21 Savage – “What Happened to the Streets?” review

Brand new studio LP & the 5th overall from London, England, United Kingdom born albeit Atlanta, Georgia raised rapper, songwriter & occasional producer 21 Savage. Appearing on the iconic 2016 XXL Freshman Class list, he continued to make a household name for himself in the current trap landscape by dropping his 2nd EP Savage Mode with Metro Boomin’ producing it in it’s entirety shortly after. Then came his full-length debut Issa Album & an incredible collab album he did with Offset called Without Warning the following year, but it wouldn’t be until the end of 2018 where 21 dropped his most mature work to date with i am > i was. Fast forward a little over a month later, he was arrested by ICE after it was revealed that he was born in the UK & stayed in the US on an expired visa only to be freed 10 days later. Savage Mode II quickly became amongst the most celebrated trap albums of the current decade & american dream was more soulful than anything 21 has done previously, trying to figure out What Happened to the Streets?.

“Where You From?” produced by Southside, Wheezy & Dez Wright comes out the gate cautioning to not ask him anything regarding Metro Boomin’s beef with Drake whereas “Ha” samples “Hit Another Lick” by Gucci Mane thanks to Zaytoven talking about drawing gins on muhfuckas for his own amusement. “Stepbrothers” featuring Young Nudy finds the 2 cousins linking up behind a Coupe instrumental backing them to break down the gangsta lifestyle prior to “Cup Full” talking about how this vibe has been making him fill up his cup to the brim over a Taurus beat.

Latto reunited with 21 on “Pop It” for a run-of-the-mill ode to poppin’ tags while “Mr. Recoup” featuring Drake picks up where “Mr. Right Now” from Savage Mode II left off & as much as I still love that song now, I can’t say the same for this generic snooze fest. “J.O.W.Y.H. (Jump Out Wit Ya Hoe)” reaches the halfway point talking about his bitch in an underwhelming fashion & after “Dog $hit” featuring Glorilla sums it up nicely fumbling the concept of being a playa, “Code of Honor” featuring G Herbo comes together to talk about giving everything to their hoods.

“Gang Over Everything” jumps over a chipmunk soul/trap fusion from Metro Boomin’, BoogzDaBeast & FNZ for a reminder that he’s married to this street shit while “Halftime” feels less of an interlude & more of a cloudy statement of him getting amped up after lettin’ bullshit slide for too long. “Big Steppers” incorporates some pianos courtesy of d.a. got that dope talking about his girl knowing he’s legitimate & after the potential Leak$ outtake “Atlanta Tears” featuring Lil Baby, the closer “I Wish” ends on a sincere note shouting out his dead homies.

Next summer will be a whole entire decade since I got introduced to 21 Savage via the Savage Mode EP & if I have to honest, What Happened to the Streets? could eventually become a serious contender for the weakest entry in his discography thus far. The guests are a great example of the “government mandated features” joke that’s been all over social media for the past year or so, a lot of the same themes of his previous material are being rehashed & the production choices stick out amongst the most questionable thus far.

Score: 2.5/5

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BIA – “Bianca” review

BIA is a 34 year old rapper & singer/songwriter from Medford, Massachusetts whom Pharrell signed to i am OTHER Entertainment & RCA Records when I was in high school. Her debut mixtape & her debut EP #CholaSeason & Nice Girls Finish Last: Cuidado marked her only releases for the labels, signing to Epic Records for For Certain & Really Her. Cardi B dissed her on her sophomore effort Am I the Problem? couple weeks ago & BIA’s responding with her full-length studio debut.

“October” sings for 106 seconds over some humming background vocals about refusing to make herself believe she doesn’t feel a thing at all whereas “Dade” featuring Key Glock finds the 2 teaming up to declare themselves as shapeshifters. A$AP Ferg & Denzel Curry both appear for a sequel of “We On Go” that’s energetic as the original version produced by Honorable C.N.O.T.E. while “Sad Party” talks about how people want to see each other party with someone else.

