Zukenee – “B4BB” review

Atlanta, Georgia rapper/producer Zukenee back for his 8th extended play. Starting in the spring of 2021 off his debut EP Undiscovered, he would continue to make a name for himself in the underground by putting out a couple more EPs in Castle & Playful alongside the debut mixtape Stop Playing. Subsequent exclusive singles like “OJAYS” & “Chest” would later become amongst his best singles since both of them were released in the span of a year & a half preceding Player Slayer. Guillotine, Birth of St. Slay, Slaytanic, Knight Shift, Eye Love U & Zuminati all followed & he’s coming off both entries of the Trapped in the Dungeon series to drop B4BB in preparation for Blunts & Blades.

“Pittslurgh” made for a vibrantly playful intro produced by Cade talking about being more geeked up than a nerd whereas “Chicken Tender” already wraps up the 1st half of B4BB showin’ off the ice shinin’ on his wrist right when he hops outta bed in the morning. “Bouncy House” kicks off the 2nd leg with the goofiest moment here & the only track Cade didn’t produce coincidentally talking about a ratchet hoe who’s convinced herself to be classy while the closer “Pahtment” discusses his swag originating from the apartments he grew up in.

Up until this point: I’ve said that Zuminati was the weakest thing Zukenee has done all year & unfortunately B4BB dethrones it with a 4-pack clocking in at less than 10 minutes that I’d put behind alongside Trapped in the Dungeon & it’s sequel. I’m still confident we’re gonna get something special out of Blunts & Blades and of course & the Cardo-produced Zudo, but Cade’s trap/pop rap production isn’t at his best despite handling 75% of it.

Score: 3/5

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vax – “B4VXN” review

This is the 8th extended play from West Palm Beach, Florida rapper/producer vax. Someone who would eventually go on to drop his last 7 EPs since 2023 after beginning to make music at the age of 12 including New Jazz as well as Forgive My Sins & Pyramid Scheme, with Is This You? following my personal favorite of the bunch Throne. Coming off #B4BlueDawn along with the full-length debut Blue Dawn & more recently Steeze, a sophomore effort called Vaxination has begun being teased with B4VXN.

“Molly” incorporates this digicore instrumental to kick things off talking about stealing bitches & doing ecstasy with them prior to “Tony Montana” named after Scarface’s main character shouting out DC Studios CEO & Coyote vs. Acme producer/writer James Gunn. Hitting the midway point, “Sorry” hops over a rage beat so he can talk about knowing how to apologize while “AWOL”combines digicore & free car music admitting to being under the influence. “Dirty Ride” expresses his desires of becoming a wealthy corporate titan preceding “Trinity” featuring Westwood talks about wasting their time & ability on women who don’t love ‘em

Vaxination isn’t coming out until 2027 from what I understand so if this is the last time we’ll hear vax for the rest of the year, I’d say B4VXN gives us another brief dosage of decent rage/digicore similarly to the previous EP he put out earlier this summer. A large portion of the production other than the single was more uninteresting than Steeze a couple months ago but either way, I’ll give this the benefit of the doubt since I know he can make something that will turn more heads than Blue Dawn did this spring.

Score: 3/5

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Behemoth – “I, Scvlptor” review

Behemoth is an extreme metal band from Gdańsk, Poland consisting of guitarist Seth, bassist Orion, drummer Inferno & frontman Nergal. Their 10th album The Satanist back in my junior year of high school under Nuclear Blast Records was my introduction to them despite being around for over 2 decades at that point & became a fan of theirs ever since, following it up with the positively received I Loved You at Your Darkest in 2018. The Shit ov God last spring was welcomed to more lukewarm responses, coming back only 16 months later for a new extended play.

The title track sets the tone with this black metal intro recorded for The Shit ov God only to be scrapped because Nergal felt like it outshine the rest of it declaring the sculptor of eons & worlds doesn’t rest for anything whereas “Lord ov the Horizons” interestingly dates all the way back to the Opvs Contra Natvram sessions, although it almost made The Shit ov God until being excluded for not suiting the concept. “Begotten” concludes the EP with 1 last Shit ov God outtake detailing being all but divine.

Excluding the 2 re-recordings of their early demo cuts “Rise of the Blackstorm of Evil” & “In Thy Pandemaeternum” as well as the covers of “In League with Satan” by Venom and “The Return of Darkness & Evil” by Bathory respectively, Nergal & company pretty much warm their fans up in preparation for their upcoming 14th studio LP by digging up 3 respectively solid black metal tacks that were recorded for the last couple of full-lengths they’ve done taking it back to their roots & honoring those who came before them.

