Review: "Legendary" Album by Tyga

For a while, it was looking as if Tyga was going to fall off the face of the planet. He seemed to get caught up with his relationship with Kylie Jenner in 2015 and let it affect his music career. Then comes his 2018 hit “Taste” featuring Offset. This song did so well that it had people naming Tyga as the 2018 comeback artist of the year. Now, right before the summer of 2019, Tyga has released his 7th studio album titled “Legendary”.

Tyga definitely found a formula for his music after the success of “Taste”. Hey, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it right? “Taste” had a very bouncy/dancy type of feel that made it very popular on the radio and in clubs. This album is full of songs that follow a similar formula without sounding like a copy. Tyga raps with his own unique style throughout the project. He doesn’t use a lot of words but his cadences help to add to the overall vibe. He knows how to be lyrical occasionally and the way he rhymes is witty and creative.

The project is packed with dope features including Lil Wayne, Chris Brown, Swae Lee, Gunna, A Boogie wit da hoodie and more. The features are, for the most part, dope and a lot of them fit well with Tyga’s sound. It was dope to hear Lil Wayne on a Tyga track. It gave me a very nostalgic feeling.

I will say that this is the most full sounding Tyga project I’ve heard in awhile and the first body of work from him that I find myself playing often. “Taste” is, naturally, the lead single on the album and because of this, the project easily could've been bad. Albums that are focused around a number 1 record are often rushed and poorly thought out. I believe that Tyga really wanted to use this project to tell the world that he is back and here to stay.

Overall, I think that this is a solid project with a ton of replay value. The songs fit well in the car, at a party or at the club. I believe that Tyga has successfully made a comeback and hopefully he can keep this momentum going.

Stream and Share “Legendary” on: Spotify | Apple Music

Review: "Pat Knox" EP by Pat Knox

Pat Knox is a hip-hop artist out of Los Angeles who has a sound that is comparable to both Ty Dolla $ign and Post Malone. His music contains a mixture of autotune singing as well as rapping. Knox has recently released his self-titled, debut EP, “Pat Knox”.

In 2019, there’s a plethora of artists who are trying to ride the new wave of sing-songy rap. I must admit, a lot of them fail whether it be because they don’t know how to effectively use autotune, because their production is lacking, or because they simply can’t rap. I believe that Knox has the ability to sing even without the autotune. This makes for smooth vocals once the effects are added. Knox also shows that he is able to rap as well as he can sing which makes him a well rounded artist.

The intro, “Business” gives the listener a good idea of what to expect for the rest of the project: autotuned singing, catchy hooks, dope production, and above average rapping. Following this track is the song “Bet Not”, which I personally enjoy a ton. It has amazing singing and a beautifully layered hook. It’s clear that the production was well put together. (Shout out to Connor Bush on production and Zak Lloyd on keys). Also, I’m a hip-hop head at heart, so the rap verses added a lot to the overall song for me and gave me another reason to respect Knox.

Now to the song “Mojave”. The hook on this song is incredibly hard but the bars are even harder. This song is my personal favorite because I could literally listen to the hook on repeat and the rapping is superb. This track really showcases all of Knox’s skills. Not only can he both sing and rap, but he can do both at a high level. Knox also shows his ability to slow things down a bit on the song “Fake Wings”. I would consider this song the ballad of the album. The lyrics are deep and there is a lot of emotion in his voice.

The song “Living in Color” catches the listeners ear from the very beginning with a unique/wavy beat. (Shout out Weston Wilson on Guitar) This entire track is a vibe. This is a song that causes you to move even if you don’t want to. Knox counts “1-2-3” during the build up right before the drop which makes it easy to visualize this song being played in a club.

The project finishes with “Lotus”. Knox shows once again that he’s got a beautiful singing voice as he sings over an extremely unique beat. He also, once again, shows that he’s got the ability to seamlessly switch from singing to hard rapping.