Moving on from there, “1 Thing” pays homage to Lauryn Hill with a breezily tropical hip hop single making it known that she doesn’t trust any man with 0 experience leading into “Pray for You” featuring Khalil Harrison makes for a decent attempt at ampiano. “Hard Way” featuring Becky G teams up for a bilingual Latin trap crossover looking to party tonight while “Bad Guy” seemingly responds to Cardi B’s jabs directed at her over a Turbo instrumental.

“+44” starts the 2nd half of Bianca taking the sample drill route talking about seeing face that’s unlike any other person she’s ever met while the Afrobeats-inflicted “Ready Set” runs the paper up until everyone else keeps pace with her. “Birthday Behavior” featuring Young Miko samples “Hips Don’t Lie” by Shakira talking about what they be doing on their birthdays while “Guava” hops over some horns to get unruly.

The song “N.W.F.A. (N****s Will Fuck Anything)” sets off the 4th quarter playfully talking about men being overly horny while “Awake” blends pop rap & boom bap to ask who told them that life would be easy when that’s a clear lie. “Crazy” featuring Ty$ puts a bigger emphasis on the pop rap style talking about going crazy for one another & “Trifling” was a surprisingly lush outro warning that the next bitch her man finds won’t be his next problem.

Starting the deluxe run, we’re treated to the original “We On Go” justifying the inclusion of a follow-up during the 1st half while the TiaCorine/Young Thug- inspired no melody pop rap single “Pissed Off” featuring Lil Yachty talks about being disrespected. The final bonus track “Lights Out” featuring J.I.D swaps out the no melody undertones in favor of electropop continuing to shine with the lights are dimmed.

Contrasting the question of anyone can name 5 songs in BIA’s whole discography: I’ve been paying attention to her since my adolescence when the Billionaire Boys Club/Icecream founder & future Louis Vuitton’s men’s creative director brought her on board to a major label hoping that she’d release a whole body of work that exemplified the potential of singles like “Whip It” or more recently “We On It”. And even though I do appreciate the guests & the fact that she tried to give us the clearest version of herself, some of the production lacks in my opinion.

Score: 2.5/5

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Skepta – “Skepta .. Fred” review

London, England, United Kingdom rapper, songwriter & producer Skepta teaming up with local producer Fred again.. for his 3rd EP. A co-founder the Boy Better Know collective, a lot of people in the state including myself didn’t hop on board with him until almost a decade ago when he dropped his 4th album Konnichiwa to critical acclaim. This was followed up a couple years back with both Ignorance is Bliss & All In being welcomed to moderate reception, but the Skepta .. Fred singles had me anticipating this much more.

“Back 2 Back” fuses grime & dubstep together so he can talk about the recognition he’s gotten throughout his career whereas “London” carries over the styles of the previous track preferring to play the villain than the victim. “Last 1s Left” turns the dubstep influences up to talk about being the last of a dying breed while the soulful “21 Years” reflects on these past couple decades. “Victory Lap” co-produced by PlaqueBoyMax ends with a nod to the local community platform of the same name.

Both teasers that we’ve gotten these past few months confirms the speculation I had regarding Skepta doing a whole EP with Fred again.. & as I would’ve thought, it reveals itself to be the most cutting edge project he’s put out since Konnichiwa celebrating it’s 10-year anniversary next spring. Fred’s production plays well into the Boy Better Know co-founder’s grime style that he helped lay out the foundation for & simultaneously places electronic dance music as a secondary influence.

Score: 4.5/5

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Mariah the Scientist – “Hearts Sold Separately” review

Mariah the Scientist is a 27 year old singer/songwriter from Atlanta, Georgia whom Tory Lanez signed to 1 Umbrella Records & RCA Records following her debut EP To Die For. Once her full-length debut Master & the sophomore effort Ry Ry World came out, she would go on to start her own imprint Buckles Laboratories distributed by Epic Records & it’s inaugural release To Be Eaten Alive made her one of the most popular R&B artists today. She even had one of my favorite songs on KAYTRANADA’s 3rd album Timeless & that was a factor in me checking out her 4th album.

