J. Cole – “Might Delete Later” review

North Carolina rapper, singer/songwriter & producer J. Cole surprise-releasing his 4th mixtape. At this point, I’m pretty sure everyone & their mom knows who dude is. Especially given the universal acclaim of projects like The Warm UpFriday Night LightsBorn Sinner & my personal favorite: 2014 Forest Hills Drive. However, his last 2 albums 4 Your Eyez Only & K.O.D. were both released to mixed reception. Matter of fact: my review for K.O.D. is amongst my most controversial. I don’t get shit for it anymore but at the time when I gave it a 6/10, Cole stans were on my ass for the next 2-3 weeks. Even to this day: my opinions on that & 4YEO haven’t changed at all but that’s not the point. The Off-Season was the most I’ve enjoyed a Cole project since FHD, so Might Delete Later was an interesting surprise to me.

“Pricey” featuring Gucci Mane & Young Dro is a symphonic boom bap opener produced with T-Minus & Wu10 whereas “Crocodile Tearz” works in some pianos & hi-hats talking about The Fall-Off being like JAY-Z droppin’ Reasonable Doubtlast. “Ready ‘24” featuring Cam’ron flips I’m Ready by The Diplomats fittingly enough to get on their shit again just before the trap-inflicted “Huntin’ Wabbitz” with co-production from Charlie Heat references Elmer Fudd of the longtime Warner Bros. franchise Looney Tunes.

Central C joins Cole on the acoustic trap/pop rap crossover “H.Y.B. (Hide Your Bitch)” with FNZ behind the boards advising to hide your significant others from them leading into “Fever” continuing the pop rap vibes except it’s much more groovier courtesy of ATL Jacob talking about a woman he loves & needs. “Stickz N Stonez” is my favorite on the tape bouncing back from the 2 worst whether it be the dusty Alchemist instrumental or the lyricism declaring that no one wants smoke with him, but then “Pi” featuring Ab-Soul & Daylyt goes drumless to drop straight bars for 6-minutes other than the trans line.

“Stealth Mode” featuring Bas on the bridge talks about got a lot to get off their sternums over a summery drill beat while “3001” finds Mike WiLL Made-It & Pluss of all people dabbling with boom bap dedicated I was listening less than 1000 years from now. “Trae tha Truth in Ibiza” soulfully discusses his work ethic & the now deleted “7 Minute Drill” ends the tape with Conductor Williams sampling “Energy” by Drake so Cole can come through with an admittedly weak response to Kendrick’s verse on Future’s latest album We Don’t Trust You saying he’s “washed like The Simpsons” on the Fox Corporation’s flagship property albeit trademarked by The Walt Disney Company & he has since apologized for it officially backing out of the beef.

I’m just gonna come straight out the gate by saying both J. Cole & Drake don’t have an album better than good kid m.A.A.d. city or To Pimp a Butterfly, but I think Might Delete Later is a pretty solid tape for the most part. The overall sound is more trap oriented with some jazzy undertones and J. Cole actually does sound pretty hungry here as much as he did on the previous album a couple years ago other than a few unfortunate lows. Still very excited for The Fall-Off.

Score: 2/5

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Young Wicked – “Young Wicked: The Mixtape 2” review

This is the 2nd mixtape from Denver emcee, singer/songwriter, producer, engineer & fashion designer James Garcia or the artist formerly known as Young Wicked. Coming up as 1/2 of the Axe Murder Boyz with his older brother Bonez Dubb in 1999, the duo put out 4 albums on their own before before the Insane Clown Posse signed them to Psychopathic Records in 2005 & making their debut on the label that following spring by dropping Blood In Blood Out to moderate reception. However, their next full-length outing God’s Hand is considered to by many (including myself) to be their best given how much both of them elevated their lyricism & Otis’ production. This resulted in him becoming Violent J’s protege many years later, dropping his solo debut Slaughter: It’s the Best Medicine in the fall of 2015. Fast forward a couple years later, Twiztid signed Young Wicked & eventually AMB to Majik Ninja Entertainment in the midst of their falling out with Psychopathic to put out an equally fantastic sophomore effort The Return of the Prodigal Son. But after rebranding himself 3 & a half years ago on Activated which had more of a mainstream sound to it, the initially scrapped sequel to Young Wicked: The Mixtape is finally seeing the light of day ahead of his upcoming Astronomicon appearance.

