Grip – “5 & a Fuck You” review

This is the 2nd mixtape from Atlanta, Georgia emcee Grip. Coming up in 2017 of his debut mixtape Porch, he would go on to drop his full-length debut Snubnose along with 2 EPs Halo & Proboscidea prior to Detroit veteran Eminem signing Grip to his very own Interscope Records imprint Shady Records last summer. His sophomore effort I Died For This?! the following month was an impressive major label debut showing his potential, so I was excited going into 5 & a Fuck You when he announced it out of the blue a couple nights ago.

“Cook Up” is a booming yet dark trap opener with Grip talking about needing a week to do exactly just that whereas “‘94 Flow” takes the boom bap route to spit some aggressive battle bars. Marco+ tags along for trap-laced “Static” calling out those who don’t want smoke with them, but then “Popular Demand” returns to the boom bap with an organ sample laced with the help of DJ Khalil addressing his return.

Moving on from there with “Da Benzo”, we have Grip delivering a shrilling trap ode to Mercedes-Benz leading into “The F Word” switching it back into boom bap turf talking about giving no fucks. “Value Mall” has a more atmospheric vibe to it explaining how you can ball on a budget just before Tate228 tags comes into the picture for “Cory ‘N Mel” telling the story of 2 robbers of the same name with some chilling soundscapes.

The song “Good” is a soulful celebration of how far we’ve come in this life while the penultimate track “Many Thanks” has a more twangier aesthetic to it with Grip sincerely expressing his gratitude to everyone listening for being the reason why he’s even here for a little over 8 minutes. “Ain’t Ok” though happens to be a solemn closer to the tape talking about the kids not being alright.

If this is something to warm people up for his next full-length, then I think it’ll be even bigger splashes than I Died For This?! as impressive of a major label debut was when it came out a little over a year ago. It’s a lot more rawer in sound, his penmanship is continuing to get better & he’s starting to come into his own artistically.

Score: 3.5/5

@legendswill_never_die on Instagram for the best music reviews weekly!

YG – “I Got Issues” review

YG is a 32 year old MC from Compton, California who came 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 3 albums Stay Dangerous as well as 4Real 4Real & My Life 400 all received mixed to poor responses to the point where even YG himself has publicly acknowledged I Got Issues to be his official 3rd album & that increased the optimism I already had going into it considering how much I enjoyed “Sign Language” even though it was only a loosie & even “Alone”.

“Issues” is a glossy yet bassy opener to the album with YG boasting whereas “Baby Momma” is a bitter ex-boyfriend temper tantrum with a piano instrumental. “Toxic” samples the Mary J. Blige joint “Be Happy” talking about that’s all they wants in life prior to the deranging “Maniac” produced by Hit-Boy sticking out to me amongst my personal favorite songs calling out those who say he lost his mind.

Meanwhile on “How to Rob a Rapper”, we have Mozzy & D3SZN coming into the picture over some g-funk production that Terrace Martin helped put together teaching y’all the titular subject leading into the reggaeton/rap fusion “I Dance” with Duki talking about dancing. Both J. Cole & Moneybagg Yo tag along for the mediocre trap cut “Scared Money” flexing their wealth, but then “Go Dumb” featuring H.E.R. is a decent R&B-tinged duet.

“No Love” returns to the g-funk interpolating “Ain’t No Love in the Heart of the City” by Bobby Bland & some fresh spoken word pieces from Suga Free while “Sober” with Post Malone & Roddy Ricch feels like an uninspired rap anthem. “Drink to This” reps the westside over a smooth beat while the song “No Weapon” with Nas finds the 2 over some horns talking about how the streets don’t love nobody. The penultimate track “Alone” was a thoughtful, ghostly-produced, conscious-laced choice for the 2nd to final single prior to the album & “Killa Cali” ends the album with a chill ode to the titular state.

As underwhelming as a great deal of YG’s material post-Still Brazy has been, I think that I Got Issues is a pretty decent listen from start to finish & would’ve gotten a lot more enjoyment out of it if some of the more mainstream-friendly pop rap cuts suited for radio play don’t really do it for me even if the production’s predominantly catering to the trap sound although the g-funk/gangsta rap joints á la Still Brazy are more up my alley. Not sure if he’ll top that one ever again, but who knows?