“Sacrifice” produced by 1985 makes for a nostalgically lush intro basically reflecting on her being separated from her current boyfriend Young Thug for a period of 300 days because of the latter’s R.I.C.O. case leading into Rogét Chahayed cooking up the calculated 2-parter “United Nations + 1,000 Ways to Die” sings about Thug getting her high off their love.

Meanwhile on “Eternal Flame”, we have Mariah over a funkier yet atmospheric instrumental feeling confident that nothing will tear her or the YSL Records founder apart even if it almost did when the latter was incarcerated just before “Is It a Crime?” featuring Kali Uchis finds the pair asking what the problem is with them falling in love a couple times.

“Burning Blue” blends alternative & contemporary R&B with alt-pop to use the hottest form of fire as a striking metaphor for the deep connection that she shares with Thug must before “All I Want + In Pursuit” begins the 2nd half of Hearts Sold Separately with another track split into 2 halves singing about her desire to have her mans by her side.

Themes of self-reliance bleed heavy during the course of “More” stylistically throwing it back to the ‘80s & ‘90s while “Rainy Days” throws it back to the Master era singing about her being naive as opposed to ignorance as well as asking if it’s possible for one to to make mistakes & lose their way.

“Like You Never” embraces a trap soul vibe to ask if Young Thug would love her like he’s never loved anyone in the past & trusting her as if he doesn’t have inhibitions prior to the bittersweet l “No More Entertainers” finishing the most important entry in Mariah’s discography airing out an ex of hers over an addictive London on da Track beat singing that he was more of an entertainer than a lover.

Honoring the legacies of R&B greats like Sade or Babyface to name a couple, Hearts Sold Separately feels completely different from anything Mariah the Scientist has done previously with a contemporary R&B full-length that ventures out to the depths of synthpop, sophisti-pop, neo-soul & alternative R&B vitally addressing modern society’s war on love. Refusing to be led by heartless womanizers, she pictures herself & most women as toy soldiers who will lay their lives on the line for the sake of love only to realize that men view them as nothing more than disposable playthings used strictly for entertainment.

Score: 4.5/5

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Cactus Jack Records – “JACKBOYS II” review

This is a brand new mixtape from Houston, Texas label Cactus Jack Records founded by local rapper, singer/songwriter, producer & the honorary WWE Hardcore Champion Travis Scott. The current roster includes Don Toliver, SoFaygo, Sheck Wes, Luxury Tax, DJ Chase B & Wallie the Sensei with both Smokepurpp & Malu Trevejo being signed at one point except neither one of them officially put anything out during their short time. They collectively dropped a JACKBOYS EP days following Christmas 2019 & have returned for a sequel since they’ve brought a few new artists on board since.

The first song “Champain & Vacay” by Don Toliver & Travis Scott after the “JB2 Radio” intro finds the latter subtly responding back to Pusha T with the “Made a hunnid off pushin’ T’s” line over some synthesizers & hi-hats whereas “2000 Excursion” by Don Toliver, Sheck Wes & Travis Scott finds Cardo mixing trap, pop rap, neo-psychedelia, alternative R&B & rap rock homaging the titular brand of Ford cars. “Kick Out” by Travis Scott gives me a gritty dirty south vibe until the switch-up during the last minute courtesy of T-Minus talking about getting the boot of shit gets complicated prior to “Dumbo” also by Travis Scott guaranteeing that the baddie he with is going stupid.

SoFaygo gets his own song with “MM3” shutting down the rumors of him being unhappy on Cactus Jack by giving us what we can expect on his forthcoming sophomore effort Mania rapping like the rent was due sampling “Ski Mask” by Project Pat just before “Velour” finds Don Toliver prominently singing a refrain & chorus with Sheck Wes providing a sole verse & Bugz Ronin musically backing them. “Contest” by SoFaygo & Travis Scott marks the first time they’ve collaborated with each other jumping over a rage beat talking about catching Ws their whole lives while “I.L.M.B. (I Love My Bitch)” by Sheck Wes & Travis Scott made for an average trap single with secondary hypertrap influences.

