B.G. & Gucci Mane – “Choppers & Bricks” review

This is a brand new collaborative mixtape between B.G. & Gucci Mane, one of whom hails from New Orleans, Louisiana starting as 1/4 of the Hot Boy$ & the other coming straight outta Atlanta, Georgia becoming one of what I like to call the big 3 trap pioneers. The only time we’ve ever really heard them together previously was in 2015 on the track “Try It Out” & with B.G. being released from prison this past fall, he & Wop are joining forces throughout the duration of Choppers & Bricks thus making the collab tape the first body of work from the Baby Gangsta ever since he came home.

“Talk” is a chilling trap opener produced by DJ Paul cautioning that shit’s gonna start getting real here pretty quickly whereas “Guwop & Gizzle” gives off a more suspenseful atmosphere instrumentally so they can both break down the significance of both their nicknames. The title track boasts that they got plenty of sticks & weight on them accompanied by a bouncy beat, but then “Cold” gives off a vibrant approach with the help of Mike WiLL Made-It reflecting on the days where they were both incarcerated.

The Atari-synths that Honorable C.N.O.T.E. hooks up throughout “My Bitch” aren’t too bad breaking down how much they spoil the special women in their lives leading into the spacious “Run a Bag Up” that ATL Jacob cooked up talking about making that paper. “Paperwork” makes it clear what they’re standing on over a solemn beat with co-production from 30 Roc, but then d.a. got that dope radiates a chilling atmosphere during “Idiot’s Worst Nightmare” declaring themselves to be exactly what these bitches fear.

“At This Point” has one of the weaker features on the tape from Lil Jairmy despite the bell-infused trap instrumental making it known that there ain’t no stopping for any of them while “Rewanksta” pretty much recreates “Wanksta” by 50 Cent down to Bandplay heavily sampling it. The song “Project Baby” featuring C-Murder finds the trio breaking down what it was like in the PJs for them while KLC gives “She Say She Love Me” more a dirty south feeling telling the baddies to let them see ‘em bend over. “Beautiful Life” happens to be a profound closer expressing gratitude that both of them are home.

I know B.G. said he wrote 7 or 8 albums worth of material during his time behind bars & stand by that we could be in for the best music that he’s released post-Cash Money if he gets the right producers & features. If anything, Choppers & Bricks could very much be the beginning of that. My favorite thing Gucci has done within the last few years & a consistently solid way for B-Geezy to reintroduce himself to everyone. The production’s better than Breath of Fresh Air & it’s fun hearing these 2 different worlds of southern hip hop colliding.

Score: 3.5/5

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Busta Rhymes – “Blockbusta” review

Brooklyn emcee, songwriter, producer & actor Busta Rhymes has returned for his 11th full-length solo LP. Coming up as a member of the Leaders of the New School, he would go on to turn heads in the spring of ‘92 off the strength of his verse on “Scenario” off of A Tribe Called Quest’s iconic sophomore album The Low End Theory. The dragon would see greater success as a solo artist with full-lengths like The Coming, When Disaster Strikes…, E.L.E. (Extinction Level Event): The Final World Front, Anarchy, Genesis & The Big Bang. However when E.L.E. 2 (Extinction Level Event 2): The Wrath of God dropped a couple Devil’s Nights back, it would find Busta returning to form considering the mixed to subpar reception of B.O.M.B.S. (Back On My Bullshit) & the Cash Money Records-backed Year of the Dragon. However after preluding Blockbusta last year by putting out The Fuse is Lit to mixed responses, Busta’s ringing in Black Friday put unveiling his Epic Records debut.

“The Statement” asks how many times does Busta have to remind everyone that he’s one of the greatest over a cloudy trap beat from Timbaland whereas “Remind ‘Em” featuring Quavo finds the 2 talking about running it up over some hi-hats attached to a loop with this Godly aura surrounding it. “Beach Ball” featuring BIA draws inspiration from snap music thanks to Hitmaka boasting that they blow money faster than Rozay just before “OK” featuring Young Thug details both of their lifestyles over a celebratory Cool & Dre instrumental.

