Erick Sermon – “Dynamic Duos” review

Islip, New York emcee/producer Erick Sermon taking a backseat vocally for his 9th LP. A member of the duo EPMD & the trio Def Squad, it was’t until the early/mid 90s where he made his solo debut No Pressure & followed with a sophomore effort Double or Nothing under Def Jam Recordings. Following the DreamWorks Records-backed Erick Onasis as well as Music & React under J Records, he contemplated retiring in the summer of 2004 with Chilltown, New York under Universal Music Group. He fortunately made a flawed yet solid comeback over a decade later with E.S.P. (Erick Sermon’s Perception) & his last album Vernia was a great tribute to his late grandmother, but he’s ready to roll out the Dynamic Duos trilogy.

After the intro, the lead single “Look at ‘Em” by Method Man & Redman begins with them talking about their whole crews going off over a ghostly instrumental whereas “Sidewalk Executives” by M.O.P. works in a soul sample to proclaim administrative status of their home turf. “Like That” by WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg takes a funkier route to spit playful romance & after the “Maya Crockett” skit, “God Mode” by Conway the Machine & The Game links up to talk about their verses being scriptures.

“How Do You Know?” by Cypress Hill goes for a boom bap vibe cautioning that nobody want the purple haze smoke from them while “How Long?” by Public Enemy brings back the funk shifting from hardcore lyricism to the politically relevant subject matter they’ve always been known for. EPMD get a song of their own with “Test Me” daring for their opposition to try them & see what happens but after the “Pimp Gators” skit, “The City” by Tha Dogg Pound represents the west coast.

The song “Spectacle” by Heltah Skeltah blends soul & funk talking about making the music world experience something incredible while “No Gimmicks” featuring 38 Spesh with Da Youngfellaz on the remix finds the quartet reminding us all that they remain authentic. Prior to the outro, “Back 2 the Party” by Salt-n-Pepa finishes with the recently inducted Rock & Roll Hall of Famers smoothly getting nostalgic over the days of block parties.

Focusing more on the production side of things, Dynamic Duos marks the 1st time since the insomnia compilation under Interscope Records almost 3 decades ago where Erick Sermon lets a list of guest performers shine on the mic although he does drop a couple verses here & there. And it’s no surprise that the inaugural entry of this series has great potential to be his greatest material honoring some of hip hop’s most iconic groups & duos.

Score: 4.5/5

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Bun B – “Way Mo Trill” review

Port Arthur, Texas emcee & entrepreneur Bun B returning for his 7th studio LP. Coming up as 1/2 of the iconic duo UGK over 3 decade ago, he eventually released his solo debut Trill in the fall of 2005 & & began focusing towards his solo career a few months after UGK’s self-titled double album when his cohort Pimp C passed away. Bun went on to release 5 more albums, with the last one being the Cory Mo-produced Mo Trill & to which Way Mo Trill serves as an official sequel to ahead of it’s predecessor turning 4 in a few months.

“There He Go” featuring 8Ball & MJG starts with them forever staying on the grind every minute & every hour whereas the final single “Everywhere We Go” by UGK featuring Juicy J & Project Pat talks about representing the south regardless of where they’re at. “Better Believe It” featuring LaRussell co-produced by DJ Toomp pulls from gospel a bit flexing that they’re back bigger & better while “I Can’t Lie” featuring Monaleo & Scotty ATL after the “Queenie Keeping It Trill 2” skit finds the trio talking about not letting hoes ride with Ray Murray of Organized Noize handling co-production.

Killa Kyleon & Young Dro appear for the soulful lead single “Can’t Stop My Hustle” refusing to pump the brakes in terms of hustling while “Down in the South” featuring Akeem Ali & 24hrs talks about bumping country rap tunes in the ride driving around the city. Woodie Woo joins Bun in clarifying that they’re “Still Outside” & after “N****s Ain’t Right” featuring Z-Ro calls out the frauds, Jay Worthy alongside Legendary Baller & Scar get together with Bun to “Put You on Game”.

Starting the deluxe run, “Be About Some Bread” featuring Talib Kweli joins forces over sample-based trap instrumental advising to get the fuck out the game if you don’t even know how to play it when they’re absolutely correct about it while the final bonus track “Fight Music” featuring Grafh & Termanology finishes up with all 3 of them over some horns & hi-hats for a song either the WWE or the UFC divisions of the Endeavor-owned TKO Group Holdings would include in a future video game soundtrack.