“Deep” is an aggressive rap rock opener talking about the fact that they’ve been waiting for him to come out of the basement to show the underground who he really is whereas “Eternal” takes the trap metal route instrumentally admitting that he can’t rest in peace with these sick muthafuckas in the street although the heavy auto-tune on the hook just isn’t it. “No Masters (Shake da Shit)” works in these somber piano chords & sirens sayin’ y’all looking at a king coming for everything just before the rap metal-infused “Resurrected” admits to feeling darkness clouding his mind.

Meanwhile on “Shallow Grave”, we have Young Wicked on some boom bap shit taking everyone through the mind of a murderer leading into “Pushing On” blends some kicks & snares with guitars as he discusses trying to figure himself out as of lately. “Chrome” ruggedly pushin’ bars similar to the way they be pushin’ weight cautioning that you don’t want to get smoked by him, but then “Flowers” dabbles with the trap metal flare once more calling himself the goat having to be sacrificed in the blood.

The song “No Slackin’” goes for a vibrant trap approach that his pimpin’ doesn’t ever slow down while “Crucifix” returns to the boom bap reminding y’all that his last album was activism & he’s back to stabbin’ victims now. To conclude Young Wicked: The Mixtape 2, the closer “Keep Out the Cold” is this guitar ballad singing that he keeps the whiskey in his veins for the titular reason & “Coastin’” starts the deluxe run with some g-funk undertones repping MNE.

“Breathin’” cleverly references the inaugural AEW World Champion, former ROH World Champion, ECW World Television Champion, IWGPインターコンチネンタルチャンピオン, ROH World Champion, WCW World Television Champion, 6-time WWE world champion, 7-time WWE Tag Team Champion, 4-time WWE Cruiserweight Champion, record-holding 9-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 2-time WWE United States Champion & WWE Hardcore Champion Chris Jericho.

James blends trap & rock for “Rage” unlock the door to my vision & telling everyone listening to step inside while “The Language” talks about only speaking in hustle not giving any fucks regarding being famous. “Unbroken” enlists ScatteredBrains behind the boards telling everyone that he’s still unbroken out here & the final bonus track “Stayin’ Lit” ends with him swinging as if he’s the soon to be inducted WWE Hall of Famer Muhammad Ali.

Activated has it’s moments even though a lot of juggalos I know weren’t feeling the more commercial-approach it took, but this to me is the best thing that James has done on his own since The Return of the Prodigal Son almost 7 summers ago. It’s much more rawer than the previous LP we got from him & we still get a glimpse of his artistic evolution in the last 25 years whether it be his bars, his singing, an evolving self-produced sound or the mixing/mastering.

Score: 4/5

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Santana Fox – “Eye Candy” review

Santana Fox is a 26 year old MC/producer from New York notable for being the daughter of the late Prodigy of Mobb Deep fame. She eventually followed in her father’s footsteps making music of her own couple years after his untimely passing putting out a handful of singles up until the full-length debut Girl Next Door celebrating it’s 2-year anniversary this summer. However after seeing that her debut mixtape over here would be fully self-produced, I went into it thinking that she would level up artistically since her potential has already been shown previously.

The first song “Space Cadet” after the the “Wicked Poet’s Prelude” intro begins with kicks, snares & pianos so she can flow like a UFO following the “Hotline” skit, “Vinyl Dust” keeps it grimy instrumentally talking about going viral to spite who used to be her favorite rapper snatching their sound back. “Fight Me” featuring Pohlosweater brings a synth/boom bap vibe to the fold boasting they ain’t seen or heard anything like them & after the “Hypnotherapy” interlude, “Tokyo Trippin’” lusciously clarifies that the drugs do her as apposed to her doing drugs herself & the consequences of her spoiled ways.

Mike Shabb joins Santana on the title track with the best feature on the tape incorporating a darker sound asking who do they become just to make them happy & after the “Sittin’ by the Lake” skit, “Pray4Mine” keeps it rugged talking about always praying for her n***a. After the “Cards Never Lie” skit, the penultimate track “Moment of Silence” featuring Prodigy himself pushes near the end of a rawly asking her father why they actin’ like they owe her something before he leaves & the closer “Count Me Out” closes up shop with some pianos brushing off those downplaying her.

