Atlanta, Georgia recording artist Destroy Lonely preluding his 2nd mixtape </3³ with his 12th EP. The son of former Disturbing tha Peace Records signee I-20, he’s released a total of 11 EPs since originally breaking out through SoundCloud in 2019 prior to Playboi Carti signing alone to his Interscope Records imprint Opium Records to surprise drop his last tape No Stylist in light of his ongoing tour with fellow label-mate Ken Carson last summer followed by the full-length debut If Looks Could Kill. Love Lasts Forever was disappointing in comparison & hoped See U Soon </3 would at least surpass it.
“Nylon” produced by Clayco throws it back to Lone’s early days for an intro preluding his upcoming 3rd album Drop Dead Gorgeous whereas the cloudy “SDP” courtesy of Cade homages an interlude off Travis Scott’s sophomore effort Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight that I personally find the original version of being far superior to the shortened final version you can hear on whatever streaming platform you use.
The instrumental on “See Ur Face” kinda feels reminiscent of “Tryna Get Down” by Carti despite the themes of love while “Super Serum” keeps his head up after some personal stuff he dealt with in 2024 unbeknownst to the public. “SRTBBL” featuring Ken Carson finishes by showing a back-&-forth chemistry over a beat from F1LTHY of Working on Dying ahead of the 00pium Twins’ upcoming collab tape.
Some feel that Lone’s output since his label deal hasn’t really lived up to the hype </3 & most of those in his fanbase will find themselves satisfied with what See U Soon </3 has to offer giving a taste of what </3³ will sound like when he feels the time is right for him to put out the tape: A return to his roots musically except he has a new perspective of things since he’s gotten older & the popularity continually growing.
In front of us is the 10th studio LP from Sacramento, California emcee Mozzy. Becoming a fan of in the summer of 2017 off his debut 1 Up Top Akh & he went on to be featured on the soundtrack for Black Panther only 6 months later & drop 6 more full-lengths through his EMPIRE-backed Mozzy Records prior to Memphis veteran Yo Gotti landing him a contract with Collective Music Group/Interscope Records. His major label debut Survivor’s Guilt was more poignant than what Mozzy had done previously & Children of the Slums last spring exemplified growth in his rap career & personal life, although Brash Dummies became a letdown. 8 months later, some Intrusive Thoughts of his are becoming let out in the open.
After the “$FlyMoney2X” intro, the first song “Press Play” is this nervous opener talking about never taking a weekend off & never leaving his dogs despite what people say online whereas “Death Before Dishonor” featuring EST G finds the 2 hoping a gangsta shot them if they happen to die in their sleep. “Under Oath” works in more traffic music influences talking about the slums having a hold of him while “Katta Clips” dabbles with Detroit trap throwing it back to a deep cut in his catalog “Dear XXL”.
Lil Poppa joins Mozzy on the sample-driven “Nightmares” talking about it being hard to sleep at night trying to be doing alright leading into the solemn although much necessary “Keep Callin’ My Name” getting some pain off his chest lyrically. “7 2’s” continues the introspection feeling fed up with seeing graduation pictures whenever he checks the news, but then “Role Model” talks about him not trying to become someone others should take examples from.
“Pac Proud” hooks up these prominent piano chords gives his flowers to the late west coast icon 2Pac & speaks on being unable to forget the trenches since he’s a child of it throughout while “Hella Hyphy” taps in with his Northern California roots embracing the hyphy subgenre Keak da Sneak pioneered. “Who Want War?” featuring Polo G gives off a bloodthirsty trap vibe asking if anyone wants beef with them while “10%” advises to ask him why he signed to CMG.
E Mozzy & Maine Musik appear for “Modify It” catchin’ somebody lying about catching a body while “Reputation Everything” featuring Celly Ru breaks down their name around the street being everything to them. “Blood Diamonds” featuring Peysoh blends nervous music & gangsta rap themes together for a collab that makes up for the latter 2 while Tsu Surf gets his own solo cut with “Free Surf” calling for his freedom. “No Fabrication” finally ends the album brushing off any notion that his life is all cap.
