Tag: RX

Rico Nasty – “RX” review

Here we have the 4th extended play from Maryland recording artist Rico Nasty. Turning heads in 2018 off her 6th mixtape Nasty, I was impressed by her unique personality & her eclecticism although it was just ok. However the next spring, she got Kenny Beats to produce her debut EP Anger Management in its entirety & that ended up being my favorite body of work of hers even to this day. Nightmare Vacation was a bit of a step down from Anger Management even though it has a good share of bangers like “iPhone” & “10Fo”, but Las Ruinas showed a more experimental side to her & A Nasty Summer was kinda mediocre truthfully. The sophomore effort Lethal last spring expanded her musical palette & she’s reuniting with Kenny to finally drop RX independently after Atlantic tried to shelve it.

“CDG Foams” hops over an industrial trap instrumental to talk about never forgetting where she came from whereas “Frenzy” turns up the rage beats flexing that she makes all the hoes panic. “Rotation” aggressively talks about hitting the road with all this motion she has but once “Cupcake” blends hypertrap with pop rap & digicore to discuss looking cunt, “Blow Your Nose” kicks off the 2nd half advising to either send a drone or bring out the drums.

Continuing from there with “Runway”, we have Rico addressing a bitch she doesn’t even know hating from afar is over a digicore beat while “Butthead” co-produced by Dylan Brady hit us with some of the fiercest wordplay throughout the entire EP. “Kiss N Make Up” cautions not to push her since she’s always on edge while “Rituals” spends the concluding minutes of RX talking about having legitimate artistry compared to the talentless petty hoes detracting her.

Rather than further exploring her versatility like a Lethal did last spring, RX takes it back to basics by showing the world that Rico Nasty’s chemistry with Kenny Beats almost a decade since Nasty hasn’t changed a bit & that winding up being the best thing she’s made this decade. Kenny’s evolution as a producer should still be noted even if he retains the rage elements of his previous output with Rico & mixing them with trap, jerk, pop rap, digicore, free car music & industrial hip hop.

Score: 4/5

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Rasheed Chappell & XP the Marxman – “RX” review

This is the brand new collaborative album from Rasheed Chappell & XP the Marxman, the latter hailing from Los Angeles & the other coming straight outta New York. Both of them have been putting it down for a while in the underground by dropping acclaimed projects like Keep Firing or Sinners & Saints, but I don’t think they’ve ever worked with each other prior to RX so my interest was definitely there going into it given how much I enjoy their solo works.

“Congregate” kicks off the whole thing off with a downtrodden Reckonize Real instrumental reminding everybody they’re from the real whereas the Illwerd-assisted “Hefty Loc” goes into the boom bap direction talking about being the last ones left. Oran Juice II tags along for the drumless “Water to Wine” getting on their kingpin shit just before “Ganji” has a more dustier feel to the production celebrating their lifestyles.

Meanwhile on “Coke Pirouette”, we have Rasheed & XP extravagantly talking about how it seems like the game has changed leading into the tensioning “Mahogany Chips” speaks on being engineered from real life. “Orale” wickedly details the lives that they idolize, but then “Here” with Tim Hall incorporates some jazz influences remembering where they came from.

Jay Royale comes into the picture for the Roc Marciano-produced “Toss the Metal” spitting that fly gangsta shit while the song “Sinful Saints” finds Buckwild working in a soul loop looking back on the choices they made to live so well. The penultimate track “Reminders” works in some solemn horns talking about the days they used to slang dope & “Save a Spot” finishes the album on a more optimistic note by saying they won’t let Satan take their souls as well as trying to vibrate higher.

If anyone reading this is a fan of either one of these guys or both, then you’re really gonna dig what they bring to the table on RX. It’s cool to hear how well both MCs ping off each other detailing the hardships they both had to face from the respective coasts they grew up in with the production being rooted in that traditional old school sound we all know & love.

Score: 4/5