Lloyd Banks – “Halloween Havoc V” review

This is the 19th mixtape from Queens emcee Lloyd Banks. Gaining notoriety in the 2000s for his witty punchlines along as well as being an original member of G-Unit alongside childhood friends 50 Cent & Tony Yayo, he kept himself busy for a little while after the group’s disbandment in 2015 by releasing A.O.N. 2 (All Or Nothing 2): L.I.U. (Live It Up) & Halloween Havoc 3: 4 Days of Fury just before taking on a 5-year hiatus that really lasted until he received a song placement on the soundtrack for Griselda Records’ theatrical debut Conflicted a year & a half ago along with the whole Course of the Inevitable album trilogy gaining renewed interest in the PLK himself. A year after Halloween Havoc IV: The 72nd Hr, Lloyd’s keeping the saga alive.

“You Have My Word” produced by Ron Browz eerily starts off by telling anyone who crosses him to make sure that they stay crossing him for the rest of their lives whereas “Complications” takes the Hellish boom bap route instrumentally talking about being careful of when you speak before you get all the facts. “Season of the Psychos” with Haas Almahdi morbidly promises that he can handle his own weight, but then “Connoisseur” takes us back in the basement calling himself the top seed when he gets on.

Meanwhile on “Broken Hearts”, we have Lloyd over more kicks & snares from Cartune Beatz to talk about the city of heartbreak just before “Double Up” maintains a somber boom bap flare to the beat calling victory the love of his life. “Love is Love” dustily seeks to fuck up the arguments & hypothetics of someone he used to know that fell off musically leading into “Choose Wisely” ruggedly, talking about how there ain’t no money behind these fake pages.

“Resources” rawly observes that everything’s strange now & everyone feeling his energy the second he sets foot in the room while the cold-blooded “Taking Notes” talks about the fact that where he comes from ain’t no joke to him whatsoever. “Shooting the Messenger” aggressively check the temperature since he’s burning up again while “Seminar” publicly expresses his frustration towards everyone else out here & he’s pretty much sick of ‘em.

Starting the 5th installment of the Halloween Havoc series’ final leg, “Regrets” looks at all the possibilities in his future & going broke not being an option while “In the Mix” kinda has some trap undertones talking about expecting a snitch since this life’s a bitch. “Keep It Solid” pushes further to the end keeping it legit & “Graduated” viciously ends reminding that what goes around comes around.

Cartune Beatz has been getting a lot of attention as of late & only a couple weeks after fully producing Machine Gun Vocabulary for Tha God Fahim, he produces nearly half of Halloween Havoc V improving on the predecessor that we got 365 days ago exactly. The production is prominently built around the traditional boom bap sound, refined from The 72nd Hr so the former G-Unit member can go even harder with his signature punchlines.

Score: 4/5

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A-F-R-O – “The Bad & the Ugly: The Goods Always Die First” review

Los Angeles emcee/producer A-F-R-O teaming up with Boston, Massachusetts underground veteran Stu Bangas for a new mixtape. A protege of R.A. the Rugged Man after winning the Definition of a Rap Flow contest, his Duck Down Music Inc.-backed 5th EP A-F-R-O Polo produced by Marco Polo introduced himself as a promising up-&-comer within the underground. I got to cover his self-produced 9th EP The Drawing Board earlier this spring & while thought that it was his best work yet, The Bad & the Ugly: The Goods Always Die First surely had more than enough potential to top it.

“Hip Hop Tournament” starts with a horn-inflicted boom bap instrumental addressing those who wanna battle him whereas “Bring Ya Best Army” brings an uncanny atmosphere to the table keeping it raw talking about his opposition bringing the best out of their arsenal. “Lost Souls” works in more kicks & snares to discuss the titular kind of people wandering around his parts just before “From Dusk ‘Till Dawn” featuring Lil D ruggedly talks about being unstoppable.

Moving on from there, “Pay Attention” maintains a boom bap edge advising y’all to actively listen to him very carefully as he shows how it’s done leading into “Hallucinogenz” sampling a bit of psychedelic rock with nothing on the mind but the dimesack. “Story of a Scumbag” grimly gets in his storytelling bag discussing a young kid with a cold heart prior to “Eyes Closed” boasting that he could do this shit in his sleep.

