14 Monday Jan 2019
Posted in Uncategorized
Who wouldn’t want to watch it? Aoc is always a fool, maybe the funniest rapper in the game right now…
And if you’re looking for a more serious show instead of just non-stop entertainment it also looks like he could be on HGTV and replace one of those house-flipper shows like Desert Flippers or Fixer Uppers just flipping/rehabbing/renting out houses in Toledo I’d def rather watch that than the Property Brothers in some cushy suburb…
15 Saturday Dec 2018
Posted in Uncategorized
Alright it’s that time of year again where we come together to celebrate the holidays and compile our top 50 songs of the year, as we deck the halls to the sounds of Kodak, Peezy, FMB DZ, ALLBLACK, and maybe even some OT Genasis and T-Pain. This is in order from top to bottom, and the top couple of songs were really hard to decide between for a true #1 but any of them would be a worthy #1 song of the year. There are probably another 10 or so songs that deserved to be on here but I wanted to cut it off at 50 just to have some discipline/organization. Wishing you all happy holidays and many blessings in the New Year
Philthy Rich, Rexx Life Raj, ALLBLACK – Dope Boy
O.T. Genasis – Too BlessedĀ
Rick Ross, Kodak Black, T Pain – Florida Boy
FMB DZ – Fast Money
Kevin Gates – Vouch
Ray Mula ft. Dave East, Don Q – Wassup with the Wassup remix
Kodak Black ft. Offset, Travis Scott – Zeze
Diplomats – Dipset Forever
Poppa da Don ft. Abillyon – Smoked
Peezy ft. Big Rizz, Cash Kidd – Duckin Wreck
ALLBLACK ft. 03 Greedo, Prada Mack – Florida Gator
Kevin Gates – Shakin BackĀ
6ix 9ine ft. Fetty Wap, A Boogie – KEKEĀ
Don Q ft. Desiigner – Trap Phone
Sauce Walka – Ghetto GospelĀ
Dave East – No PorkĀ
Kevin Gates – Change Lanes
03 Greedo, Nef the Pharaoh ft. Chris O’Bannon, ALLBLACK – Choosy
Cookie Money – Pops Died Last Week
Jeno Cash, Peezy, FMB DZ – Dog Food
ALLBLACK – Canadian Goose
ShooterGang Kony – Numba 1 Stunna
03 Greedo ft. Drakeo the Ruler, Fenix – Wake Me up in Traffic
Rich the Factor – Do it Gooba
Envy Caine – IntroĀ
Rich the Factor – Flashy
Seqo Billy – Billy DatĀ
Rich the Factor – Pay me in Blow
Blocboy JB – Rover
Lil AJ ft. Clyde Carson – Stay with Me
Shoreline Mafia ft. ALLBLACK – Road Run
The Jacka & Ampichino ft. Joe Blow, Cellski – Pain Disappear
Poppa da Don, Tulito, Dave East, Trap God Mula – Crip Shit
42 Dugg, Peezy, EWM Kdoe, Bagboy Mel, Cash Kidd, EWM Buck – STFUĀ
Jim Jones – Never Did 3 Quarters
Blueface – Respect My CrypnĀ
Young Thug ft. T-Shyne – Real in my VeinsĀ
Mozzy – Run to the Mansion
Juice WRLD – Lucid DreamsĀ
Shy Glizzy – Wavy
Meek Mill – IntroĀ
FMB DZ – Not the SameĀ
Nipsey Hussle ft. Kendrick Lamar – DedicationĀ
Rod Wave – Praying Grandmothers
6ix 9ine ft. Tory Lanez – KikaĀ
Quando Rondo – Paradise
Rod Wave – Way UpĀ
Nef the Pharaoh & ShooterGang Kony – Sig N A Draky
6ix 9ine ft. Tory Lanez, Young Thug – RondoĀ
Moneybagg Yo – Black HeartĀ
08 Saturday Dec 2018
Posted in Monthly Top 10, Uncategorized
Tags
21 Savage, Abillyon, Blueface, Cam'ron, Dave East, Diplomats, Dipset, Envy Caine, Future, Jim Jones, Juelz Santana, Juice WRLD, Kiing Shooter, Kodak Black, Poppa da Don, Sha Mula, Trap God Mula, Tulito
Diplomats – Dipset Forever
Dip Gods are back. Just in time for Thanksgiving Dipset laced us with this reunion album. This was easily my favorite song off of it. Such a triumphant, prime-era Dipset, all-conquering Heatmakers beat. Apparently it samples a Queen song but I have no idea I just know it’s making me feel invincible right now. I love the over the top ‘Grrrrrrrr’ ad lib at 0:34 after Jim Jones says he was ‘purging for a check’ almost sounding like a rabid grizzly. Jones actually probably had the best verse out of anyone on this and has quietly had a really strong 2018. While Juelz rapping that he ‘gets loose like a tooth’ seems uninspired and isn’t the prime Juelz we all remember, it’s still good to hear from him and he makes up for it with just the sheer self-belief and intensity as he raps ‘From the stoop to the coupe, money stacked from the floor to the roof’ or ‘Cam saw a star and showed the world my light… I put in work they can’t take my stripes’. The song ends on the strangely sad note of Juelz musing that ‘I guess forever means forever til forever’s gone’ until, of course, Dame Dash breaks in with a typically firey Dame Dash half-time speech and starts yelling about that Dipset will live forever. A grandiose effort from the Dips and I would expect nothing less at this point. I wish I got to go to the album release party where, from what I can gather, it looks like everyone went around Harlem in an open-top bus, listened to the album on headphones with some sort of blue LED’s, smoked vape pens and ate chop cheeses.