Moving forward, “Could It Be You” featuring Yung Bleu brings the 2 together on top of a bass guitar explaining that the way they live is different & the bag chase is consistent leading into the funky “Luxury Life” featuring Coi Leray laced by Swizz Beatz displaying a back-&-forth chemistry from both artists getting lavish. “Big Everything” featuring DaBaby breaks down the big money & dreams that they both envision even though the instrumental doesn’t catch my interest, but then “Roboshotta” featuring Burna Boy talks about fucking everything up & Pharrell bringing a tropical vibe musically.

“Tings” aesthetically picks up where the last cut left off keeping it equatorial so Busta can boast his lyrical abilities while “The Return of Mansa Musa” gets in his warrior bag over a tribal beat that I personally find to be appropriately fitting. “Stand Up” featuring JNR CHOI dabbles with drill music a bit sampling “Gangsta’s Paradise” by the late Coolio as both of them call out those whom they initially thought were loyal individuals while “Open Wide” featuring Shenseea fuses elements of dancehall with hip hop tackling themes of romance.

Meanwhile, the woodwind-heavy “Hold Up” that Dez Wright helped Timbo cook up flexes that he be showing up on every single block while “The Hive” featuring Giggs returns to trap territory to warn everyone that’s tuning in that their killer bees do in fact sting. “Homage” featuring Kodak Black addresses going from Y.G.s to O.G.s. in the rap game with Wheezy supplying one of the best trap instrumentals on the album while “Legend” talks about everything being legendary letting her see the way he does it & the beat here is actually underwhelming.

The song “Slide” warns not to get caught up inside another trap & that he’s steppin’ over an infectiously catchy instrumental from DJ Ted Smooth while the penultimate track “Legacy” featuring his children Cacie, Mariah & Trillian is a family affair lavishly telling everyone to show them some love. Things end with a cutthroat sequel to “If You Don’t Know Now You Know” produced by Cardiak & Focus…, which was a bonus cut off B.O.M.B.S. (Back On My Bullshit.

Considering how great of a comeback E.L.E. 2 (Extinction Level Event 2): The Wrath of God was & the 3 executive producers that Busta brought in for his first major label outing in almost a decade, I didn’t really have any reason to be concerned about Blockbusta. Now that the final product is in front of us, I’m admittedly torn on it unlike that previous LP that we got during the pandemic. He returns to a more commercial sound compared to the predecessor’s rawness which I completely understand, it’s just hit or miss sadly.

Score: 2.5/5

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André 3000 – “New Blue Sun” review

It’s still surreal to me that I’m actually fucking saying this but this is the official solo debut album from Atlanta, Georgia emcee, singer/songwriter, producer, actor & visionary André 3000. Coming up as 1/2 of the greatest hip hop duo of all-time OutKast with Big Boiwhom he met at Lenox Square Mall when they were both 16, they were also a part of the Dungeon Family collective & released some of my favorite music EVER! This includes ATLiens, Aquemeni, Stankonia & Speakerboxxx / The Love Below. The 2nd disc of which was basically the closest thing we got to a solo album from 3 Stacks up to this point. However after what would eventually be their final album Idlewild serving as a soundtrack to the movie of the same name they would focus on their solo careers. Francis the Savannah Chitlin’ Pimp mostly notably putting out 3 full-length LPs of his own as well as an eponymous EP as Big Grams & an eponymous debut album as Big Sleepover too. André 3000 however stuck to doing features & pursuing an acting career most recently in the A24 Films comedy drama Showing Up, putting out an avant-garde jazz EP on Mother’s Day 2018 called Look Ma No Hands. So considering that, I’m not too surprised by New Blue Sun expanding on jazz music in a flute-heavy fashion because I like to consider Dré as the Prince of hip hop in the sense that he can do just about anything musically.

“I Swear I Really Wanted to Make a Rap Album, But This Is Literally The Way The Wind Blew Me This Time” is a peaceful 12 & a half minute opener to the LP that I can imagine hearing after waking up on a beautiful morning whereas “The Slang Word Pussy Rolls Off the Tongue with Far Better Ease Than the Proper Word Vagina. Do You Agree?” takes the atmospheric route instrumentally & I absolutely agree with the question. “That Night In Hawaii When I Turned Into a Panther & Started Making These Low Register Purring Tones That I Couldn’t Control…” makes me feel like I’m walking through a jungle for 10 & a half minutes in the best way possible, but then “BuyPoloDisorder’s Daughter Wears a 3000® Button Down Embroidered” sounds like he made this 13-minute piece in the midst of watching The Mandalorian or something.