“Breakadawn” featuring Horror City & Motion+ nears the conclusion of The Bad & the Ugly: The Goods Always Die First by linking the trio up promising that they’ll always keep it moving prior to “Run 4 Ya Life!” rounding things out in the form of this murderous closer advising for everyone listening to bring a pen & a mic instead of a gun clarifying that your demise will be a good time for him.

For over a decade, I’ve always felt that A-F-R-O had more than enough potential to make a classic studio LP someday & it finally happened on Halloween wiping almost everything else that he’s done up until this point. The features are just ok, but Stu Bangas’ production top to bottom reveals itself to be a great match for A-F-R-O’s cutthroat lyricism.

Score: 4.5/5

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Icewear Vezzo – “Live from the 6, Pt. 2” review

Detroit trap veteran & Iced Up Records founder Icewear Vezzo releasing a sequel to his Quality Control Music debut album although the 4th full-length overall in his discography Live from the 6. For over a decade now, this dude has been making waves locally by releasing the Rich Off Pints trilogy of LPs & over a dozen mixtapes. The previous Paint the City hosted by DJ Drama over a year ago being Vezzo’s first project to come out though the Motown Records/Virgin Music imprint & it was a solid prelude. The major label debut proved to be a well-crafted collection of songs that detailed life in 6 Mile & he’s taking us back on Devil’s Night.

“Musty” starts with an occult Detroit trap beat talking about going from $5,000,000 to $10,000,000 & being a real demon whereas “Add It Up” takes the standard trap route instrumentally boasting that he’s still with the same people that he was with back then aside from everything else. “Money Counter” once again puts the Motor City’s unique take on trap music on full display feelin’ like Blade Icewood with all the jewelry while “Family Ties” hooks up some bells & hi-hats bringing one of his children on the mic for the opening verse.

Moving on from there, “Chosey One” kinda has this cold atmosphere professing himself to be the chosen one representing IUR in the midst of it just before “6 & Daisy” featuring Los & Nutty finds the trio coming together for a Detroit trap banger clarifying that this shit ain’t only rap. “Musty 2 (Shit on ‘Em)” brings more bells & hi-hats in the fold for a sequel to the opener maintains that occult edge, but then “Nobody” featuring Lauryn Amore on the hook takes a jab at pop rap showing a romantic side to Vezzo.

“Different Day” starts the final leg of Live from the 6, Pt. 2 talking about how he’s still the same person as he’s always been except his bag’s much bigger now while “Basquiat” offers a triumphant trap flare to the beat referencing graffiti artist Jean-Michel Basquiathomaging the oldest of the 4 hip hop elements. The suspenseful tone of “Walk Down” featuring Bankroll Freddie is cool even if I wasn’t too big on the latter’s guest appearance walkin’ everyone down hence the title & finally, “Mudd Baby” serves as a bonus track since it originally saw the light of day on Rich Off Pints 2.

Live from the 6 earlier in the year has since become one of my favorite projects in Vezzo’s entire discography & almost 6 months later to the very day, he’s done it again except it’s solely through his own imprint that’s thriving since I’ve already reviewed Iced Up Records signee Krispylife Kidd’s last couple projects. The production is prominently Detroit trap based with trap & pop rap undertones, the few features were ok & the IUR founder breaks down the madness of the city the day before Halloween.

Score: 3.5/5

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03 Greedo – “Hella Greedy” review

Pioneering Detroit trap producer Helluva producing the 17th mixtape in Los Angeles emcee, singer/songwriter & producer 03 Greedo’s discography. Emerging under the original moniker Greedy Giddy, he went on to release a total of 14 tapes ahead of his DJ Mustard-produced debut album Still Summer in the Projects & the Kenny Beats-produced sophomore effort Netflix & Deal both receiving significant acclaim. He has since dropped 1 more LP in Load It Up as well as 5 EPs & a couple more mixtapes, the most recent being the Fucc Everybody EP from this spring. That said, I felt Hella Greedy could be Greedy’s strongest since his first EP Meet the Drummers produced by Travis Barker.

“Still in Shocc” is a Detroit trap opener flexing that he went from Steve Urkel to Stefan Urquelle like it’s Family Matters whereas “If I’m Scared” has a ghostly atmosphere to the Motor City’s unique take on trap music talking about beating the feds & even coming clean that he’ll do it again. “Still Feel Loaded” serves as a sequel to the highlight loaded off Still Summer in the Projects that’s on par with the predecessor, but then “Kill Me” spaciously shrugs off all the fake love.

