Nothin’ Left” is this soulful intro boasting the brutality he has with sounds whereas “Tha Speed Force” goes for a drumless chipmunk soul direction instrumentally talking about having vengeance in his heart & wisdom in his mind. “Stay Warm” takes the sample-driven boom bap route moving at speeds that’re pretty much hard to be calculated just before “Silver Bullet” maintains the chipmunk soul edge likening his pockets to Peter Griffin from Family Guy on the Fox Corporation’s flagship property.

To start the 2nd half, “Make Believe” flexing that he’s a misfit with supreme linguistics leading into the crooning “Stronger Than Feelings” talking about him chillin’ on a yacht eating chicken parmesan. “Direct Path” hooks up this orchestral sample on telling everyone not to underestimate themselves & take themselves for granted prior to “Floater” promising to end all height with the techniques of Michael Jai White.

Was expectin Dump Gawd: Hyperbolic Time Chamber Rap 7 to come out first since the whole series has been gradually showing improvements in the last 4 months, but Lethal Weapon will hold off until that time comes in a few days. Drega33 gets a chance to let the underground know what he’s capable of behind the boards with his sample-heavy production pulling from boom bap, drumless & chipmunk soul for Fahim showing no signs of slowing down anytime soon.

Score: 3.5/5

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