This solo effort by Outkast’s Big Boi recently had its 6-year anniversary last June and I just happened to play it again in that same month. I can still remember picking up the CD from Barnes & Noble in L.A. while on holiday on the Westcoast the week of its release, so I’m excited to get back to it for this review. Let’s see if it’s as enjoyable a listen as it was back in Summer 2017! Starting with the short intro track “Da Next Day”, Big Boi wastes no time asserting his confidence on the instrumental rapping a straightforward fire verse which sets the stage perfectly for the album. The following song which features Killer Mike and Jeezy, the single “Kill Ill”, sees the three Southside rap heavyweights trade hard hitting bars over a dope Asian sounding beat. You just find yourself wishing Big Boi’s raps were much more present on the track even though the cringe worthy bars about Bill Cosby supposed innocence (i.e. it’s all a conspiracy). This is actually one of the complaints from ...

As usual, I wanted to close another year with a “Top 10 Bangers of…” article, collecting the songs I ended up playing the most throughout 2022. Criteria for this list are that these songs must have come out during the year, were supported by a music video, and obviously were songs that I kept coming back to long after I first heard them. Here’s the list! Benny The Butcher - Johnny P’s Caddy (feat. J. Cole) Benny The Butcher has been in my current top 5 rappers for a couple of years now, so when he came back with another album in the “Tana Talk” series in the first quarter of 2022, I was excited. This track was the first single in the rollout and also is the opener on the album. The Alchemist laced Benny with one of the best beats of the year and J. Cole delivered my favorite verse of the year on the feature. Benny The Butcher also held his own with a dope verse. This is by far my favorite song of the year and has been in heavy rotation all year. Kendrick Lamar - N95 This year marked th...

What a year it’s been. Let’s not state the obvious, but who would have expected what was going to happen back in February last year when I was writing that 2020 was off to a great start music-wise . Despite all the mess, last year turned out to be a good one in rap music with so many releases that this is why I’m only getting around to write about my top 10 bangers of 2020 now in March. So much music in fact that it’s been difficult to keep up and digest. But here are, in no particular order, the songs that I’m still bumping today and that I will probably find myself playing well into this year. Run The Jewels - Ooh LA LA (feat. Greg Nice and DJ Premier) The dynamic duo of El-P and Killer Mike released their 4th collaborative album under the group name Run The Jewels in the midst of the social unrest and protests surrounding the shooting of George Floyd. The group’s trademark style of music that is politically charged, heavily engaged and hard hitting was very timely and they actually ...

Pittsburg, CA rapper A-Wax has been active since the early 2000's. He initially came up on the scene through his associations with fellow Northern California local sensations Woodie or the Mob Figaz. He would go on to release his debut album Savage Timez in 2001. His story is unlike anyone else's: a white man who ended up joining the Bloods - a notoriously violent gang mostly made of black members - he was arrested and found guilty of manslaughter, sentenced as if he was an adult despite being 16 years old. He spent 5 years in prison where he became fascinated with Hip-Hop culture and started writing songs. Upon his release from prison he met with Woodie who brought him onto the rap scene and introduced him to the Norteños while at it. He has since released over 20 solo and collaborative projects, rapping alongside the Mob Figaz (who would later become sworn enemies due to street beef), Woodie and his East Co. Co. crew, Waka Flocka Flame's Brick Squad, just to name a fe...

I love lists. Lists are a great way to present ideas or thoughts in a quick, easy way for readers to digest. So I thought “Why not kick things off with just that? A list.” So here you go, my top 10 bangers of 2018. I set a few rules as I was putting this list together: it has to be a song I had on repeat when it first came out, should be upbeat and pumping you up, ideally it has a (good) music video. Oh, and obviously it needs to be from 2018. All songs below are listed in no particular order but definitely are my most played songs of last year... Drake - Nonstop Many were waiting for Drake’s “Scorpion” album to see how he would use the music to address the beef with the G.O.O.D. Music folks. I wasn’t anticipating the project at all after the very disappointing “Views” and somewhat bloated “More Life” playlist. Little did I know the 2-disc project would land on my year end list (Yes, I still cop hard copies). This here “Nonstop” was a highlight and still is in heavy rotation. Fro...