Overall this is one of the more impressive EPs I’ve heard in 2019. Knox has seemed to find his own sound and he knows how to maximize his many talents. I can’t wait to hear what his first full length album will sound like.

Stream and Share “Pat Knox” on: Spotify | Apple Music

Review: "Have A Alright Day" EP by MBG

MBG is the stage name of the one-woman rock band, Carolina ‘Leena’ Rodriguez. The Brampton, Ontario native plays many instruments and has recently picked up song writing. “Have A Alright Day” is MBG’s 4 track, debut EP which she wrote, recorded, produced and mixed by herself.

I have to say, listening to a song knowing that every single part of it came from one person is a very cool experience, especially when it sounds as if an entire band is playing. The project opens up with a track titled “What You’ve Done To Me”. For a new song writer, the song is very well-written lyrically. It’s extremely catchy and a great way to start off the project. MBG is able to show off her singing ability, guitar playing skill and drumming chops in under 3 minutes.

The next track, “Make My Day”, is a very aggressive song as the guitar part is extremely “rock-and-roll esque”. “I don’t want you for myself. What do you need from me, you’re nothin more than just a tease,” sings MBG. The song features a very well done guitar solo and extremely confident vocals. I feel that this song in particular shows off MBG’s mixing ability as everything was very well balanced and clear.

Track three is very somber as it starts with a slow, soft acoustic guitar. No project is complete without a love song right? In all seriousness, I’m glad that this “Unfinished Love Song” was included in the project because it shows just how versatile MBG is and how diverse her sound can be. Her soft, smooth vocals float beautifully over the guitar and drums as she sings “I don’t wanna be the one to come crawlin back to you”.

The final track, “Brick by Brick” is also a ballad featuring solely acoustic guitar and vocals. This may be the most well-written song on the entire EP and it’s certainly my favorite. It’s the deepest and evokes the most emotion. “He loves every single part of me, even the parts that I can’t see,” sings MBG.

I’m extremely impressed by this EP. These 4 songs showcase MBG’s many talents and tell me that she has a TON of potential. I genuinely am excited to hear her first full length project.

Stream and Share “Have A Alright Day” on: Spotify | Soundcloud

Review: "I’ve Seen Enough, I Know What It Does” EP by Morgan Gold

Morgan Gold, an extremely talented singer/songwriter out of Chicago, has released her new EP “I’ve Seen Enough, I Know What It Does”.

Morgan is an independent artist who sounds as though she’s been signed to a major label for several years. She has a voice that rivals some of today’s top Pop/RnB singers including Kehlani, Ariana Grande, The Weeknd and Jhené Aiko. Her vocals are beautiful, smooth and, at times, chilling. This EP gives us just a taste of her tremendous talent.

The production on this project is outstanding. Every beat is unique. The songs “Rebel” and “Bathroom Tiles” both feature beautiful beats that sound professionally made. Gold’s vocals are perfectly polished throughout the project, so whoever the engineer was deserves a round of applause.

This project reminds me of some of the Weeknd’s music in that it is deep, dark, honest and sad. Gold describes her own music as “dark, infectious and stimulating,” which is spot on. She pours a ton of emotion into each track which makes for beautiful music. Gold’s excellent vocal range and overall singing ability allows her to use her voice to clearly convey all of her feelings. The listener can close their eyes while listening and really feel the pain, fear and sadness that Gold sings about.

The EP, although short, showcases Gold’s abilities very well. I feel as though these five songs could be played for any label executive in the world and they would be enough to land her a record deal. I personally consider myself a fan off the strength of just these five songs.

Overall, this project is honestly one of the best I’ve heard in 2019 from both indie and mainstream artists. I can’t wait to see what Gold does next as I believe that if she reaches her full potential, she will become a super star.

