House of Balloons was my first ever Weeknd project that I listened to and drew me in immediately. It's an astonishing soundscape of moody, atmospheric, melancholy, and dark production with depressing, sex-filled, and drug-infested lyrics. This album really strives in its moody atmosphere and incredibly raw tenor vocal deliveries. I think Abel's pen game could use some improvement but it works for the most part. Abel delivered some really great warm hooks on this project as well. ... read more

Be is the quintessential 2000s hip hop album. It's got everything you could possibly want. Whether it's Common's flawless cadence and incredible conscious rapping, perfectly placed features, or Kanye's and Dilla's soulful production that's pure bliss, this album is perfect from start to finish. Be (Intro) still remains as probably my favorite intro of all time. Incredibly uplifting album with no skips, and brings me joy that no other album is quite able to capture.

I know I'm a little late to this, but damn JID.

I'm going track by track on this review because it's only 4 tracks. Now these are throwaways so I wasn't expecting anything super stellar, but this gets me even more excited for this new album after hearing the quality in some of these tracks.

Track 1 Behold is probably my favorite on here. This beat is absolutely disgusting. It starts off with this quirky auto tuned sample, and turns into this hard hitting base heavy trap ... read more

DOOM just doesn't miss.

2003, MF DOOM goes into a new persona with the name King Geedorah. King Geedorah is a character based on the three-headed gold dragon King Ghidora, a monster who appears in the Godzilla movies. Taking on this new persona, DOOM provides the audience with a very cinematic experience with colorful production and monstrous lyrics. DOOM also takes on more of the producer side of things on this project with some of the tracks having no rapping from the villain at all ... read more

Jay Rock did not have to go this hard.

Released in 2018, this is his first full-length release since his motorcycle accident in 2016. It was also released three years after his sophomore album 90059 released in 2015. Jay Rock comes back after his life threatening motorcycle accident with his most hungry and aggressive rap cuts to date. 13 songs, 44 minutes of some of Jay Rocks hardest hitting songs with some melodic cuts in the mix. Yes, there are some missteps. And a very few of the songs ... read more

This album really ain't no joke. It's the perfect embodiment of hip-hop in its rawest form. Eric B. and Rakim team up to create one of the most if not the most influential hip hop albums in history. Rakim completely flipped hip-hop on its head with this album. He influenced a whole generation of MC's with his groundbreaking flow and lyricism. I really don't think we would have rappers like Nas and Jay-Z without this record. You can seriously think of any hip-hop album that ... read more

The third and final installment of the Bears Like This mixtape trilogy from Spillage Village. This one has gotta be their best. I feel like this is easily their most replayable project up to this point. Most of the members of the collective have dropped music of their own, and so most of them feel a lot more comfortable on this mixtape than they did on the previous two. It's a little hit or miss, but the hits are some of the best Spillage Village songs ever. I think EARTHGANG delivered the ... read more

This was my introduction to DOOM and it's such a cool album. As soon as I heard the track Doomsday, I knew I was gonna love this guy. Coming out in 1999 where big rappers were popping like Jay-Z, Em, Dre, DMX, and many more. This was so far left field compared to them, it creates this unique listening experience. This project is DOOM stripped down to his barebones. DOOM on this album sounds very young, which is no surprise from when it came out, and he is missing that dark grim rasp that ... read more

A year later after SiR dropped his EP HER TOO, he comes out with his first proper LP November. To start, I really like the concept of this record. It's a journey through space that the audience gets to embark on through love inspired songs. Although I like the concept, I think there was a lot left on the table and much more to be desired. The album starts off with SiR being sent off into space. The songs that follow have spacey vibes that go into SiR's past relationships on Earth. SiR ... read more

I'm gonna try to make this review not a DOOM glaze session but he is just so good. DOOM is one of my personal favorite rappers so I'm gonna put the bias aside. Bias aside, this is a 100, perfect album. This album is a creative beginning to end series of food obsessed songs that creates such a thematic experience. DOOM is so raw on this album, more raw than he was on Madvillainy in my opinion. He's whimsical, playful, and absolutely hilarious on this album. I'm not gonna go ... read more

If I were to describe this album in one word, it would be angelic. This album just sounds gorgeous. Sampha displayed impressive vocal talent while touching on different avenues in his life. Sampha explores numerous topics about his personal life and journey throughout this album. He expresses his struggle with anxiety, experiences as a child, broken relationships, and grief of the loss of his mother. A few of the songs on this album are ballad-like, but what I find most interesting about this ... read more

Solid R&B performances here from SiR. This project has smooth and calming beats that mix pretty well with SiR's laid back tone. Doesn't have anything thats stands out to me and isnt very memorable. Nothing too crazy for me but still enjoyable. My favorite tracks include: New LA and Ooh Nah Nah.

Really great project here from Nas. Listening to this album is like a breath of fresh air. I love the samples that were used on this album, creating glossy and almost retro-infused production. Nas and Hit-Boy really worked well together on this album. The messaging on this album is absolutely beautiful and inspiring. I really think that's where this album strives most. This album remarks on ongoing violence in urban neighborhoods, hatred and jealousy, family dynamics, and the younger rap ... read more

Absolute fantastic album from start to finish. Mobb Deep takes an even darker approach on this album than they did on The Infamous. This album has hardcore lyrics over dark gritty beats with heavy strings and apocalyptic sounds. Havoc and Prodigy's amazing dynamic is present throughout keeping you entertained every track. Their lyricism is absolutely insane. The song concepts are so interesting too. This album really has it all. Near perfect album that I had a really fun time listening to. ... read more