“Where Was You” by Travis Scott featuring Future & Playboi Carti produced by F1LTHY of Working on Dying reunites the Shai Gilgeous-Alexander, Chet Holmgren & Jalen Williams of trap so they can kill all these hoes wanting to eat their bones while “No Comments” by Don Toliver kicks the synths back in full gear to talk about sprinkling more hi-hats in the fold trying to get to know a woman. “Beep Beep” by Travis Scott ruins a self-produced instrumental by giving SahBabii the weakest feature on the entire compilation while “PBT” by Travis Scott featuring Tyla & Vybz Kartel feels like an outdated attempt at dancehall.

Glorilla’s appearance during “Shyne” by Travis Scott makes sense heavily pulling from Chicago drill & crunk referencing Matthew McConaughey in light of his upcoming appearance in the A24 Films thriller The Lost Bus & hitting the wiggly wobbly while “Outside” by Travis Scott featuring YoungBoy Never Broke Again links the 2 up over synthesizers & hi-hats talking about stealing people’s bitches. “Can’t Stop” by Don Toliver & Wallie the Sensei brings both of them together to deliver a psychedelic tribute to ingesting all sorts of drugs & “Florida Flow” by Travis Scott featuring Kodak Black finishes the tape with them beat reflects on the Miami scene speedin’ people’s shit up the way H-Town slows shit down over a Tay Keith beat.

My favorite Travis Scott solo song is actually the one that starts off the deluxe run “Da Wizard” dropping braggadocio over Metro Boomin’ & TM88 production while “Trip Out” feels like a Yeat song featuring Sheck Wes considering Yeat’s all over it except for the final verse out-rapping Sheck & it’s catered to the rage sound Yeat became known for when his popularity grew. The final bonus track “110 South” by Luxury Tax & Wallie the Sensei marks Luxury’s only appearance on the entire compilation joining Cactus Jack’s newest member backed by a ghostly trap instrumental giving no fucks.

So much going down in Texas this weekend considering Adam Page became a 2-time AEW World Champion ending Jon Moxley’s 4th & worst reign, オカダ・カズチカ defeating his biggest 新日本プロレス rival Kenny Omega to become the new AEW International Champion, the longest reigning ROH Women’s World Champion Athena becoming the current 4-time AEW Women’s World Champion Toni Storm’s #1 Contender, the seeds being planted for a reunion between former 7-time WWE Tag Team Champions Adam Copeland & Christian Cage since the current ROH World Television Champion Nick Wayne turned on the latter and lastly the current ROH World Tag Team Champion & ROH World 6-Man Tag Team Champion Dustin Rhodes becoming the new AEW TNT Champion because of Adam Cole vacating it due to career-threatening health issues at All In IV yesterday. Regarding the Let God Sort ‘Em Out & JACKBOYS II debate, Let God Sort ‘Em Out sweeps because JACKBOYS II feels reminiscent of Drake & 21 Savage’s collab album Her Loss.

Score: 3/5

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ScarLip – “Scarred B4 Fame” review

ScarLip is a 24 year old rapper & producer from Brooklyn, New York signing to Epic Records following the single “This is New York”. I on the other hand wasn’t introduced to her until she appeared on “Take ‘Em Out” off the Hip Hop 50, Vol. 2 EP that Swizz Beatz produced a couple years ago & began seeing the appeal in her music once “Blick” came out weeks after a couple of her fans were messaging me on social media last summer. To get THIS summer started, the Broken Child Entertainment founder’s preluding her debut album with a debut EP.