Score: 2.5/5

@legendswill_never_die on Instagram for the best music reviews weekly!

KiD CuDi – “Entergalactic” review

This is the 8th full-length album from Cleveland rapper, singer/songwriter, producer & actor KiD CuDi. Blowing up in 2008 off his debut mixtape A KiD Named CuDi as well as his songwriting credits on his former mentor Kanye West’s 4th album 808s & Heartbreak, his profile from there would increasingly grow off his groundbreaking debut & sophomore albums Man on the Moon: The End of the Day & Man on the Moon II: The Legend of Mr. Rager. But following the self-produced & overlooked Indicud, CuDi would leave G.O.O.D. Music amicably to form his own Republic Records imprint Wicked Awesome Records. Satellite Flight: The Journey to Mother Moon though was mediocre at best & who could forget when CuDi attempted to go alt-rock on the critically panned Speedin’ Bullet 2 Heaven? Luckily he would redeem himself on his next effort Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin’ in 2016 along with the self-titled album from him & Ye as the duo KIDS SEE GHOSTS couple summers later & even Man on the Moon III: The Chosen the day after my 24th birthday despite it’s blatantly heavy Travis Scott influence. At the beginning of 2022 though, Kanye announced that CuDi wouldn’t be on the unfinished DONDA 2 due to the latter’s friendship with Skete because he was dating Ye’s hobbit ex-wife at the time & ultimately resulted in a falling out between the mentor/protege duo that always brought the best out of one another. Even this past summer when he stormed off stage at Rolling Loud because ignorant hecklers were throwing shit at him while performing & now Mike Dean announcing on Twitter that CuDi booted him off the inaugural Moon Man’s Landing festival that just went down earlier this month due to his longstanding ties as Kanye’s engineer. But with the success of Moon Man’s Landing & now Entergalactic premiering on Netflix today, CuDi’s also giving us a soundtrack to coincide with it after his role in the A24 Films slasher X.

After the “Entergalactic Theme” intro, the first song “New Mode” kicks off the album with a wavy instrumental from WZRD telling the world that he’s at the next level in his life whereas “Do What I Want” was a great choice for a lead single with it’s poppy trap instrumental from Take a Daytrip & CuDi talking about doing his fucking thing. “Angelic” takes a more melodic approach with it’s dreamy production & heavy auto-tuned vocals asking where this woman in his life came from, but then “Ignite the Love” goes full blown acoustic with the help of Skrillex to sing about thanking God for finding her.

Meanwhile on “In Love”, we have CuDi pulling from electropop á la 808s & Heartbreak expanding on the themes of love just before Ty$ tags along for the neo-psychedelic alternative R&B duet “Willing to Trust” featuring co-production from E*vax singing about how this is the day that he’s been waiting for. 2 Chainz comes into the picture for the boastful trap banger “Can’t Believe It” that Plain Pat whipped up with WZRD talking about how they be coastin’, but then “Livin’ My Truth” is a groovy hip hop banger admitting that it’s all he knows.

“Maybe So” has a theatrically downtrodden tone to it from the beat to CuDi’s dejecting confessions of missing his significant other while “Can’t Shake Her” is a Man on the Moon: The End of Day throwback sonically detailing the dreams he’s having about her. “She’s Looking for Me” somberly asks if she can save the night in time while the song “My Drug” melodically tells her to take his heart over some atmospheric yet symphonic instrumentation.

The penultimate track “Somewhere to Fly” with Don Toliver finds the 2 telling their lovers to follow them if they ever want to go overseas by their sides from their catchy performances to the aquatic vibes of the beat from WondaGurl until the bonus cut “Burrow” ends the album with CuDi & Don reuniting over Steve Aoki’s signature electro house style of production talking about how getting stronger & faster feels like. If the last 2 joints here are teasers towards a potential collab effort from both these guys, then I wouldn’t be opposed to it.

