Blueface – “Dirt Bag” review

Blueface is a 22 year old rapper from Los Angeles, California who went viral last fall off of the music video for his single “Respect My Crippin’”. This resulted in a contract with Cash Money Records the following month but with him being fresh off the 2019 XXL Freshman Class a couple months ago, he’s continuing all this buzz with his debut EP.

It starts off with the title track, where Blueface talks about being back on his bullshit over a bassy instrumental. The next song “Bussdown” with Offset sees the 2 talking about going from being broke & being successful over a trap beat with some decent piano chords while the track “Disrespectful” talks about getting just that over a hyphy beat with some keys.

The song “Daddy” with Ruch the Kid talks about their lavish lives over an instrumental that’s somewhat similar to “Thotiana” while the track “Bussin’” with Lil Pump sees the 2 talking about you slipping & them sliding over a trap beat from Scott Storch with some faint keys. The next cut is a remix of “Stop Cappin’” with a killer feature from The Game while the penultimate track “Gang” with Mozzy sees the 2 repping their respective gangs over an atmospheric beat. The EP then finishes with “Bleed It”, where Blueface talks about his experiences in the Crips over an old school hyphy beat.

Walking away from this, it really wasn’t as bad as I would’ve expected. The features were mostly redundant, but Blueface really steps up his flows on here & the instrumentals have a great vibe to them as well.

Score: 3/5

Ski Mask the Slump God – “Stokeley” review

Ski Mask the Slump God is a 22 year old rapper from Orlando, Florida who came up as the co-founder of Members Only alongside XXXTENTACION. He then dropped a couple EPs & a great mixtape called Drown in Designer in 2016 before signing to Republic Records the following year with his 2nd mixtape called YouWillRegret being his first outing on a major label. He then put out his 3rd tape Beware the Book of Eli earlier this year but now, he’s putting out his long-awaited debut album.

Things kick off with “So High”, where he’s crooning over a moody Tony Seltzer beat. The next track “Nuketown” gets viciously boastful over a murky trap beat with Juice WRLD unexpectedly screaming his brains out on the hook while the song “Foot Fungus” charismatically talks about the famous life over a bouncy Kenny Beats instrumental with a clever interpolation of the classic Snoop Dogg joint “Drop It Like It’s Hot” during the hook. The track “LA LA” talks about his sexual exploits over a sinister trap beat from Ronny J while the song “Unbothered” talks about how he doesn’t give a fuck about taking L’s over a druggy trap instrumental. The track “Save Me, Pt. 2” is a mediocre sequel to the song off of X’s debut album 17 & while the song “Adults Swim” gets more insightful over some bass & hand claps, I wish it was longer.

The track “Far Gone” with Lil Baby sees the 2 talking about being trapped in their mind on a date over an atmospheric Murda Beatz instrumental while the song “Get Geeked” is a unfinished joint for the clubs. The track “Reborn to Rebel” talks about revolution over a banger beat while the song “Faucet Failure” gets braggadocious over an infectious instrumental. The penultimate track “U & I” is a heartfelt tribute to XXXTENTACION over a decent beat & then the closer “Cat Piss” with Lil Yachty sees the 2 talking about how they’re better than their competition over a somber beat.

For a full-length debut, this was ok. Ski Mask definitely has one of the most interesting flows in hip hop today, but the production on this album kinda bland & many songs on here are short to the point where it becomes annoying. I’ll say it again like I did in my Beware the Book of Eli review: If Ski Mask takes more time into his songs & gets better production, I truly think it’ll show his true potential a lot more because this barely does it.

Score: 3/5

Metro Boomin’ – “NOT ALL HEROES WEAR CAPES” review

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Metro Boomin’ is a 25 year old producer from St. Louis, Missouri who gained notoriety in the middle of this decade as the top producer in the trap subgenre of hip hop. He’s gone on to produce some of the best trap projects of the decade in their entireties including Future’s D.S. 2 (Dirty Sprite 2), Gucci Mane’s Droptopwop and the Offset/21 Savage’s Without Warning. But this past spring, he announced his retirement from making music & he has only produced on a couple albums since then. However, he is returning with his full-length debut.