Similarly to his CMG debut, Intrusive Thoughts doesn’t shy away from the trials & tribulations that drive some of Mozzy’s most memorable recordings bouncing back from the mediocre reception of Brash Dummies with his best since Children of the Slums. He continues his journey towards inner peace attempting to silence his unquiet mind & move forward from his traumatic youth in Oak Park in addition to imparting some knowledge on how to keep your mind strong enough to navigate street life & emerge with your soul intact.
Atlanta, Georgia recording artist Ken Carson celebrating his 25th birthday with his 4th studio LP. Breaking out in the SoundCloud scene & becoming a protege of local trailblazer Playboi Carti as one of the first artists to sign to the latter’s Opium Records, he would go on to drop a total of 5 EPs prior to his full-length debut Project X & coming off the mature sophomore effort X which Anthony Fantano infamously gave a 0. A Great Chaos came in the fall of 2023 & is looking to stir up More Chaos.
“Lord of Chaos” featuring Ty$ on the remix starts it off with a rage-inducing instrumental from Outtatown talking about being a master of disorder whereas “Xposed” maintains a hypertrap flare shouting out the 808 Mafia since some forget the fact of him starting out as a member of the prolific trap production team. “Money Spread” blends glitch hop & trap to talk about his paper getting bigger while “Root of All Evil” locks in with 16yrold to discuss his current run he’s on bringing back the rage in the process.
Moving on with “K Hole”, we have Ken over a rattling bass-heavy beat with some horns making a nod to “K Pop” off Carti’s 4th album MUSIC that finally dropped month ago just before “Trap Jump” talks about getting the trap crazier than the greatest basketball player of all-time Michael Jordan himself. The 2-parter “Blakk Rokkstar” produced by F1LTHY of Working on Dying dismisses the need for a diamond tester since his ice be blinging out leading into another 2-part song “LiveLeak” that Noah Mejia cooked up making a reference to the current TNA World Tag Team Champion in his 3rd reign & the inaugural 4th Rope World Tag Team Champion Jeff Hardy of The Hardy Boyz.
“Diamonds” keeps the 2-parters going refusing to trip over hoes who don’t reciprocate his energy while “Dismantled” gives those same bitches a middle finger since he’s getting money regardless. “200 Kash” with Four3va ends the first half of More Chaos airing out a supposed Blood he saw rollin’ with a rival Atlanta gang called the 60 Crips, but then “Down2Earth” talks about vacationing in Japan with a woman he’s sleeping with & encouraging her to bring a friend.
The rage continues to be turned up to higher levels on “Confetti” upping a million times on everyone else who look at him as competition while “Naked” talks about a wack relationship he found himself involved in & preferring to be solo since it’s that stale. “Kryptonite” displays a raunchier side to Ken feeling he & his girl the only 2 people in the world when they link up while “Psycho” opens up about him being as crazy as he is.
“Inferno” reunites with F1LTHY to stay true to himself & not fucking with too many people other than his Opium family while “Thx” confesses his fear of having his heart broken. “2000” represents the year he was came in this world on his 25th born day while “Evolution” talks about the overall growth in Ken since he began making music. Pi’erre Bourne saves another standout beat for last on the uncannily dark “Ghoul” homaging my 2nd favorite basketball player of all-time Kobe Bryant when he hits a buck while “Off the Meter” featuring Destroy Lonely & Playboi Carti serves as an Opium posse cut referencing WWE Hall of Famer, former 6-time WWE Champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 2-time WWE United States Champion, 5-time WWE Tag Team Champion & NWA World Tag Team Champion Stone Cold Steve Austin.
Originally said to come out last Halloween & unsurprisingly being delayed 6 months later since that’s how the whole Opium roster has been moving when you really think about it in the grand scheme of things, More Chaos carries over the ethos of it’s year & a half old predecessor. The prominent rage production showcasing additional influences of pop rap, hardcore hip hop, Chicago drill, digicore, industrial hip hop & experimental hip hop feels as if it’s a cut above the previous installment & Ken holds off from having any guests to hold the fort down on the day of his Silver Jubilee.