Peezy joins Greedo on a successor to “Militant” off Money Changes Everything discussing their titular tendencies over a mellow Detroit trap instrumental just before “DayQuil” laughs off everyone who thought they were poppin’ turning the tables on them that they took the fake pill refusing to roll silently. “Good Girls 2” featuring Vae Vanilla happens to be a soulful follow-up to the Lil Boof song that Giddy was featured on surpassing it leading into “Went Left” featuring G Herbo pulls from drill music showing off their mob ties.

“Sum’n Pretty” featuring Rob49 was an underwhelming choice of a single wasting this beat fusing Mobb & trap music in favor of underwhelming romance bars while “Tear It Off” makes up for it jumping over these 808s & luxurious pianos so he can continue the lustful themes except he’s improved on them in comparison. “Take My Time” heads for a cloudy trap direction instrumentally addressing someone who promised to hold him down while “Move” finds him moving on to someone else.

Meanwhile on “Good Taste”, we have Greedo setting off with this exuberant trap joint showing a boastful side to him while “Ketchup” aggressively talking about making money as of late. “Devil Offa Me” easily stands out as an introspective moment on the tape tryna shaking off Satan’s baggage while “Escalator Elevator” talks doing no stepping showing a Detroit trap influence again. “R.I.C.O.” featuring Maxo Kream turns the eeriness up to 11 saying real ones don’t worry of catching a racketeering cage & the closing track “Move 2” ends with a harder sequel to “Move” talking about riding for his homies.

I’ve been waiting for Giddy to drop a project on a caliber that would make it stand out unlike anything he’s done before much like Still Summer in the Projects, Netflix & Deal and Meet the Drummers all did ever since he finally came home. A year & a half later, he’s finally done it. Helluva whips up the most consistent batch of beats that Greedo’s been on top of since being released from prison & even if the features are 50/50, the Watts representative himself is the best since he’s sounded in 5 years.

Score: 4/5

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Future – “Mixtape Pluto” review

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

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

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

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

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

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

Score: 4.5/5

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Terror Reid – “Manifesto” review

San Jose deejay, producer, rapper & actor Terror Reid celebrating the 1-year anniversary of Hot Vodka 2 with his 2nd mixtape. Originally started turning heads a decade back after dubstep pioneer Skrillex signed him to his OWSLA Music for short period of time, he went on to drop 2 full-lengths & 13 EPs in the EDM genre under the name Getter before embarking into hip hop during the pandemic with Hot Vodka, which my homie Rone Bone of The Beneath the Dirt Podcast put me onto when it came out & was impressed by the boom bap/g-funk production as well as the raps from Terror himself. The sophomore EP DYNAMO as was the previously mentioned ruined Hot Vodka sequel, so I was anticipating his Manifesto.

After the “Salvation” intro, the first song “Makin’ Me Sick!” instrumentally throws it back to the days of early 90s west coast hip hop expressing his disgust with some of these cats whereas “Chin Check” takes a significantly eerier route to the beat talking about saying less & asking what’s next since he did everything else. “Shark City” embraces the g-funk vibes representing his hometown where the Sharks play while “Mad Woozy” goes drumless giving a middle finger to the fame & wanting to commit murder referencing Facebook founder/Meta Platforms CEO Mark Zuckerberg.

“Seraphim” morbidly flexes that suckas can never get close to the phantom just before the lead single “Nod Ya Head! takes it back to the basement on a ride to raise Hell promising to kill any mic given to him. “Doin’ My Thang” maintains his independent hustle over this groovy ass instrumental leading into “I.D.F.A. (I Don’t Fuck Around)” dustily talks about not playing games whatsoever.

The penultimate song “Waco” featuring Rocci pushes towards the conclusion of the Manifesto of Terror Reid on some eerie trap shit referencing when the Branch Davidians were sieged by U.S. federal government & Texas state law enforcement officials while “Want U Around” ahead of the “Departure” outro wrapping things up expressing that he feels like he’s running in the dark with a blindfold on.

Rocci who produced Ramirez’ best album to date The Playa$ Manual in the spring of 2020 right when the COVID-19 pandemic started had his hand in producing 7 of the 10 songs on here excluding the intro & outro skit, which is important to note because this might be my new favorite Terror Reid tape. The Virginia producer helps Getter grow his sound & refining his style as an MC.