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Review: "You Can't Sit With Us" Album by Pivot Gang

Pivot Gang is a hip-hop collective out of Chicago, led by the rapper Saba. Most people, including myself, discovered Saba through his friendship and collaborations with Chance The Rapper. The songs “Everybody’s Something” and “Angels” come to mind. Aside from Saba, the collective includes Joseph Chilliams, MFn Melo, Squeak, Dam Dam, Frsh Waters, dae dae, Daoud and the late John Walt (RIP). In April, the collective released their debut album titled “You Can’t Sit With Us”.

I knew of the collective but had failed to listen to their previous mixtape “JIMMY”. I consider myself to be a pretty big Saba fan, so when I heard that his collective would be releasing a project, I decided I should check it out.

This album is a treat to those who are fans of conscious, lyrical, backpack rap. Every single verse on the project is lyrical, full of wordplay, witty and creative. There are also a lot of smooth singing vocals throughout the project. Saba does a good job of spreading himself across the album. Since he is the most successful member, it would’ve been very easy for him to accidentally make it more of a Saba project and less of a Pivot Gang project. We get to hear verses from several different members, and I assume that Saba shared the production load.

The project is 13 tracks and 43 minutes long, but it is an easy listen. In the two weeks that the project has been out, I believe I’ve listened to it 10 or more times. There are features from Kari Faux, Smino, Mick Jenkins, Jean Deaux, Femdot, Sylvan LaCue and Benjamin Earl Turner. It is a very cohesive album and it truly does feel like you’re listening to a collective and not just a bunch of random artists. There aren’t really any weak songs on the project. My personal favorites are “Death Row”, “Colbert”, “Clark Kent” and “Jason Statham, Pt. 2”.

This is a project that I see myself listening to throughout the entire summer. Tons of lyrics, a lot of catchy vibes, and several different artists to get acquainted with. I can’t wait to see what this collective does in the future.

Stream and Share “You Can’t Sit With Us” on: Spotify | Apple Music

Review: "Songs For You" EP by Chris McGinnis

Chris McGinnis is a singer-songwriter out of Boone, North Carolina. McGinnis spent several years during his time as a student at Appalachian State University, writing and recording songs. He has now released his five track, debut EP, “Songs For You”, which features Jack Marion of the Pearl Snap Prophets, Jacob Davis Martin and production from Cory Halterman.

This 21 minute long project is a quick introduction to McGinnis’ sound. It is very obvious that he puts a lot of time and effort into each individual song, from writing, to recording the vocals and instruments, to mixing and mastering.

The project’s instrumentation and production is extremely well done. As a music lover, I always appreciate the sound of a real guitar and drum kit. Every song is mixed well as the vocals are extremely clear over top of the instruments.

McGinnis has an extremely unique voice. His singing is beautiful and captivating. That along with his lyrics truly pull the listener into the song. Every song is full of emotion and meaning which is also something that is lacking in a lot of today’s music.

My personal favorite is track 2, titled “Music”. It’s an up beat, “boom-tap” song that is very “square-danceable” (I just made this word up, but you get the point).

The only real thing I have to say about this project is that I wish it was longer. I know it is just an EP, but I wish there were two or three more songs to enjoy. If this is the quality McGinnis gives on an EP, I’m very excited to hear what his full album will sound like.

Stream and Share “Songs For You” on: Spotify | Apple Music

Review: "CrasH Talk” Album by Schoolboy Q

I consider Schoolboy Q to be an underrated member of TDE. To be completely honest, every member that isn’t named Kendrick Lamar is underrated. Q has always been interesting to me. He’s clearly talented, yet his singles typically don’t turn into hits. He is what I call an “Album Artist”. He rarely ever misses when it comes to his projects. His new album, “CrasH Talk” is yet another example.

I’ll be honest, the very first time I listened to this project I was disappointed. Maybe it’s because I was comparing it to his previous album “Blank Face” or maybe I was just expecting it to be different. I decided to listen to it several more times in different settings. Once in my car, once with headphones while at work and once on my home speakers. Each time I listened to it, I began to like it more and more.