Score: 3.5/5

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KARRAHBOOO – “Not da 2” review

KARRAHBOOO is a 29 year old rapper from Atlanta, Georgia who blew up in 2023 after former TNA World Champion, NXT Champion, NXT North American Champion & WWE United States Champion Trick Williams’ manager Lil Yachty signed her to Concrete Rekordz. Not only would she depart the label the following summer, but she was most notably the only artist in its brief existence who was actually talented other than Yachty himself of course. However coming off a string of guest appearances, she’s ready to make a broader introduction to the world with her official debut extended play.

“Inside the Booth” produced by Coupe talks about needing space from her clingy partner because she’s too high whereas “Pull a Luh Band Out” boisterously looks to walk her opps like dogs over a bell-driven trap instrumental. The lead single “No Hook” talks about being ready to drop for a minute & her past issues with Concrete embracing the Detroit sound just before the 2nd single “WYD?” hops on top of this cloudy Take a Daytrip beat describing a guy who’s constantly hitting her up.

Monaleo appears for the off-kilter “W.Y.O. (Whatever You Want)” taking shots at their completion over some buzzing synthesizers & hi-hats just before “Patched It Up” featuring Lil Yachty gets more in detail about their beef being squashed. “Make Her Dance” featuring k3 hits us with my least favorite guest appearance of the 4 which sucks because I don’t mind the sinister atmosphere while the 3rd &!final single “Keep Up w Me” featuring Zukenee makes up for it talking about learning from their mistakes & needing no pity.

“Swerve” wraps up the final moments of Not da 2 cautioning that anyone who fucks with her will wind up dead in the ocean & not being shy whenever money’s involved while “Understand Me” discusses being misunderstood, blocking out all the hate from the type of individuals who envy her & chasing the bag for her family’s sake. “Do U 1 Better” spends the remaining 115 seconds of the EP talking about upstaging everyone with her mother providing a sweet spoken word bit during the outro.

I’m fairly certain Mercury Records & Republic Records will do much more for KARRAHBOOO’s career than Concrete Rekordz ever did in the short amount of time she was signed to Yachty, but Not da 2 fell somewhat short of my expectations & hope for her full-length studio debut to be much grander statement in her discography. She does her part telling the world where she’s at in her life right now bringing a few guests on board who mostly kill it except the production choices could’ve been better.

Score: 2.5/5

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Sham Blak – “Man of My Word” review

This is a brand new extended play & the 4th overall from San Diego, California emcee Sham Blak. Releasing his full-length studio debut Money Well Spent all the way back in 2013 when I was teenager, he would follow it up with his debut EP ShamRock along with the D Day Project & The Evolution of Sham Blak: As Lucc Would Have It EPs respectively. He recently put the sophomore effort Gratuity as well as Something Out of Nothing & ShamRock 2, coming off last summer’s Red October to be a Man of My Word.

“Power & Capability” featuring K4NO finds the pair linking up to talk about no one being realer than them whereas “Deebo’s” shifts towards a boom bap vibe instrumentally so Sham can lyrically get in his conscious bag. “Principle, Loyalty, Legacy” featuring Destruct joins forces so they can discuss keeping a cyclops vision when carrying tradition & after “Ain’t Nothing Like San Diego” props up his hometown, “Out the Window” featuring Mischif talks about doing this for the kinfolk.

Lorde Sims appears during “Tap In”, kicking off the 2nd half shittin’ on everyone & everything regardless of who it is while “Intentions” featuring Navy Jonez LKR rawly confronts someone regarding their precise objectives. “Round the City” featuring Mischif gets to the cake together without anything derailing their path & after “Shadowboxing” featuring Mr. Brady aggressively treads the battle rap waters topically, the outro “Farewell” sends off Man of My Word talking about going to bed when the sun does.

Documenting the mindset required to stay authentic & building something meaningful on his own terms, Sham Blak blends gritty introspective lyricism with hard hitting production & collaborative energy for an EP built upon principle, loyalty & legacy. Man of My Word calls for the world to stand behind what he believes exploring ambition, self belief to loyalty, relationships, community, internal battles & ultimately letting go & moving forward.