2hollis is a 21 year old rapper, singer/songwriter & producer from Chicago, Illinois coming up as 1/2 of Mage Eternal & a member of OSX under the original Drippysoup moniker. Putting out a total of 7 EPs along with a couple mixtapes & 3 studio LPs, his last full-lengths 2 & Boy resulted in him signing to Interscope Records as a solo act this past fall. He’s now making a significantly bigger splash with his 4th album albeit major label debut a week out from the current 新日本プロレス President, former 8-time IWGPヘビー級チャンピオン, 2-time IWGPインターコンチネンタルチャンピオン, 3-time IWGP USヘビー級チャンピオン, 新日本プロレス世界TVチャンピオン, 3-time IWGPタッグチャンピオン, NEVER無差別級チャンピオン, NEVER無差別級6人タッグチャンピオン, GHCタッグチャンピオン, CMLL Mundial Parejas Campeon, CMLL Mundial Trios Campeon & RPW British Heavyweight Champion 棚橋弘至’s final US match.
After the glitchy “beginning” intro, the self-produced “flash” talks about a lot of the things he’s shown the woman on his mind have actually been illusions whereas “cope” homages the “Heroes” title track by the late David Bowie admitting he feels empty & asking if he can be trusted. “you” works in some house undertones telling this woman how good she is at lying to him leading into “tell me” embracing the EDM vibes heavier talking about being afraid of death.
“destroy me” gets back on the hip house tip hoping for this chick to tell him she loves him & needs him in her life just before “burn” pulls a little from the dubstep scene talking about his romantic interest continually sticking in his head. “girl” is a bass-heavy trap dedication to his girlfriend he doesn’t want to lose tryna make sense of her & after the “dream rain sports” instrumental interlude, “nice” samples “Household Goods” by the Totally Enormous Extinct Dinosaurs” showing his generosity.
2hollis maintains an EDM flare on “nerve” admiring the way he & partner are nonconformists but after the “ego” interlude, the rage-inducing “sidekick” talks about never being a close associate or assistant to anyone else. “eldest child” acoustically speaks about what it was like from his experience of being the oldest of 2 children in his family & the minimal closer “safe” pleads for his lover to tell him that he’s safe.
star for a major label debut feels like a collection of feelings & meanings from someone chasing stardom finds it all coming true in the most beautiful ways despite it burning so badly . His production here takes cues from electropop, electroclash, hyperpop, electronic dance music & digicore taking us along for a hero’s journey after starting everyone on the enemies & trials ahead of the upcoming follow-up he’s already working on as announced earlier on during the week.
Selena Gomez is a 32 year old actress, singer/songwriter, producer & businesswoman from Grand Prairie, Texas notable for emerging as Alex Russo on The Walt Disney Company owned Disney Channel sitcom Wizards of Waverly Place & & later the A24 Films crime satire Spring Breakers. She even put out 3 full-lengths Kiss & Tell, A Year Without Rain & When the Sun Goes Down underHollywood Records with her band The Sceneuntil fulfilling her contract in the form of her solo debut Stars Dance & signing to Interscope Records thereafter. Revival & Rare were as decent as everything else she’s done, except her 4th LP produced by her fiancé benny blanco got my best interest even if people are more upset with Selena for crying on camera because of people being deported instead of Ye formerly known as Kanye West fresh off leaking his own album BULLY openly calling himself a Nazi.
After the titular intro, the first song “Younger & Hotter Than Me” produced with FINNEAS details self-hatred for thinking an ex of her’s was different & wishing she never loved him after moving on to someone younger & prettier whereas “Call Me When You Break Up” featuring Gracie Abrams co-produced by Cashmere Cat & Dylan Brady blends pop rock, dance-pop, synthpop & indie pop offering support to a friend after a breakup. Ojos Tristes” featuring The Marías samples “El Muchacho de los Ojos Tristes” by Jeannette for a Latin pop duet describing a boy with sad eyes finally finding a reason, but then “Don’t Wanna Cry” sings about finding another hand to hold.