It’s been difficult for me to come up with words to describe the album but I think I’ve come up with some. It’s very simplistic and raw. Schoolboy doesn’t utilize a lot of complex cadences and he doesn’t rap as much as I’m used to hearing on his projects. The album also relies heavily on it’s features, which isn’t a bad thing, but is something I’m not used to with Q.

I’ve decided that I like this album about the same as I like his last one. The transition sort of reminds me of Kendrick’s transition from “TPAB” to “DAMN”. Q goes from an intricate, complex album to a more simplistic one. There is a lot of singing as Travis Scott, 6LACK, Ty Dolla $ign, and Kid Cudi are all featured on the project. While their singing is dope, at times some of the tracks with hooks feel more like cookie cutter ones.

Q seems to be his vintage self as he raps in unique style. Un-cut with no filter and not afraid of punchlines or unusual rhymes. The features from YG, 21 Savage and Lil Baby are all well placed. The production is dope and there are several catchy tracks such as “Chopstix” and “Lies”. Along with these radio playable tracks are ones such as “Black Folk” and “Attention” which will please the hip-hop heads. My personal favorite track is either “5200” or “CrasH”.

Overall I think this is another great addition to Q’s discography and I expect it to do very well on the charts/radio as well as with his fan base. Once again, TDE is showing why they are at the top of the Hip-Hop game.

Stream and Share “CrasH Talk” on: Spotify | Apple Music

Review: "Ventura" Album by Anderson .Paak

Just 5 months ago, Anderson .Paak released his first album under Dr. Dre’s Aftermath label titled “Oxnard”. (See Review Here) While the album wasn’t bad, the consensus was that it sounded different than what fans were used to hearing from .Paak. I’m not sure if .Paak had already planned to release a second album this quick, or if he decided to do it because of the reaction to his last project. Nevertheless, .Paak’s album “Ventura” is sure to get a much better reaction.

To me, this album sounds like what I expected “Oxnard” to sound like. There are rumors that Dre may be trying to change .Paak’s sound, which resulted in the Oxnard album. While I don’t know if that’s completely true, I do believe that “Ventura” sounds much more like the .Paak from “Malibu”. It it soulful, full of melody, full of drums and has much less of .Paak rapping. While I enjoy his rapping, I believe that Oxnard had too much of it and not enough of his smooth singing.

This project starts off amazingly with a track featuring the legend Andre 3000. The 43 year old rapper spits a creative verse and shows that age has only made him better. The second track, “Make It Better” is my personal favorite on the album and is also in the running for my favorite Anderson .Paak song period. The song is beautiful, smooth, relatable and catchy. It also features another legend, Smokey Robinson, whose voice sounds amazing alongside .Paak’s. Some other favorites of mine are “King James” and “Winner’s Circle”.

The entire album is just vintage .Paak. A solid mix of funky, jazzy, smooth and upbeat. His features were all well thought out and well placed. I feel that his last project had too many mainstream rappers forced into it as opposed to voices that would work well sonically with .Paak’s typical vibe.

Overall, I really enjoy this project and after just a couple listens, I was able to place it above “Oxnard”. While I’m glad that .Paak signed with Dre, if this is the music that .Paak makes when working solo, maybe he should stay isolated a bit more often.

Stream and Share “Ventura” on: Spotify | Apple Music

Review: "Little Rock" EP by Lee Clark Allen

Lee Clark Allen is an RnB artist out of Denver, who not only writes all of his songs, but produces them. He, with the help of his band, has released his debut EP “Little Rock”.

As I listen to this project, I quickly draw a comparison to both Daniel Caesar and Anderson .Paak. Both of these artists are incredible vocalists and they both sound good with live music behind them. Allen is no different. Although I’m comparing him to these artists, Allen has an extremely unique voice and sound that separates him from other soul artists I’ve heard. His voice is very well complimented by the band that he records with. I hear drums, guitars, keys and more. Also, I don’t know the name of the young woman who sings some of the background vocals, but her voice is very smooth and soothing.