Poppa da Don x Abillyon – SmokedĀ
1a and 1b this month were Dipset and this one. Staying on this unexpectedĀ NYC Crip wave/Poppa da Don waveĀ with Poppa and Abillyonās āSmokedā. Like one of those cartoon angels on your shoulder or a Locād out Sunday school teacher, Abillyon implores you to ādo the right thing or youāll get smokedā in that heavenly voice of his. Abillyon is quite the hook-smith and this could be one of the best of the year. I also love the gleeful āIām on the other side with the Locs!,ā willfully declaring themselves as the āother sideā or the opps and celebrating it. Abillyon is a name some may recognize from the height of the GS9 era; from looking at his Soundcloud and quickly browsing other streaming sites, it doesnāt look like he has released a ton of music since then but he seems to be making a resurgence now. Poppa is in the middle of a strong run as well between this, āCrip Shitā and his mixtape āFucc Wit Da Cuz Vol. 2ā.
Dave East – No PorkĀ
East has me lacing up my Timbs and throwing on a big Marmot jacket with this first one. The smooth āNo Porkā might be the magnum opus of Eastās career thus far. Itās a āclassicā sounding NYC rap song done right without sounding dusty or too formulaic. This is that classic wintertime music, and the type of track that you want to play while youāre hunkering down at the crib or out on a rare nice sunny day in the winter. East goes into full-on nostalgia/story-telling mode as he takes us on a trip down memory lane through the ups and downs of his life growing up in Harlem.
āI told Shooter (see below) we gon get rich no matter what, they was happy when we was down now when we see them they made as fuck. We donāt got to live in the projects no more, I dropped out, but itās funny Iām hitting college on tour. I need āem fresh, cop em again if I copped em before. Charlotte Hornets top and bottom, colored aqua velour. Ahki used to let me in after the locks on the door. I aināt speeding, I aināt smoking, what the fuck you stopping me for? I hid my first .38 behind the socks in my drawer, my mama asked me why you got a gun, you not going to war? If I go get a cigarette there might be opps at the store.ā
Envy Caine ā Intro
Your host got caught lacking in his car trapped in the big east coast snow storm this month for over 12 hours on the same mile of highway but fuck it it takes more than a few snowflakes to kill the old Pink C. Not only am I alive and well but as you can see Iāve been on a NYC kick lately catching up on some of these young bols. Even though Iām hella late on this one from Brooklynās Envy Caine but Iāve been blasting it non-stop. This is the intro to hisĀ ā2 Many SituationsāĀ mixtape from the spring.
āDamn, My whole city AGAINST me, but fuck it cause I got all these killers with meā
I love the raw aggression/malice and the me against the world ethos that Envy delivers that bar with. Almost reminding me a bit of AR-Ab.
This song goes so hard/aggressive itās the new song I play when I want to get angrier in a situation, like in traffic or in a long line at a store, although thatās actually probably a counterproductive strategy on my part.
I also love the delivery of āOpp niggas throwing salt, tryna bad mouthā line. Salt kills snails but not Top Opposition.
Poppa da Don, Dave East, Tulito, Trap God Mula – Crip ShitĀ
Itās turning into winter fast out here, and you know what that means, itās that time of year to hunker down, lace up the Timbs, throw on a big Marmot jacket and see whatās going on in the big apple. These NYC Crips have really been coming out with some heat lately. Here, we get two of the best linking up and Brooklyn and Harlem joining forces with Poppa da Don and Dave East, along with Tulito and Trap God Mula/Sha Mula who may have the best verse of all on this one.
I love the pure energy and fervor Mula brings here as he says āSha Mula Iām the Trap God, probably made $100 thou in my backyard,ā pounding his fist as he raps it. āBlue flag 100 Locs Iām moving wocky nigga, 2-seater, I8 they couldnāt stop me nigga!ā Iām hyped off of the defiance heās spitting with.
East makes a typically solid contribution here as well, and also just released arguably the best song of his career, in my opinion, with āNo PorkĀ .āĀ Poppa da Don put out a total banger āSmokedā with Abillyon over the summer which I think is going to start blowing up even more because Meek Mill was talking about it recently.
My only very minor gripe with this one is that I wish they grabbed my manĀ Top DollaĀ and got him on this one this would have been perfect for him!