To start the 2nd half of the album, “93 ‘Til Infinity & Beyoncé” is the shortest cut on the entire LP yet still absolutely euphoric from start to finish just before “Ghandi, Dalai Lama, Your Lord & Savior J.C. / Bundy, Jeffrey Dahmer & John Wayne Gacy” keeps the peaceful vibes in tact. The penultimate “Ants to You, Gods to Who?” goes for a futuristic approach sonically & “Dreams Once Buried Beneath the Dungeon Floor Slowly Sprout Into Undying Gardens” is a magical 17 minute closer.

Like I said on Twitter at the beginning of the week: I’m not even mad at 3 Stacks for doing an ambient, new age spiritual jazz album because he’s just one of those guys who can do just about anything & it makes me very happy that this day has come as a long time OutKast fan because this is way better than Look Ma No Hands over 5 years ago. His production also showcases elements of progressive electronic, tribal ambient, Andean new age & Native American new age in the most soothing ways you can imagine.

Score: 4.5/5

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The Kid Laroi – “The First Time” review

The Kid Laroi is a 20 year old rapper & singer/songwriter from Waterloo, New South Wales, Australia who emerged as a protege of the late Juice WRLD. Subsequently, he signed to Grade A Productions & Interscope Records. He eventually introduced himself to a wider audience on his debut mixtape Fuck Love receiving mixed-to-negative reviews & even going on to release not 1 but 2 deluxe EPs off it for whatever reason over the course of the COVID-19 pandemic. But for his debut full-length LP over here, Laroi has since jumped ship to Columbia Records interestingly enough.

“Sorry” is this airy opener produced by FNZ & BoogzDaBeast apologizing for getting stuck while high whereas “Bleed” dabbles with alt-pop & indie pop this time around tackily asking how others’ hearts mend so easily when his is still bleeding. “I Thought That I Needed You” has one of the better instrumentals throughout the LP thanks to both BNYX & F1LTHY of Working on Dying singing about a love that was lost nearly a year ago, but then “Where Do You Sleep?” mixes some synthesizers & even a soul sample with co-production from Dez Wright asking a nameless ex partner where she be staying these days.

Central C & Jung Kook both join Laroi for the contemporary R&B/pop rap hybrid “Too Much” that Emile helped cook up asking if those they’re no longer seeing would wanna kick it with them again leading into “Tear Me Apart” melodramatically apologizing for hurting this woman over some acoustics from John Cunningham. Clams Casino brings a psychedelic vibe to “Nights Like This” after the “Strangers” interlude even though I don’t care for the lyrics about him needing the love of his life with him just before “What’s the Move” featuring BabyDrill & Future brings the trio together over a soulful trap beat telling the significant others to marry them.

After another “Strangers” interlude, “Call Me Instead” featuring YoungBoy Never Broke Again goes into a piano-driven direction addressing lovers whose heart they no longer have full grasp on while “Deserve You” brings more soul samples & hi-hats together singing that this chick doesn’t deserve him whatsoever. “What Went Wrong???” gives off a more hard hitting instrumental reminiscing on a previous relationship that came to an end while “The Line” featuring future teenage murderer d4vd turns into stripped back territory as the duo take a trip down memory lane tackling the themes of past relationships.

“What Just Happened?” switches gears in flavor for an alt/pop-rock cut admitting he doesn’t know if they just crossed the line ‘cause he don’t even know what just happened while “You” is peppier joint with keys, kicks & snares talking about how they weren’t workin’ out ‘til we ended up workin’ out. “Love Again” tediously paints the image of a toxic-love hate relationship although I appreciate the folk pop instrumental while “Where Does Your Spirit Go?” is this average adult contemporary singer/songwriter jam dedicated to his late mentor.

After the “You Never Forget Your First Time…” interlude, the closer “Kids Are Growing Up”actually ends Kid Laroi’s debut album on a profoundly mature note opening up to the world on top of displaying his personal growth & vulnerability over an aquatic beat. He does this by namely addressing the loss of his uncle Wayne, dropping out of school in 9th grade & expresses gratitude to his mother for her resilience during difficult times.