The opener “10AM (Save the World)” by Gucci Mane talks about the famous life over an amazingly moody beat, but Wizzop‘s delivery could’ve been much better. The next song “Overdue” by Travis Scott talks about out-doing yourself over a clever ambient sample & while the track “Don’t Come Out the House” by 21 Savage gets murderous over some prominent bass & piano chords. There are even a couple points where he’s literally whispering on beat & even though it turned me off at first, I’ve come to appreciate it the more I listened to the album. The song “Dreamcatcher” by Swae Lee & Travis Scott sees the 2 getting playful over a settle instrumental while the track “Space Cadet” by Gunna gets boastful over a dreamy trap beat. The song “10 Freaky Girls” by 21 Savage is self-explanatory over an instrumental with a murky atmosphere to it while the track “Up to Something” is a sinister sounding yet melodic Metro Thuggin’ reunion.

The “Only 1” interlude by Travis Scott is an 80 second cut that sounds heavily influenced by Kanye West’s 808s & Heartbreak while then the song “Lesbian” sees Gunna teaming up with his mentor Young Thug to tell the listener how they both fell in love with a woman who actually happens to be a lesbian referencing WWE Hall of Famer Mr. T over a somber beat. The track “Borrowed Love” by Swae Lee & Wizkid is of course a boring love ballad & if that wasn’t enough, the song right after “Only You” by Offset & J Balvin is a vomit-inducing attempt at going dancehall. The penultimate track on here “No More” by Kodak Black & 21 Savage talks about being faded over a fittingly intoxicating instrumental & then the closer “No Complaints” by Offset & Drake is still a haunting yet fun wealth anthem despite being released as a stand alone single a year prior.

I knew something was up when those missing person billboards about Young Metro appeared about a week ago & this album is makes me really happy about his official return. Probably slightly more so than the new Swizz Beatz album POISON that came out the same day as this, because at least Metro produces every single track. He really sounds like he took his time with crafting these beats & almost every performer just nails it. If you wanna hear the hottest producer in hip hop’s most popular subgenre at the current moment making a triumphant return, then PLEASE give this a listen.

Score: 3.5/5

City Morgue – “Hell or High Water” review

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City Morgue is a New York hip hop trio consisting of producer Thraxx alongside MCs ZillaKami & SosMula. They dropped an EP back in August & while I thought Zilla’s feature on the latest Denzel Curry album TA13OO was just ok, the trio’s full-length debut over here eventually got the best of me & I decided to give it a shot.

The album begins with “Caligula”, which is a mosh pit anthem with an abrasive trap beat. The next song “Arson” pretty much speaks for itself over a metal/trap fusion while the track “KenPark” sees SosMula & Black Kray spitting gun bars over a sinister heavy guitar lead with some hi-hats. The song “Gravehop187” is the duo reuniting albeit with Black Kray once again to get murderous over a chaotic instrumental while the track “Lamborghini Getaway” talks about 2 drug dealers doing their thing & escaping from the cops over a sinister trap beat from Ronny J.

The song “Nuka Cola” is filled with battle bars over a monstrous Powers Pleasant instrumental while the track “PTSD” gets back on the murder tip over a trap beat with a Halloween-esque guitar in the background. The song “So What” talks about how they don’t give a fuck over another intriguing fusion of metal & trap while the track “Snow on tha Bluff” is a tune inspired by the independent film with the same name with a druggy Ronny J instrumental.

The song “Downer” is all about how asshole-ish the trio are over a nu metal instrumental with some skittering snares while the track “Aw Shit” is a club banger with a cloudy trap instrumental. The song “SHINNERS13” talks about how they’ll ride for each other over a rap metal instrumental while the penultimate track “33rd Blakk Glass” is all about being unbreakable over an electronic/trap fusion. The album then closes with “SK8 HEAD”, which is a tribute to their skate team over a trap beat with some haunting synthesizers.