Score: 3.5/5

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Mi$tuh G – “Bird’s Eye View” review

Here we have the 2nd extended play from Sacramento, California emcee/producer Mi$tuh G. Emerging within the underground at the beginning of this current ongoing decade off the strength of his full-length debut G Files, I myself was subsequently introduced to his music in the summer of 2020 back when the whole world shut down as a result of the COVID-19 pandemic through his debut EP G.W.O. (G-World Order) conceptually revolving around all the events that had transpired at that point. He & Mak7teen brought Your Worst Nightmare to life a year later & coming off Keep It G back in 2024, he’s looking at things from a Bird’s Eye View.

“Thought It Was Over” after the titular intro hops on top of this nervous instrumental talking about shutting down any & all opposition whereas “Hatin’ on My Name” continues from there firing back at everyone who’s been disrespecting him. “Go” featuring Rayven Justice links up to talk about their desires of parting with naughty women while “B.T.A. (Bounce That Ass)” properly concludes the 1st half of Bird’s Eye View cooking up a decent strip club ballad.

The self-produced “Krown Me King” could most likely be my personal favorite track on the entire EP talking about never slowing down & taking the throne that’s rightfully his while “The 7th Letter” continues the 2nd leg proclaiming himself to be the big boss & never fallin’ off. “Kold as Me” winds down the last several minutes talking about nobody in his city being able to touch him lyrically just before “Family 1st” featuring Illa Jay & Mak7teen finds the trio rising above the dirt together.

A great bulk of this was conceived following Mi$tuh G’s recent experiences of backstabbing as well as broken loyalties & people smiling in his face despite praying on his downfall when he isn’t looking, which is why I’d consider Bird’s Eye View to be some of the most personal music he’s ever made. He’s painting a dark depicting of the price of elevation after realizing some of the closest people in our lives are the very reason some distance themselves out of necessity instead of making it personal.

DaeMoney – “Good N***a + Bad Habits” review

New extended play & the 3rd overall from Detroit, Michigan trap star DaeMoney. Coming up as the nephew of one of the 2 biggest artists in the city right now Babyface Ray as well as a now former member of the WRLD Tour Mafia collective, he broke out on his own by dropping his debut mixtape Young Sexual Misconduct & his debut EP Slae Season accompanied by his 2nd EP Rockstar Lifestyle & then his previous tape Slae Season 2. Slae went on to sign to EMPIRE Distribution couple summers ago & celebrated in the form of his most recent EP Slayer’s Coming fully produced by Trees shortly after as well as a 3rd installment of the Slae Season series & a sequel to Rockstar Lifestyle. He was surprisingly dismissed from WRLD Tour in 2024 due to a brief falling out until recently reconciling, coming off the 4th installment of the Slae Season saga this past February to drop Good N***a + Bad Habits.

The title track kicks things off this cloudy trap intro using auto-tune to discuss having the greatest intentions despite having some poor practices whereas “Crazy World” already hits the midway point of the EP talking about cleaning up his act, which explains why he was in the studio with both Rafa & WTM Scoob recently. “True Story” begins the 2nd half discussing him chasing his dreams & taking risks preceding the outro “Stuck in My Ways” talking about his inability of change.

Seeing him & Scoob squashing their issues with Rafa & working on new music on social media earlier this month was awesome considering all 3 of those guys were apart of WRLD Tour since Day 1 but whatever DaeMoney has planned going forward, Good N***a + Bad Habits preludes this new era with a 10 minute EP containing some of the most ear-grabbing production in Pwillvolair’s career & Slae handling the verses by himself breaking down the kind of person he is.

Score: 3.5/5

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Wyclef Jean – “Quantum Leap 2: Q Theory” review

Newark, New Jersey by way of Croix-des-Bouquets, Haiti rapper, singer/songwriter & producer Wyclef Jean continuing the Quantum Leap series with his 4th extended play. Beginning his career as 1/3 of the Fugees, he has since spent the last 3 decades following their initial disbandment carving a path for himself as a solo artist dropping a couple of extended plays along with 8 full-length studio albums & 3 mixtapes. Kicking off the 7-part Quantum Leap saga with Clef Notes taking it back to Clef’s hip hop roots in addition to announcing a Fugees reunion this summer, Quantum Leap 2: Q Theory looks to tread jazzier waters instrumentally.