Peezy – PressureĀ
Peezy is so consistent, coming out with one if not more song every month that usually cracks and sometimes tops this list. We really need to take a minute to step back and appreciate the run that this guy is on, he’s forced his way into the argument for top rapper of 2018 in my opinion. You’ve got to love the triumphant ‘Got shot a couple times they was hoping I died, popped up buying Rollies out the store with my guys’ especially since everyone reallyĀ wasĀ briefly worried he died last winter.
Blueface – Respect My CrypnĀ
I have to admit I was a bit skeptical at first when I first heard about him but hadnāt listened to him yet, but Blueface is starting to grow on me. The āmop the floor and hide the wet sign just to catch him slippinā lineā is genius; I canāt believe no one came up with that before. And to his credit apparently he really does āpull up and bounce out with a briefcase when itās time to handle business,āĀ according to recent news reports.
I love his tone on the āIām an alpha male, aināt no bitch in me. Grown ass man, feed my familyā line, like heās incredulous that someone is even questioning if thatās the case. The āGive a fuck if he like it, he gon respect this Crippinā hook is also strangely infectious. Blueface is almost sounding like a less artsy/creative but more Crip west Coast Young Thug. And while he can be a bit over the top, he actually has the charisma and personality to pull it off.
Juice WRLD – All Girls are the Same/Juice WRLD – Lucid Dreams/Juice WRLD x Future – Fine China/Juice WRLD – Used To etc.Ā
At the risk of getting cyber-bullied by music critics with far better taste than me, I’ll admit that I went back and listened to a ton of Juice WRLD this month. Yeah, it’s some guy whining about girls but some of these songs are actually really dope. Some of these beats are absolute fire as well. I’m cheating here and putting all the Juice WRLD songs as one song. I’m going to ask my mom to drive me back to Hot Topic now. GO AHEAD AND CYBER BULLY ME, DO YOUR WORST!
Kiing Shooter ft. Dave East – 30 PercentĀ
A third Dave East appearance here for this month’s top 10; 30 Percent is the first track from his aggressively-named protege Kiing Shooterās mixtapeĀ āFucc the Doubtersā.Ā The interplay here as East and Shooter trade bars back and forth like a Styles and Jada is great. Whereas āNo Porkā is the type of song you could kick back and relax at home listening to, ā30 Percentā is more of an aggressive one youād blast when youāre in the mood to get rowdy. Shooter has a dope and pretty unique-sounding deep/ābluntā voice and raps over the top ignorant lines like āIām creeping through the back window hoping they donāt keep alarms, .40 on me just in case the dog or the grandma home.ā
So dark and foreboding from Kodak.
Metro Boomin’ x 21 Savage – Don’t Come out the House
This became more of a meme than a song at this point but I had to include it even though we’re at over 10 songs now. This was a risky gamble by 21 Savage that paid off – if done wrong, his whole whisper thing could have backfired and sounded way too intimate and sensual (Pause!) but somehow he pulls it off and makes it sound menacing. I feel like 21 Savage has went on a certain trajectory, when he was first making a name for himself he was releasing a lot of interesting stuff, then he sort of reached peak Savage and got oversaturated as he got super popular, and now that we’ve sort of crossed past that bridge he’s releasing some nice verse here and there again.
16 Friday Nov 2018
Posted in NYC, Uncategorized
Tags
Envy Caine – IntroĀ
Your host got caught lacking in his car trapped in the big east coast snow storm last night for over 12 hours on the same mile of highway but fuck it it takes more than a few snowflakes to kill the old Pink C. And not only am I alive and well I’ve been on a NYC kick lately catching up on some of these young bols. Even though I’m hella late on this one from Brooklyn’s Envy Caine but I’ve been blasting it non-stop. This is the intro to his ‘2 Many Situations’ mixtape from the spring.
“Damn, My whole city AGAINST me, but fuck it cause I got all these killers with me”
I love the raw aggression/malice and the me against the world ethos that Envy delivers that bar with. Almost reminding me a bit of AR-Ab.
This song goes so hard/aggressive it’s the new song I play when I want to get angrier in a situation, like in traffic or in a long line at a store, although that’s actually probably a counterproductive strategy on my part.
I also love the delivery of “Opp niggas throwing salt, tryna bad mouth” line. Salt kills snails but not Top Opposition.
07 Wednesday Nov 2018
Posted in Monthly Top 10, Uncategorized
Tags
42 Dugg, Bagboy Mel, Big Rizz, Cash Kidd, EWM Buck, EWM Kdoe, Kevin Gates, Kodak Black, Mozzy, Offset, Peezy, Rod Wave, T-Shyne, Travis Scott, Young Thug
I’m so late yet again bruhs… here’s my top 10 songs for October… I’m cheating here too because I’ve got about a dozen songs again this time
Kodak Black – ZezeĀ
This had to be number one for October. Or basically a tie between this and the Peezy/Cash Kidd song for 1A/1B.