Score: 4/5

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Doechii – “Alligator Bites Never Heal” review

This is the Grammy winning debut mixtape from Tampa, Florida emcee Doechii. Breaking out in the spring of 2019 off her debut EP Coven Music Session. Then following her next 2 EPs Oh the Places You’ll Go & Bra-Less, she went on to sign to Top Dawg Entertainment/Capitol Records in March of 2022 earning a spot in the 2022 XXL Freshman Class & releasing she / her / black bitch shortly after. However, she’s returning to make it clear Alligator Bites Never Heal nearly 14 months since appearing in the A24 Films drama Earth Mama.

“Stanka Pooh” starts the story backwards referencing the longtime Warner Bros. franchise Looney Tunes over a morbidly slow instrumental whereas “Bullfrog” goes full-blown boom bap with a bass guitar to talk about Twitter fingers getting your whole life logged out. “Boiled Peanuts” keeps the kicks & snares in tact maintaining a chip on her shoulder with the gang all here with her on a sunny day, but then the beat on “Denial’s a River” radiates a DJ Premier influence describing her rise in popularity in the last 5 years.

Moving on from there, “Catfish” maintains the hardcore boom bap sound referring to herself as the Ruler of the Swamp prior to “Skipp” shifting gears to trap territory ripping 25 crews quickly. “Hide n Seek” hooks up an atmospheric backdrop & hi-hats feelin’ hardline broke with nothing for her heart to hold just before the moody “Bloom” talks about finding her own place to grow.

“Wait” produced by Dylvinci ends the 1st leg of the tape on a cloudier tip advising that you should just eat what’s already on your plate & poppin’ since The Nanny aired on the Paramount Skydance Corporation-owned CBS while “Death Roll” brings a trap flare back to the table making it clear she got shit to prove with no time to fall back. “Profit” layers these hi-hats with a soul sample pledging allegiance to financial gain leading into DJ Camper giving “Boom Bap” a comedically drumless chipmunk soul vibe taking a jab at her critics.

Meanwhile with “Nissan Altima”, we have Doechii over a hardcore trap/pop rap hybrid telling everyone to increase their rates for her while “GTFO” featuring KUNTFETISH aggressively tells everyone to move out their way. “Huh!” shoots for a synth-based direction talking about being so 100 while the playfully subdued “Slide” discussing her man liking the way she grooves.

“Fireflies” nears the conclusion of Alligator Bites Never Heal with this cavernous 2-parter fed up with dudes calling her childish & pleasing to not be let down while “Beverly Hills” groovily talks her shit for roughly 3 & a half minutes. The title track lastly ends the tape with an acoustic/boom bap beat asking if you would dance for her even after hurting the feelings of this particular individual & the bonus cut “Anxiety” samples “Somebody That I Used to Know” by Gotye wiping the Sleepy Hallow version.

Even if I have ScHoolboy Q’s latest comeback effort Blue Lips above Alligator Bites Never Heal as my favorite TDE release of 2024, I highly enjoyed this mixtape more than her EP that I covered couple years ago. It’s a testament to her unyielding spirit & limitless creativity, additionally embodying her resurgence & reclaiming of power in the process letting everyone know she was born to be the predator.

Score: 4.5/5

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Cash Cobain – “Play Cash Cobain” review

Cash Cobain is a 26 year old rapper & producer from The Bronx, New York who taught himself how to make beats by using FL Studio & his mother having to buy him some equipment to help him in his work becoming a pioneer in the sample drill scene producing for everyone from Lucki to Drake & Don Toliver. He later made it onto this year’s XXL Freshman Class publicly admitting that the freestyle he did for them was wack & that he doesn’t even give a fuck, so I went into his 6th mixtape wondering if he can hold a project down like Pi’erre Bourne or Southside as far as producers getting on the mic. Especially since his last tape Pretty Girls Love Slizzy is considered to be the best sexy drill project.

“slizzyhunchodon” featuring Don Toliver & Quavo gets the ball rollin’ hookin’ up a soothing sample tackling the themes of romance whereas “rump punch” goes for a significantly cloudier dancehall approach instrumentally making a bitch cum twice. The half baked “all i wanna hear” talks about this bitch’s pussy being the best & all she really wants is sex leading into J. Cole providing the worst feature of his career on the lo-fi sexy drill single “Grippy” originally titled “dunk contest” continuing the topic of intercourse & Cole channeling his inner Ned Flanders making her go strictly dickly.