I really didn’t know what to expect going in, but this is truly one of the wildest trap records I’ve heard all year. It’s a little short & the 2 Black Krey features are meh but the youthful, angry chemistry between ZillaKami & SosMula is adrenaline inducing. And on top of that: the production suits this aggressiveness near perfectly. Especially with the trap/metal fusions, which I don’t recall ever hearing being done prior to this & I think it really does it’s part in helping them stand out in this modern day trap scene.

Score: 4/5

Lil Wayne – “Tha Carter V” review

Lil Wayne is a LEGENDARY rapper from New Orleans, Louisiana who was signed to Cash Money Records at the very age of 9. He then got started as 1/2 of The B.G.’z, 1/4 of the Hot Boy$ & 1/6 of the Cash Money Millionaires. His first 3 solo albums Tha Block is Hot, Lights Out & 500 Degreez were average at best but we then found him improving in the mid 2000’s with Tha Carter, Tha Cater II, Dedication, Dedication 2, Da Drought 3 & my personal favorite Tha Carter III. He then started his own label Young Money Entertainment & followed his magnum opus up with a God awful “rock” album Rebirth along with the mediocre I Am Not a Human Being. He was able to bounce back in 2011 with Tha Carter IV, but things looked rough once again with the horrendous I Am Not a Human Being II in 2013 & the legal issues that’s been tangled in with Cash Money for the past 4 years. But now that he’s free from Birdman, he’s finally delivering his long-awaited 12th full-length album to celebrate being the sole owner of Young Money.

After the 2 minute spoken word intro, we go into the first song “Don’t Cry”. Here, Weezy talks about the afterlife over an atmospheric beat & the posthumous XXXTENTACION vocals on the hook don’t sound that bad at all. The track “Dedicate” is about his influence on today’s hip hop landscape over a trap beat with some plinky keys, the sampling of the 2 Chainz song with the same name as the hook was pretty cool as was the reference to The Walt Disney Company-owned Marvel.

The song “Uproar” is filled with clever battle bars & while I kinda feel like Swizz Beatz’ heavily sampling of the classic G. Dep song “Special Delivery” was too much, it does do it’s job. The track “Let It Fly” with Travis Scott is a modern day club banger with a moody beat with both parties complimenting each other very well while the song “Can’t Be Broken” is a middle finger to his haters over a piano & a BEAUTIFUL vocal sample.

“Dark Side of the Moon” is a romance anthem over a moody beat that works pretty well & I actually find Nicki Minaj’s singing throughout the 2nd half to be pretty empowering. The song “Mona Lisa” is about unfaithful women over an atmospheric beat & the Kendrick Lamar verse really makes it hard to decide who outrapped who. Especially with lines like “They started French kissing so he didn’t see moi” as well as that one about waking up to The Great Gatsby & then dogging it like Lassie.

The track “What About Me” is a dedication to his ride or die chick over a decent moody trap beat & even the Sosamann verse doesn’t really do much for me personally. The perfectly-titled “Open Letter” is Wayne venting to the listener over a spacey beat with punchy drums while the song “Famous” is a piano ballad reflecting on the Lil Wayne’s feelings of fame & the hook from his daughter Reginae Carter worked out much better than I had anticipated.

“Problems” talks about the issues he’s having with this woman over a bass-heavy Zaytoven instrumental while the song “Dope Niggaz” talks about growing up in the streets over a banger beat that constantly from that I to a killer sample of the classic Dr. Dre track “Xxplosive”. WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg’s hook is charismatic too, but I really wish he had verse. The track “Hittas” talks about having shooters over a chilling vocal sample & the song “Took His Time” picks up where the previous joint left off albeit in a more introspective fashion over a trap beat with some piano chords & harmonious background vocals.

“Open Safe” sees Weezy flexing & it’s not bad, but the DJ Mustard instrumental sounds like any other instrumental that you’d hear from the guy. The song “Start This Shit Off Right” sounds like a vintage Early 2000’s club banger down to the Mannie Fresh instrumental & the Ashanti hook while the track “Demon” vents about all the demons in his life over a soulful trap beat from Cool & Dre. The track “Mess” is pretty much A Day in the Life of Lil Wayne over an spacey acoustic trap instrumental that’s very pretty while the song “Dope New Gospel” sees talking to himself in a mirror over a celebratory trap beat & the hook from Wayne’s ex-fiancé Nivea is beautiful.

