Lav's Music Corner

Pusha T is a Virginia Beach rapper with a history in the genre that rivals almost anyone. He broke out as a member of Clipse alongside his brother and was a frequent Pharrell collaborator throughout this era. His solo career took on a new life alongside his association with Kanye West and his G.O.O.D Music label and this is where some of his most acclaimed records show up, including his most recent in 2018, Daytona . Review By Lav: If you know me, read this blog often, or follow me on any social media you know how much I love Pusha T. That admiration comes first and foremost from a long running and extremely consistent creative output across his entire career. While I've only gotten to review Pusha T once so far it was a hell of an album and perfectly representative of his consistent execution and unmatched lethal delivery. So I was obviously very excited for what was coming next and after two singles I really enjoyed, wall to wall production from Pharrell and Kanye and some positi...

This was yet another busy week for both new singles and new album alike. While I've been sorting through hours and hours of music I have to say that I'm quite impressed by the collection of singles we got and narrowing it down to this list was actually pretty difficult. Enjoy <3 5.  First Class  - Jack Harlow For the most part up to this point Jack Harlow has impressed mainly with his larger than life bragging, catchy hooks and general ability to avoid doing anything problematic. Not only has this song established him as a force in commercial music but it also set a kind of new bar for his level of creativity with this track being built around a sample of Fergie's  Glamourous . While it still has the scope of a simple pop rap song he pulls it off very well.  Listen 4.  Water Table  - Cola This might be the best single Cola has released yet and it looks back to some of the best Ought songs for its foundation. The steady drums and gentle echoey plucks of g...

Drake is the biggest artist on earth, and frankly it really isn't even close. From his streaming dominance, to his radio dominance to his chart dominance across numerous genres Drake has been an absolutely unstoppable force of commercial music for years. After setting numerous Billboard and streaming records with his 2018 record Scorpion  Drake has already started tearing down his previous accomplishments with Certified Lover Boy  in just the records first few days.  Review By Lav: Compared to the general public I've never been one of the massive Drake fans that you most likely know and interact with on Twitter occasionally. But compared to most music critics I've been far more positive on Drake's output, particularly in recent years, than many major outlets. While Views  and Scorpion  are both undeniably bloated there is also no denying the highlights that run throughout. Drake overcame this on his More Life  playlist which featured contributions from a nu...

Kanye West is an artist who really needs no introduction. One of the biggest and most controversial figures in popular music who has maintained a devoted fanbase and commercial success for nearly two decades. After a trio of stadium shows where unfinished versions of his 10th studio album were played to fans, Donda  finally dropped at the ever so unconventional time of 8 am on a Sunday morning.  Review By Lav: Well here it is, the record everyone has been talking about. For the better part of a month the general music community has been caught up in the tailspin of Donda  that Kanye's biggest fans have been toiling in for months if not even years going back to Yandhi . So what are my credentials. While I'm not a Kanye stan who defends his actions regardless of quality or context, I am a big fan of his music with records like College Dropout , My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy  and The Life Of Pablo  being among the best high profile hip hop records of their era....

Here is a quick summary of all the records I reviewed this month. With some major production issues and a lack of true highlights Shadows  is one of the most inconsequential rap albums of the year Review After a long break fro releases under the Caribou moniker Dan Snaith returns with a bright, catchy and relentlessly sweet series of glittery electronic songs that sound so refreshing this year. Review The biggest fault on Changes  is that no part of who Justin is as a person or an artist makes into any of these generic focus-grouped contemporary pop tunes. Review Eternal Atake  may have sounded cool in 2017. But three years past Uzi's peak the record is bloated, behind the times and is filled with songs that sound like nobody involved even tried. Review The Uzi record that did a much better job at living up to expectations was his surprise second release. Filled with great features, much improved beats and a newfound swagger in Uzi's delivery LUV ...

Jay Electronica is a New Orleans based rapper and producer who became one of the first in the rap game to truly blow up just based off of independently released internet singles towards the end of the 2000's. After a decade of loosey singles here and there features and rumors of an oncoming album his debut record is finally here. The album was announced shortly before its release and had very little promotion, which is why many were so surprised to see that this record features just as much Jay-Z as it does Jay Electronica. Review By Lavender: I am in the boat with many other people who have been anticipating this debut record for a long time. It feels like Jay Electronica just let hype build and build for a decade to the point where when his debut finally arrived it would be impossible to live up to the hype. So for the record to come in at under 40 minutes and basically be a collaboration album with Jay-Z there is certainly reason for some long suffering fans to be a littl...

Beyonce is well, Beyonce. One of the biggest stars in the world and a pioneering force in pop music. After missing her original Coachella headlining set due to her pregnancy and being replaced by Lady Gaga she returned the next year and played one of the most electric and exciting headlining sets the festival has ever seen. Now just over a year later Homecoming  is the recorded performance of that very show as well as an accompanying concert video released on Netflix.  Review By Lavender: This is gonna be a quick review as this is a brilliant live album, but one I wouldn't recommend listening to right away. Beyonce delivers one explosive performance after another as she takes a deep dive through the biggest hits and fan favorites across her entire career. The performance features guests appearances from Jay-Z, Solange, Destiny's Child and J Balvin and is a brilliant collection of Beyonce tunes that will go down as one of the great live albums of modern music. But th...

The Top 10 Artists Of 2017 While the Albums, Songs and EPs list celebrate individual achievements of greatness artist of the Year takes a step further. Everyone comes into the start of a year in different places and everyone leaves a changed artist, whether drastic or minor. The Top Artist Of The Year has always been one of the more subjective lists as it takes into account the perception of an artist beyond their music where opinions differ even further. Acts like Kendrick Lamar and LCD Soundsystem released albums that would easily land a first timer on this list, but when compared to their greater discographies we're left to wonder what could have been. These 15 artists left no room for wishing as they set out to have fantastic 2017's across the board. Honorable Mentions Alvvays In 2017 Alvvays proved they had staying power in the Dream Pop genre, a feat most bands without "Beach" in their name have struggled to achieve. A trio of fantastic singles and ...