It sorta feels like an EP if you remove all 5 of the skits & interludes but at the same time when you keep them in, it’s more of a mixtape & one that I think any Mobb Deep fan like myself would find themselves enjoying because Santana’s very much carrying on her dad’s legacy in her own way & I’m sure he’s looking down on her proud of what a groundbreaking entry that Eye Candy is in her discography. Her production’s is a cut above Girl Next Door’s as are the couplet of features & her songwriting being kicked up a notch.

Score: 4.5/5

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Chief Keef – “Dirty Nachos” review

This is the 32nd mixtape from Chicago, Illinois rapper, singer/songwriter & producer Chief Keef. Rising to stardom in 2012 off his 6th mixtape Back from the Dead & the full-length debut Finally Rich, he would go on to become a progenitor for drill music popularizing it in the Windy City inspiring the likes of Lil Uzi Vert & 21 Savage or even Billie Eilish. Other standouts in Keef’s discography include Bang 2Almighty SoBack from the Dead 2, GloToven & 4NEM. But with Mike WiLL Made-It fully producing Dirty Nachos, expectations for it were very high for me personally.

After the intro, the first song “2 Times” is an energetic trap opener talking about having to steal a couple times in the past & seeing dollar signs when you look in his eyes whereas the title track encourages to get off the block & take a trip. “Doja” briefly yet bombastically flexes the kind of weed he be smoking leading into “Ridiculousness” featuring Ballout bringing a suspenseful atmosphere this time around talking about being on too much savagery.

2 Chainz’ feature on “Pull Up Ghost-Clan” is significantly stronger vibrantly boasting that they’ll be at the spot in a coupe just before dedicating “Damn Shorty” featuring Sexyy Red to all the strip clubs out there & I can definitely hear this being played at those kinda spots. “Why You Mad?” hops over strings & hi-hats asking haters the titular question prior to “Watch for the Pigs” menacingly calling out the feds.

“Charged Up” gives me a cloudy trap vibe instrumentally telling us that’s exactly how he be feelin’ while “Promenade” almost has a quirkier tone talking about the cops trying to get him on a daily basis. “Beware of Dog” might be my least favorite on the tape because it feels a little unfinished to me personally, but then “Girl Woo” although more fleshed out seems like a flat pop rap cut.

Meanwhile, “Player in Me” brings a trippier flare to the beat boasting his player status while “Love Don’t Live Here” comes through with aggressive braggadocio. “Status” chillingly sets out to fit 5 or 6 bitches in his car being on Saturn while “Harley Quinn” comparing his girl to the titular DC character over synth-horns. “Bang Bang” rounds out the tape by bringing Chicago drill undertones to the fold portraying images of the gangsta life 1 last time.

Almighty So 2 has been quickly turning into the modern day Detox by now, yet I’ll absolutely still take Dirty Nachos as a way of making up for the constant delays. Mike WiLL’s production is more refined than some of the O.G. versions Shawn Ferrari did, Keef gives some of his best performances I’ve heard from him in a while & the 3 features don’t bother me all that much.

Score: 4/5

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Uncle Murda – “Lenny Grant Story” review

This is the 17th mixtape from New York emcee Uncle Murda. Being in the game for nearly 2 decades, he briefly signed to Roc-A-Fella Records/Def Jam Recordings in the mid/late 2000s but has since made himself home over at G-Unit Records for the past 8 years & doing his own take of the Rap Up series a decade ago inspired by Skillz. I can’t say I have a favorite tape of his since they’re pretty much moderately received, but the buildup to Lenny Grant Story got the best of me.

“If I Die” starts off with piano chords & hi-hats explaining that one of his opps is coming with him if he were to pass away whereas “The Projects” featuring Conway the Machine has a jazzy drill vibe talking about the trenches of their home state. “They Said” featuring Symba shifts back into trap territory telling y’all to look at them now leading into the soul/drill crossover “I’m Ok With That” talking about making his son into a king & fulfilling his promise.