Allen has a very soulful vibe to his voice. He seems to be a young man with an old soul. The EP is very old school with a mixture of some modern sounding elements. This music is like a mix of old spirituals, church songs and slow jams. There are so many layers to each song, not just musically, but lyrically. It reminds me of the old days when songs could really make the listener feel a myriad of emotions.

It greatly shocks me that this project is a debut. Allen’s sound comes off so natural and polished that I would think this was a second or third release. The fact that Allen produced every song on this EP speaks even more to his talent level.

There isn’t a single weak song on this project. Every track pulled me in and kept me for the duration. The 16 minute project flew by and left me wishing that there were 10 more songs to listen to. My personal favorites are “Mud (Rise)” and “Lay Your Head”.

This EP was a breath of fresh air and something new. I’ve been made an instant fan of Lee Clark Allen and his band, and I can’t wait for him to release some more smooth tunes.

Stream and Share “Little Rock”: Website | Spotify | Soundcloud

Review: "Vulnerable Commercialism" EP by Freddie Bourne

Freddie Bourne is a singer-songwriter from New Jersey who currently makes music out of Evansville, Indiana. Freddie recently released his fourth project; a collection of four live performed songs titled “Vulnerable Commercialism”.

Firstly, I need to applaud Bourne for releasing these songs as live performances. Artists often stray away from doing this for fear that it won’t sound perfect or polished enough. Releasing songs in this way makes it feel more like art at its purest form.

Bourne performs four songs all with piano accompaniment and some guitar. He speaks to the audience before each song, explaining to them what the songs mean and what inspired them. This project has a few different themes: nostalgia, mental health, and pain are a few of them.

Freddie sings from his soul throughout all four songs. You can feel the emotion in his voice and often visualize what he’s singing about. The “Vulnerable” in the title of the project is definitely earned. This project is raw, emotional, intense, sad and beautiful. While I feel that these songs also would’ve sounded good recorded in a studio, I believe that performing them live added to the overall impact of the project.

It’s easy to hear that the audience enjoyed the entire performance as they clapped, whistled, hooted and cheered loudly after each song concluded. I feel that hearing the audience’s reaction also adds to the overall feel of the project. It helps to add authenticity and rawness.

Much like the audience, I also enjoyed this project. It was fresh, creative and unique. I look forward to hearing more music from Freddie in the future. And maybe we’ll start to see more artists releasing their songs as live performances.

Stream and Share “Vulnerable Commercialism” on Spotify

Review: "Free Spirit" Album by Khalid

Khalid is something of a Cinderella story. His career blew up after he released a song called “Reasons” on Soundcloud. I remember seeing a post from an account saying “Couldn’t you imagine this guy on a song with Drake” along with a clip from the song. I instantly loved the song and played it on repeat for weeks. The next thing I know, Khalid releases a song titled “Location” that climbed the charts incredibly fast.

Off of the success of that song, Khalid released his 2017 album titled “American Teen”. While the project was solid, it was apparent (and not just by the title) that the album was written by a teenager. Now, Khalid has returned with his 2019 release titled “Free Spirit”. It’s clear that he has grown from an innocent teen to a young man, and that he’s gained not just life experience and wisdom, but even more vocal talent.

What I instantly noticed about this project was Khalid’s improved vocal ability. While he remains in his same range, he sounds much more confident. It appears he’s been practicing. He does a good job of really using his voice to bring out the emotion attached to his lyrics. The song “Heaven” is a perfect example of this. He also utilizes a lot of harmonies throughout the project which are, for the most part, beautifully done. On top of this change, it also appears that Khalid got a bit more experimental with the production on this project. There are tracks with slow guitar, as well as some smooth, synth filled songs, songs with strings as well as some upbeat tracks.

