Well, we’ve certainly come a long way, but the debut album from ascendant global power-pop princess Ava Max is here a little over two years after the release of its closing track, worldwide smash hit “Sweet but Psycho.” Despite quite a few shaky throwaway singles that never made the cut as Max slowly discovered her … Continue reading Ava Max – Heaven & Hell
Author: bensbeat
Alicia Keys – ALICIA
Legendary vocalist Alicia Keys’ seventh self-titled studio album has essentially been seeing COVID-related delays all year long, but it has finally arrived. Four years after her incredibly solid Here, which saw her using her powerhouse vocals over some more adventurous R&B-leaning instrumentals from her husband Swizz Beats, ALICIA finds her mostly looking outside of the … Continue reading Alicia Keys – ALICIA
Conway The Machine – From King to a GOD
Buffalo hip-hop collective Griselda Records have steadily been building their audience through a truly staggering number of releases and their adherence to classic hip-hop tendencies focusing on technicality and lyricism. While founder Westside Gunn has likely attracted the most mainstream attention, it is his brother Conway The Machine who has always proven himself as the … Continue reading Conway The Machine – From King to a GOD
NIKI – MOONCHILD
21-year-old Indonesian pop and R&B artist NIKI has garnered quite a bit of attention after signing to the wildly popular 88Rising label, which intends to provide a platform for Asian artists in North America. After contributing to most of the highlights on the label’s uneven collaborative effort, Head in The Clouds II, last year, my … Continue reading NIKI – MOONCHILD
6ix9ine – TattleTales
Well, here we are again. For a while, it looked like we might never be getting another album out of Instagram personality and attention magnet 6ix9ine. Whittling a 47-year prison sentence down to just two after extensive cooperation that spawned memes on memes and getting released early due to COVID fears, how could the return … Continue reading 6ix9ine – TattleTales
Big Sean – Detroit 2
Detroit rapper and GOOD Music affiliate Big Sean has never been away from the game for this long, but the time off has evidently given him quite a bit to talk about. With his fifth studio album, a sequel to an early 2012 mixtape that had a huge part in putting him on the map, … Continue reading Big Sean – Detroit 2
Internet Money – B4 The Storm
Hip-hop producer duo Internet Money – or Taz Taylor and Nick Mira – have been responsible for some of the most inescapable rap hits over the past couple years, including tracks like “Ransom,” “Lucid Dreams” and playing a big role in some of XXXTENTACION’s early success. When jumpstarting an entire movement from behind the scenes, … Continue reading Internet Money – B4 The Storm
Katy Perry – Smile
10 years removed from her record-setting album Teenage Dream, the kind of musical world – and the world at large – that allowed such an extravagant and carefree pop album to dominate as much as it did has shifted. After trying somewhat awkwardly to make the transition on her previous project, Witness, which she deemed … Continue reading Katy Perry – Smile
The Killers – Imploding The Mirage
After a couple side projects from lead singer Brandon Flowers, post-punk revivalists The Killers stormed back onto the scene with 2017’s Wonderful Wonderful and show no signs of slowing down. Often thought of as a highly influential band that left many imitators in their wake, their latest project sees them smartly sticking to a couple … Continue reading The Killers – Imploding The Mirage
Nas – King’s Disease
Legendary New York City rapper Nas has returned with his first full-length album since 2012’s Life Is Good, with a brief 7-track project produced by Kanye West in the middle that many argued was actually the weakest of West’s five projects of summer 2018. On King’s Disease, he trades in West’s production for the reliable … Continue reading Nas – King’s Disease