Unfortunately as much as I enjoyed Mo Trill for it’s demonstration of Bun B & Cory Mo’s artistic chemistry approximately 3 & a half years earlier, I wouldn’t consider the sequel to be on par with the predecessor even though I’m very much torn coming away from it. Not because of Cory’s dirty south/trap production or the killer lyricism from the founder of II Trill Enterprises & Trill Burgers, but mainly due to the opinion that the list of guests subtly tones down in consistency.

Score: 3/5

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Jim Jones – “The Fall Before the Rise” review

The Bronx, New York rapper Jim Jones dropping a brand new extended play a few days succeeding it’s announcement. A member of The Diplomats in the 2000s, his first 5 full-lengths from 2004-2011 had some highlights in them even if they were all average at best as whole albums. However it wouldn’t be until 2018 after dropping Wasted Talent where he would really start putting out his best material ever & then came out with his magnum opus the following year El Capo. El Capo 2 & the Harry Fraud-produced The Fraud Department continued the acclaim up until the Hitmaka-produced Back in My Prime proved to be disappointing & At the Church Steps was ok, coming off Pusha T dissing him on the Clipse single “Ace Trumpets” to present The Fall Before the Rise.

The intro opens up with a genuinely decent instrumental telling the God’s honest truth until “I’m the Best” butchers a sample of “You’re the Best” by Joe Esposito for a little over a minute to stroke his ego after having Fivio Foreign do so not too long ago. The usage of sampling on “Rich Water” isn’t done any better having something for everyone who did him wrong leading into “Move ‘Em” talking about having the city under control like a PlayStaion over some 808s.

“Friday” thunderously speaks of formerly making money by putting yay on the highway just before “Eat Tonight” with an uncredited feature comes through with a mediocre Bonnie & Clyde ballad. “Revolution” talks about us getting increasingly closer to a rebellion of sorts while “Summer Where You Been At?” flips “Summertime” by DJ Jazzy Jeff & The Fresh Prince to address a lost love interest. We’re then treated to a freestyle spit during the 3rd annual Mafiathon, which was merely ok.

Wasted Talent marked a huge turning point in Jim Jones’ career putting out some of his greatest material over the course of the late 2010s/early 2020s but since Back in My Prime, the quality of his music is continuing to steeply decline the bigger his head grows. We still would’ve gotten a better product if you kept both tracks from At the Church Steps (deluxe included), whereas The Fall Before the Risecontains worse production & reminds us all he’s not even close to surpassing Nas as an MC.

Score: 1.5/5

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Joell Ortiz – “Love, Peace & Trauma” review

Yes, here is the 10th solo LP from Brooklyn, New York veteran Joell Ortiz. Emerging after being featured in the Unsigned Hype column of The Source over 2 decades ago, he went on to sign to Aftermath Entertainment for a brief period of time before leaving to drop his official debut The Brick: Bodega Chronicles under MNRK Music Group. I also can’t forget to mention when Slaughterhouse rose to prominence off their self-titled debut, which led Eminem signing the supergroup to Shady Records a decade ago already. Sadly, their major label debut welcome to: OUR HOUSE that came out the next summer would unfortunately end up being their last & everyone has been doing their own thing since. The Heatmakerz producing W.A.R. (With All Respect) became my favorite solo effort of his in a while and was hoping the same for Love, Peace & Trauma.

“PTSD” produced by The Heatmakerz opens the album by never looking back on where Yaowa suggests everyone who come around the same neck of the woods as him to look back & never forget where they came from whereas “Ambidextrous” picks up by telling us where he stands before us to this very day. “Undefeated” soulfully talks about looking up to the sky to God he’s all in while “Make It By” takes off a chipmunk soul route looking back on the way he’s been coping with trauma since he was a baby.

The Housing Authority Rap District a.k.a. H.A.R.D. reunites alongside Grafh during “On My Own” talking about the game being full of bums & jokes these days while “The Crosswalk” admits to today being one of those days where he’d pinch himself to see if he’s actually still here living in the moment when he is. “Never Forget” featuring Locksmith suggests not to speak out the neck while “Thy Neighbor” featuring Nucci Reyo talks about the world hating them.