“Sunset Blvd” was my favorite single fusing synthpop, bedroom pop, alt-pop, chillsynth & hypnagogic pop recalling her first date with benny just before “Cowboy” featuring Glorilla on the remix gets a little raunchier topically revolving around the themes of intercourse. “Bluest Flame” written with Charli XCX suggests a contrast or an overcoming of a set standard by evoking an intense & powerful feeling wanting to go insane all night leading into “How Does it Feel to Be Forgotten?” expresses hope that one will get to heal 1 day & asking what it’s like having her forget the individual that she has in mind.
After the “Do You Wanna Be Perfect?” interlude, “You Said You Were Sorry” opens up about a dream she had where someone finally apologized to her & them forgiving each other while “I Can’t Get Enough” dabbles with moombahton except it feels more like a J Balvin song. “Don’t Take It Personally” addresses a friend of benny’s that he used to talk to every day & things not being the same since she came around while “Scared of Loving You” is a folk pop, singer/songwriter & indie folk outro telling her fiancé that she’s afraid of losing him.
“That’s When I’ll Care” starts the deluxe run with a Rare outtake indifferently responding to those who’re so consumed about her personal life while “Talk” interpolates “Never There” by Cake yearning to have benny’s arms around her. “Stained” is another leftover from the Rare sessions singing about the damage Selena’s exes have inflicted upon her & the final bonus track “Guess You Could Say I’m in Love” featuring Greg Gonzalez puts their feet down regarding the pain that comes with love.
Growing up watching Selena Gomez on Wizards of Waverly Place during my adolescence, I could never get into really any of The Scene’s output or her last 3 solo efforts since it simply wasn’t for me personally. I Said I Love You First…& You Said It Back however went above & beyond my expectations for it beginning her impending hiatus from making music to focus more on her acting career by chronicling her & benny’s love story from around the time they first met to,l falling in love & looking to what the future holds showing influences of pop rock, dance-pop, synthpop, indie pop, bedroom pop, alt-pop, chillsynth, hypnagogic pop, moombahton, folk pop, singer/songwriter & indie folk.
Atlanta, Georgia rapper, singer/songwriter, model & Opium Records founder Playboi Carti at long last releasing his 3rd full-length studio LP. Putting out 3 mixtapes & an EP under the original Sir Cartier moniker, he would become an affiliate of the A$AP Mob & sign to Interscope Records for an eponymous 4th mixtape & a groundbreaking debut album Die Lit that became some of the best trap music of the previous decade. Whole Lotta Red on Christmas 2020 birthed the rage scene, signing Ken Carson alongside Destroy Lonely & the Homixide Gang to Opium since. Ahead of Rolling Loud this weekend however, I AM MUSIC is here after it was initially set to be released last year as said in the “2024” single.
“Pop Out” is this rage-inducing opener talking about pulling up to the party only to fuck you up whereas “Crush” featuring honorary WWE Hardcore Champion Travis Scott fresh off giving the current WWE Champion Cody Rhodes a black eye couple weeks ago accompanying The Rock ‘n’ Soul Connection & produced by F1LTHY of Working on Dying works in some synths & hi-hats boasting that a hoe gonna let them smash. “K Pop” originally called “Ketamine” brings this suspenseful atmosphere to the table flexing he stays running checks & holding a knife since it’s a sport while “EVIL J0RDAN” discusses his lifestyle being out of control & referring to himself as an emo thug rather than a rockstar over a Cardo beat.
Moving on from there, “Mojo Jojo” takes it’s name after the primary PowerPuff Girls antagonist saying the only reason everyone’s nice to him now is because of his wealth leading into “Philly” featuring Travis Scott talking about having brand news eyes & noses. “Radar” brings a triumphant flare to the table courtesy of Metro Boomin’ discussing that he should be swaggin’ up just before “Rather Lie” featuring The Weeknd on the hook with co-production from Mike Dean talks about lying to his girl instead of losing her.
“Fine Shit” co-produced by Cash Cobain shows off how bad his bitch is to the point where she can’t even go outside anymore nor can she post online leading into Ye formerly known as Kanye West fusing trap & chipmunk soul during “BACKD00R” talking about raising some Dons with all 3 artists he currently has on the Opium roster & the title referencing his infamous Adin Ross stream. “Toxic” featuring Skepta ominously links both of them up observing the poisonous state of a mosh pit & them having too much profit these days prior to “Munyun” rightfully talking about those being unfamiliar with his voice living under a rock.