Khalid does a good job of including a myriad of moods in the project. It’s a solid mix of happy and sad. The upbeat songs about love and joy help to compliment the slow songs about heartbreak and feeling lost. The song “Outta My Head” is a great example of an upbeat, happier song about love. Also, I must admit, it’s impressive to me that the 21 year old was able to get John Mayer involved with the song.

My personal favorite tacks on the project are “Saturday Nights”, which was also on his 2018 EP “Suncity”, and “Don't Pretend”. Both have a similar vibe and both feature smooth, emotional vocals.

My only critique for this album perhaps comes attached with Khalid’s age. While there was some change in sound in this album from his debut album, I feel that maybe it wasn’t as much as I anticipated. Of course, we know the saying “If it ain’t broke don’t fix it”. While I agree with this for the most part, I think with artists it’s important to grow and evolve. But again, Khalid is a young kid who hopefully has decades of music making ahead of him.

Overall, this sophomore project from Khalid is a pretty big improvement from his first. I genuinely enjoyed it. I’ll be following him closely to see what he decides to do with his third album.

Stream and Share “Free Spirit” on: Spotify | Apple Music

Review: "Stay You Until the End" Album by Li$o

Li$o is an artist out of Shreveport, LA who draws influence from artists such as Lil Peep, Juice Wrld and Lil Wayne. He prides himself in differentiating himself from the rest of the artists in his genre.

His voice and choice of production help to separate him from a lot of today’s artists. Instead of too much autotune and rapping about the same old topics, Li$o uses a unique effect on his voice and raps about a myriad of themes. His latest project is an album titled “Stay You Until the End”.

This album is clearly themed around love. Li$o does a good job of creating a variety of different moods throughout the project. Some of the production is basic trap, while other tracks are more slow, melodic and musical. There are several samples utilized in the project which also add to the overall theme and to the musicality of the project. While Li$o’s sound is pretty unique, if I had to compare this project’s sound to some current artists, I would say Trippie Redd and XXXtentacion.

Li$o’s voice lends itself well to the theme of the project. It’s deep and raspy. For the slower tracks, his voice helps to really bring out the emotion of the lyrics. On the other hand, for the more upbeat songs, the effect that he uses on his voice helps to make the song more hype and give it more of a mainstream appeal.

My personal favorite tracks on the project are “Eden of the East”, “Us being together, perfect” and “Fate Stay Night”. “Fate Stay Night” is beautiful as it has a slow and somber pace with a sad mood/tone. The production contains a smooth guitar loop that mixes well with Li$o’s low, lethargic tone.

I like that the album focuses on subject matter that is deeper than money, sex and drugs. Li$o attempts to dive deeper and really pour his heart and soul into these 12 songs.

My only real critique of the album is that there are times where Li$o is difficult to understand. I feel it’s important, especially for newer artists, to get their lyrics out as clearly as possible. If not, listeners will be quick to label them as a “mumble rapper”.

Overall, this is a nice project from Li$o and I hope to hear him take it to an ever higher level with his next release.

Stream and Share “Stay You Until the End” on: Spotify | Apple Music

Review: "Baby on Baby" Album by DaBaby

I’ll admit, I feel a bit late to the DaBaby train, which is made even more sad by the fact that he hails from my hometown (Charlotte, North Carolina). However, now that I’ve listened to his music, I’ve jumped right on board. DaBaby signed to Interscope Records back in January, and now he has released his debut album, “Baby on Baby”.

I became an instant fan of DaBaby after two listens to this 30-minute project. The album is short which makes it easily digestible and an easy way to introduce yourself to him.

DaBaby does something that is very unique. While he raps over the same style of trap beats that a lot of artists do, he is actually surprisingly lyrical. A lot of “mumble rappers” simply lack the ability to rap (which is extremely ironic). If you rap well, fans are more willing to accept other aspects of your music such as the type of beat and the subject matter. At times I consider myself a Hip-Hop snob as I’m pretty tough on a lot of today’s artists. With that being said, DaBaby showed me that rapping well is possible within the trap genre.