“Can’t Live Without Your Love” references WWE Hall of Famer & former WWE Tag Team Champion Brutus Beefcake leading into “The Yaowa” embracing a chipmunk soul vibe to discuss catching up to himself as he gets older & wiser leading into “Wandering” talking about anxiety making you learn or keeping you attentive. “Smile” soulfully speaks of being built of love while “Pen, Pad & a Dream” reflects on all he had.

Some were disappointed by W.A.R. (With All Respect) last fall because of the amount of guests on it although I still consider it to be a high point in Joell Ortiz, but I guarantee that most of those people are gonna be gravitating towards Love, Peace & Trauma in comparison. It should be noted that The Heatmakerz only handle 70% of the production as opposed to the entire thing, yet it’s very much on par with the previous full-length & the same can be said regarding Yaowa’s pen.

Score: 4/5

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Ice Cube – “Man Up” review

Los Angeles emcee, songwriter, actor, film producer, CubeVision founder & BIG3 founder Ice Cube not slowing down musically with his 12th album. The cousin of Del the Funky Homosapien & Kam, he started as part of the C.I.A. gained notoriety as a member of N.W.A until departing after their historic debut Straight Outta Compton. Cube later got his own Priority Records deal as a solo artist, teaming with The Bomb Squad for his own debut AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted & later Kill at Will. Death Certificate went on to become another west coast hip hop landmark due to some of its racially & politically charged content, with his Lench Mob Records debut The Predator mainly addressing a lot of the racial tensions in the United States at the time. Lethal Injection was more g-funk heavy and the War & Peace double-disc effort marked the end of the former Westside Connection member’s Priority contract. Laugh Now, Cry Later distributed by Virgin Music & EMI Records was a solid comeback almost 2 decades ago next summer after mainly focusing on acting during the first half of the 2000s & then Raw Footage had it’s highlights although it was decent as a whole. I’m the West became his most negatively received body of work & the Interscope Records-distributed Everythang’s Corrupt showed to be an improvement although still average. Man Down last fall was a pretty great homage to his Day 1s & the sequel Man Up is here 10 months later.

“Man Power” produced by E-A-Ski starts by asking if one has masculine abilities from within whereas “What You Gonna Do About It?” disses the kind of people who only speak of doing things instead acting upon it. “Freedumb” consciously discusses how people are getting spied on through their smartphones while “Guess What?” talks about being in the cut figuring out if the targeted suspects are either for or against him.

We have Cube making it clear as day that one should “Forget Me If You Ain’t wit Me” leading into the only single “Before Hip Hop” featuring Chuck D & LL Cool J on the remix talking about life prior to making music over Hallway Productionz cooking up the original instrumental & DJ Premier handling the remix. “Act My Age” featuring Scarface dabbles with trap a bit for an ode to MCs over 35 just before “Ratchet Ass Mouth” cautions about the kind of women you shouldn’t date.

“Respect My Space” poses the question if anyone wants to battle him while “California Dreamin’” gives off a g-funk vibe for a tribute to the sunshine state. “That Salt & Pepper” shows off his grown man status for 115 seconds over a funky Erick Sermon beat & after “Bring Everybody” charismatically talks about being untouchable, “All Work No Play” finishes with a message to the O.G.s who feel the same way he does.

In spite of what others have to say about Ice Cube’s music in past 2 decades or so & don’t get me started with War of the Worlds flopping, I’d say that Man Down is the better of the 2 albums we’ve gotten from him in the past 10 months although Man Up’s very much decent. I appreciate that he only got 1 guest on here in contrast to the amount Man Down had, but the production here is a little weaker as a whole.

Score: 3/5

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Sada Baby – “The Green Tape: DX” review

This is the 18th mixtape from Detroit rapper/singer Sada Baby. Becoming amongst Detroit trap’s biggest names in 2017 off his first couple mixtapes Skuba Sada & D.O.N. (Day One N***a), he signed to Asylum Records for his 4th tape & major label debut Bartier Bounty to widespread praise in 2019 & has since put out 17 more mixtapes, with my favorites of being Skuba Sada 2 as well as both Bartier Bounty sequels & more recently The Black Tape: nWo. Almost 2 months later & The Green Tape: DX has arrived.