From original article…
Zeze finally came out and it had your host walking into Midwestern travel plazas and Quaker Steak & Lubes going āBum bum bum bum bumā and pretending to play the steel drums all weekend while I was on a road trip.
The song with the highly-flammable steel drum beat that KodakĀ has been teasingĀ in snippets where heās dancing in his sensibly understated lavender church sweater for the last month or so finally came out, and Iām thankful to say that not only did it live to see the light of day unlike other fire snippets that never lived to see the light of day likeĀ ones from Kevin GatesĀ orĀ Ya BoyĀ Big Choo, it also lived up to the hype. The D.A. Doman beat could cure a lot of the worldās problems, you get a simple but incredibly catchy hook from Kodak, and solid verses from Kodak and Offset. An all around solid effort on all levels and certainly a song of the year contender for me. Also my favorite Kodak song Iāve heard since probably some time last year.
My only real gripe is Offsetās lazy āin the middle of the field like David Bekchamā line because it just sounds dated at this point and David Beckham wasnāt even really a central midfielder in the first place, he couldnāt have said someone more current/central like NāGolo Kante or Tanguy Ndembele or someone and rhymed soemthing with that? But hey cāest la vie.
Peezy ft. Cash Kidd, Big Rizz – Duckin’ WreckĀ
Peezy is out here living his best life right now. Seriously this guy is like a fine wine just getting better and better with time (Pause! Pause!). Peezy has emerged from being a consistent, reliable performer in the Detroit scene to now making a strong case for being at the very top of it (although Iām also partial to be FMB DZ but theyāre almost a 1a and 1b to me at this point). I saw the homieĀ Ray GarratyĀ postĀ Duckinā WreckĀ the other day and couldnāt wait to check it out. I usually post my favorite line or two from every song but in this case the entire verse just went so hard that I couldnāt even pick out one line and wanted to post the whole thingā¦
āWe aināt ducking wreck we want all the smoke; in a Hellcat fresher than a bar of soap. Sippinā syrup out the pint like I caught a cold, catch a nigga down bad he thought he saw a ghost. Heard he said he was a shooter and he keep a stick, still livinā with his mama, drivinā a piece of shit. Get your head knocked off you ever make the list, you aināt fuckinā with my son, boy get off my dick. Bentley trucks and G-Wagons riding down Ocean, rose gold dog tag off the diamond choker. Never played in no Finals but Iām buying trophies, Iām talking chains full of diamonds with the matching Rollies. Balling on these little niggas I was made to flex, youĀ canāt do it like me you better save your checks. Knockinā niggas off the board like Iām playing chesss, Team East, Ghetto Boys, nigga fuck the rest.ā
On a side note, as someone who drives a piece of garbage for a car, I usually donāt feel great when rappers call people out for driving cheap cars, but in this case I can definitley feel where Peezy is coming from when he says āHeard he said he was a shooter and he keep a stick, still livin at his mamaās house driving a piece of shitā as the guy across the street from me still lives with his mom and parks his garbage car in front of my house every day even though thereās a whole plethora of spots outside of his parentās house. Although in fairness I donāt think he calls himself a shooter like whoever Peezy is talking about.
Young Thug ft. T-Shyne – Real in My Veins
My favorite song off of Jeffrey’s ‘On the Run’ EP. This whole project was great I definitley listened to this a lot more times than Slime Language. Upon first listen the Elton John-assisted ‘High’ was an easy favorite but after a few more listens Real in My Veins emerged as the crown jewel of the tape. I don’t know much about T-Shyne but I really liked his verse here and upon further research it looks like he features Max B on his album so he’s good in my book. I have to listen to that next. I love Thug’s chorus ‘I’ve got real running through my veins’ and the message, and I love the part where T-Shyne says ‘I called my dad and told him that we made it.”
Rod Wave – Way UpĀ
Man I’ve really been sleeping on this guy. Nice song and video from Rod Wave out of Tampa, as if Florida needed more good artists. This was on his Hunger Games 2 album that came out a couple of months ago but the video just came out a few weeks ago. I remember this guy was talking about Rod Wave a year ago.Ā
I slept on Hunger Games 2 for way too long. It’s too early to say but the tape is a borderline classic in my opinion, you can listen to the first 6 tracks over and over again with no skips and it stays flammable the whole time.
Young Thug ft. Elton John – High
So this happened. When I first saw this my initial thought was that this looks like one of those collaborations that sounds like it should be really good but will inevitably end up being bad/disappointing, but it actually did end up being good. It sounds like it would be a wierd combination, but then again, I can picture Sir Elton having a decent amount in common with Thugga.
Kevin Gates – Discussion
The opener off of Gates’ excellent ‘Luca Brasi 3’ project which had a couple of songs featured here last month and keeps producing more and more gems the more times I listen to it. I love the intro of Gates talking about wanting to get back from jail to see his kids and the hook goes super hard.