As wrong as I think Ye is for making the announcement that CuDi wasn’t gonna be on DONDA 2 considering that he talked to Ye about it weeks prior & making a joke out of the Rolling Loud incident, I’d also say CuDi acted incredibly childish by kicking Mike Dean off the Moon Man’s Landing lineup over his ties as his former mentor’s longtime engineer resulting in the album leaking a little bit ago with fart sounds & people speculating Mike was involved with it. That being said, I’m still a fan of all 3 of them at the end of the day & this is a solid soundtrack to his Netflix special. As far as sound goes, he throws it back to the early days of his career & the cohesive concept of it is pretty well told.

Score: 3.5/5

@legendswill_never_die on Instagram for the best music reviews weekly!

Smokingskul – “Nat Cap” review

Smokingskul is a 20 year old Swedish-American rapper from Naples, Florida who first came up in the spring of 2018 off his debut EP Souls. He has since gone on to follow it up with 25 more EPs in that short amount of time, but it wasn’t until earlier this week where my little brother & UnreleasedSnip founder Jacob! played some of his shit for me during a smoke session. Namely the singles “Assembly Line” & “Vlone”. I was so impressed by the witty lyricism throughout both of those cuts, that it intrigued me enough to check out his 26th EP right here following his born day on Tuesday & landing a deal with Geffen Records.

“PSA” is an eerie trap opener sending a message to the TSA whereas “Nina” that MexikoDro & Trgc laced takes a pluggier turn talking about guns. XanMan’s verse on “If U Was Me” is a bit underwhelming if I’m being honestly as much as I like the quirky synths & the line during Skul’s verse where he says “You Justin Bieber with that baby Glock when you up that, you Ludacris” leading into the experimental “Jenga” produced by TDF calling himself “a main-eventer” & referencing WWE Hall of Famer Arnold Schwarzenegger.

Continuing from there with “Who is U?”, we have Skul calling out those who ain’t slime over a glossy trap instrumental just before “Hi tech” working in a whistling beat & a reference to 16-time WWE world champion, 4-time WWE tag team champion & 5-time WWE United States Champion John Cena. “Valid” has a glitchier quality to the production as Lunchbox comes into the picture to ponder what they be on their dicks for, but then “Kong Kong” has a more rubbery yet psychedelic vibe to it talking about doing it all himself.

The bassy “Blick” of course boasts that he has a Draco on him while the penultimate track “Who I Am” shoots for a more hypnotic aesthetic talking about running up on motherfuckers that ain’t do shit & to your spot. “Good Lad” however managed to send off the EP on a pluggier note with Skul explaining how you would’ve passed off to him if you were from the UK including a bar about former 3-time WWE world champion, 5-time WWE Intercontinental Champion, WWE United States Champion, 3-time TNA World Champion, ΩCW Heavyweight Champion, 9-time WWE Tag Team Champion, 3-time WWE Hardcore Champion, ROH World Tag Team Champion, HOG Tag Team Champion, 2-time ΩCW Tag Team Champion, 2-time TNA World Tag Team Champion & The Crash Mundial Parejas Campeon Jeff Hardy at the end of his verse is insane!

I seriously gotta shout out my lil brody for putting me onto to this dude because I think he really is someone to keep an eye on in the plugg scene right now. Both of the features didn’t really do anything for me with no disrespect intended whatsoever, but Skul’s witty gangsta rap heavy lyricism & crazed flows throughout this EP are both huge selling points for me to want to go back to it.

Score: 3.5/5

@legendswill_never_die on Instagram for the best music reviews weekly!

Yeat – “Lyfë” review

Yeat is a 22 year old rapper from Portland, Oregon who out in 2018 off his debut EP Deep Blue $trips. This was followed up with 2 mixtapes & 3 more EPs, but he began dominating the mainstream in 2021 whether it be him dropping a total of 4 projects (2 mixtapes, an EP & a full-length debut) or cosigns from the likes of Drake & Earl Sweatshirt. He just dropped his sophomore effort albeit major label debut 2 Alivë under Geffen Records during the first quarter of 2022 & is commemorating the 1-year anniversary of Up 2 Më this weekend by dropping his 3rd mixtape following the huge success of “Rich Minion” earlier this summer.