The track “Perfect Strangers” is about switching women over an a trap beat from Mannie Fresh with somber piano chords while the song “Used 2” talks about his evolution over a spacey beat from non other than Metro Boomin’. The album ends beautifully with “Let It All Work Out”, which has a prominent Sampha sample throughout. Also, the final verse where Wayne recalls a suicide attempt at age 12 is damn-near heart-wrenching.

It’s been a long time coming but at the end, this was a strong return to form for Lil Wayne. I was a bit worried given that we’ve had many disappointing 20+ track albums this year, but the production is his best in years & Wayne himself has A LOT to say throughout it’s 87 minute runtime. It’s very remarkable & refreshing to hear him at his strongest in years after he went through so much. Welcome back, Weezy!

Score: 4/5

Ariana Grande – “sweetener” review

Ariana Grande is a 25 year old singer & actress who first came to prominence as a part of the Nickelodeon shows Victorious and Sam & Cat. She then focused on making music, with this being her 4th full-length album.

Things start off with “raindrops (an angel cried)”, which is a decent cover of the 4 Seasons song with the same name. The next track “blazed” gets playful over a tropical Pharrell instrumental while the song “the light is coming” with Nicki Minaj is about getting through hard times with Pharrell providing a dance-pop vibe to the beat. The track “R.E.M.” is about meeting her fiancé Pete Davidson over a spacey Pharrell instrumental while the song “God is a woman”‘is a sex positive tune with a R&B/trap fused instrumental.

The title track is about bringing positive energy over rubbery bass & a piano while the song “successful” is an empowering woman’s anthem over a Pharrell instrumental that sounds like vintage Neptunes. The track “everytime” talks about going back to this terrible boyfriend over an atmospheric beat while the song “breathin’” talks about anxiety over an instrumental I feel like I’ve heard a couple times already. The track “no tears left to cry” is about the Manchester Arena bombings from last year & the UK Garage instrumental is absolutely perfect

The song “borderline” gets sexual over a fun Pharrell instrumental that suits the tone perfectly & the Missy Elliott verse is great, but it should’ve been a little bit longer. The track “better off” talks about her ex-boyfriend Mac Miller over a moody instrumental & the song “goodnight n go” is a mediocre cover of the Imogen Heap song with the same name. The penultimate track “pete davidson” is a heartwarming tribute to her fiancé with the same name & the closer “get well soon” talks about anxiety once again over a luscious Pharrell instrumental.

I’ve never really been big into Ariana’s music, but this is her best work yet. The passion is there & it’s very well-produced in contrast to her last 3 albums. If you’re like me & found her previous material to be average at best, this should change your mind.

Score: 3.5/5

Nicki Minaj – “Queen” review

In the light of Cardi B’s increasing popularity within the past year, New York rapper/singer & Young Money Entertainment’s First Lady Nicki Minaj is making a comeback with her 4th full-length album & her first since The Pinkprint at the tail end of 2014.

The album begins with “Ganja Burns”, where Nicki challenges her competition over an Afro-influenced beat that’s actually pretty cool. The track “Majesty” with Eminem sees the 2 getting playful over a prominently plinky piano & the song “Barbie Dreams” is Nicki’s rendition of the classic Biggie song “Just Saying (Dreams)”, but it doesn’t go over at all even with the reference to WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson. The track “Rich Sex” is pretty much a mediocre sequel to a Future song on his 2015 magnum opus DS2 that actually shares the same name, except that Nicki brought in a pretty solid Lil Wayne verse to give the audience both gender’s takes of the titular topic. The song “Hard White” talks about how she worked hard to get half back over an eerie Boi-1da & !llmind instrumental while the track “Bed” gets seductive over a moody beat & the Ariana Grande hook is pretty as well.