I didn’t mind “Pop That” featuring Lil Wayne as an intro bringing both of them together over a Rockwilder & Swizz Beatz instrumental to remind where you can find them if you need some weight whereas “Melanin” angrily talks about beefing with ghostwriters instead of other rappers. “Eastside” fuses trap & soul advising not to call her since she don’t need anyone leading into the mediocre New York drill collab “Fruity Pebbles” featuring TaTa.

“Could’ve Been Me” featuring Skilla Baby begins the final moments of Scarred B4 Fame with both of them keeping guns by their side asking what the plan is but after “Runaway Love” freestyles over the instrumental of the Ludacris track of the same name from Release Therapy, “Lord Please” sends off the EP fusing trap & gospel asking God to be easy on her.

Haven’t really consider myself the biggest fan of the New York drill scene other than the late Pop Smoke & right when I thought that subgenre was starting to fade out because nobody has really carried the torch since, hearing ScarLip for the past couple years had me hoping that she would capitalize on her potential with this EP & the results are mixed. I can certainly say the hunger’s there in her verses, although most of the guests’ performances & some of the instrumentals are 2 of the biggest criticisms I have with it.

Score: 2.5/5

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André 3000 – “7 Piano Sketches” review

Brand new surprise 3rd EP from Atlanta, Georgia emcee, singer/songwriter, producer, actor & the Prince of hip hop André 3000. Coming up as 1/2 of the greatest hip hop duo of all-time OutKast with Big Boi whom he met at Lenox Square Mall when they were both 16, they were also a part of the Dungeon Family collective & released some of my favorite music EVER! This includes ATLiens, Aquemini, Stankonia & Speakerboxxx / The Love Below. The 2nd disc of which was basically the closest thing we got to a solo album from 3 Stacks up to this point. However after what would eventually be their final album Idlewild serving as a soundtrack to the movie of the same name, they would focus on their solo careers. Francis the Savannah Chitlin’ Pimp mostly notably putting out 3 full-length LPs of his own as well as an eponymous EP as Big Grams & an eponymous debut album as Big Sleepover too. André 3000 however stuck to doing features & pursuing an acting career, putting out an avant-garde jazz EP on Mother’s Day 2018 called Look Ma No Hands & signing to Epic Records for the new age ambient-driven solo debut New Blue Sun to critical acclaim. Moving Day was a fine collection of 2 outtakes from the New Blue Sun sessions & has laid out 7 Piano Sketches out of nowhere.

“Bluffing in the Snow” was a great intro to the EP showing off his keyboardist abilities for 3 minutes whereas “& Then One Day You’ll…” works in some more cumbersome tone to the notes he’s playing further assuming “die” to be the missing word in the title of the composition prior to the 34 second “When You’re a Ant & You Wake Up in an Awesome Mood About to Drive Your Son to School Only to Discover You Left the Lights on in the Car Last Night, So Your Battery is Drained” interlude.

The name “Hotel Lobby Pianos” goes for that exact vibe feeling like I’m walking into Circa Resort & Casino or any other high quality resort on the verge of checking in just before “Blueberry Mansions” turns it up on the luxuriousness for almost a couple minutes. “Off Rhythm Laughter” lives up to its name playing the piano overlapping a laughing sample that’s not on rhythm. “I Spend All Day Waiting for the Night” finishes by adding some drums in the fold for a climatic closer that I can hear at the end of a show or a movie.

Not too shocked to see people complaining about him doing anything except dropping a whole hip hop album but like I said when I reviewed New Blue Sun: André 3000 is literally one of those guys who can do just about anything & can find a way to pull it off. Instead of him using woodwinds like he did on that LP & the previous EP Moving Day, he’s playing the piano with hints of spoken word because of every track starting with the track number & title being said out loud for an easy listening experience.