“Flawlëss” is an otherworldly trap opener produced by BNYX of Working on Dying with Yeat on the hook & a sole Lil Uzi Vert verse boasting their lifestyles whereas “Up off X” dives into rage territory talking about being wide awake at night due to taking ecstasy. “Out thë Way” has a more calmer vibe to it declaring himself to be the baddest, but then “Wat it feel lykë” works in some wailing synths & hi-hats to diss rats.

Meanwhile on “Got it all”, we have Yeat over a bass-line & snares to flex his wealth leading into “Can’t stop it” brings some rock undertones to the beat surprisingly refusing to quit going hard. “Krank” almost has a cinematic quality to the instrumental talking about geekin’ just before “Talk” returns to the hypertrap sound to deliver some braggadocious lyrics.

“Comë on” shoots for a more electronic aesthetic to it thanks to BenjiCold going for the necks of his competition while the song “Systëm” has a more darker tone sonically talking about the drugs hitting right. The penultimate track “Holy 1” is a cloudier cut detailing his mob ties & “Killin’ ‘ëm” sends off the album on a wavy yet deadpan note talking about coming from that dirty.

Considering that Geëk Pack was just a decent collection of microwaved 2 Alivë leftovers, I had no doubt that Lyfë was gonna expand on what made the predecessor the fun major label debut it is. Lo & behold, that’s what happened here. It’s refreshing to hear Yeat dabbling with some new sounds than last time & his knack for catchy songwriting remains unmatched.

Score: 3.5/5

@legendswill_never_die on Instagram for the best music reviews weekly!

Autumn! – “Golden Child 2” review

Autumn! is a 24 year old rapper, singer/songwriter & producer from Lafayette, Louisiana who made he got his start by dropping 17 EPs & a full-length debut on SoundCloud since 2018 prior to signing to Victor Victor Worldwide & Republic Records following Not Much Left this past fall. He put out his sophomore effort albeit major label debut Antagonist! few months back to positive reception & returned to his plugg roots a month ago with ##B4GC2, but is steadily grinding by putting out his 18th EP.

The intro sets it off with a glistening instrumental talking about being up now whereas “Inside My Head!” takes a more atmospheric route thanks to Goyxrd refusing to let the industry take his soul. “Can We Talk!” goes pluggnb responding to everyone who said he fell off prior to “Golden Child!” confessing about lying that he’s fine when he’s really not over a tranquil instrumental. The song “Jay n Bey!” works in a guitar comparing his love for his partner to that of The Carters while the penultimate track “Should Know Me Better!” spaciously talks about needing to relax after moving too fast & that he’ll always be here in the scene. “Myself!” though is a fun send-off to the EP telling this hoe not to deny that she’s like the rest.

As a sequel to one of the best projects in Autumn!’s ever-growing discography, it certainly lived up to my expectations. Much like the prequel & the predecessor, the actual follow-up itself picks up where things left off with it’s well-crafted pluggnb production that helped blow him up & the subject matter all comes from a unique perspective that he continues to bring to the table. He & Weiland are definitely holding it down for Victor Victor right now.

Score: 3.5/5

@legendswill_never_die on Instagram for the best music reviews weekly!

J.I.D – “The Forever Story” review

This is the 3rd full-length album from Atlanta, Georgia emcee J.I.D. Emerging in 2010 off his debut mixtape Cakewalk & joined the Spillage Village collective lead by the EARTHGANG around that same time frame, he dropped 2 more mixtapes as well as then an EP after that & signed to J. Cole’s very own Interscope Records imprint Dreamville Records in 2017. He has since made himself home there with The Never Story & DiCaprio 2, but is returning after 4 long years in the form of The Forever Story.

After the melodic “Galaxy” intro, the first song “Raydar” kicks off the album with a heavy bass-line & some hi-hats provided by Nonstop da Hitman talking about how “when it rains, it pours” prior to the beat switching up into more dramatic saying he’ll “steal the cattle then burn the farm”. “Dance Now” however samples “Yoel’s Niggun” by Zusha talking about making ‘em dance with his 9 whereas “Crack Sandwich” takes a more rugged route acknowledging that you can tell that he never had shit.