Kevin Gates – Great ManĀ
LOOK IN THE MIRROR, AND I SEE A GREAT MAN!
I started writing this top 10 before the video for this song came out but it looks like now it has a video which is blowing up. The song is great on its own accord; Gates is really baring his soul here and showing what elevates him above the run of the mill artist but the video adds a nice additional layer of depth to what he’s saying. This is the type of song I would listen to every morning at the gym, if I wasn’t too lazy to go to the gym.
Mozzy – Run to the MansionĀ
Dope song by Mozzy and my favorite off of Gangland Landlord. People who read this blog might be surprised because for whatever reason I just haven’t really written about him/mentioned him much but gun to my head Mozzy is one of my favorite current rappers and if I had started this blog say 2-3 years ago instead of in the last year and a half there would have been about 50 Mozzy articles in a row on it. For whatever reason I haven’t been bumping him as much lately but Gangland Landlord was good and I have to get back into his recent stuff and check it out again.
“We got the drums for the hammers/they need the drugs in Atlanta/they got my youngin’ in the slammer/he carry guns on the campus/they be on the run for a murder/they just gon’ run to the masion”
The album outro, ‘Tear Me Down’ was really good too.
Rod Wave – Tomorrow /Rod Wave – Praying GrandmothersĀ
Two more Rod Wave bangers I’m hella late on. This guy definitley has a gift. Incredible voice, great charisma/a lot of soul, and dope songs. He should definitley be a bigger star and maybe he will be soon.
Quando Rondo – Kiccin ShitĀ
Always down for some new Quando Rondo. Always melodic AF. I didn’t realize he was a Crip until this song.
42 Dugg, Peezy, EWM Kdoe, Bagboy Mel, Cash Kidd, EWM Buck – STFU
More heat from Peezy/Cash Kidd & co. Great group cut. I’ve been meaning to post this one for a while after seeing it on Sislafami a while ago and I’ve been bumping it a whole bunch again this month so I figured this is as good a place as any to mention it.
I’m not sure who’s who in this video besides for Peezy and Cash Kidd obviously but I like the first guy he’s got charisma and some good bars,Ā “I got 100 on this bitch I don’t miss often. Back to back Cats I don’t miss walking” and I love when the third guy says “If they ain’t got no money have them take it out the church offering”
“Got it out the mud I ain’t never did a scam nigga, RIP to all the fallen soldiers, free the fam nigga, shut the fuck up if you ain’t got 100 bands nigga.”
On an interesting side note, at least to me, I’ve noticed a couple of times now, like here in Peezy’s line ‘Got it out the mud I ain’t never did a scam nigga’ line, it seems like there’s a clear hierarchy amongst people engaged in criminal activity, with dealers/robbers etc. clearly being above people doing scams in the pecking order and looking down on them.
17 Wednesday Oct 2018
Posted in Down South, Florida, Kodak Black, Uncategorized
Tags
Kodak Black ft. Travis Scott, Offset – ZezeĀ
Zeze finally came out and it had your host walking into Midwestern travel plazas and Quaker Steak & Lubes going ‘Bum bum bum bum bum’ and pretending to play the steel drums all weekend while I was on a road trip.
The song with the highly-flammable steel drum beat that Kodak has been teasing in snippets where he’s dancing in his sensibly understated lavender church sweater for the last month or so finally came out, and I’m thankful to say that not only did it live to see the light of day unlike other fire snippets that never lived to see the light of day like ones from Kevin Gates or Ya Boy Big Choo, it also lived up to the hype. The D.A. Doman beat could cure a lot of the world’s problems, you get a simple but incredibly catchy hook from Kodak, and solid verses from Kodak and Offset. An all around solid effort on all levels and certainly a song of the year contender for me. Also my favorite Kodak song I’ve heard since probably some time last year.
My only real gripe is Offset’s lazy ‘in the middle of the field like David Bekcham’ line because it just sounds dated at this point and David Beckham wasn’t even really a central midfielder in the first place, he couldn’t have said someone more current/central like N’Golo Kante or someone and rhymed soemthing with that? But hey c’est la vie.
03 Wednesday Oct 2018
Posted in Monthly Top 10, Uncategorized
Tags
Ampichino, Cellski, Clyde Carson, Cookie Money, Joe Blow, Kevin Gates, Lil AJ, Lil Blood, Money Man, Philthy Rich, Prezi, Rich the Factor, Sauce Walka, Sherwood Marty, T-Rell, The Jacka, Trapboy Freddy
It’s October but before I can start handing out all kinds of spooky treats for the new month I have to post my belated top 10 songs for September. I didn’t realize I didn’t post as much as I thought in September so a bunch of these would have normally had their own entry. After a kind of lackluster August it was a great September
Sauce Walka – Ghetto GospelĀ
This isĀ Sauce Walka at his downright, well, sauciest. Spitting some real knowledge/life experience over a shimmery beat apparently from Kingdom Hearts (and French Montana). I canāt blame him for having his mind on boudan; and all this talk of boudan has got me feeling like I’mĀ Kevin Belton. This edges out a couple of Lil AJ songs and a couple of Rich the Factors for song of September for me and itās too early to say but definitley could be in the mix for a song of the year contender.