“Triple H” starts with a homage to 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, 14-time WWE world champion, 5-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 3-time WWE tag team champion & the Endeavor-owned TKO Group Holdings division’s CCO whereas “Road Dogg Skuba James” references the 2-time NWA World Tag Team Champion, WWE Hall of Famer, WWE Hardcore Champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, 6-time WWE tag team champion & WWE’s current Senior Vice President of Live Events.

We have the Detroit trap vibes carrying over on to “Pikkolo” throwing in a bar near the end referring to Rip Hamilton of the 2004 NBA Champion Detroit Pistons just before “HulkSmash” brings the bells in full effect talking saying no more because he ain’t saying shit. “X-Pac” gives his praises to the former アイアンマンヘビーメタル級王座, GCW Tag Team Champion, TNA X Division Champion, 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, 2-time WWE Cruiserweight Champion, 5-time WWE tag team champion & XPW Television Champion while “Limelight” featuring Hellboy Rodd was the weakest collab of the 2.

“Newport 500s” blends cloud rap & Detroit trap that goes well up until the cringey 94 second auto-tone outro while “Saibaman” featuring Lil Yachty continues to pull inspiration from ドラゴンボールZ referencing the creatures dwelling in the demon realm. “Billy Gunn” references the former AEW World Trios Champion, WWE Hall of Famer, 2-time WWE Hardcore Champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion & 11-time WWE tag team champion leading into “Canada Dry” talking about pettiness.

The late WWE Hall of Famer, former 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion & WWE Women’s Champion “Chyna” gets a song dedicated to her while “Captain Planet” refers to the animated edutainment show on the Discovery Global-owned tbs created by WCW founder Ted Turner. My favorite beat on the tape goes to Helluva on “Hal Jordan” sampling “Who Run It?” by the Three 6 Mafia prior to “Shenron” delving back in the ドラゴンボールZ lore

“Celtics” starts the last leg of The Green Tape: DX with a nod to the 18-time NBA Champions out in Boston while the disco rap/Detroit trap crossover “Granny Smith” suggests to get away from him. “Sweet Spin Music (HBK)” shows love to 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, 4-time WWE world champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion, 6-time WWE tag team champion, the current WWE Senior Vice President of Talent Development & head booker of their developmental NXT brand Shawn Michaels & “Beast Boy” ends with a reference to the Teen Titans character.

The Grey Tape: Smoke last month was simply ok in my opinion, but The Green Tape: DX joins Sada Baby’s debut for Hitmaker Music Group earlier this summer The Black Tape: nWo with another project filled with Easter eggs wrestling fans will easily catch on to not even 24 hours following the death of the inaugural IWGPヘビー級王座, former 12-time WWE world champion, WWE tag team champion, 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, Real American Beer founder, Real American Freestyle Wrestling (RAF) co-founder & known racist Hulk Hogan.

Score: 3.5/5

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Sada Baby – “The Black Tape: nWo” review

Sada Baby is a 32 year old rapper & singer from Detroit, Michigan becoming amongst Detroit trap’s biggest names in 2017 off his first couple mixtapes Skuba Sada & D.O.N. (Day One N***a). Fast forward to the beginning of 2019, he signs to Asylum Records for his 4th tape & major label debut Bartier Bounty to widespread praise. He has since put out 11 more mixtapes, with my favorites of the being being Skuba Sada 2 along with his final Asylum offering Bartier Bounty 2 & Bartier Bounty 3. A good potion of Sada’s output in recent memory since the evolution of the subgenre he helped popularize has left most divided & his 16th tape albeit Hitmaker Music Group debut had me hopeful that it would make up for some of the lackluster additions to his discography.

“nWo” named after the WWE Hall of Famers hops over a Detroit trap instrumental to talk about not having the opps in mind because he doesn’t have any whereas “Bloxkside” turns up the bass a bit flexing that he’s too real in the field to be faking shit. “Klip Hamilton” works in some bells so he can compare himself to Rip Hamilton with the stick until “Chuck Money” featuring Kamaiyah talks about knowing those who’ll die by the bankroll.