Jadakiss accompanies Murda on the atmospheric “Money” dropping braggadocio just before cavernously hazy “No Safety” featuring Benny the Butcher acknowledges that it’s safe to say that ties have been cut. “10 Toes Down” has a spacious quality to the instrumental tackling themes of commitment, but then “Spin the Block” featuring Styles P & 50 Cent finds the trio looking to simply that on top of a ghoulish vocal sample.

“Grimey” weaves a rich boom bap beat in the fold reflecting on the welfare days while the song “Ride Out” featuring Peezy is an acoustic trap cut clearing out any place their opposition is at. The penultimate track “I Changed” soulfully breaks down how he’s become a different person as he’s gotten older & “2 Hurt 2 Cry” rounds out the tape in an upbeat fashion explaining they reason you don’t see no tears from him.

Once again: I’m not big on Uncle Murda’s previous material & I’ve heard numerous features from him across a multitude of projects over the years that I’ve actually enjoyed. Surprisingly, I was impressed to come away from Lenny Grant Story liking it more than I initially thought I would’ve. I’ll even say it’s the best thing he’s done ever since 50 signed him in the first place. The guest-list is impressive, Murda himself sounds concentrated & the production represents both past & present sounds of the New York hip hop scene.

Score: 3.5/5

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ssgkobe – “HORCRUX” review

Lafayette, Louisiana rapper ssgkobe releasing his 2nd mixtape ahead of the upcoming full-length debut U4. Emerging out of the SoundCloud scene just a few years back, it wasn’t until earlier last spring when he was featured on a bonus track off of BROCKHAMPTON’s ROADRUNNER: NEW LIGHT, NEW MACHINEwhere I was introduced to him. His major label debut albeit 12th EP overall KO. that came out a couple months later wasn’t the best place to start diving into his discography at all, but I was genuinely intrigued by Night Before once I started listening to his earlier work. RELAPSED showed some improvements as did the prequel to U4, so I was interested in hearing the direction HORCRUX was going to take.

After the heavenly “INTRODUCTION”, the first song “KEEPIN’ IT REAL” begins the tape by cooking up a lo-fi trap instrumental flexing that his crew stay giving no fucks whereas “FUKITWATCH” gives off more of a psychedelic approach telling all broke motherfuckers to get their own businesses. “WHAT CAN I SAY” asking for some more lean being going off 3 styrofoam cups of it over an airy beat with hi-hats just before the cloudy “COWARD” talks about those sneak-dissing frontin’ in regards to that life.

“ONLY TIME” hooks up these bare piano chords so ssgkobe addressing someone who doesn’t have to lie to him & try to keep fuckin’ with him while “THROUGH MY MIND” featuring Kaash Paige cavernously talks about the evil thoughts that often pop in both of their heads. “ELLA” actually goes for a rock vibe kinda looking to jump right in & possibly see the Eiffel Tower leading into the warm, melodic “URTHEONE” dedicated to that special woman in his life.

Moving forward with the 2nd half of the tape, “WHEN I TURN” brings in the rage beats boasting that he’s cutting up a check while “C” continues to expand the hypertrap influences breaking down the lifestyle that he’s living catching bodies & dealing with bitches who think they be running game. “1227” talks about having shit to prove over a Godzilla-like instrumental while the cloudy, bombastic “13 GATES” dissing those who think he can’t do what they can do. 

“FRIGHT” begins the final moments of HORCRUX by continuing to induce the rage looking to pull up on his opposition in order to leave them all intimidated & “WEHADMET” closes up shop with 1 final psychedelically, melodic joint running at nearly 2 & a half minutes talking about making the relationship with his current partner work.

Admittedly, Willows was an underwhelming note to leave off on last summer & HORCRUX happens to be a good step on the right direction for ssgkobe since it’s a better way for him to hold off his audience until he decides it’s time for the debut album. The elements of rage, pop rap & trap from some of his latest material in recent years make their way back over here flowing solidly as I hope U4 will help him come fully into his own.