DaBaby has a unique voice that is captivating. In this album, he strays away from the basic choppy flow that is common in trap music and adds some intricacy with his rhyme schemes and cadences. He certainly doesn’t mumble as he spits clearly and confidently.

I greatly appreciate the features he chose to use for the album. Offset has become a trap rapper who actually displays his rapping ability. Rich The Kid meshes well with DaBaby as he adds a fun but hype flow to the track “Best Friend”. Hearing from Rich Homie Quan was a nice surprise on “Celebrate”. DaBaby chose solid features and went with quality of quantity instead of leading it was 10 plus.

One of my favorite tracks is “Best Friend” featuring Rich The Kid. “I just got a DM from your best friend, and your mad I know yeah your mad I know yeah,” sings DaBaby on the hook. It’s so catchy that after just one listen, the song was stuck in my head for an hour. Another is the song “Tupac” where DaBaby refers to himself as “The Tupac of the new school”.

DaBaby utilizes diverse sounding production throughout the album which keeps the listener from being lulled to sleep with the same sounding beat over and over. His rap in honestly entertaining. I found myself audibly laughing multiple times while listening.

The album was an excellent introduction to DaBaby. After just a few listens, I already consider myself a fan of his and I plan on voting for him to become a XXL Freshman. I’m excited to follow his career and to see how his music progresses.

Stream and Share “Baby on Baby on: Spotify | Apple Music

Review: "Servings" Album by RJ Bagger

Female emcee RJ Bagger, born in Panama and raised in Flatbush, Brooklyn has dropped her new album “Servings”. The project is a breath of fresh air to those who truly appreciate the art of rapping and the skill of lyricism.

From the very beginning of the album, I instantly began comparing RJ to the North Carolina rapper, Rapsody. In my opinion, Rapsody is the best female rapper in the game by far and one of the best rappers period. This is because of her lyrical ability, flow variation and tone control. RJ is cut from the same cloth. Similar to Rapsody, she’s not just “a dope female rapper”, but a dope rapper period. Lyrically speaking, there are few rappers I’ve heard as talented as RJ.

Lines in the intro, “Can I Get Uh”, such as “Peel off in the whip, my sh*t bananas” and “2 piece on your biscuit, when I hit then your gravy gon leak” had my eyebrows raising from the very first track. There were even certain lines that made my physically laugh and smile when I caught their meanings.

This album is extremely well put together. It features production that ranges from simple piano trap to boom bap. RJ wastes no lines as almost all of them contain a witty observation, a unique rhyme or a creative metaphor.

“Servings” is unique because it has mass appeal. The album has songs that could easily fit in today’s radio rotations, and it also has songs that would tingle the ears of hip-hop snobs like myself. The more I listened the more I was impressed. While this project is full of bars, it also has catchy hooks to help bridge the verses together. RJ shows even more talent in her ability to sing some of her own hooks.

My personal favorite song is “Connect”. RJ spits confidently over a hard beat. While this is my favorite, there are several other songs that I played several times. “Jet Jackson” and “Fiji Water” also have extremely hard beats and captivating rapping.

I can’t lie, I more than enjoyed this album. It’s one of the best rap projects I’ve heard from an indie artist in a very long time. I definitely would consider myself an RJ Bagger fan and I’m excited to see what she comes up with next.

Stream and Share “Servings” on: Spotify | Apple Music

Review: "The World is Yours 2" Album by Rich The Kid

Rich The Kid is one of the few “mumble rappers” that I somewhat enjoy listening to. His music is typically understandable, and his production is usually dope. His co-sign/collab with Kendrick Lamar on his first album, “The World Is Yours”, helped to put him on my radar. Now Rich The Kid is back with his sophomore album, “The World is Yours 2”; a project which he claims will be Album of the Year.