Score: 3.5/5

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Coi Leray – “What Happened to Forever?” review

Here we have the 6th EP from New Jersey rapper & singer Coi Leray. Growing up as the younger brother of Sosshouse Records signee Chavo & the daughter of Benzino, she began to carve a path of her own with her debut mixtape Everythingcoz along with her first 2 EPs Everythingcoz 2 & Now or Never even though they were mediocre to me personally. She then signed to Uptown Records after being relaunched by Republic Records & put out her major label debut Trendsetter not too long after which had a few of her strongest tracks yet, but the bad mostly outweighed the good & the same applied to Coi considering “Self Love” off the Spider-Man: Across the Spider-Verse soundtrack could be my favorite song of hers yet. Lemon Cars produced by Mike WiLL Made-It under Island Records was her most acclaimed body of work yet & his moving over to Epic Records wanting to know What Happened to Forever?.

“Keep It” was a decent pop rap intro airing out Trippie Redd for cheating on her not too long after her pregnancy with his child was announced whereas “Leave You Alone” tells Trippie not to lie to her because it cuts too deep. “I Hate Your Friends” is my favorite track here from the CashMoneyAP instrumental to the lyrics expressing the genuine hatred she holds against her baby daddy’s homies while “U Too” professes to being fucked up & “Lick Back” concludes the EP talking about getting into her bag again.

Lemon Cars made me more optimistic regarding Coi’s ability to craft a consistent body of work & for her Epic debut, she whips up a mediocre EP built around the sounds of both pop rap & alternative R&B channeling the frustrating betrayal that she felt after Trippie Redd was stupid enough to get her pregnant a little over a month prior. The concepts are there & so is the anger, my biggest issue is the production falling flat significantly harder than her last one did.

Score: 2.5/5

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Future – “Mixtape Pluto” review

Atlanta, Georgia rapper & singer/songwriter Future finally giving us his 14th mixtape. Coming up as a member of the Dungeon Family thanks to his cousin Rico Wade of Organized Noize, he officially made his debut in 2012 with Pluto & would later follow it up with a hot streak of modern day trap essentials like like Honest, Monster, Beast Mode & my personal favorite of his: D.S. 2 (Dirty Sprite 2). However since 2017, Future has mostly been painting himself in a corner & prioritizing quantity over quality. I mean sure HNDRXX took a more sensual approach & SUPER SLIMEY showed a pretty great chemistry with fellow trap trailblazer Young Thug, but Beast Mode 2 was a step down from the predecessor & he got with Juice WRLD to put out a collab tape that literally should’ve never happened: WRLD on Drugs. Finally at the very beginning of that next year, The WIZRD was just passable even though it showed NO artistic evolution whatsoever & Save Me was a decent attempt at being more vulnerable, High Off Life admirably found him staying true to himself in the midst of trying new things & I Never Liked You put the toxicity claims about him to rest. Metro Boomin’ reunited with Future for We Don’t Trust You & We Still Don’t Trust You, refining Pluto’s previous double album FUTURE HNDRXX & becoming his best since D.S. 2 (Dirty Sprite 2). 5 months later, Pluto’s continuing his best run in a decade with what DY said was originally a 56 Nights sequel.

“Teflon Don” is this trap opener produced by both Southside & London on da Track talking about beating the 1st case like John Gotti & being the boss calling shots whereas “Lil Demon” flexes his bitch a princess cut over a synths & hi-hats. “Ski” gives off a psychedelic trap vibe thanks to Smatt Sertified with co-production from his mentor Southside to talk about being ready to slide while “Ready to Cook” makes it clear that he’s prepared to make some dope over this solemn Wheezy instrumental.

Meanwhile on “Plutoski” we have Future trappin’ out the trap itself over this suspenseful ass trap beat just before DJ Champ & Taurus help him get personal with the highlight “Too Fast” discussing moving quicker in life than he should be. “Ocean” instrumentally radiates a haunting atmosphere in time for Halloween next month courtesy of Honorable C.N.O.T.E. & Dez Wright admitting he has enough tears to fill the ocean for all these losses took in this shit, but then the grisly “Press the Button” gets back on the road with the thangs & in the cut with the gang.