As for “Crank”, we have Carti telling a lil freak hoe to slow it up for him due to her having a free throat sampling “Fuck Taylor Gang” by SpaceGhostPurpp while “Charge Dem Hoes a Fee” featuring Future & Travis Scott teams up on top of a Wheezy, Dez Wright, Southside & Smatt Sertified instrumental so they can talk about charging these bitches some money. “Good Credit” featuring Kendrick Lamar has these prominent rage undertones cautioning of the hate only getting realer, making fun of A$AP Relli for snitching, addressing the Drake lawsuit & mentioning Los Angeles Lakers player Luka Dončić while the futuristic “I Seeeeee You Baby Boi” talks about his girl wanting to be the one to lie to him.
Travis Scott returns for the psychedelic “Wake Up F1LTHY” that BNYX helped laced with F1LTHY homaging the latter’s producer tag tryna to run some cake up with each other while the bouncy “Jumpin’” featuring Lil Uzi Vert talks about the way these drugs got them feeling. “Trim” featuring Future is a cloudy Mixtape Pluto outtake that he & Barti made with TM88 referring to themselves as the richest in their hoods until “Cocaine Nose” samples “Only U” by Ashanti to make a sick reference to WWE Hall of Famer, former SMW Tag Team Champion, 3-time WWE world champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 12-time WWE tag team champion & WWE Hardcore Champion Kane.
“We Need All Da Vibes” featuring Young Thug & Ty$ finds the trio cloudily wants everyone listening to see the way that each of them be ballin’ while the sleeper-hit “Olympian” interestingly dabbles with glitch hop & trap wanting to know why he’s being stared at & shouting out Ricky Hil. Clayco gives “OPM BABI” a bit of a bombastic edge representing the very label that Carti launched 6 years ago & the in-house producer of the same name while “Twin Trim” featuring Lil Uzi Vert feels more like a back-&-forth interlude.
Carti gives his flowers to the New Orleans icon Lil Wayne on “Like Weezy” with a cool sample of “Bend Over” by the Rich Kidz showing up to this bitch off the rocks & fucking up his thumbs after counting so many hundreds while “Dis 1 Got It” mixes some hi-hats with a piano sample feeling like he’s invincible off the percocets. “Walk” homaging the late Bankroll Fresh wants all his Day 1s to know this’ll be a new beginning for them & the apocalypse for his opps while the Memphis-driven “H00DBYAIR” confronting hate he’s received throughout his career.
“Overly” continues to push further towards Music’s final moments with a simplistic Maaly Raw beat built around a piano likening the blue Bugatti he has to Sonic the Hedgehog stunning with the rest of the Opium squad by his side & “South Atlanta Baby” couldn’t have been a better choice of a closer whether it be DJ Swamp Izzo telling Carti that he’s in a whole new category when it comes to his artistry or the lyrics of growing up in the southern region of Atlanta.
Starting the deluxe run, “Different Day” shows ’em what the fuck he’s really been on going for a cloudy trap direction while “2024” was one of my top 10 singles of 2023 from Ye sampling “Jacob’s Ladder” by Yeo to Carti talking about putting anyone who poses as a threat to him on a mural & on the news. “BACKR00MS” featuring Travis Scott reunites the duo 1 more time to liken themselves as the quarterbacks of the rap game holdin’ bombs & throwin’ these hoes & the final bonus track “Fuck on My DJ” talks about women wanting to sleep with DJ Blak Boy.
Obviously it’s gonna be a while until we have the discussion of where this lands compared to both it’s predecessors, but I can easily tell you that Music was worth the continual delays since it feels like a mix of his old sounds & the new ones he’s been trying out since this era of his initially began. Some of the best collection of tracks in the trap & rage subgenres you’ll hear in 2025 showing influences of hardcore hip hop, cloud rap, pop rap & experimental hip hop assembling a high quality list of guests to join him.