The issue with a lot of trap rap nowadays is that many of the artists don’t feel much pressure to expand their sound. They find a formula that works for them and they stick to it. Some albums that really surprised me this year were 21 Savage’s and Offset’s. They both got creative and added more substance to their songs. In the case of RTK’s (Rich The Kid’s) new album, I feel that he got comfortable and stuck to his formula.

I can say that I enjoy this album, but I like it just about the same as his first album. It almost sounds like these were songs from the first album that he waited to release. This isn’t necessarily a bad thing. For hardcore fans of his, they’ll more than likely enjoy this album a lot more than I did.

The album has a lot of plusses. I love a lot of the features. My personal favorite song is “Fall Threw” featuring Young Thug and Gunna. The beat is catchy and creative and the features are perfect. Some other features I appreciate are Big Sean on “Two Cups”, Tory Lanez on “Tic Toc”, NAV on “Wrong Thing” and Jay Critch and A Boogie on “Like Mike”. I will also give Rich credit for diversifying his sound on the song “Woah” with Miguel and Ty Dolla $ign.

Although I disagree that this album will be Album of the Year, there are some songs that I think will get popular. Rich spits his unique brand of rapping over top of unique and catchy beats. A lot of the features are big/popular names which will create buzz around the project. At the very least, RTK’s fans will enjoy it.

I like this project, but as a big hip-hop head, I hope to see Rich get a bit more serious on his next project. Maybe experiment with a different sound and try to rap about more mature subjects.

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Review: "Rap of Go to the League" Album by 2 Chainz

If I had to describe 2 Chainz in one word, it would be “unique”. From his voice to his style to his music, 2 Chainz is extremely distinguished from most artists. With his new album “Rap or Go to the League”, the follow up to “Pretty Girls Like Trap Music”, 2 Chainz continues this trend of distinguishing himself.

One thing that makes Chainz so unique is the way he’s able to make music about a myriad of topics. He has the ability to rap about the things that are popular in today’s mainstream rap music (drugs, women, money etc.), while at the same time, being able to rap lyrically about deeper topics. Because of this, he is able to appeal to a variety of audiences. He appeals to the audience that prefers less substantive trap music, as well as to the hip-hop heads who appreciate lyricism and word play.

“Rap or Go to the League” is a perfect mix of entertaining, serious, fun and informative. Chainz balances bangers with message filled songs in a way that only he can. The title of the album is important as it alludes to something that many young inner city African Americans face. Chainz was one of those youths; however, he is a rare case as he made it as a rapper after failing to make it as a basketball player. Many don’t make it as either despite feelings that those are the only options.

The track “NCAA” essentially sums up the most important point the album has to share. “NCAA, yeah, we the young and dangerous, We be ballin' hard, yeah, I just want some paper, NCAA, yeah, set the record straight Come on in (Come on in), come on in (Come on in) NCAA, yeah, we the young and dangerous, We be ballin' hard, yeah, I just want some paper, yeah”, raps 2 Chainz. This song sheds light on the way young black men feel when they don’t have much and feel that their only option to make it in life is playing basketball. The NCAA always appears as if they care about these young men, but in reality, it is a business and is essentially using the plight of these men to make a profit.

This album is packed with features which can be a bad thing in some cases. In this album, however, most of the features are well placed. Hearing 2 Chainz paired with Ariana Grande on “Rule the World” was a delight as well as hearing Chance the Rapper’s guest verse on “I’m Not Crazy, Life is”. Of course, the Lil Wayne, Travis Scott, Young Thug and Kodak Black features were expected, but it was dope to also hear verses from E-40 and Kendrick Lamar as they are more lyrical.

This LeBron James A&R’d album is dope and is already towards the top of my list for best 2019 rap album. 2 Chainz puts his rapping ability on display with a myriad of flows, rhyme schemes and topics and he shows great taste in production throughout the project. 2 Chainz is unapologetically himself on this album and I believe that he should never change his unique style.

Stream and Share “Rap or Go to the League” on: Spotify | Apple Music