The song “Thought I Knew You” is more of a Weeknd joint since Abel takes up a good chunk of it while the track “Run & Hide” sees Nicki singing about trust over an moody instrumental. The song “Chun Swae” with Swae Lee sees the 2 getting braggadocious over a bass-heavy Metro Boomin’ instrumental while The track “Chun-Li” is arguably her best single in a long time. It sees her going back to her hardcore hip hop roots from the gritty beat to her confrontational bars. The song “LLC” is a supposed diss towards Cardi B over a bouncy trap instrumental while the track “Good Form” is about how bad she is over a Mike WiLL-Made It instrumental with a pretty cool Too $hort sample.

The song “Nip Tuck” talks about giving this person everything over a spacey beat & the “2 Lit 2 Late” interlude is prettily produced, but the auto-tune does nothing & I wish it was a full song. The track “Come See About Me” addresses his ex-boyfriend Meek Mill over a piano-heavy instrumental while the song “Sir” with Future is another braggadocious tune with a gritty instrumental from Metro Boomin’ & Zaytoven.

“Miami” talks about her prowess over a bouncy Murda Beatz instrumental while the final song “Coco Chanel” is a mediocre attempt at reviving the watered down dancehall that Drake provided on VIEWS & More Life. However, I do enjoy the Foxy Brown verse quite a bit. The “Inspirations Outro” is just Nicki shouting out her Caribbean influences for a minute & while it is interesting, it’s not the strongest of notes to end on.

Overall, this was a pretty average album. I truly believe some of Nicki’s best songs are on here & it does sound like she took quite a bit of time working on this, but it’s chocked with a lot of filler.

Score: 2.5/5

Drake – “Scorpion” review

It’ll soon be a decade since Toronto, Ontario, Canada rapper, singer/songwriter, actor & entrepreneur Drake introduced me to him with his breakout mixtape So Far Gone in middle school. The success of this groundbreaking project resulted in a contract with both Young Money Entertainment & Cash Money Records, who put out the man’s full-length debut Thank Me Later the following year. His sophomore effort Take Care the year after would be even better & I enjoyed Nothing Was the Same too but after If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late & then What a Time to Be Alive with Future (both of which came out in 2015), that’s when the quality in Drake’s music really began to take a nosedive. VIEWS was a terrible foray into dancehall & More Life was mediocre despite being stylistically eclectic, dividing his 5th album fresh off his beef with Pusha T into 2 discs comprised of hip hop & R&B respectively.

The opener “Survival” is a reflection of his career over a killer Lil B sample from No I.D. & 40 while the next song “Nonstop” talks about his grind over some prominent bass. The track “Elevate” talks about becoming famous & making life better for him & his loved ones over some atmospheric background vocals while the song “Emotionless” is a response to Pusha T’s nasty “Story of Adidon” diss track from last month. He’s not dissing him, but he does confirm that he has a son named Adonis over this trap beat with a beautiful soul sample. However the one line where he says “I wasn’t hidin’ my kid from the world, I was hidin’ the world from my kid” made me chuckle a little bit. I mean it’s no question that the media would’ve been all over the baby if his birth was announced prior, but I kinda laughed because of the fact that the mother Sophie Brussaux went on Twitter last fall & dissed him. The track “God’s Plan” is just as fun as it was on his Scary Hours EP from earlier this year while “I’m Upset” is one of his worst singles & I don’t blame Oogie Mane of Working on Dying for that.

The track “8/10” talks about where he’s at now referencing the current UFC Featherweight Champion Max Holloway over an uplifting boom bap beat from Boi-1da while the song “Mob Ties” talks about cutting people off over a bouncy beat. The track “Can’t Take a Joke” is about hanging out with the titular people in Hidden Hills & Italy over a murky beat. The song “Sandra’s Rose” talks about how his life has changed since being in the music industry over a beautiful DJ Premier beat & the track “Take Up” sees him talking about childhood over a grimy DJ Paul beat with JAY-Z’s verse kinda reminds me of his mafioso days. I also love how he ends the song by saying “I got your president tweetin’, I won’t even meet with him. Y’all killed XXXTENTACION & let George Zimmerman live, streets is done”. The first disc then finishes off with fittingly with “Is There More?”, where Drake is asking questions about life over a moody beat conf.

