Lil Uzi Vert – That Way (2020)
LBM Lil Joe – How You Want It (2020)
Rio da Yung OG – Copy Cats (2020)
Rio da Yung OG x RMC Mike x Lil E – Still Spice Talkin (2020)
Lil Uzi Vert – Baby Pluto (2020)
Big Wan – Eggshell (2020)
Preddy Boy P ft. CML, Philthy Rich – U Playin (2020
Rio da Yung OG – Groovy (2020)

Lil Uzi Vert – That Way

Maybe it’s just the cabin fever from these coronavirus ‘stay at home’ orders kicking in but I’m enjoying Lil Uzi’s Backstreet Boys beat/hook jack way more than I expected to or should. While I had long adhered to The Martorialist’s decree of not taking rappers with nose rings seriously (with the exception of ALLBLACK  and maybe a couple of others), I can’t lie, Uzi is finally starting to grow on me; the production and some of the melodies on this ‘Eternal Atake’ album and the outtakes album he put out right after are fire and I love the album cover.

I never expected to hear a rap song interpolating the Backstreet Boys’ I Want it That Way that contains the line ‘They laugh at me because I’m Emo’, let alone enjoy it, but here we are. It’s like rap, 90s bubblegum pop from a ‘Now That’s What I Call Music’ CD and goth all joining forces and coming together as one. The song drops off a bit in the second half but the big bombastic hook saves it.

There’s just something almost triumphant about the way Uzi chooses such an unexpected/difficult to execute concept to close the album, makes it a hit, and croons ‘If I wake up don’t make no money that’s a sad day, 2500 for the shirt that’s what the tag say’ all over it.

LBM Lil Joe – How You Want It

This unexpected and very effective Tupac ‘However You Want It’ beat jack was a pleasant surprise on LBM Lil Joe’s excellent ‘Slapp or Die 3’ mixtape that Crimedawg put me onto and after many spins became hands down my favorite song on the tape. This is a fun one to drive around to.

The hook is fire “However you want it, come to your city, I’m busting down in the trap really shipping out packs lil nigga I’m the plug for real,” with the fidelity to the original Tupac hook and LBM Lil Joe’s gruff voice making it even better, and I love the McDonald’s analogy at the beginning. LBM Lil Joe is evaluating his trap with the business acumen of a manager from McDonald’s corporate headquarters; billions and billions served, have it your way.

Rio da Yung OG – Copy Cats 

“What up Sav?”

Rio might be the only thing out there that’s sicker than coronavirus. Regeneron needs to get Rio in the lab and have him cough up a few bars for them to use create the vaccine and save the world.

“30 shots hanging out the glock look like a hockey stick, 3 of Wok in a Chinese pop ain’t no jollies in it. Walk into the club wearing a trench coat with a shotty in it. Thought I seen an opp in here I was probably tripping. Put a nigga in a box I’ll Roddy Rich him. Bought some more black Balenciagas and caught a body in them.”

THE GOAT HAS SPOKEN.

Other rappers are walking into the club wearing tight jeans and effeminate designer shirts; Rio is just fine walking in looking like a suburban teenage Goth that may or may not have brought a strap to school. (Whether it’s Rio or ALLBLACK, I always get a kick out of real street rappers adapting the imagery of school shooters).

“The tips on these .308 bullets look like Jolly Ranchers, pole on me in the strip club damn near shot a dancer”

The imagery of the bullet tips looking like Jolly Ranchers is too good, and when you combine it with Rio’s comically ever-present casual disdain for exotic dancers it makes for a classic Rio line. This guy really is on his own plane of existence right now.

I also love Rio’s self-reflective earnestness when he says ‘Street nigga; when I jump out fresh I still look kind of tacky.”

Rio’s “City on My Back” is out now and after a couple of listens last night/this morning it definitley does not disappoint. And I’m sure I’ll listen to it about a dozen more times this weekend while I’m trying to ride out the coronavirus storm at my crib, so I’m sure there will be more posts about it. I’m going to try to actually buy this one to try to support Rio for all the entertainment he’s given me at this point.

P.S. I hope all you guys are safe/healthy out there with all this craziness going on

Rio da Yung OG x RMC Mike x Lil E – Still Spice Talkin

Rio dropped so much heat on City on My Back and now he’s back with even more heat that wasn’t even on the album. Rio links up again with RMC Mike to form their usual dynamic duo and also adds in his other frequent and lesser-known collaborator, Lil E who he did the ‘Professional Shit Talking‘ album with to morph into a triple threat as they rip this beat from Baby on the Track. For all the songs each has done together, I think this is the first time I’ve heard Rio, Mike, and E on the same song. Hotbox Social described Rio and E’s ‘Buy the Block’ as “basically the last regional rap song”. It’s too bad Peezy is still locked up and couldn’t get in on this one –  Rio and the boys really are the new Death Row.