Lady Gaga is a 38 year old singer/songwriter, actress & Haus Labs founder from New York City breaking out into stardom in 2008 off her full-length debut The Fame after signing to Konvict Muzik & Interscope Records. Her debut EP The Fame Monster & the sophomore effort Born This Way later inspiring the name of the Born This Way Foundation marked her final offering for Konvict, remaining on Interscope for Artpop along with Joanne & Chromatica. Her previous LP Harlequin was better than Joker 2: Folie a Deux itself, coming off the disappointing film for her 7th studio album.
“Disease” draws from electropop, dance-pop, midtempo bass, French electro & futurepop singing about making sinners into believers whereas “Abracadabra” works in elements of dance-pop, electro house, electropop, acid house, hardbag & French electro facing the challenge of life, the challenge of the night & finding the magic in it all. “Garden of Eden” produced by Gesaffstein maintains the dance pop vibes mirroring Adam & Eve’s biblical paradise prior to “Perfect Celebrity” serving as the theme song of the current WWE Women’s Champion & former NXT Women’s Champion Tiffany Stratton’s upcoming WrestleMania XLI match against 14-time WWE women’s champion, 2-time NXT Women’s Champion & WWE Women’s Tag Team Champion Charlotte Flair making some stunning commentary on the manufacturing of those types of celebrities.
Moving on from there, “Vanish Into You” sings about wanting to merge into a singular identity of her partner’s in order to insulate herself from the worldly emotions just before the synth-funk “Killah” pushes herself out of her comfort zone swing herself as a killer both in a literal & metaphorical state. “Zombieboy” remembers her late friend Rick Gernest who passed away in the summer of 2018 with celebration of the nights when fun leads to feeling like a zombie the next morning, but then “LoveDrug” basically comparing the feeling of love to an addictive substance.
“How Bad Do You Want Me?” questions how much her partner loves her in the midst of him dreaming about another person while “Don’t Call Tonight” goes for a warm pop rock flare suggesting not to hit her line unless the targeted individual wants to cause her harm. The irresistibly catchy “Shadow of a Man” sings about not wanting to be under the darkness tonight & to have the light shown to her while “The Beast” shows her evil alter ego telling her partner to colloquially free the beast from within him.
The track “Blade of Grass” dedicates this moment to her fiancé Michael Polansky recalling conversations of proposals in their backyard & simply wrapping a blade of grass around her finger would be her act of grace until “Die with a Smile” featuring Bruno Mars ends fusing pop soul, pop rock, soft rock, adult contemporary & piano rock really crossing over “Shallow” off the A Star is Born soundtrack & Bruno’s work with Anderson .Paak of the duo Silk Sonic wanting to be with each other during the end of the world.
“Can’t Stop the High” starts the deluxe run mixes electro & grunge music for a harder successor to “Perfect Celebrity” while “The Dead Dance” meshes nu-disco, dance-pop, synthwave, synth-funk & electropop to sing about music’s ability to save the lives of others. The final bonus track “Kill for Love” finishes with somewhat of a spiritual successor to “The Beast” in the sense of the werewolf she was speaking of is replying back to her dismissing the idea of wearing it’s disguise.
Stemming from a period of deep introspection & personal challenges, Lady Gaga celebrates her love for music by bringing together a wide variety of genres, styles & different dreams from a place of joy. The production built around dance-pop, electropop, nu-disco, pop rock, synthpop, soft rock, adult contemporary & piano rock, synth-funk, electro house, acid house, hardbag, French electro, midtempo bass & futurepop results in the most memorable songs that’s she’s written in roughly 15 years embarking on a transgressive journey through genres reflecting her diverse musical influences & life experiences.
EST G is a 30 year old rapper & songwriter from Louisville, Kentucky who put out his first 3 mixtapes independently until Interscope Records signed him for his 4th tape I Still Don’t Feel Nun & later signing with Collective Music Group the next summer to put out Bigger Than Life or Death. His debut album I Never Felt Nun finally came after Bigger Than Life or Death 2 & the Last Ones Left collab tape with 42 Dugg, following it up with Mad & El Toro 2. Couple years later, he’s returning for his official sophomore effort.