The 2-parter “cantsleep / drunkinluv” produced with OG Parker starts on the soulful tip ahead of a beat switch during the other half refusing to let his new lover go getting shitfaced at 11 tryna get all in her pants while “Problem!” featuring Anycia, Big Sean, Chow Lee, Don Q, Fabolous, Flee, Flo Milli, Kaliii, Kenzo B, Laila!, Lay Bankz, Luh Tyler, Rob49, YN Jay & 6LACK is this tiring 7 & a half minute sexy drill posse cut. “slizzy poetry” goes drumless to lay more romance bars out on the table & “turks (i apologize)” sends an open letter to a woman he hurt.

“wassup (wya)” keeps the sexy drill vibes going describing a savage woman bringing the madness with her that no one wants to fuck with, but then ”message u” hops over a crooning vocal sample addressing his baby. “dunk” goes sample drill turning up the southern hip hop influences a bit maintaining the sexy subject matter while “luv it” embraces the dancehall sound further & has some of the most annoying songwriting on the tape.

The aptly titled “me n payroll” featuring Payroll has a deconstructed vocal flip throughout telling their significant others to not ask about their day before hitting it while “slizzy poetry, pt. 2” strips the drums again talking about wanting to eat his girl out like a dentist. “fisherrr” featuring Bay Swag & later Ice Spice on the remix was one of the better sexy drill singles demonstrating a back-&-forth chemistry from the 2 prior to “act like” sampling “How You Gonna Act Like That?” by Tyrese beating it up like Ike Turner.

“candle” featuring 4Batz nears the end of the mixtape fusing cloud rap, sexy drill & R&B together maintaining the romantic concepts from previously & 4Batz having the best feature on the tape while the song “some shit” has a moodier drill atmosphere telling his bitch that he doesn’t want her getting in her feelings at all. “baddest in the room” finishes Play Cash Cobain with 1 more sexy drill cut talking about the baddest hoe in the entire room.

Some of the singles building up to this tape left little to be desired for me personally & now that we have the full course in front of us, it’s less enjoyable than I imagined it being. I don’t mind the sexy drill scene or Cash Cobain’s production whatsoever, it’s just that he’s significantly more mediocre on the mic than he is behind the boards & a lot of the guests don’t pull off any better performances other than only a select few.

Score: 1.5/5

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Jae Skeese – “Ground Level” review

This is the 8th mixtape from Buffalo, New York emcee Jae Skeese. Starting in 2010 off his debut mixtape W.A.C.K. (Women, Alcohol, Cash & Kicks), it wasn’t until a decade later where he & 7xvethegenius gained wide exposure as the very first signees to Conway the Machine’s very own Drumwork Music Group. The Big Ghost Ltd.-produced 3rd EP Authenticity Check & the sophomore effort Abolished Uncertainties both elevated Skeese’s popularity in the last couple years. 5 months following the Superior-produced Testament of the Times, he’s looking to elevate from Ground Level.

“Brick After Brick” is a triumphant trap opener produced by Beat Butcha making it clear that he can’t be calm with this shit & the flame cannot be contained whereas “Peter Parker” featuring Malizah gives off a jazzy boom bap vibe thanks to Statik Selektah talking about hitting max potential to reach a higher leverage. “Situated” featuring Big K.R.I.T. & Sauce Walka connects the trio over more trap production so they can put in the work to reach the top of the mountain referencing the inaugural IWGPヘビー級チャンピオン, former 12-time WWE world champion, WWE tag team champion, 2-time WWE Hall of Famer & Real American Beer founder Hulk Hogan while “Lost Puppets” hooks up the kicks & snares again reminding that he doesn’t flow a certain way.

Dave East & Jay Worthy join Skeese for the pop rap/trap hybrid “Sara Lee” talking about wanting to hit bitches from behind while “EKIN 4” stands as my favorite in the tetralogy from the rugged instrumental that Ski Beatz & MIKE SUMMERS a.k.a. 7 cook up to the hungry performances. “Ohana Means Family” radiates a summery trap flare telling his partner that she’s where he gets his muscle from as opposed to being his backbone, but then “Glory” keeps it trap talking about repping Buffalo & that Griselda set the expectations.