It seems almost impossible for Rio to go harder than he already has but he somehow finds a way to keep pushing the envelope –

“I shop on one side of the set, I don’t sky walk, just seen an opp strolling, now that nigga sky walking”

“Don’t even know what dog drive, bro just shoot at every white Charger”

I’ve said before I love when everyone yells along with the line at the end of a verse to add emphasis i.e. here in ‘We’ve got the city hot from all the spice talking, BITCH SHUT THE FUCK UP WHEN ME, E AND MIKE TALKING, or on Big Wan’s ‘Fast Lane Lifestyle‘, or Rio and Big Colin’s ‘Ghetto Boyz‘

Mike comes roaring in as abrasive as ever. “Whole team doing good we worked our ass off. Doc I need an 8 of red I got a bad cough. Chilling in the trap with my fiend drinking Mad Dog.” And they really did work harder than anyone else, these guys have the best work ethic in the rap game right now. Mike is at home in the trap, he’s not just serving the fiends he’ll drink some Mad Dog with them.

And then Lil E comes barging in – don’t act like Lil E isn’t spitting he actually low-key may have the best verse and bring the most energy out of all of them on this one. “Nigga play with me? He might as well buy a coffin. Shot a nigga’s house up everybody in the house crawling.”

Would love to get more songs with all 3 of them on it or even a whole project, but I’m being greedy since ‘City on My Back’ just came out. Even the rest of the guys in Rio’s crew that don’t rap look intense.

P.S. – Is that the American Gothic painting on Rio’s hat??

Lil Uzi Vert – Baby Pluto 

BRUH JUST CALL ME BABY PLUTO FROM NOW ON

Something about those opening notes and the ‘Welcome to Eternal Atake’ just gets me hyped up every time

Big Wan – Eggshell 

Another highlight off of Big Wan’s ‘Dogslayers’ tape gets a video, although actually with the whole tape being about 13 minutes I guess the whole tape is really just the highlight. Glad to see/hear Big Wan is free.

Crimedawgbylaw summed this one up nicely better than I ever could and hits the nail right on the head  – ”

Every once in a while, I don’t realize how much I love a song until the music video drops and that was the case with this cut from Wan’s recent Dogslayers mixtape. Melo and RichieWitDaHitz’ sprawling piano on the intro perfectly matches the floating drone shots over Milwaukee and the image of Wan standing on a balcony with his arms spread out like the wings of an airplane. The city is Wan’s, despite recent legal trouble – as shown at the start of the video, Wan was one of 17 arrested in a drug trafficking investigation that recovered 900 grams of heroin, over 150 grams of a mixture containing fentanyl, 1.5 kilograms of cocaine, 20 kilograms of marijuana, nearly $300,000 in U.S. currency, and 53 firearms. For the time being, however, Wan is back on the streets and poised to become Milwaukee’s hottest young rapper.”

Preddy Boy P ft. CML, Philthy Rich – U Playin 

CML is the go-to feature now for pimp rap. Nice one by Preddy Boy P fresh off a spot on last year’s top songs list with ‘Stay Dangerous‘ now with another banger featuring Lav and Philthy Rich. CML’s verse is on point as always, this is textbook CML right here.

One thing is clear, CML, Preddy Boy and the rest of the gang do not tolerate renegades.

“I’m the only nigga living on my block. I came a long way from hustling on that block.”

Rio da Yung OG – Groovy

Rio may be one of the hardest rappers out but don’t for a second think that he’s not groovy.

Every once in a while, I worry and think to myself wow rap has been around so long that I wonder if eventually rappers are going to run out of new things to say that actually rhyme, but then you have a creative maestro like Rio come up with something like this rhyme scheme here and you realize that he’ll never run out –

“Pop a perc drink a deuce of red that’s a perfect high/now I’m finna smoke half an ounce of turtle pie/auntie hide this brick for me, pull up your gurdle high/the green got a shell on my back I’m ninja turtle high”

Let’s hope Rio really makes good on his claim here that he might ‘drop 100 tapes this year I’m Gucci.’ I’ve been saying for a while now that Rio is the new Gucci in his prime.