As for Konjunction Junction”, we have Sada over some pianos & hi-hats suggesting you better hit the road if you don’t pull up the show or studio if he invites you just before “Blood Kristie” refuses to fuck with the lame shit everyone else around him be celebrating. “Bitch” might have to be my least favorite track on the tape with the way he continuously repeats the word throughout leading into “Bloodmerikan Idol” keeping a gun on him since he won’t even budge to do shit the same way he did it.

“Kevin Nash” gives his flowers to the 2-time WWE Hall of Famer, former 5-time WWE world champion, 11-time WWE tag team champion, WWE Intercontinental Champion & TNA World Tag Team Champion bringing a funereal Detroit trap vibe to the table instrumentally while “Speed Run” talks about your death winding up on Google. “Spint” produced by Helluva sticks out as a highlight heavily basing itself around the concept of “slimes” being fake pieces of shit while “Eastside Orkhestra” talks about smoking a pussy with his dog.

The song “Tokyo Drift” sets of the encore of Black Tape nWo showing some Mobb undertones meshing that with the Detroit trap style he’s become widely known for bucking anyone around him who be tryna act tough when they really ain’t & after “No Lies Told” swaps out the secondary Mobb influences in favor of cloud rap counting up $150k until his phone blows up, “Malcolm Mays” atmospherically finishes with a comparison to Lou-Lou from Power Book III: Raising Kanan.

Couldn’t tell you when or if Sada plans to make a full-length debut studio album when you look at his mixtape catalog extending with the course of time, but Black Tape nWo improves on the average feedback Bridge Kard Blessings got over 2 months ago & contains some of the better material I’ve heard from the Detroit trap sensation in quite a while. The 1 guest he got compared to the 3 on the predecessor was all he really needed & he sounds the hungriest he’s been since leaving Asylum.

Score: 3.5/5

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Wu-Tang Clan – “Black Samson, The Bastard Swordsmen” review

The Wu-Tang Clan are the greatest hip hop group of all-time from Staten Island, New York consisting of one of my top 10 producers the RZA, the GZA, Inspectah Deck, U-God, Ghostface Killah, Method Man, Raekwon, Masta Killa, Cappadonna, the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard & their deejay Mathematics. Originally a trio under the All in Together Now moniker, their 1993 debut Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers) became an east coast hip hop landmark & their 1997 sophomore effort Wu-Tang Forever is the greatest double disc hip hop album ever. The W was significantly less polished than most of what came of that era in the Clan & Iron Flag divisively revisited old sounds. 8 Diagrams stirred more controversy due to RZA embracing a experimental, orchestral & more universal production style with A Better Tomorrow during my senior year of high school being regarded as their worst even if “Pioneer the Frontier” has always stood out to me personally. Mathematics would fully produce The Saga Continues… & is doing so again for the Wu’s 8th album preluding their upcoming farewell tour. Not even gonna waste my breath on Once Upon a Time in Shaolin.

After the “Sucker Free City” intro, the first song “Mandigo” is this boom bap opener with 4 of the 9 remaining swordsmen talking about their style taking a strong back & total breath control whereas “Roar of a Lion (The Lion’s Pit)” by RZA & U-God featuring Kool G Rap finds the trio giving middle fingers to all their enemies. “Claudine” by Ghostface Killah & Method Man featuring Nicole Bus crosses over hip hop & soul trying to fight for love while “Shaolin vs. Lama” by Inspectah Deck & Raekwon talks about holding your head.

“Executioners from Shaolin” keeps it rolling by sinisterly cautioning that nobody want smoke with them in a battle just before “Cleopatra Jones” by Masta Killa & Raekwon sees the pair breaking down the affection each of them have a woman who goes by that name. “Warriors 2, Cooley High” by Method Man featuring Benny the Butcher absolutely delivers as a big fan of both Wu-Tang & Griselda just before “Let’s Do It Again” by RZA following his role as Bobby in the A24 Films surrealist comedy drama Problemista featuring RJ Payne, Willie the Kid& 38 Spesh talks about getting stronger as life becomes more difficult.

Cappadonna, Masta Killa & U-God all link on up “Dolomite” for another hardcore boom bap track justifiably boasting that you can’t tell ‘em shit since they’ve been around longer than the 80s crack epidemic & going deep enough in the projects where no one else can go, but then the “Trouble Man” outro shows off Kameron Corvet’s skills through a brief verse. “Charleston Blue, Legend of a Fighter” by Cappadonna featuring KXNG CROOKED officially ends the album with the latter talking about fatherhood & Cappa penning an open letter to his mother while the bonus track “Sinners (Mo’ Better Blues)” by the Def Squad was a cool reunion minus Redman.