“Baby I’m Back” produced by Rogét Chahayed starts the deluxe run sampling “Baby Come Back” by Player reflecting on the past year whereas “Stick with Me” further butchers “Set Adrift on Memory Bliss” by P.M. Dawn expressing his grievances over an imbalanced relationship. The synth-heavy “Pick Sides” expresses jealousy over his ex-girlfriend’s new boyfriend & questions if she still thinks about their time together while the sequel to “Nights Like This” starts out as much as the predecessor.

Lil Yachty joins Kid Laroi for the pop rap/trap cut “Hatred” opening up about their love lives while “Girls” featuring Kehlani on the remix was a cool pop rap, hip hop soul, hyphy & contemporary R&B single exploring themes of freedom & fun in relationships. “1,000 Miles” acoustically sings about his journey through recent relationships, sharing troubles he has with them & the final bonus track “Heaven” was an underwhelming finish to the deluxe mutating pop & singer/songwriter with adult contemporary & soft rock reminiscing on a journey of change.

14 with a Dream, Fuck Love & even both of the deluxe EPs that followed suit have all done very little to win me over on Kid Laroi’s music up to this point. The First Time however is a slight improvement over those previous bodies of work. Although it’s quite possibly the most well-produced I’ve heard him sound fusing alt-pop as well as folk pop & chipmunk soul into his pop rap stylings, the features are ok & I still find Laroi to be an underwhelming performer.

Score: 2/5

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Kevin Abstract – “Blanket” review

Corpus Christi rapper, singer/songwriter, producer & director Kevin Abstract back with his 5th solo LP. Making his debut in 2014 in the form of MTV1987, he followed it up 2 years later with the fantastic American Boyfriend: A Suburban Love Story & rose to stardom as the de facto leader of the now defunct BROCKHAMPTON collective the year after. Both of Kevin’s solo efforts since then ARIZONA baby & The Family were solid although I liked the latter more for it’s chipmunk soul heavy sound. However almost a year after BROCKHAMPTON’s disbandment, it seems like Kevin’s going for a new vibe on Blanket.

“When the Rope Post 2 Break” opens the album with some guitar passages from Romil Hemnani whispering to stay put whereas the title track is a mediocre indie rock cut with elements of noise pop & slacker rock which doesn’t sound bad, just feels extremely underwritten. “Running Out” draws inspiration from emo pop & even post-punk revival to not take time for anyone that this point in his life right now that is until “The Greys” comes through with an upbeat jam about not needing the rest of the party.

Meanwhile, “Voyager” goes into a synth-based direction with a bit of a Kanye influence so Kevin can admit that he feels himself growing older for the first time ever just before “Madonna” mixes bedroom pop with indie folk & indietronica singing about rewriting the past & not looking back on it from hereon out. The indie rock infused “Today I Gave Up” doesn’t really need any further explanation with the subject matter, but then “What Should I Do?” gives off a predominant indie pop flare to it talking about telling ghost stories to friends through fences.

After the “Mr. Edwards” interlude, “Scream” singing over a delicate beat to someone that he can only hear through the whispers of the trees while the catchy “Real 2 Me” apologizes for inviting himself & being spellbound by a friend. The stripped-back “Heights, Spiders & the Dark” checks his muses’ world every night to see if they’re alright making him so confused to keep all of them & “My Friend” is an acoustic closer singing that you’ll never understand the way Kevin feels about this individual.

This dude has so much talent & will easily have the biggest solo career out of everyone in the BROCKHAMPTON camp even though I just enjoyed the new Ameerlyn EP Slime in the Ice Machine from last weekend. However, Blanket is a complete stylistic departure from what we got on The Family. Romil’s production is more centered around indie rock & indie pop with elements of bedroom pop & slacker rock as Kevin has more than enough vocal chops to pull it off.

Score: 4/5

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Majid Jordan – “Good People” review

Majid Jordan is an alternative R&B duo from Toronto, Ontario, Canada consisting of singer Majid Al Maskati & producer Jordan Ullman. Forming in 2011, it wasn’t until a couple years later when 40 signed them to OVO Sound & was featured on their mentor Drake’s hit single “Hold On, We’re Going Home”. Their 2nd EP A Place Like This stands to date as the best project in their catalog, as none of their 3 full-length LPs have been able to reach that caliber generally receiving moderate feedback. However, my curiosity got the best of me & I had to give Good People a shot.