Lil AJ ft. Clyde Carson – Stay with MeĀ
Come on this needs more than 200 views. A typically solid, yeoman effort from Lil AJ off of his new āLash Money 4ā mixtape. You always know what youāre going to get with Lil AJ, nothing crazy but just solid, workman-like bay area rap. The hook from Clyde Carson is great too and I love the synthy beat. There are a couple of other slaps on this tape, my other favorites aside from this one were āLivinā with cameos from Lil Blood and Joe Blow and the Nef the Pharaoh-assisted āPain.ā Overall a solid mixtape from Lil AJ. Side note ā is it just me or have these mid-level Bay rappers like AJ/Joe Blow been talking about trips to the UK in every other song lately?
Lil AJ ft. Joe Blow, Lil Blood – Livin’Ā
Speaking of Joe Blow and overseas travel… another highlight from Lash Money 4. This is more like it with 50,000+ views. I love Joe Blow’s not so humble boast stating that his landscaping bill costs more than his enemies’ entire mortgage. I’m not sure if that’s a product of BlowĀ reallyĀ balling out on landscaping or his enemies just sensibly not taking on more house than they can afford. Lil Blood was an entertaining addition here as always.
Philthy Rich & Cookie Money ft. Prezi, T-Rell – U Ain’tĀ
Great song closing out the new Philthy Rich/Cookie Money collaboration. You’ve got a nice hook from Prezi and Philthy Rich talking about hosting charity basketball games but nobody cheering for him, what else do you need? But my favorite part here is Cookie Money’s verse especially this line, “8 years old, Daddy fighting fed cases. Left on the block, Cookie chasing dead faces. They ain’t really in the streets bruh these niggas faking, (??) with a Glock I put my trust in Satan.”
Rich the Factor – Do it GoobaĀ
The unmistakably slappy intro to CEO of the Blacktop and tied for my favorite song on it with Pay me in Blow and Flashy depending on what kind of mood I’m in. Rich might be in New York, hitting the go gos, but he’s seen it all before so he’s taking it easy, taking it all in but staying fresh for his business meeting the next morning.
“I’m on south beach right by the coast. Pushing a speed boat looking at dolphins, having money nigga fuck what it costing.” That’s quintessential El Factor right there. I love ‘having money’ as a verb.
Rich the Factor – Flashy
Another slap from Rich the Factor. I saw Sislafami talking about this one a while ago and for some reason I listened to CEO of the Blacktop 2 before IĀ ever checked out CEO of the Blacktop which came out a few months before, but I ended up bumping it in its entirety probably about a dozen times this month. The whole tape is so good. This is textbook Rich the Factor right here, chilling at a gas station in his black tee. “I’ve been getting money with my proteges, I’m up in Foot Action with my proteges.” It looks like this video is in Houston and not Kansas City but Rich gets love down there too. Really the only thing i DON’T like about this video is that broken-in-half cup from the gas station he’s walking around with for his ashes, I get OCD about my gas station glassware and something about it keeps bothering me!
Rich the Factor – Pay me in BlowĀ
This is the triumphant/celebrating with his crew type song off of CEO of the Blacktop. I love the idea of The Factor walking into a bar and a bunch of different fine women literally falling over each other for the honor of buying him a drink. Also, don’t think that Rich is just a Kansas City or Midwest rapper, he’s rocking his mink coat all the way out in Anchorage, Alaska on tour. “We independent but compete with the majors; fuck a diss song we get to the meat and potatas. 100 years later still playing the playa. ”
Money Man – My Socks
Cool song off the new Money Man EP; I have to start listening to more Money Man.
Sherwood Marty ft. Trapboy Freddy – TicketĀ
“Trap fashion my attire, $200,000 in the tire”
Good collab from two up and coming youngsters from Louisiana and Dallas. Trapboy Freddy repping Mexico super hard here. Pause but does anyone know what kind of jeans those are that Sherwood Marty is rocking with the stripe on the side?
The Jacka & Ampichino, Joe Blow, Cellski – Pain Disappear
Probably my favorite song off of that posthumous Jacka/Ampichino project that came out in August. Beat and hook were so on point. Also – a SECOND Joe Blow cameo on this month’s top 10 list! RIP to the Jacka!
Kevin Gates – Shakin BackĀ
Alright this is cheating because it’s an 11th song and it actually would be towards the top of the list except I only heard it at the very end of the month and I’m posting this in October. This is the finished version of that en fuego snippet Gates posted on Instagram that I was writing about in May.Ā Ā Sadly a bunch of those look like they’re gone from Instagram now and a couple of them don’t seem to be on Luca Brasi 3 so they may be lost in the sands of time. But thankfully with this one, Gates didn’t pull his best Big Choo impression and tease it for a year and a half to torment the Martorialist.
