Big K.R.I.T. – “D.R.D.D. (Digital Roses Don’t Die)” review

This is the highly anticipated 5th full-length album from Mississippi emcee/producer Big K.R.I.T., who started out by releasing a few mixtapes from the mid to late 2000s. He eventually signed to Cinematic Music Group in 2010 & his 6th mixtape K.R.I.T. Wuz Here that same year landed him a joint venture with Def Jam Recordings & a spot in the XXL Freshman Class in 2011. His first 2 studio albums Live from the Underground & Cadillactica in 2012 & 2014 respectively continued to show his potential, but then he went on to form his own label Multi Alumni some time after. His first outing under the new independent label was his previous album 4eva’s a Mighty Long Time in October 2017, which is the best double disc hip hop album of the 2010s without question. Following that was the T.D.T. compilation & even K.R.I.T. Iz Here, which was an underwhelming sequel to K.R.I.T. Wuz Here given how excessively commercial it was in comparison to the rawness of the predecessor. That being said, I was still excited for D.R.D.D. (Digital Roses Don’t Die) considering the fact that the singles he’s been dropping as of late haven’t been continuing to cater to a radio market that doesn’t exist.

After the “Fire” intro, the first song “Southside of the Moon” kicks off the album by talking about a woman from New York over soulful instrumental whereas “Show U Right” is a spacious ode to chivalry. “Rhode Clean” takes a funkier route asking listeners if they’ve ever done such & after the “Earth” interlude, “Cum Out to Play” goes into a more sensual direction except it’s underwritten as fuck.

Meanwhile on “Just 4 You”, we have K.R.I.T. mixing R&B with trap talking about doing anything for the love of his life leading into the jazzy “So Cool” flexing how hot he is. After the “Water” interlude, “Boring” brings back the funk letting his lover know he’s aware that she loves him that way just before “Would It Matter” reinforces some jazzy undertones asking his lover if she would have a problem with him having a 9-5 & not being able to afford her a Birkin bag.

“Generational – Weighed Down” mixes some pianos & saxophones tackling fatherhood & after the “Wind”, interlude, “It’s Over Now” is an acoustic ballad detailing a breakup. The song “Wet Lashes & Shot Glasses” talks about wiping tears while drinking & smoking over a silky instrumental while the penultimate track “All the Time” comes through with some synths & bass-licks calling out those who’ve never been in love before. “More Than Roses” ends the album with a pillowy yet drumless ode to his partner.

I will say that D.R.D.D. (Digital Roses Don’t Die) is better than K.R.I.T. Iz Here was, but not by much. The production has significantly improved due to Krizzle handling a good portion of it himself & that makes me happy because I felt like him stepping away behind the boards could’ve been done a bit better on the last album, but I find this whole romance concept to be decent at best.

Score: 3/5

Big K.R.I.T. – “K.R.I.T. Iz Here” review

Big K.R.I.T. is a 32 year old MC & producer from Meridian, Mississippi who started out by releasing a few mixtapes from the mid to late 2000s. He eventually signed to Cinematic Music Group in 2010 & his 6th mixtape K.R.I.T. Wuz Here that same year landed him a joint venture with Def Jam Recordings & a spot in the XXL Freshman Class in 2011. His first 2 studio albums Live from the Underground & Cadillactica in 2012 & 2014 respectively continued to show his potential, but then he went on to form his own label Multi Alumni some time after. His first outing under the new independent label was his previous album 4eva’s a Mighty Long Time in October 2017, which is hands down the best double disc hip hop album of the decade. However after dropping his T.D.T. compilation of EPs at the jumpstart of this year, he’s back with the sequel to the tape that got Krizzle where he is today.

The album kicks off with the title track, where K.R.I.T. reflects about his time with Def Jam over a beautiful sample of “Trust in God” by The Winans. After the “High End County” interlude, we then dive into the song “I Been Waitin’”. Where Krizzle is happy to talk smack over an eerily bland trap beat. The track “I Make Easy” brags about his skills over a boom bap beat with some beautiful background vocals while the song “Addiction” with Lil Wayne is of course a buttery lust tune.

The track “Energy” still sounds as smooth as it did on T.D.T. while the song “Obvious” serves a a pretty decent sequel to the previous cut. The track “I Made” talks about his success over a vibrant trap beat while the song “Everytime” is an empowering motivational anthem. The track “Believe” get conscious over a trap beat with a God-like atmosphere to it & while I do like how the song “Prove It” with J. Cole sees the 2 talking about loyalty, the spacious trap instrumental is just ok & K.R.I.T. awkwardly sounds like he’s doing his best Future impression on the hook.

The track “Family Matters” pretty much speaks for itself over a bland beat & after the “Blue Flame” interlude, the song “Blue Flame Ballet” is a sensual strip club banger. The track “Learned from Texas” is a chopped & screwed tribute that still sounds as great as it did on T.D.T. while the song “Outer Space” is a nocturnal weed anthem.

The track “High Beams” gets spiritual & the beat is pretty intoxicating, but the delivery sucks. The song “Life in the Sun” gets celebratory over a beautiful piano instrumental & then the album finishes with “Mississippi”, where K.R.I.T. pays tribute to his home state over a bass-heavy trap beat.

Yeah, this was just as decent as I expected. It’s more commercial than K.R.I.T.’s past material, but there are slightly more hits than there are misses.