“Tears in Your Eyes” is a smooth soul opener expressing how much he deeply needs this woman in his life whereas “Waiting for You” featuring OVO’s newest recording artist Naomi Sharon mixes alternative R&B with sophisti-pop & some smooth soul undertones as she & Majid both sing about hanging on to love. “Eyes Closed” is really the only song on here I don’t like sounding like Majid’s impersonating Michael Jackson over another smooth soul instrumental just before “Hands Tied” dabbles with new wave & synthpop a bit having an epiphany now that he & his significant other have found each other.

Meanwhile, “Slip” takes a more spacious route to the beat from Jordan as Majid comes clean with this woman to not leave him in doubt leading into the 7-minute “Violet” singing over atmospheric production about growing when their hearts are open. “The Message” goes for a stripped-back approach telling her that all he can offer her belongs to her while the breezy guitar ballad “Cyanide” confesses to this woman that he takes his shy away. The fittingly peaceful closer “Sunset” reminds that being here today & gone tomorrow truly with him it is a tough pill to swallow.

It’s seriously already been a decade since these guys made themselves at home with OVO & as someone who’s been listening to them since that Drizzy single they were featured on, this is the most I’ve enjoyed a whole album from them thus far & it’s the best thing they’ve done since A Place Like This. Jordan Ullman expands beyond the duo’s alternative R&B sound in favor of smooth soul, sophisti-pop, neo soul, new wave & synthpop as Majid Al Maskati assures everyone that solid individuals will be there for you whenever you find it.

Score: 3.5/5

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Naomi Sharon – “Obsidian” review

Naomi Sharon is a 28 year old singer/songwriter from Rotterdam, Zuid-Holland, Netherlands who started out in 2018 with her debut single “Breeze”. She would go on to release 4 more singles until Toronto superstar Drake made her the newest signee to OVO Sound this past summer. So after building up some hype for this full-length debut LP over here in the form of a couple singles, we’re getting a proper introduction to her a couple weeks after For All the Dogs became the best thing Drizzy has done since 2015.

“Definition of Love” is a great opener drawing from sophisti-pop, alternative R&B, afrobeats & UK bass singing that her partner is exactly that whereas “If This Is Love” works in a smooth soul instrumental singing about this man’s beauty becoming strange to her. “Another Life” fuses alternative R&B with ambient house, ambient pop, downtempo & afro house confessing that her heart is aching even though she promised herself that she wouldn’t break it leading into the acoustic “Myrrh” passionately sings about an anciеnt love filling the room.

40’s production on maybe my favorite track here “Celestial” is absolutely dreamy with Naomi on top of it telling the person that she’s no longer seeing that she actually still adores him just before the moody, afro house infused “Time & Trust” advises that the 2 things don’t mix. “Push” featuring Omah Lay is an afrobeats duet with both singers tackling themes of intimacy, but then “Holding in Place” has a bit of a wavy chilled out EDM influence to the beat singing about times like this not lasting forever & doing the best she can to keep the most important person in her life with her.

“Extacy” discusses losing empathy & parts of her are already starting to move on over a luscious instrumental while the cavernously produced “Lucid Dreamer” explains that there’s no luxury worth living. “Regardless” assures this guy that she’ll stick around even if she’s brokenhearted accompanied by some acoustics & after the “If This Is Love” outro, the bonus track “Hills” truly ends Naomi’s debut album with a tropical vibe singing about having a dude loving love that wasn’t for them.

Starting the deluxe run officially, “Nothing Sweeter” balances between contemporary R&B & neo-soul with a hint of singer/songwriter explaining that nothing else hits different for her than the first kiss from the love of her live while “Goodbyes (Myrrh)” experiments with deep house & garage house with the help of DJ Snake for a reimagined successor to “Myrrh” & one that I find myself enjoying significantly compared to the original version of it.

OVO as a label generally tends to be mid in what they have to offer alternative R&B alongside trap & pop rap, but I can definitely see why Drake signed Naomi Sharon to begin & am interested in hearing her blossom artistically going forward. She incorporates elements of afrobeats, downtempo, sophisti-pop & afro house into the PBR&B sound that October’s Very Own specializes in with an additionally clear Sade influence.