20 Thursday Sep 2018
Posted in Bay Area, Uncategorized
Tags
Lil AJ ft. Clyde Carson – Stay With Me
Come on this needs more than 200 views. A typically solid, yeoman effort from Lil AJ off of his new ‘Lash Money 4’ mixtape. You always know what you’re going to get with Lil AJ, nothing crazy but just solid, workman-like bay area rap. The hook from Clyde Carson is great too and I love the synthy beat. There are a couple of other slaps on this tape, my other favorites aside from this one were ‘Livin’ with cameos from Lil Blood and Joe Blow and the Nef the Pharaoh-assisted ‘Pain.’ Overall a solid mixtape from Lil AJ. Side note – is it just me or have these mid-level Bay rappers like AJ/Joe Blow been talking about trips to the UK in every other song lately?
06 Thursday Sep 2018
Posted in Monthly Top 10, Uncategorized
Tags
ALLBLACK, Cuban Doll, Key Glock, Nef the Pharaoh, Philthy Rich, Rexx Life Raj, ShooterGang Kony, Shoreline Mafia, Young Dolph
This was honestly a pretty weak month for music/new music for me, and that lack of enthusiasm mixed with the August heat is why this August top 10 is about two weeks late.Ā I had been somewhat excited about Young Thug’s group album or whatever you’d call it but honestly no tracks on it really stood out to me at all, it wasn’t bad but just nothing memorable. I didn’t know a new Nef album was coming out and when I saw that I thought it would save the month for me, but I felt like aside from one or two songs the rest of it was fairly forgettable and certainly not amongst his best work or the heights we know he can hit. The E-40 album was a solid late-career effort for a legend in the game so you’ve got to respect it but didn’t really have anything notable to me either. I wasn’t even feeling the new 6ix9ine collaboration with 50 Cent which promised to be a magnum opus in multi-generational New York ignorant rap but underwhelmed so that’s how you know something is wrong. On the plus side, I did start checking out ShooterGang Kony for the first time so it wasn’t a total wash. Apparently a FMB DZ/Philthy Rich collab project also came out on the last day of August but I’ll have to save that for September since I just found out about it.
ShooterGang Kony – Numba 1 Stunna
This of course had to be number one for August 2018. The mix of the flow, great line after great line, dance moves and fly Liga MX sportswear instantly propelled ShooterGang Kony to the top spot for August.
Nef the Pharaoh – LeftyĀ
Nef makes an appearance in the top spot with his appearance in the Numba 1 Stunna video but he’s not actually in the song. On the other hand, Lefty was one of the best tracks his somewhat hit or miss Big Chang Theory album. The chorus for this one is insanely catchy. I also like how in typical Nef fashion he curtly chastizes someone for wearing True Religion, asking them if they really didn’t get the memo that True Religion went bankrupt. So not only attacking them for being passe in a fashion sense but also taking it next level by criticizing the actual corporation’s unenviable fiscal position. So Nef.
Nef the Pharaoh ft. ALLBLACK, Cuban Doll – 86Ā
My other favorite song from The Big Chang Theory. And it wouldn’t be a top 10 list from this summer if it didn’t have an ALLBLACK guest verse on it. It may be a bit economically reckless, but if nothing else youāve got to respect the sheer gall of Nefās blatant rebuke of one of his primary sources of income; āFuck them stupid ass casinos, dumb ass clubs.ā In essence, he isnāt happy with these places of commerce that serve as his sources of income because theyāll frequently throw him out for acting TOO much of a fool or for bringing weapons in.
I love the bite in Nefās voice when he says, āDropped a 4 in my Jones like IāmĀ DonnellāĀ
But by far my favorite part is when he declares, āI saw you tuck your chains in when we were in the club, you were glad I got kicked out,Ā the life of a scrub.āĀ I love how heās almost becoming this omniscient narrator here and narrating the guyās life;Ā the life of a scrubĀ as his voice shifts to a mix of disdain and almost pity for the said scrub.
Philthy Rich ft. Rexx Life Raj, ALLBLACK – Dope Boy
This was my top song from July and to be honest I’ve still been bumping it all August. At some point when I stop being lazy this one really needs its own post as its in contention for my favorite song of the year for 2018 so far. Between Philthy’s great opening verse, Rexx Life Raj’s incredible wardrobe and great half-singing half-rapping contribution, and of course the ALLBLACK cameo it doesn’t get much better than this in terms of 2018 rap.
Young Dolph ft. Key Glock – We MajorĀ
Saw this one on Dirty Glove Bastard’s always-excellent Spotify playlist and loved it. Dolph can always be a bit hit or miss to me to be honest but this one is a legit banger. Dolph just brings so much raw power on this one as he booms out “Mobbin’ in the Bentley smoking moon… rocks” in his unmistakable flow. Dolph also voices some support for the ancient Christian practice of tithing here, “Baby mama mad she said you live like a bachelor, sold 100 pounds and gave 10% to the pastor.” I love the random ad lib of someone just saying “church” afterwards. Dolph just comes out swinging on this one and it feels great blasting out of the car.