7 & a half years since The Saga Continues…, the Clan homages the blaxploitation & martial arts genres of films that shaped them 5 decades ago. I appreciate that all 9 members were able to contribute lyrically testing each other’s swords unlike U-God being the only absentee on the predecessor & some of the finest in the underground today joining them felt like a rewarding passing-of-the-torch moment. 1 final noteworthy mention has to be Mathematics displaying his growth & development as a producer with the selection of beats he’s arranged.

Score: 3.5/5

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Jim Jones – “At the Church Steps” review

Here we have the 10th studio LP from Bronx, New York rapper Jim Jones. A member of The Diplomats in the 2000s, his first 5 full-lengths from 2004-2011 had some highlights in them even if they were all average at best as whole albums. However it wouldn’t be until 2018 after dropping Wasted Talent where he would really start putting out his best material ever & then came out with his magnum opus the following year El Capo. El Capo 2 & the Harry Fraud-produced The Fraud Department continued the acclaim up until the Hitmaka-produced Back in My Prime proved to be disappointing. Over 2 decades after his debut, he’s arrived At the Church Steps.

“Jomo” produced by 1982 is actually a great sample-driven opener to get us started reminding everyone who he is 21 years later whereas “Genesis” fuses gospel & trap courtesy of Jim himself talking about half these dudes out here being broke to the point where they can’t pay their debts. “Seen It All” discusses getting it all in & never falling because of his shoes being tied, but then “Make It Out” maintains a trap vibe thanks to Hitmaka talking about him & Cam’ron falling out with each other again a month ago.

Conway the Machine & Keen Streetz join Jimmy for “Walking on Business” working in a boom bap instrumental to follow through with their actions & sticking to their values just before “White Lines” talks about being obsessed with spending money & refusing to back down for anybody. “Call on Me” goes for a solemn trap vibe again with the help of Smatt Sertified feeling like the world’s falling on him leading into “Opp Thot” featuring Fabolous talks about the L only being a loss if you’ve learned your lesson.

“This Shit Still in Harlem” embraces the Brooklyn drill sound representing the Manhattan neighborhood further proving Cam’s point that he isn’t from Harlem at all while “Dope Boy” featuring Keen Streetz ominously suggests to let them do their dance. “Cinema” featuring Fivio Foreign & Keen Streetz takes another shot at the New York Drill sound missing the landing even harder than previously & after the “Ray Ray” skit, “Back in My Bag” returns to the boom bap getting in the mix again.

Dave East appears with Jim on “What’s Going On?” so both of them can break down shit being different nowadays while “Back in the Day” by The Lobby Boyz keeps the traditional boom bap sound in tact getting reflective. “End of Summer” atmospherically asks God to make space in heaven for him & “Church Steps” ends with a gospel-inspired closer that The Heatmakerz cooked up talking about arriving at the steps of a place of worship.

“Outside” starts the deluxe run with Ron Browz going sample drill behind the boards talking about being out here with that shit on while “Shop” offers a weak take on cloud rap pointing out that some like to take out fires & others letting them burn. “Walk with Me” featuring Keen Streetz cavernously talks about their street mentality & legitimacy while the industrial hip hop joint “Fashion Killa” shows off his taste in drip.

Keen Streetz links back up with Jimmy on “Hoodie Season” providing an average anthem for that specific time of year when it starts to get cold out while “Hustlers” featuring Keen Streetz jazzily talks about being go-getters. “Swerv” featuring G Herbo takes another jab at sample drill doing it just as good as “Outside” did earlier while the trap rock hybrid “Civil Rights” shows a more conscious side to the Vamplife Records founder.

“Ring” slickly pleads for someone to call him while the underwhelming “Skin” fails in terms of an attempt at sexy drill. “Deep End” featuring Rick Ross intriguingly shows off their riches while “No Love” featuring YG shows absolutely 0 affection for these bitches while “Vamp Ooter’s” featuring Dilla illa & 34Zeussy doesn’t represent the VL label that well personally. The final bonus track “Flu Game” featuring Trinidad Jame$ is only slightly better, soulfully talking about being ok.