Score: 3.5/5

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Casey Veggies – “Nostalgia” review

Casey Veggies is a 30 year old rapper from Los Angeles, California notable for being a founding member of the now defunct Odd Future collective. He’s also built a tight solo discography for himself including a couple full-lengths, a couple EPs & 8 mixtapes in nearly 2 decades. Standouts include the Customized Greatly series, Sleeping in ClassLife Changes and Live & Grow. That said: I was highly interested in hearing Casey’s 9th mixtape after learning that South Carolina plugg producer Dylvinci was fully on board with it.

The 90 second “Another Lane” sets the tone of the tape from the cloudy trap instrumental to the lyricism boasting that he’s in a different lane compared to these other motherfuckers whereas “Prada Tags” brings that plug sound full circle talking about being young & coming from the bottom. The title track works in more sparse, minimalistic drum & hi-hat patterns, subby 808s & heavy low end, piano samples, airy pads & icy synths discussing the things that make him nostalgic, but then “Won’t She” featuring IAMSU was an ok single despite the mellow beat & subject matter of refusing to go out sad.

“Put the City On” keeps the plugg beats coming representing his hometown of L.A. leading into “Boss Talk” featuring D Smoke takes the cloudy boom bap detailing the boss statuses that both of them have maintained. “Cut Different” goes plugg once more talking about how you ain’t dealing with no scrub & that he ain’t like the rest just before the synth-funk “Phillip Lim” featuring King Chip encourages the shorties to fuck with them.

Dylvinci mixes elements of g-funk, boom bap & trap on “Heavyweight” looking to put a woman who don’t have a man in designer while “No Flaggin’” refuses to stop grindin’ as it instrumentally kinda throws it back to the 80s’ a bit. “Savage” goes for a pluggier vibe talking about what money has done to him while the serenely produced “Either Way” discusses catching Ws regardless although Sean Ev & TTM Dawg’s verses don’t do much for me. “Curtains Closed” ends the tape by glamorously asking what’s up with y’all not getting money.

Even I’ll tell you that it’s been quite some time since I’ve enjoyed a Young Veggies project as somebody who’s been down with him since the OF days & with Nostalgia, it’s the best that he’s sounded in nearly 10 years. It sounds like he’s having fun eagerly seeking to evolve artistically & Dylvinci’s production is better than a lot of Casey’s recent material tightly expanding his sound by dabbling with plugg, trap, boom bap, g-funk & even synth-funk.

Score: 3.5/5

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Quadeca – “Scrapyard” review

This is the 3rd mixtape from Los Angeles, California singer/songwriter, producer, YouTuber & rapper Quadeca. His earliest output including Work in ProgressNostalgia for the NowBad Internet Rapper & Out of Order were all received negatively as was the full-length debut Voice Memos. The sophomore effort From Me to You proved to be decent & coming off his most beloved offering yet I Didn’t Mean to Haunt You, he’s taking us to the Scrapyard full of material that didn’t make the final version of it’s predecessor to simultaneously fulfill his contractual obligations with deadAir Records.

Experimental hip hop, emo rap, glitch hop, cloud rap, folktronica, art pop, digicore, slacker rock & glitch hop all culminate in the intro “Dustcutter” begging not to be left out in the cold to dry prior to “A La Carte” featuring brakence blending experimental hip hop, emo rap, bedroom pop, digicore, midwest emo, glitch pop, glitch hop, neo-psychedelia, alternative R&B, art pop & abstract hip hop talking about rather being in their heads instead of their partners’ beds.

“Pretty Privilege” brings more of a general trap vibe confused by the compliments he’s been receiving from a woman he initially felt was lying when she called him pretty & trying to get to the bottom of as to why she genuinely feels that way leading into “Easier” fusing art pop, folktronica, neo-psychedelia, bedroom pop, emo rap, ambient pop, bossa nova, alternative R&B, dream pop, chamber folk & glitch pop talking about being in love with a chick who doesn’t feel the same way.

Quadeca steps outside the box in terms of sound on “Even If I Tried” with an outstandingly calculated outro trying to stop himself whenever he’s not feeling like himself while “What’s It to Him?” vulnerably admits his desire to hide a little less & cry more pulling inspiration from bands like The Beatles & Queen to Weezer. We get a solid attempt at hyperpop during “U Don’t Know Me Like That” touching base regarding a relationship that didn’t last while “I Make It Look Effortless” goes back to his roots over a combination of experimental hip hop, glitch hop, digicore, Americana, deconstructed club, industrial hip hop & folktronica.