“Free Rico” is this Detroit trap intro wanting everyone that’s listening to follow his lead whereas “The Streets” was a decent 2nd single building up anticipation for I Ain’t Feeling You bringing trap & gangsta rap together. “Houstonatlantaville” featuring Lil Baby & honorary WWE Hardcore Champion Travis Scott blends horns & hi-hats recommending y’all to take your time when you gettin’ it out the oven while “Right Now” brings the Detroit trap vibes back talking about someone who ain’t learn shit.
The 3rd single “R.I.P. Lu Mike” remembers a friend of his who was tragically taken from us last summer just before the lead single “Go” sticks to a general trap sound altogether talking about being too high to the point where he can barely even think. “Plug Motivation” admits it didn’t hurt when someone who lied to him regarding being turnt died since he changed on him, but then “Do My Own Stunts” likens himself to the late Evel Knievel.
TM88 saves what’s by far my favorite instrumental on the album for “Crash” turning baby-mama drama into opportunities while “Slime” talks about having too much on his mind & the time for another killin’. The final single “My Love” featuring CBFW Records labelmates Rylo Rodriguez & Veeze finds the trio wishing their love was good enough on top of Veeze having the best verse of the 3 & the outro makes a clear-eyed accounting of his imperfections or mistakes that make him even more relatable.
“Flash” featuring Bloodhound Q50 gets the deluxe run going with both of them sampling “Flashing Lights” by Ye formerly known as Kanye West promising that their chains won’t ever get snatched while “Free Z5” talks about being raised way differently than the average person in the streets. “Free Leaf” calls for the squad to point out an opp whenever they come across one trappin’ viciously & the final bonus track “It Ain’t Work Yet” talks about using percocets to unsuccessfully numb the pain.
Keeping up with the CMG camp’s rise in popularity for almost 4 years now, I’ve given praise to a handful of their artists in that span of time whether it be 42 Dugg or Mozzy & more recently Glorilla. That in mind: I Ain’t Feeling You maintains the mixed reception of his output in the last few years due to it’s relatable themes getting drowned out as a result of uninteresting production.
Long Beach emcee, songwriter, media personality, actor, entrepreneur, record executive & WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg reuniting with his mentor Dr. Dre for the 20th studio LP in his discography. His 1993 debut album Doggystyle is widely regarded as a west coast essential, but his output since has been hit or miss whether it be Tha Last Meal & Tha Blue Carpet Treatment almost reaching the same caliber of his debut or Da Game is to be Sold, Not to be Told & Bible of Love falling flat on their faces. He purchased Death Row Records from MNRK Music Group days ahead of the Super Bowl LVI halftime person hence why he’sbeen B.o.D.R. (Bacc on Death Row) since, so it’s completely understandable that he & Dre are finally putting out Missionary through a historic joint deal between Death Row & Aftermath Entertainment/Interscope Records.
After the “Fore Play” intro by BJ the Chicago Kid, the first song “Shangri La” samples “Stakes is High” by De La Soul with the help of Sam Sneed talking about the time coming to start trouble whereas “Outta da Blue” featuring Dr. Dre goes back-&-forth with each other on the mic over Dre, BoogzDaBeast, Dem Jointz & FNZ sampling both “Saturday Night” by Schoolly D & “Scratchin’” by Magic Disco Machine. “Hard Knocks” finds Dre & Focus… flipping “Another Brick in the Wall” by Pink Floyd to talk about taking the long way, but then the pop rap/neo soul crossover “Gorgeous” co-produced by Blu2th & Fredwreck doing the wildest shit at 6am.
“Last Dance with Mary Jane” featuring Jelly Roll heavily samples “Mary Jane’s Last Dance” by Tom Petty suggesting to not even bother asking them giving up smoking weed just before “Thank You” aggressively talks about Uncle Snoop thanking everyone listening for letting him be himself. “Pressure” takes a funkier route instrumentally addressing the pussies getting frisky soon as the Dogg gets let out leading into the worst single “Another Part of Me” featuring Sting sampling “Message in a Bottle” by The Police to talk about both of them keeping money on their mind.