“MJ” woozily ends the first half of the tape getting activated from the monkey juice on the verge of going crazy the way she take the sex with the help of Romil Hemnani prior to DY helping Southside embrace his distinctly known gangster, bombastic, gritty, rambunctious & menacing trap sound for “Brazzier” throwing up gang signs & going brazy. “South of France” featuring Travis Scott on the remix hard-hittingly details his expensive lifestyle & drug use while the ethereal “Surfing a Tsunami” that Che Pope co-produced advises not to be careless with this rich behavior.

The sampling of “The Hills” by The Weeknd mixed with hi-hats throughout “Made My Hoe Faint” are pretty distinct recounting his numerous monetary achievements & shows of wealth while the druggy “Told My” talks feeling higher than Jesus. “Oath” hooks up background vocals & hi-hats breaking the law while “Lost My Dog” finds FNZ & ATL Jacob stripping the drums for a Rico Wade tribute. “Aye Say Gang” ends Mixtape Pluto with a bassy trap joint motivating the young homies.

Continuing his best run since the mid-2010s, Future comes off the 2 best albums in his discography in almost a decade We Don’t Trust You & We Still Don’t Trust You for a tribute to his late uncle & mentor alongside the era from which he emerged sounding like André 3000 under the Meathead stage name. The production mostly handled by Southside is much darker than his So Icey Boyz counterpart Metro allowing Plutoski to take it back to his roots.

Score: 4.5/5

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Pyrex Whippa – “Sincerely, Rex” review

Pyrex Whippa is a 27 year old producer, rapper, singer/songwriter & audio engineer from Baltimore, Maryland notable for being a member of the seminal trap production team 808 Mafia. It should also be said that this isn’t even the first body of work that he’s put out, releasing a debut EP Separation Anxiety in the fall of 2019 & having his mentor Southside produce his 2nd one Blood on the Hills roughly 13 months later to more positive reception followed by Thanks for Holding On & Guns ‘N Romance. Sizzle gave us his full-length debut album Break the Silence under Epic Records last month & Rex is following suit.

“Burning Bridges” starts the album better than I thought it would singing over a groovy, drumless instrumental telling the homies he got them whereas “Screamin’” produced by Smatt Sertified takes the cavernous trap route calling out a hoe for playing with his love & couldn’t see it from the very beginning. “Met Gala” hooks up a reversed sample & hi-hats promising to get the ladder instead of the table & “Baby” further puts an emphasis on atmosphere going crazy for his new girl.

As for Unfair”, we have another pop rap/trap cut asking this woman how she gon’ do him the way she did since it was incredibly undeserving while “No Mercy” strips the drums again hopping over a bare guitar displaying the merciless side of himself. “Void” keeps it drumless dissing an ex because of the fact that her heart doesn’t make a sound & his shakes the ground, but then “DND” brings the hi-hats in again talking about the mode he’s in.

“Vacuum Sealer” goes for a spacious, bassy vibe to the beat discussing shit getting musty in the mansion & it’s so hard to miss this bitch the way he misses those racks leading into the plentiful trap banger “Wat I’m On” talking about making it out of the trenches & reaching the upper echelon. “All Wrong” despite the cloudily instrumental has some of the weaker subject matter throughout the LP that is until “Buddha Man” has a delicate trap tone generally shrugging off those treating him average.

The song “Skeletons” removes the drums from the equation encouraging the people in his life to do the right thing by grabbing his hand when he falls while the acoustic “All 4 U” sings about leaving it how it is after fucking around with his heart. “Exhale” finally closes Sincerely, Rex in the form of 1 last trap joint letting a homie with mob ties know that he’s refusing to let him leave on him tryna play it cool with ice in his veins.

Break the Silence as a commercial debut for Southside was disappointing compared to the Trap Ye mixtapes since his lyrical performances weren’t the best except I did appreciate the risk of departing from the signature sound that the 808 Mafia co-founder is known for. Pyrex’s debut here happens to be the better of the 2 surprisingly. The production here is more interesting bringing balance to drumless & trap displaying his life on wax.

Score: 3.5/5

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