Score: 3.5/5

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Doja Cat – “Scarlet” review

This is the 3rd full-length album from Los Angeles, California recording artist Doja Cat. Blowing up in 2018 off her viral novelty single “MOOO!”, was followed up the next year with her debut mixtape Hot Pink which was decent as a whole despite the fact that “Say So”solidified that she wasn’t going away anytime soon. Planet Her showed some improvement compared to her previous works by delivering a pop rap/R&B concept album based around a self-originated world. However, my expectations for Scarlet were higher considering that it was confirmed to be a full-blown hip hop effort.

”Paint the Town Red” stars off the LP by pulling from snap & chipmunk soul saying what she said whereas Demons” is an underwhelming no melody trap metal/horrorcore hybrid d.a. got that dopehelped put together laced asking if bitches are shook now that her pockets are on swole. “Wet Vagina” takes a roudier approach hilariously declaring herself to be the queen of drip, but then “F.T.G. (Fuck the Girls)” comes through with a trunk-knocking instrumental from Beat Butcha charismatically giving a middle finger to the hoes hating.

Meanwhile, “Ouchies” is a 2-minute riot starter laced by London on da Track & Sean Momberger with her popping it all off referencing WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson just before “‘97” takes lavish route thanks to Jay Versace talking about how it looks like she genuinely doesn’t give a shit whatsoever. “Gun” moves the album forward with a cloud trap joint clarifying that she does in fact know how to use a firearm leading into the atmospheric “Go Off” flaunts the new materialism such as ice that she had recently acquired.

“Shutcho” ends the first half of the LP with a dreamier instrumental calling out those who be running their mouths nonstop while “Agora Hills” blends these hi-hats & icy synths getting on the more romantic side of things conceptually. “Can’t Wait” goes into luscious boom bap turf eager to being next to that special man in his life while “Often” gives off a funky neo-soul tone talking about this guy must do the bullshit he pulls on her quite frequently. Moving on from there, “Love Life” spaciously makes it clear that she loves when her life’s like this while “Skull & Bones” goes for a ghostly feeling sonically talking about the only thing she folds under is pressure.

“Attention” fuses jazzy boom bap with trip hop & neo-soul courtesy of Rogét Chahayed embracing herself as she disses the people who’ve disliked & hated her for her change in appearance in the public eye while ”Balut” pulls from g-funk a little bit too comparing it to takin’ candy from a baby. The “WYM” freestyle that rounds out the new best full-length album in Doja Cat’s discography finds her kicking it off the top for a couple minutes over an orchestral loop & hi-hats.

DJ Camper’s soulful beat on “Acknowledge Me” is a good way to get the deluxe rolling hating herself when you get under her skin while “Disrespectful” talks about a hustler who ain’t getting funds over piano chords, kicks & snares. “URRRGE!!!!!!!!!!” featuring A$AP Rocky draws inspiration from the Memphis scene fighting the urge to keep gettin’ rich while the playful trap cut “OkLoser” addresses a chick who left the team. “MASC” featuring Teezo Touchdown talks about being too grown for bullshit backed by a rich trap instrumental while the pop rap/trap crossover “Piss” produced by CashMoneyAP likens her diamonds to urine & “Headhigh” mellowly ends the bonus track run talking losing faith in humanity.

Doja Cat has proven before that she could rap her ass off so when it was announced that Scarlet was going to be predominantly built around that style, I knew it had to be better than Planet Her & sure enough: it is. She delivers some of her most passionate performances to date, the production is refined compared to the last LP & I like how she ditched to features to hold down the fort all by herself.

Score: 3.5/5

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Glokk40Spaz – “Took the Biggest Risk” review

This is the 3rd full-length album from Atlanta, Georgia recording artist Glokk40Spaz. Emerging off the Don’t Get Took Off mixtape trilogy & the debut EP Spaz&B, he would also go on to drop his very first LP 2 Glokks followed by the sophomore effort Baby Whoa with both of them receiving quite a bit of acclaim. But now in light of the EBG Records founder signing to Columbia Records, I was anticipating to hear what hear how his major label debut Took the Biggest Risk would play out.

“Enough Ammo” opens the LP with synthesizers & hi-hats advising to take precaution when you step in his trap house whereas “Forgot My Manners” works in a piano-trap instrumental some bells talking about growing up on some Adam “Pacman” Jones shit gangbanging in his city. “3rd World” embraces the plugg sound flexing that he be high as Hell just before “Different Goals” works in some hi-hats & low at synthesizers pointing out the difference in goals between him & everyone else.