Some of the singles building up to At the Church Steps including the feature-heavy tracklist truly had me a bit torn on the sequel to the ByrdGang leader’s solo debut unlike the high praise I gave to El Capo, El Capo 2 & The Fraud Department. Now that I’ve actually heard the whole entire thing, I’m still a little iffy on it. Jim’s growth in the past 2 decades is there, except a lot of the hooks are cringe & some of the production tends to falter occasionally.

Score: 2.5/5

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Ice Cube – “Man Down” review

This is the 11th full-length studio LP from Los Angeles emcee, songwriter, actor, film producer, CubeVision founder & BIG3 founder Ice Cube. The cousin of Del the Funky Homosapien & Kam, he started as part of the C.I.A. gained notoriety as a member of N.W.A until departing after their historic debut Straight Outta Compton. Cube later got his own Priority Records deal as a solo artist, teaming with The Bomb Squad for his own debut AmeriKKKa’s Most Wanted & later Kill at Will. Death Certificate went on to become another west coast hip hop landmark due to some of its racially & politically charged content, with his Lench Mob Records debut The Predator mainly addressing a lot of on racial tensions in the United States at the time. Lethal Injection was more g-funk heavy and the War & Peace double-disc effort marked the end of the former Westside Connection member’s Priority contract. Laugh Now, Cry Later distributed by Virgin Music & EMI Records was a solid comeback in ‘06 after mainly focusing on acting during the first half of the 2000s & then Raw Footage had it’s highlights although it was decent as a whole. I’m the West became his most negatively received body of work & the Interscope Records-distributed Everythang’s Corrupt showed to be an improvement although still average, so hearing Man Down would be a I’m the West sequel had me hoping it would be far superior to the original.

“Rollin’ at Twilight” starts with a trap intro that Cassius Jay laced looking to make highlights with his real ones whereas “It’s My Ego” featuring Scarface on the remix takes the g-funk route instrumentally thanks to E-A-Ski talking about giving a demonstration in front of the nation. “So Sensitive” was the weakest single of the 3 decently giving Cube’s take on gender & modern etiquette, but then Mount Westmore gets together for the funky pop rap banger “She’s Sanctified” with October London on the hook discussing women.

Nottz gives “Not Like Them” more of a traditional west coast vibe to the beat feeling like the world doesn’t make sense this day in age while “5150” aggressively talks about this bitch being crazy. “No Cap” featuring Ishadon has to be one of the most underwhelming moments despite the Zaytoven beat & the theme of everyone doin’ boss moves in a cesspool just before the industrial/trap crossover “3 Lil Piggies” talks about 3 cops.

“Ghetto Story” strips the drums completely finding his glory & doing it all for the streets to get his bag while “Facts” featuring J-D of Da Lench Mob finds the 2 reuniting so they can talk about mobbin’. “Fighting for My Life in Paradise” featuring Kurupt hops over a soul sample explaining how good it feels living the lives that they do while the boisterous “Let’s Get Money Together” featuring B-Real goes back & forth with each other as they make paper.

As for “I’mma Burn Rubber”, we have Cube going from 0 to 100 over a hyphy instrumental prior to the self-produced “Especially You” hooking up some prominent synthesizers talking about needing everyone to head for the dance floors. “Break the Mirror” featuring Xzibit links up the pair for a hardcore west coast heater pointing out that nobody wants the truth anymore while “Talkin’ ‘Bout These Rappers” takes a jab at wack MCs over a Lil Jon beat.

“Scary Movie” pushes towards the end of Man Down by tapping in with Lench Mob Records in-house producers Hallway Productionz promising that breaking your shit is certain while “Take Me to Your Leader” moves like an eagle looking regal on top of a vocal sample that David Banner provides. The closer “Ego Maniacs” featuring Busta Rhymes & Killer Mike wraps it all up with an insane sequel to “It’s My Ego”.

Laugh Now, Cry Later was probably the last Ice Cube album that I enjoyed consistently top to bottom & Man Down over 18 years later as a dedication for all his Day 1s improves on his few LPs since 2008. The more consistent production than some of his past recent material eclectically ranges from g-funk to hyphy, trap & drumless enlisting a tight list of guests to help reaffirm his status as a west coast veteran.

Score: 4/5

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