Method Man joins Snoop on “Skyscrapers” going for a triumphant flare altogether telling the young black entrepreneurs to turn their cap into capitalism stackin’ their bread high ahead of the groovy “Fire” referencing Amazon founder Jeff Bezos and WWE Hall of Famer, the shortest reigning WWE Champion & former WWE Tag Team Champion André the Giant. “Gunz N Smoke” featuring Eminem & 50 Cent flips “Dead Wrong” by The Notorious B.I.G. also featuring Eminem flexing their street ties in Long Beach, Detroit & New York respectively while “Sticcy Situation” shows a brand new strategy.
“Now or Never” featuring Dr. Dre pushes towards the conclusion of Missionary by shooting for the stars with something so unforgettable & trying to leave something that’ll live forever while the song “Gangsta Pose” featuring Fat Money keeps the gangsta rap vibes going asking where were y’all when they were in the middle of a war & keeping it on regardless of that. “The Negotiator” wraps things up with a poker face & talking about his legacy being everlasting.
By no means necessary did I go into Missionary expecting it to be another Doggystyle like some of the delusional comments that I’ve seen on a few of Snoop’s social media posts in the last few months simply based on the 3 singles we got building up to it. However, I do think it’s on par with Tha Last Meal & Tha Blue Carpet Treatment in being one of the best albums that he’s put out since his debut. From the lyricism to Dre’s production, you can very much hear the maturity between them both over the last 3 decades & testifies to their longevities in the west coast.
Nettspend is a 17 year old rapper & songwriter from Richmond, Virginia notable for being an affiliate of both the Novagang & 1c34 collectives. His debut EP KiCKDOOR was released a year & a half ago to mixed reception, although his subsequent singles have been skyrocketing his popularity in the jerk & lowend subgenres to the point where he landed a record deal with Grade A Productions & Interscope Records for his official debut mixtape with an interesting list of production credits that could make it clear the breakout EP.
“Growing Up” starts the album on some atmospheric trap shit talking about not wanting to grow up although Tyler, The Creator did the concept better on “Parade” off his only mixtape Bastard whereas “Leader” goes for a rage-inducing vibe instrumentally thanks to Kenny Beats & Ok talking about trying new things, which I’m all for. “Project Pat” keeps the hypertrap vibes going paying homage to the titular Hypnotize Camp Posse member & “Tommy” flexes his girl street slimin’.
Moving on from there, “Tyla” maintains the rage beats talking about needing a bitch as lit as the mononymous Queen of Popiano prior to “A$AP” incorporating some pianos & hi-hats making it clear to pull up soon as you can referencing Rocky’s upcoming 4th album Don’t Be Dumb. “Fuck Cancer” talks about being on the run like he’s Foxy Brown & his girl being on the daily grind, but then “Skipping Class” sampling “Genesis” by Grimes cuts straight to the chase that he’s done being bad with this specific person.
“Beach Leak” is another favorite of mine from the drill instrumental from Evilgiane to him likening himself to a Gen Z version of Future while “Shut Up” gets back on the hypertrap tip talking about feeling like it’s a glitch considering how big he is on ‘em & being the shit. “Bird Box” bombastically makes an interesting comparison to the 2018 film that it’s named after while “Drop the Blunt” playfully steadily stays smoking dope.
The song “Perc Soda” begins the encore of Badass Fucking Kid talking about lacing his pop with percocets & he’s the baddest kid of 2024 while the energetic penultimate track “Laughin’” wants to know exactly why these fuckboys be bluffin’ out here. The closer “Say Please” finishes Nettspend’s debut fusing cloud rap & drill talking about how it ain’t his fault he got as much swag as he does.
Announcing his arrival officially, the Virginia up-&-comer hailing from the same city that made Pharrell from the greatest production duo of all-time The Neptunes as told in Piece by Piece a couple months ago showcases his promising future with the production ranging rage to cloud rap, drill & trap in addition to Nettspend giving us a look at who some of his influences are musically.
Legends Will Never Die 