Meanwhile, “Fuck Sum” has these organ-like synth melodies promising to look in the eyes of his enemies as they die referencing WWE Hall of Famer Mike Tyson leading into “Whatchu Sayin’?” making it clear that he can meet up & have a shootout with any opposition whatsoever. The trap beat from SenseiATL on “Facecard” gives me an UFO inspired feeling showing off big chopsticks that’ll make motherfuckers doing backflips, but the “Blame Us” brings back the synthesizers once more talking about potentially being coupled with a bitch that has mob ties.

“I Got an Army” layers an aggressively passionate delivery over a plugg beat acknowledging that he’s got a militant force in full effect ready to go to war for him while “Tailor Made” hooks up these wavy synth melodies & hi-hats talking about having the mind of a psychotic. “Levels 2” detours into pluggnb territory courtesy of Dylvinci delivering a sequel to one of the best cuts off the Spaz&B EP that is until “Backdoor” mixes some synthesizers & hi-hats talking about busting through the back entrance all for the bag.

Lastly, “All Black” featuring BabySolid recaptures the chemistry that made their collab tape GONE M.A.D for a dark plugg cut on their vampire shit while “8 Mile” has a more straight-up plugg groove daring these pussies to drop a diss on his squad. “Yung Killa Camp” shoots for a chilled out atmosphere taking 2 minutes out of his time to rep EBG while the pluggy “Get Wicked” looks to see what’s mobbin’ when he pops out. “Take a Risk” ties up his major label debut being more talking about risk taking over keys & hi-hats needing all the bread up front.

The deluxe has 9 bonus tracks & I’ll go over them right now. “Ace of Spades” starts with a distorted trap instrumental flipping everyone while the “Enough Ammo” remix featuring Young Nudy is actually superior to the original. “Glokk’$ on Me” goes head-on rage talking about having sticks on him while “See You Again” returns to the plugg sound making it clear that he ain’t even have to reload the Glock in his pocket.

“Open Cases” hops over ominous, sinister synth pads & lead melodies, skittering hi-hats & fast percussion & snare rolls detailing the gangsta lifestyle while the grisly “Good 2 Go” calls out those actin’ all hard when they really soft as shit. “How 2 Drive” talks about risking his life in East Atlanta over a booming beat while the trippy “Codeine Dreamz” featuring OsamaSon says it all. “4 Walls on an Island” ends the deluxe by rapping over the prison cell phone mixed with this cloudy instrumental.

The final installment of the Don’t Get Took Off trilogy solidified GL4Spaz as one of my 2 favorite artists in the evil plugg scene next to Smokingskul & the risks that he took on this album here will only elevate him to the next level. He continues to deliver lyrics from a gangster’s perspective whilst sonically refining the trap sounds & subgenres that he made waves off of

Score: 4/5

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Travis Scott – “UTOPIA” review

It’s finally arrived: The 4th full-length album from Houston, Texas rapper, singer/songwriter, producer & entrepreneur Travis Scott. Not only was it confirmed by DJ Premier recently that La Flame’s father actually taught Preem how to play drum & bass, but Trav himself up as 1/2 of The Graduate$ until the duo disbanded after he signed a joint deal with T.I. to Grand Hustle Records as a recording artist & with one of my top 10 music producers of all-time Kanye West as a G.O.O.D. Music in-house producer. His debut mixtape Owl Pharaoh that came out my sophomore year had a blatantly heavy KiD CuDi influence which isn’t bad because it was even said that CuDi was Travis’ biggest musical influence & they’ve since formed a superduo called The Scotts. The sophomore tape Days Before Rodeo was where he started coming into his own artistically & the Epic Records distributed full-length debut Rodeo has rightfully become one of the most important trap albums of all-time. Birds in the Trap Sing McKnight followed the next fall to more moderate reception even though the highs like “sweet sweet” & “goosebumps” are very high, but ASTROWORLD came out only a few days after a death in the family & it helped me get through it as Travis would expand on the psychedelic trap sounds of his groundbreaking debut album. This would subsequently be his last body of work to be released under Grand Hustle, as he would go on to form his own Epic imprint Cactus Jack Records. But after years of singles & a crowd crush at the 3rd annual ASTROWORLD Fest that some people still blame him for even though the same security who worked there were the same ones who worked when Dave Chappelle got jumped on stage last year, the H-Town trap trailblazer is taking us to UTOPIA.