ShooterGang Kony – My City
This isn’t new but I saw it on Rap Music Hysteria last month and its what got me onto my current ShooterGang Kony wave so I’m including it on this list. Like the wise sage from that site said, “Kony works in the boilerplate nĆ¼-Bay style so quickly becoming indistinguishable from its Detroit counterpart, perhaps realizing the world-flattening that hysteric early-’00s rap millenarians saw in the internet’s rise, but, like, who really fucking cares? It makes me feel big and powerful when I’m driving in my fast car.” Mozzy definitley has a shrewd signing on his hands here.
ShooterGang Kony – All In
Not a new song but this was one of my favorites from my hunt for more old Kony loosies and mixtapes. The beat isn’t the Beanie Sigel type of ‘Feel it in the Air’ beat it’s more of the Phil Collins ‘Feel it in the Air’ variety and Kony floats over it.
Philthy Rich – Social Media GangstasĀ
Philthy Rich over a Fat Joe/Ashanti sample? Not exactly what I was expecting but alright I’ll take it. This actually ended up being a pretty fun song/pleasant surprise in the middle of Philthy’s NERNL4 mixtape which I guess is from May. “A bird on the microwave one on the stove, I used to heat the house up by turning on the stove.”
“Looking out the loft to see the white man play golf, sorry I didn’t make it to the funeral rest in peace Frost.”
Apparently one of his females is also complaining that all the steaks and lobsters he’s eating aren’t good for him, which I think may be the most universally relateable thing Philthy has ever said.
Shoreline Mafia – Foreign
In general I agree with the always-wise Martorialist’s edict that “Shoreline MafiaĀ are just Brockhampton if they’d met in the NoJumper YouTube comments rather than on the KanyeToThe message board,” but I can’t lie they’re kind of growing on me. I don’t know if it’s just that I didn’t hear a ton else that I loved in August or that I’m starting to like them more and more but these coastal Mafiosos clock in with two songs in August’s top 10 from their Party PackĀ EP that came out on the last day of the month. ForeignĀ has a nice, low-key but hard beat and they go pretty hard and ignorant on it. Nothing crazy here but a nice ignorant song that feels good in the car.
Shoreline Mafia – Boot It Up
The beat for this one off of the sameĀ EPĀ is just so icy and twinkly, it’s a nice book end toĀ Foreign.Ā
03 Monday Sep 2018
Posted in Bay Area, California, Uncategorized
ShooterGang Kony – Numba 1 Stunna
Vallejo youngster ShooterGang Kony has all the makings of a star – He’s got a great flow, some nice lines, he’sĀ charismatic on camera and he’s in good company with Mozzy and Nef the Pharaoh rocking with him, but perhaps most of all, what I’m most impressed by is ShooterGang Kony’s Club America tracksuit. In fact, I’m in awe of his entire crew’s impressive collection of Liga MX Sportswear, from the aforementioned title star’s Club America ensemble (which, I may add, I couldn’t even find online to buy so he definitley went to a real tienda to grab it), to his friend’s Cruz Azul jersey, to the guy’s coat at 0:15 (not sure what team that is or even if it’s a team at all from the logo). Even Nef himself is getting in on the footy-inspired sportswear with his Kappa hoodie although unfortunately he didn’t commit to a specific Mexican top flight team like his more worldly Vallejo brethren.
On a side note, I love the setting for this video, some sort of haunted/abandoned ranch or alfalfa farm outside of Vallejo? Not to mention the slick dance moves and the cameos from Nef as well as the Mozzy chain.
“I ain’t go to college I’m a blood like a Treetop, went to one class in my bag was a knee Glock”
“You Mysterio my pockets on Bautista”
“Bitch I’m King Tut, switch lanes tell em beast up”
“Nigga, fight who? I’ma give you hella heat rocks, weed stop, always in the hood like a street knock”
The chorus is of course him stunting but it’s also a message of self-reliance and individuality. “I’m the number 1 stunna I don’t need nobody’s help, you wake up every day trying to be somebody else.” This almost sounds like it could be a Nef-style brag.
You can also never go wrong with a Chif-Fil-A mention.
I’ve been bumping Kony’s new Kony Ginobli mixtape all Labor Day weekend and since he’s fairly new to me I’ve also been going back and listening to his previous tapes March Madness and Still Kony. This is my favorite song by him so far but he has plenty of other slaps, like the Rap Music Hysteria-highlightedĀ My City, as well and I’m sure there are plenty more to come.
On a side note, is any region having a better summer output-wise than the Bay Area/general Northern California area as a whole? Between ShooterGang Kony, Nef the Pharaoh’s new album, ALLBLACK, and even a new E-40 album, (and even though he’s from LA I almost want to throw Greedo into this mix because of the other project with Nef and all his collaborations with ALLBLACK).