The EARTHGANG tags along for the KAYTRANADA/JD Beck-laced “Can’t Punk Me” reminding everything that nothing will stop them leading into Baby Tate & 21 Savage coming into the picture for the chipmunk soul/trap banger “Surround Sound” produced by DJ Scheme talking about putting the rap game on their backs & snatching crowns. “Kody Blu 31” incorporates a crooning sample in the mix encouraging listeners to swang on, but then the Lil Durk-assisted “Bruddanem” shoots for a more mellow aesthetic thanks to DJ Khalil talking about loyalty.

Meanwhile on “Sistanem”, we have J.I.D over some spacious boom bap production describing the tour life leading into the romance-driven “Can’t Make U Change” that starts off with a funky instrumental from Dreamville in-house producer Elite & switches into a melodic vocal loop. “Stars” opens up with a hazy BADBADNOTGOOD beat & J.I.D talking about having his goals set with E. Jones changing it up into boom bap turf as well as a stellar Yasiin Bey verse for the outro while “Just in Time” with Lil Wayne takes a more symphonic approach talking about having the time today.

“Money” throws a guitar & some live drums courtesy of Khrysis into the mix dissing 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 Hulk Hogan while the song “Better Days” weaves some piano chords into the chord talking about balancing the highs & lows. The closer “Lauder Too” is a futuristic sequel to a highlight off The Never Story laced by James Blake & Thundercat with the bonus cut “2007” ends the album is a 7 & a half minute epic looking back on J.I.D’s life throughout the past 15 years.

I’ve gone on record numerous times saying that J.I.D’s the future of Dreamville & if The Forever Story doesn’t further prove that, then I don’t know what to tell you because it’s a great sequel to his full-length debut & I’ll even say it’s arguably better than The Never Story. I admire that he comes through with more in-depth stories throughout, the production is incredibly dynamic & the feature list is pretty tight.

Score: 4.5/5

@legendswill_never_die on Instagram for the best music reviews weekly!

YBN Nahmir – “Faster Car Music” review

This is the debut EP from Alabama rapper YBN Nahmir. Coming up as the de facto leader of the now defunct YBN collective, he would go on to drop his full-length debut Visionland about a year & a half ago under Atlantic Records to be universally panned (more specifically for “Soul Train”). But after jumping ship to Def Jam Recordings recently, Nahmir’s looking to redeem himself in the form of Faster Car Music.

“Spend It” is a generically produced opener unenthusiastically bragging, that he has $800 on him whereas “Where I’m From” happens to be one of the better cuts with it’s vibrant production & the subject matter describing what it’s like around his parts. “Bows” has a decent instrumental to it even though there’s not that much substance to what Nahmir’s saying leading into “Pip ‘n Walk”, which is a bass-heavy cut talking about being the plug.

The song “Inna Trap” confesses that the feds raided his shit over a grim beat while the penultimate track “Only 1” comes off as a forced pop rap ballad with an ok Jeremih hook & the lyrics talking about how this bitch is the only partner that he really needs. “Lamborghini Truck” however finishes the EP with a bland ode to the whip that he be pulling up in.

As decent as From a Bird’s Eye View was compared to The Lost Boy, at least Cordae publicly acknowledged that recently & makes me feel like next album we’ll be better. That being said: I don’t get any more out of Faster Car Music than I did with Visionland whatsoever. It’s lazy songwriting, uninspired subject matter & cut-rate production makes it really hard for me to believe that this EP would appeal to any sports car enthusiast.

Score: 1/5

@legendswill_never_die on Instagram for the best music reviews weekly!

Mozzy – “Survivor’s Guilt” review

Mozzy is a 35 year old MC from Sacramento, California who I became a fan of in the summer of 2017 off his full-length debut 1 Up Top Akh. He would go on to be featured on the soundtrack for the incredible Marvel blockbuster Black Panther only 6 months later & drop 6 more albums through his EMPIRE-backed Mozzy Records but considering that Memphis veteran Yo Gotti signed him to his Interscope Records imprint Collective Music Group back in February, it was only a matter of time that Mozzy would drop his major label debut considering the fact that CMG’s been turning a lot of heads & getting a lot of coverage recently.