“Way Too Many Friends” made for an introspectively eclectic pop rap, boom bap, jazz rap, neo-psychedelia, glitch hop, cloud rap, trip hop & abstract hip hop song advising to stop having his bluff called if you wanna make amends with him followed by a repetitive hook while “Guess Who?” expands on the versatility balling experimental hip hop, hardcore hip hop, glitch hop, industrial hip hop, dark plugg, rage, trap metal, glitch hop, wonky, deconstructed club, digicore & beat bruxaria all in 1 to spit braggadocio.

Shoegaze makes itself a prominent influence in the 2 & a half minutes “Under My Skin” has to offer feeling paranoid while “Being Yourself” sees past another person trying to act like someone else & airs ‘em out on it right on the spot. Would be furthermore remised to leave out the instrumental breakdown outro. “U Tried That Thing Where Ur Human” sonically feels reminiscent of Björk talking about being fed up of getting treated as if he’s dirt while the “Guide Dog” delivers a 2 minute folk ballad about the love he has for his romantic interest.

“Texas Blue” featuring Kevin Abstract concludes the tape with my favorite collaboration of the 2 realizing they’ve been masking their emotions throughout the portrayed relationships they’re involved with crossing over Americana, pop & R&B while “perfectly cut scream” starts the deluxe run by running to his hip hop roots tackling the theme of self-confidence & simultaneously giving a giant “fuck you” to the crowd who dismissed his artistic potential entirely because of his earlier output. Most of which he even said himself was trash in the midst of the last album rollout.

What was the original 2nd half of “perfectly cut stream” spins off into the noisy experimental glitch hop cut “like me” boasting that nobody’s doing this on his level while the 80 second “123” talks about having everyone’s eyes on him after counting to 3. “mad at me” heads for a synthpop direction realizing the person he’s addressing doesn’t care if they’re wrong while “1 step program” fired back at an individual tryna take credit in his success. “lifespan” could most likely be my least favorite of the 7 outtakes here with my criticisms having little to do with the instrumental & more so in terms of the half-baked structuring, which carries itself onto the final bonus track “who i am”.

For a collection of I Didn’t Mean to Haunt You leftovers, it’s similar to what Kendrick Lamar did with untitled unmastered. & To Pimp a Butterfly in that the cutting room floor of a great concept album got an equally beloved life of it’s own. It’s themes are focused around the issues Gen Z are facing masterfully combining art pop, experimental hip hop, electronic, glitch pop, emo rap, folktronica, alternative R&B, glitch hop, neo-psychedelia, industrial hip hop, deconstructed club, cloud rap, digicore, slacker rock, bedroom pop, midwest emo, abstract hip hop, ambient pop, bossa nova, dream pop, chamber folk, hyperpop, Americana, pop rap, boom bap, jazz rap, trip hop, hardcore hip hop, dark plugg, rage, trap metal, wonky, beat bruxaria, shoegaze & synthpop.

Score: 4.5/5

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Valid – “The Bronko Tape” review

Detroit emcee Valid coming off Bill & Isiah’s self-titled debut from last spring with his debut mixtape. Introducing himself properly in 2015 with Reach High, he would follow it up in 2019 getting more personal on the sophomore effort Mihajlo which I personally would recommend to anyone as the best place to start for anyone who wants to get up on Valid’s music & eventually the Plum Brandy EP only 9 months later. However after teasing The Bronko Tape recently in the form of a couple singles, now is the time for Valid to return for the first solo project of his in nearly 4 years.

“Big Bronko” has this mobster-like sample from Pig Pen so Valid can liken himself to Bronko Lubich who competed in the Billy Corgan owned National Wrestling Alliance (NWA), the Hart family-owned Stampede Wrestling, the WWE Hall of Famers Von Erich family-owned WCCW, the Crockett family-owned JCP & WWE Hall of Famer Verne Gagne-owned AWA from the early 50s to the early 70s whereas “Frozen Over Twice” works in this accordion flip from Middle Finger Music in-house producer Peace of Mind with DJ Los on the turntables talking about being known for doing the impossible. “Fever” goes into a silkier direction explaining everything’s been the same just before “Prayer for the Players” featuring Big Herk & Fat Ray finds the trio over a soulful boom bap instrumental from Simple Cuts spitting gospel for the gangstas.