“HYAENA” is a self-produced boom bap opener flipping “Maggot Brain” by Funkadelic talking about shit being out of control as it is calling the situation we’re in currently to neither be a good one nor unblessed whereas “THANK GOD” gives his thanks to the man upstairs for still being here today & the only 12 he supports being the greatest QB of all-time or 7-time Super Bowl champion Tom Brady over a drumless instrumental with co-production from Ye, BoogzDaBeast, WondaGurl, FNZ & Allen Ritter. “MODERN JAM” featuring Teezo Touchdown speaks on the way the world is now as Guy-Manuel de Homem-Christo & Mike Dean sonically draw inspiration from Yeezus a bit that is until “MY EYES” has a dynamically dreamier vibe courtesy of Wheezy & Justin Vernon confessing that his eyes remain closed.

30 Roc & Dez Wright hook up a melodic vocal loop & hi-hats for “GOD’S COUNTRY” talking about how it ain’t up to you no more just before “SIRENS” energetically talks about being too determined & needing refurbishing. “MELTDOWN” featuring Drake is essentially a spiritual successor to “Sicko Mode” with all the instrumental switch-ups from Boi-1da, BNYX of Working on Dying, Tay Keith & Vinylz respectively getting on tea time with my only complaint being Drake’s redundantly corny diss to one of my idols Pharrell. We all know the story of Adidon, but he didn’t have to throw Skateboard under the bus. The secondary WrestleMania XLI official theme song “FE!N” featuring Playboi Carti though makes up for it by going into a synth-heavy realm talking about drug use & Carti’s vocal utilizations throughout are unbelievable.

“DELRESTO (ECHOES)” featuring Beyoncé sounds like it could’ve been on B’s comeback effort Renaissance from last summer as they jump on top of a house beat from Hit-Boy clarifying the only thing they escape for is the echoes themselves, but then “I KNOW?” talks about a girl that really ain’t even his type backed by a nocturnal trap instrumental. “TOPIA TWINS” featuring Rob49 & 21 Savage blends some organs & hi-hats referencing 10-time WWE world champion, 2-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, 5-time WWE Tag Team Champion & $7 Productions co-founder The Rock showing off 2 twin bitches hoppin’ off a jetski even though Rob’s contribution doesn’t hold up to La Flame’s or 21’s, but “CIRCUS MAXIMUS” named after his debut film talks about having his final moment on top of synths & heavy drums.

Cactus Slatt gets together for the trippy, 6-minute “SKITZO” once again dabbling with multiple beat-switches pointing out how the bitches they bagged do that there on top of Travis rightfully choosing Kanye over Biden any day while the “PARASAIL” interlude gives off a slower edge promising to eternally fight for everything he loves. “Lost Forever” featuring Westside Gunn was something I was highly anticipating sampling both “f.o.r.e.v.e.r.” by James Blake & “Don’t Be Safe” by Check Senrick thanks to another top 10 producer of mine The Alchemist so Trav can discuss being lost in Utopia on top of West dropping the raw gangsta shit we’ve come to love him for later on.

“LOOOVE” by The Scotts goes into more robotic territory understanding that they’re loved asking if that’s how anyone else is feeling while “K-Pop” featuring Bad Bunny fresh off his WrestleMania XXXIX guest Spanish commentator appearance & The Weeknd is basically a male version of “Bang Bang” by Jessie J, which I actually understand why he chose it as a single even though I’ll most likely never listen to that song again. Really the only skip here. The cloudy penultimate track “TELEKINESIS” featuring Future & SZA finds the trio talking about seeing ahead into what’s to come, but “‘TIL FURTHER NOTICE” featuring James Blake & 21 Savage wraps up Utopia by saying x-rated love is the best kinda love accompanied by a synth-trap hybrid from Metro Boomin’.

ASTROWORLD quickly became my 2nd favorite Trav album for how it expanded on the psychedelics that made his full-length debut amongst the most groundbreaking trap projects to come out within the last decade & it makes me happy to see how much it’s aged well, but UTOPIA easily stands at the #3 spot. It’s refreshing to hear him behind the boards again with him wearing the Ye influences HEAVY as he shows us all experiences where utopian things can exist & you can enjoy yourself & have a good time.

Score: 4/5

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