Score: 3/5

Big K.R.I.T. – “T.D.T.” review

Big K.R.I.T. is a 32 year old MC & producer from Meridian, Mississippi who started out by releasing a total of 5 mixtapes from 2005 up until 2009. However, he signed to Cinematic Music Group in 2010 & his 6th mixtape K.R.I.T. Wuz Here that same year landed him a joint venture with Def Jam Recordings & a spot in the 2011 XXL Freshman Class. He then released his first 2 studio albums Live from the Underground & Cadillactica in 2012 & 2014 respectively, but then he departed from both Cinematic & Def Jam shortly after to form his own label Multi Alumni. His first outing under the imprint being 4eva’s a Mighty Long Time in October 2017, which is EASILY the best double disc hip hop album of the decade. He dropped a handful of tracks at the tail end of last year but now to kick off 2019, he’s delivering his very 1st compilation.

Things kick off with “Energy”, which is a dedication to K.R.I.T.’s significant other over a smooth Danja instrumental. The next song “Learned from Texas” is an ode to chopped & screwed music over a video gamey beat from DJ Khalil while the track “Pick Yourself Up” is a motivational anthem with a bouncy beat. The song “Glorious” is a charismatic bragging anthem with a cloudy trap beat & while the track “1 Oh Oh” has a blissful beat, the content about how his ex is keeping it real even after the breakup doesn’t interest me. The song “Higher (King Pt. 6)” gets intellectually spiritual over a lovely settle yet spacey instrumental with some background vocals that literally sound like they were sampled from Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak & then the penultimate track “Look What I Got” , Big KR.I.T. vividly vents about all that he did before he got famous over an atmospheric beat. The comp then finishes with “4 tha 3”, which is a dedication to Meridian with a soulful beat.

Personally, I think it’s really smart that K.R.I.T.’s kicking off this new year by combining THRICE X, DOUBLE DOWN & TRIFECTA into 1. Mostly because hearing these cuts on their own (i.e. DOUBLE DOWN) were just alright & bringing them all together really makes them a lot more cohesive in my opinion. A couple features would’ve been nice too, but I think this is a nice short taste of something bigger to come as Krizzle’s lyricism is well thought out & the production is mostly on par with 4eva’s a Mighty Long Time.

Score: 3.5/5

Big K.R.I.T. – “4eva is a Mighty Long Time” review

A year after leaving the renown Def Jam Recordings to form his own label Multi Alumni, Mississippi MC/producer Big K.R.I.T. is finally returning with his 3rd full-length album & it actually happens to be a double disc with 11 tracks on each disc. The opener “Big K.R.I.T.” gets ambitious both lyrically & production-wise & I really love how he goes some rapping from mid-pace to a faster one halfway. The next track “Confetti” brags about his rapping prowess & dissing the wack over some piano chords along with a soul sample in the background & even a guitar solo during the hook. The song “Big Bank” with T.I. sees the 2 boasting about their wealth over a soulful yet hard hitting instrumental from WLPWR. The track “Subenstein (My Sub IV)” is the new welcoming installment of his “My Sub” series the Mannie Fresh beat on here SLAPS! The song “1999” is basically Krizzle with a decent Lloyd hook getting romantic & I can definitely see it being a hit from the content down to Mannie’s production.

The song “Ride wit Me” gets braggadocious with an outstanding UGK feature & as for the track “Get Up 2 Come Down”, it talks about some hustlin’ over a smooth instrumental & it was really refreshing to hear Cee-Lo Green rapping a verse near the end. The song “Layup” reflects on starting with nothing & how he’s living better now over a very relaxing instrumental & his melodic delivery is infectious. After the Classic Interlude, we then get into the next song “Aux Cord”. Here, he’s telling us some of his influences like the late B.B. King (whom he collaborated with on his debut Live from the Underground) as well as Marvin Gaye and Sly & the Family Stone over a spacey instrumental. The first disc closer “Get Away” is the last in the first disc & he’s talking about being bullshit free over a smooth soul instrumental.

The first track on the second disc “Justin Scott” is just a 4 minute instrumental that you can kick back to & the song “Mixed Messages” talks about things like loving his girl yet hating her at the same time or being rich yet simultaneously giving back & the instrumental is just beautiful. The track “Keep the Devil Off” sees Krizzle asking God to brush off the haters over a fittingly gospel-influenced instrumental & the song Ms. Georgia Fornia talks about a love/hate relationship over a smooth guitar & the Joi hook has a lot of raw passion in it. The next 2 tracks “Everlasting” & “Higher Calling” are both love songs & while they aren’t bad at all, I’d say the first of the 2 sets the mood a lot better. After the Weekend Interlude, K.R.I.T. then gives the listener his personal take on what fame does to you on “Price of Fame” & the song “Drinking Sessions” sees him getting vulnerable over some piano keys & some trumpets. The penultimate track “The Light” gets conscious over a jazzy instrumental & the Bilal hook is just as soothing while the closer “Bury Me in Gold” talks about giving it all away to be in heaven over a fittingly churchy instrumental.

For a double disc album, this might be Big K.R.I.T.’s best work yet. It’s super consistent, it sounds focused, the lyricism is stronger than ever before, the production is immensely soulful & the passion is clear as day. I think Krizzle is amongst the most underrated right now & this double disc magnum opus could potentially be a modern classic within the next 3 years

Score: 4.5/5