“Rocinha” featuring saxophonist Godwin Louis, pianist Robert Glasper & organist Patrick Pelissier opens up with a 6 minute intro that feels infectiously rhythmic whereas “Lady Havana” featuring pianist Axel Tosca, trumpeter Theo Croker, drummer Yussef Dayes & percussionist Yiyi Sanchez finds the quintet that has a more calmer vibe than the previous track. “Silk & Sand” featuring trumpeter Jean Caze & djembefola Weedie Braimah takes a more tropical approach in terms of style just before “French Quarter” featuring Niia with drums supplied Harvey Mason comes through with a passable vocal duet.

Bradford Hayes plays the saxophone during “Pegasus” once again shifting focus towards the compositional side of things for a laidback tune while “Farafina” featuring pianist Arden Altino & flautist Elena Pinderhughes brings Robert Glasper back on the keys for a more tender jam. “Sugarcane & Watermelon” might be my least favorite track here since the percussion takes up a bulk of the spotlight but after “Harlem Nights” turns up the grooviness with some melodic background vocals, “Touissant Louverture” finishes Quantum Leap 2: Q Theory with a 4 minute outro inspired by the most prominent leader of the Haitian Revolution.

This whole saga was said to explore a different genre with each installment & I completely understand why Wyclef Jean took it back to the first language he knew before anyone knew who he was for the Clef Notes sequel since the inaugural entry was hip hop-oriented: Jazz music. Introducing the world to his jazz fusion band Rara Jazz comprised of veterans & newer voices, Quantum Leap 2: Q Theory versatilely continues to slowly but surely remind everyone of his artistic range setting up for wherever the next chapter goes.

Score: 3.5/5

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Dave Blunts – “Ulysses” review

Davenport, Iowa by way of Salt Lake City, Utah rapper, singer/songwriter & internet personality Dave Blunts ending the month with his 17th extended play. Dropping his last 16 EPs & a few full-lengths since 2018 or so, I’ve even mentioned a couple guest appearances he made for Babytron & D. Savage on Tronicles & We Love D. Savage a couple years earlier respectively. You Can’t Say That last spring got some rightful backlash for the transphobia & dissing artists who have stronger discographies than him, coming off I’ll Believe It When I See It to celebrate his independence with Ulysses.

“Free Love” denies any incestuous relationships following Ye formerly known as Kanye West’s controversial single “Cousins”, taking a transphobic jab at KanKan & calling for the release of Puff Daddy a.k.a. P. Diddy or Diddy whereas “Easy Target” recalls almost shooting up his high school at 17. “Mirror” interpolates “Mirrors” by Justin Timberlake talking about his friend Ethan Shutak getting head & once “Solar” hatefully disses his ex, “The Plug Let Me Down” ends the EP dissing Ye again.

All 5 of these tracks were originally supposed to be included on I’ll Believe It When I See It & despite always supporting any artist getting out of their label deal, I wouldn’t be surprised whatsoever to learn if Ulysses was conceived around the same time as it’s counterpart because there are some correlations in terms of headspace. The pop rap, trap & regalia production was actually a cut above its predecessor even if Dave Blunts’ gimmicky approach to songwriting further reveals itself to either be hateful rather than “comedic”.

Score: 1/5

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Truly Young – “Dear Joshua” review

Los Angeles, California bedroom pop singer/songwriter Truly Young releasing her debut extended play after turning 25 this month. Known for being the daughter of Dr. Dre, she would eventually get herself involved in music by making a few guest appearances on Kevin Abstract’s 6th album blush under X8 Music a couple years ago & was actually more impressed with the performances she had on there than I initially thought. That said: She’s making a bigger artistic splash with Dear Joshua beyond her debut single “Room 64”.

The self-produced title track begins singing about this guy who’s easily influenced by doubt & her not being his type of woman over an indie pop instrumental whereas “fear the reaper” goes for a summery vibe asking who’d she be if she didn’t give into danger. “forever” ends the 1st half realizing Joshua will miss her while “shadows” describes escaping her feelings. “boy” dabbles with dance-pop airing him out for not being the man she thought he was & “you 2 deserve each other” colorfully ends singing about him recognizing her weaknesses.

Putting aside the fact her father’s the Quincy Jones of hip hop, Truly Young spends the 16 minutes of her inaugural EP Dear Joshua sending an audio letter to her now ex-boyfriend pretty much airing out her grievances towards him. It made me happy learning she produced the entire thing rather than having other producers on board much like her “Room 64” aside from “shadows”, establishing herself in the indie pop world channeling all that anger she had stemming from that failed relationship exploring dance-pop & contemporary R&B for what I consider the real beginning of her solo career.

Score: 3.5/5

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