The next disc starts off with “Peak”, where he sings to an unnamed love interest over a settle beat. The next track “Summer Games” talks about a breakup over a spacey instrumental that to me sounds like it would pop up on any KiD CuDi album while the song “Jaded” is a dedication to Jorja Smith over an atmospheric beat. The track “Nice for What” is an empowering women’s anthem over a Murda Beatz instrumental with a beautiful sample of Lauryn Hill’s “Ex-Factor”, but it feels like it should’ve been on the previous disc. The song “Finesse” is a message to his current significant other over another settle instrumental, but then “Ratchet Happy Birthday” might be the worst Drizzy track I’ve ever heard. I get that he wants this girl to have a good time on her birthday, but it’s just really corny. The instrumental is buttery as Hell, too.

The song “That’s How You Feel” talks about spending time with an unknown girl over another moody beat while the track “Blue Tint” is a response to all his haters but just like “Nice for What”, it sounds like it was made for the first disc. The song “In My Feelings” asks the City Girls if they love him, but it seems desperate & sappy. The track “Don’t Matter to Me” talks about his ex doing drugs & alcohol as a result of breaking up with him, but it actually works well thanks to the unreleased Michael Jackson vocals that’re evenly balanced.

The song “After Dark” with Ty$ sees the 2 talking about hooking up with women in the late night hours over a laidback instrumental from none other than Static Major & while the penultimate track “Final Fantasy” is probably the freakiest I’ve ever heard Aubrey get, but it’s the 3rd track on this R&B side feels like it should’ve been on the first disc. The album then finishes with “March 14”, which is a 4th misplaced rap song on the entire album. However it’s not bad, because I like how he goes more in-depth about Adonis over this moody boom bap beat

While this is definitely better than VIEWS & More Life, it’s still a mixed bag. He sounds a lot more passionate on here than he did on the last 2 projects I mentioned & I can definitely appreciate the A Side/B Side concept, but there are 4 tracks on the 2nd disc that really should’ve been on the first one & A LOT of filler. If you evenly took the best tracks from both discs & put them onto just 1, then it would’ve been pretty great.

Score: 2.5/5

Ski Mask the Slump God – “Beware the Book of Eli” review

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After much anticipation, Floridian SoundCloud sensation Ski Mask the Slump God is finally releasing his 3rd mixtape to spite his former management. The tape starts off with “Lost Souls”, where he & Rich the Kid compare themselves to Elder Scrolls over a beat that reminds me of a Southern hip hop hit during the Early 2000s. The next song “Run” gets confrontational over a murky Timbaland beat & Ski Mask’s flow on here is insane! The track “SkiMeetsWorld” talks about sex over a clever Boy Meets World sample & not only is Timbaland’s production on “Worldwide” spacey, but Ski’s continuous references to the Nationwide insurance company is pretty funny.

The track “Throwaway” with Ronny J sounds unfinished & sonically, it gets really annoying quickly. Especially with the hook. The song “With Vengeance” with Offset gets braggadocious over an eerie Timbaland, but the hook is badly sung in my opinion. The track “CoolestMonkeyInTheJungle” with SahBabii gets sexual over a sinister Murda Beatz instrumental & it’s absolutely hilarious. Especially with the references to Quagmire & Honey Nut Cheerios. The next 2 songs “Suicide Season” & “DoIHaveTheSause? (The Bees Knees)” are filled with yet more sex bars, but the first of the 2 has a bland beat & the other has a tedious hook. The track “Geekin’” gets back to the braggadocious tip over an twangy guitar/trap beat & “Child’s Play” while short, is super abrasive & fun. The the penultimate track “Bukakke” with Rich the Kid is a fine display of their chemistry over a chaotic beat while the closer “Dapper Dan” rapidly flexes over a bass-heavy beat.

As a whole, this was just as average as his last mixtape YouWillRegret. The production is certainly better, his rapid-fire flow is even more exciting & he sounds as charismatic as ever. However, he REALLY needs to make some of his songs longer because it really comes off as rushed to me. If he takes more time with his next project, I truly think it could become his magnum opus

Score: 3/5