“Not the Same” is a introspective opener with it’s piano/sample infused trap beat along with the lyrics addressing those who say he’s changed whereas “If You Love Me” takes a more acoustic turn asking why he would change if people cared for him. EST. G tags along for the grim “Lurkin’” getting on their gangsta shit, but then Shordie Shordie comes into the picture for “Tell the Truth” to deliver one of the weakest features on the album despite the hyphy instrumental & the subject matter of wanting to be alone.

Continuing on with “Murder on My Mind”, we have Mozzy over some pianos & snares explaining why he can’t sleep without no slime leading into “Burrr” weaving in a twangy trap beat talking about how things are getting icy out here. “Wouldn’t Be Us” with YG shoots for a more cavernous aesthetic as both MCs telling their significant others it’s different then they’re thuggin’ just before “Smoke Nuffin’” bringing back the keys as 42 Dugg assists the mic to keep it 100.

“4Life” is a heavenly ode to Mozzy’s affiliation with the Bloods while the weepy “Make the News” with Blac Youngsta & Yo Gotti finds the trio calling out those who don’t actually love them like they said. “What You Hollin’” with his younger brother E-Mozzy & Celly Ru sees the 3 over some pianos & thumping drums getting on their mobb shit while “Ain’t Really Real” throws some strings in the mix talking about fake love.

The song “Open Arms” has a more smoother feel to the production as Mozzy talking about the streets welcoming him very kindly while the penultimate track “In My Face” with Saweetie & 2 Chainz shows a raunchier side to all 3 of them over a nervous DJ Mustard instrumental. “Real Ones” with Roddy Ricch however is a deadpan finisher to the album by showing love to those who’re no longer here with him.

Overall, I’d say that Survivor’s Guilt is one of the best major label debuts that I’ve heard in a while & most definitely a standout in Mozzy’s ever-growing discography. I could’ve done without a couple of the features, but a good portion of them proves that he fits in with CMG with the emotion throughout the 43 minutes is truly touching.

Score: 3.5/5

Westside Boogie – “More Black Superheroes” review

This is the sophomore album from Compton, California emcee Westside Boogie. Breaking out onto the scene in 2014 with his debut mixtape Thirst 48 as well as following it up with The Reach exactly a year later as well as Thirst 48, Pt. II the year after that, he would eventually catch the attention of Detroit icon Eminem by signing to his Interscope Records imprint Shady Records in late 2017. His full-length debut Everything’s for Sale at the beginning of 2019 was a solid way to introduce himself to a wider audience & he’s finally returning in the form of More Black Superheroes.

“KILLA MODE” opens up the album with an acoustic guitar & some crooning vocals as Westside Boogie warns everyone to stop playing with him whereas “STUCK” takes a more piano-trap route & show a more contemplative side of him. “NONCHALANT” has a more summery tone to it getting romantic just before “LOL SMH II” starts off with a more soulful tone talking about needing power to be present, but switches into somewhat of a funkier sound saying he’s as calm as can be.

Meanwhile on “CAN’T EVEN LIE”, we have Soulja Boy tagging along over some keys & hi-hats calling out the pussies leading into the smooth “PRIDEFUL II” asking his girl what she be getting into. “AIGHT” returns to trap territory to brush off all the cap people be telling him, but then Smino & Teezo Touchdown come into the picture for the sensual “CAN’T GET OVER YOU” talking about how they can’t get over their significant others.

“RATCHET BOOG” is an aggressive introduction to one of the 3 alter egos that Westside Boogie has with a cool beat-switch towards the end while “SOMETHIN’ STRANGE” seems a little out of place given the fact that Kalan.FrFr has the most presence on it out of everyone. The penultimate track “WINDOWS DOWN” with WWE Hall of Famer Snoop Dogg finds the 2 talking about smoking weed over a tranquilizing instrumental & “ANTHONY (WAR)” finishes the album with a well sequenced 2-parter admitting he thinks he’s too bougie now.

We’ve waited 3 long years for this one to come out & I think I happen like it a tad bit better than Everything’s for Sale. I admire the whole concept of embracing your powers as well as how much Westside Boogie has grown both creatively & personally since the last time we heard from him.

Score: 3.5/5