“Wic Coupons” nears the conclusion of the tape on an atmospheric note making it out of the mud while “E4W” reunites F1RSTCLASS returning to the boom bap allowing the duo to make a dedication to those who came from the ground up. “02 Yale Cup Champs” featuring Che Noir & Smoke DZA sees all 3 of them for a dusty 5 & a half minute barfest while “Fruits of the Labor” featuring Project Pat ends Ground Level on some soulful trap shit from Ill Tone grinding all the time.

If anything, this mixtape is a testament to Jae Skeese’s evolution as an artist blending raw emotion & storytelling with cutting-edge production. Furthermore, he paints an illustration of where he is today & the highs & lows in his journey which would shape & inform the artist chock full of wordplay. As a fan of 4 years, I’m thrilled that he’s taking the next step from coming up out of the basement & building on top of the foundation he’s been building ever since being taken under Conway’s wing.

Score: 3.5/5

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YG – “Just Re’d Up 3” review

This is the 6th mixtape from Compton, California emcee YG. Coming up in 2009 off his debut mixtape 4Fingaz, this was followed up with 4 more tapes prior to Jeezy discovering him in 2013 & landing him a deal with his Def Jam Recordings imprint CTE World. YG’s potential would begin to show in the form of his full-length debut My Krazy Life & came into his own on the sophomore effort Still Brazy launching his own label 400 Records around that same time period, but the next 4 albums Stay Dangerous as well as 4Real 4Real, My Life 400 & I Got Issues all received mixed to poor responses. Couple years later, he’s taking it back to his roots on the 3rd installment of the Just Re’d Up series.

“Go Brazy” featuring the Baby Stone Gorillas reunites with DJ Mustard on some ratchet shit advising that everyone listening should be getting loose whereas “Right Now” works in pianos & hi-hats flexing that his girl is fucking with a real one. “Only Fans” featuring Jaye Anderson is this decent R&B/pop rap fusion with horns tackling the themes of love while “She Pretty” featuring Saweetie has a symphonic trap vibe altogether showing off the beauty of women.

Larry June joins YG for “Put It in My Head” talking how fly they are over finger-snaps & keys just before “Street Love” featuring Diamond Platnumz kinda has a bit of a weird dancehall influence with some vibraphones discussing the titular kind of romance. “Her Way <3” featuring Kalan.FrFr brings a cloudy pop rap groove to the table asking what’s good with that pussy while “It’s Givin’” featuring Ty$ produced by DJ Camper, FNZ & Wax Motif finds the 2 talking about wanting to send their lovers to the hospital for the sex being too good.

After the interlude, “Malibu” featuring G Herbo & Tee Grizzley embraces the Detroit trap style allowing all 3 of them flexing the shit they be doing in the titular California city while “Violence” has a darker atmosphere to the beat reminding the way people be dyin’ around his parts. “Rescue Me” featuring Ty$ has one of my favorite instrumentals on the tape courtesy of Wheezy asking to be saved from the many eaters in the SUV while “Kolors” featuring Ackrite & Mozzy was an average nervous cut with Mozzy having the better feature of the 2.

“Love Make” mainly has a calmer pop rap sound throughout continuing to delve further into the themes of intercourse while “Stupid” featuring Babyface Ray & Lil Yachty sees the trio uniting for a flute-tinged club banger making it out the block similarly to the game of Tetris itself. “My Favorite” featuring Kalan.FrFr again cloudily tells their significant others that they wanna lay up with them while “Knocka” charmingly promises that 400 can’t be stopped.

As the final moments of the Just Re’d Up 3 draw closer & closer, the penultimate track “Pimp My Ride” brings this cool psychedelic guitar lead into the picture talking about that he might as well deck out his whip since he’s got $1M on him & “I’m in Love” smoothly finishes up the mixtape by coming clean professing that he’s been lovestruck as of late.

Nearly 8 years in the making, the final installment of the Just Re’d Up trilogy proves to be a slight cut above I Got Issues with average results much like how the first 2 entries of the series were received. Even if it’s great to hear him & Mustard working with each other again, the overabundance of romantic pop rap cuts & radio hits feel forced considering the fact that he’s not even on a major label anymore.

Score: 3/5

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