For all the very young rappers we’re currently seeing achieving widespread levels of success riding this melodic, somber new wave of hip-hop music, it’s always surprising when you remember that Lil Durk is essentially a seasoned veteran compared to most of them. 28 years old and steadily growing his audience for years, The Voice is … Continue reading Lil Durk – The Voice
Hip Hop
Playboi Carti – Whole Lotta Red
I thought I was done with 2020 album releases, but one of the most highly anticipated albums in years dropped on Christmas Day, so here we are. Wildly experimental and highly polarizing hip-hop upstart Playboi Carti’s Whole Lotta Red has been teased for over two years now, leaving fans in a frenzy after his past … Continue reading Playboi Carti – Whole Lotta Red
Eminem – Music To Be Murdered By Side B
Joining so many other huge artists who released not one, but two (or more) full-length projects in 2020, Slim Shady himself has dropped his third surprise release in a row and a follow-up to last January’s Music To Be Murdered By. The parent album was certainly a much better offering than most of his recent … Continue reading Eminem – Music To Be Murdered By Side B
Kid Cudi – Man On The Moon III: The Chosen
Returning to a series of albums that saw its last installment ten years ago, psychedelic hip-hop pioneer Kid Cudi is back more popular than ever in a musical landscape he had a huge role in shaping. Continuing the story of the Man on The Moon series, Cudi once again steps into battle with his nefarious … Continue reading Kid Cudi – Man On The Moon III: The Chosen
SAINt JHN – While The World Was Burning
As SAINt JHN so aptly points out himself on one of the songs on his latest project, he should have blown up about five years ago. Although the worldwide smash hit that is the Imanbek remix of his 2016 single “Roses” doesn’t necessarily sound like his music at all, there are still quite a few … Continue reading SAINt JHN – While The World Was Burning
Megan Thee Stallion – Good News
Houston rising star and now 4-time Grammy nominee Megan Thee Stallion has certainly had a year full of ups and downs. After scoring her breakout #1 hit with “Savage,” dropping some great verses onto one of the most talked-about tracks of the year in “WAP” and getting caught up in some truly scary drama when … Continue reading Megan Thee Stallion – Good News
Future & Lil Uzi Vert – Pluto x Baby Pluto
Two of rap’s biggest similarly-nicknamed superstars have elected to team up for what just might be the laziest big-name rap collab project yet. Ever since these collaboration albums became a rising trend a couple years ago, the most enjoyable ones have always been a result of two rappers with different styles playing off of their … Continue reading Future & Lil Uzi Vert – Pluto x Baby Pluto
NAV – Emergency Tsunami
Just when you thought 2020 might have been looking up just a little, here’s the year’s third album by Toronto rapper NAV. At this point, a review of NAV’s work is little more than a formality, because there is entirely nothing left to say. My thoughts on his latest can be more or less summed … Continue reading NAV – Emergency Tsunami
REASON – New Beginnings
While the world waits patiently for the return of its flagship artist, Top Dawg Entertainment rapper REASON is here to fill the void with his debut, New Beginnings. One of the more obviously similar artists on the label to Kendrick Lamar himself, REASON dots his album with musings on society delivered in a similarly earnest … Continue reading REASON – New Beginnings
21 Savage & Metro Boomin – Savage Mode II
Back in 2016, the collaborative EP Savage Mode connected in a big way with audiences and cemented both its rapper and producer as absolutely dominant forces in the world of trap music. Not only that, it heralded many others latching onto Metro Boomin’s horror-inspired production style, augmented by the deadpan dramatics of 21 Savage. Now … Continue reading 21 Savage & Metro Boomin – Savage Mode II