Nearing the end of the first half of the tape “Let It Bang” featuring Asaka the Renegade talking about how heartless these hoes can be & Nick Speed paying tribute to the greatest Texas hip hop duo of all-time UGK behind the boards leading into the “Cyclone” featuring & produced by Ilajide formerly of the Clear Soul Forces going for a funky trap vibe looking to stir up shit similar to a storm or system of winds rotating inward to an area of low atmospheric pressure. Bill & Isiah link back up with the help of S.A.G.E. for “Dark Road” asking how you like them know over pianos & hi-hats, but then “Always Be Me” stays true to himself referencing 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 Kevin Nash over a boom bap beat.

“Do You Remember” blends a soul sample with kicks & snares describing a romantic interest who he viewed as an angel while “Forever & a Day” assures to tell him all your insecurities for him to embrace” over a luxurious boom bap instrumental. “Hell of a Love” draws near the end of the tape by really digging in the crates with it’s vintage sampling helping this woman with her self-esteem & the jazzy “Random Thoughts” rounds everything out by making a whole song around the fact that he & Tony Rizzo could talk about anything in the lab with.

Like I mentioned: This was the first solo project that Valid has put out in damn near 4 years since it’s anniversary is next Wednesday & much like the last full-length we got from him which will already be turning 5 this spring, The Bronko Tape is most certainly a step above Plum Brandy when he put it out literally before everyone’s lives changed forever. Don’t get me wrong: Plum Brandy was a fresh showcasing of his Serbian roots, but I like the production here better & the homages to Bronko Lubich as a wrestling fan myself.

Score: 4/5

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Ouija Macc – “Corruptus” review

Las Vegas emcee Ouija Macc preluding his upcoming 4th LP Darcc Planet by releasing his 9th mixtape to start 2024. Breaking out in the fall of 2017 after the Insane Clown Posse signed him to Psychopathic Records shortly after putting out his debut EP Trashfire independently, Ouija has since proven himself as one of the most consistent & hard working dudes in the underground by dropping 3 full-lengths, 2 greatest hits compilations, his previous 7 mixtapes & 4 EPs all in the span of nearly 7 years. He even started his own label Chapter 17 Records, signing Darby O’Trill. As far as 2023 however, I really enjoyed Ouija’s previous tape Detritus along with both 3-Headed Monster albums & the Coronella collab album with Trizz. So coming fresh off that, the CEO’s beginning C17’s new year by treading new waters on Corruptus.

“Corrosion in C Sharp” finds Ouija singing a capella asking if it’s it real or all a lie whereas “Sorcerer Stoned” taking a groovier trap route starting off by continuing to sing for the first verse prior to rapping for the second so he can throw devil sets in your face. “Breathing is a Sacrifice” goes into full-blown rock territory advising not to spend money on him because he’ll be fine prior to “Laughing Upside Down” going a capella once more singing to find your smile.

Meanwhile, “Off the Ground” has more of an acoustic trap flare thanks to Devereaux talking about picking yourself back up when you’re down & after the “How Many Times?” interlude interpolating the song of the same name off my favorite joker’s card The Great Milenko, “All 4 Nothing” gives off a bit of a spacey trap rock vibe advising not to tell him it’s alright when you know it’s not.

“The Knowing Hand” keeps it a capella singing that he doesn’t know what he should say, but then “Wingless Bones” sings about how you can’t fix lonely over some guitars. After the “The Lights Are On in Hell” interlude & before the “To Say Goodbye outro, the final song “Nicorette” properly ends Corruptus by going head-on trap metal instrumentally as he sings that he doesn’t want to feel since none of his friends care as he shouldn’t either.

If anyone’s gonna go into Corruptus expecting the usual mix of the wicked shit & trap that a lot of Ouija Macc’s music is known for, then you’re gonna be surprised as I am to hear that he makes a huge stylistic departure on this tape & it’s probably the most experimental body of work he’s ever done. He’s showing off his singing voice more here on top of the production being more guitar-centered for a chunk of it.

Score: 4/5

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