Lav's Music Corner

Review by Lav:  I was pretty damn excited for this album. From his breakthrough around 2015 leading up to his sophomore album i am > i was , 21 Savage underwent one of the greatest and quickest artistic improvements I've ever witnessed in hip hop. That left me pretty excited for what he's gonna do next. While his output in the years since certainly hasn't been bad, he hasn't continued progressing artistically in the way I had hoped. I was really excited to see him cross paths with Metro Boomin for a second time on 2020's Savage Mode II  but the album didn't really live up to the hype I had for it. On the other hand, I was pretty surprised by just how good his collab album with Drake Her Loss  was in 2022.  That led us to american dream , the long-awaited third solo studio album from Savage. The album dropped with no singles and was only announced just a few days before its release. Without much to set expectations for the record in advance, I'll start the

Contemporary hip hop is having the down year of all down years. Until Lil Uzi dropped Pink Tape  it hadn't even had a number-one album at any point in 2023. That's why I largely felt okay putting it on the back burner as none of the records were exactly critical darlings either. Now, before Travis Scott comes along and resets the game later this month I'm taking a look at some of the biggest release of the year so far. Business Is Business  - Young Thug I assumed that this would be like many releases made when an artists is unable to be directly involved in the artistic process for one reason or another. But I've also been a big fan of Thugger in the past and I thought his deep cuts might be at least on par with some of his contemporaries studio material, I was right. This album isn't amazing or anything and it's far from his best but it also still manages to stand above many of his contemporaries despite his incarceration. Firstly, the album's 46-minute run

JID is an Atlanta rapper who first rose to prominence as a member of the Spillage Village collective and a signee on J. Cole's Dreamville label imprint. His previous studio album DiCaprio 2  came out in 2018 and drastically rose his profile as both a commercial artist and a critical darling. Review by Lav: While I wasn't the earliest to come around to JID I have been able to watch his rise over the past 6 years where he's not only drastically increased his profile but also his talent. I did get some flak from hip-hop heads on twitter for not completely fawning over DiCaprio 2  but with this new record, I feel pretty validated. Not only has JID improved his talent on just about every level, but also his scope and ambition with it. The results are one of the best hip hop records I've heard in 2022.  I'm really glad the lead single to this record still managed to land on the record. Surround Sound  is a track I've been enjoying all year with one of the best hooks I

Lolla is this weekend and while the line-up feels kind of weak compared to other years there are still some artists I was looking for an excuse to cover, so here they are.  7220  - Lil Durk When you review as much music as I do there are literally hundreds of artists that come across your desk in a year and it's part of the job to determine what is worth picking out and covering. In terms of genres that drown in this over-stimulation, the worst offender is probably the endless parade of singer-songwriters who get a brief amount of clout from major publications, but not far behind are contemporary trap rappers which feel pretty dime a dozen these days. When I first heard Lil Durk I lumped him into that pile and I need to remedy that decision by covering him here. While I didn't have any reason to believe he would turn around and drop a classic with this album, he certainly deserves coverage more than some of his faceless contemporaries as he's now proven beyond a doubt both

More big releases this week so lets not waste any time in sorting through them.  Enjoy <3 5.  We're Not In Orbit Yet...  - Broken Bells After teasing the return of Broken Bells for years, the duo of Shins frontman James Mercer and Danger Mouse are finally back with this meandering five minute piece of spacey indie rock. It's lackadaisical approach makes the drifting through these passages sometimes feel a bit monotonous but when they hit their stride pairing exciting instrumentation with good refrains it makes for some amazing moments. Listen 4.  Hot Shit  - Cardi B (Feat. Kanye West & Lil Durk) Cardi's long awaited and highly anticipated new single is a collaborative effort with features from Durk and Kanye alongside a booming Tay Keith beat and even an Electric Boogie  sample. It's a big swing for one of the biggest artists in the industry but does it work, sort of. Despite all the grandeur Cardi is actually right in her comfort zone with this extravagance whic

Latto is an Atlanta rapper who has broken out in recent years with tracks like Big Energy  and Bitch From Da Souf  as well as being named to the 2020 XXL Freshman Class. 777  is her sophomore album and follows 2020's Queen Of Da Souf . Review By Lav: While I don't think Latto has a particularly impressive back catalog thus far, I have always seen the appeal of her music, in particular her uncompromising personality. On tracks where she's lean into her confidence and demeanor she has been just as good as some of her best and most popular contemporaries, so it was no surprise to me to see her developing some more acclaim and commercial success. I wouldn't say that had me anticipating that 777  would be some kind of major breakout record, I was just hoping she would lean into that personality. Turns out she does, and the results are pretty solid.  A lot of discussion surrounding this record starts with one song, Big Energy . It has sort of become Latto's true commercia

Cordae is one of the most notable young voices in hip hop who became popular as a result of his critically acclaimed sound that blends together contemporary rap trends with classic hip hop lyricism and storytelling. He proved that he has an impressive amount of industry support backing him on his debut album in 2019 and since then had scored a number of high profile features while building up hype for this sophomore project.  Review By Lav: I really enjoyed Cordae's debut album. Not only did it show off the specific strengths we already knew about him as an artist, compelling narrative lyricism and command of flow, but it also introduced us to just how impressively versatile he is as an artist. He built even further on this with an impressive EP last year that saw him dabbling in hip hop sounds of both knew and old while also flexing some incredible singing vocals that I didn't even know he had in him. Even though I wasn't crazy about either of the albums singles, I was sti

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 number of other

Every year there are literally dozens and dozens, maybe even hundreds of trap records that either get reccomended to me or hyped up somewhere significant online. While I do cover major releases or records I anticipate being particularly good I wanted to take some time to play catch up with contemporary raps predominate sound, and it probably won't be the last time this year I do.  Trip At Knight  - Trippie Redd Even though I have reviewed Trippie a few times in the past I decided to skip out on his two most recent major releases. Last years Pegasus  was a bloated and very boring project that I didn't review because I didn't really have anything to say about it. He followed it up with the Travis Barker collaboration Neon Shark  which I was hesitant of because of just how often Travis pops up on terrible trap music these days, but I actually thought it turned out decent. Given that it was really just a deluxe release of Pegasus  I never got around to it but Trip At Night  fee

Megan Thee Stallion is a Houston based rapper who has had as consistent a viral presence across 2020 as just about anyone. It started off with her Tik Tok anthem Savage  which eventually garnered a Beyonce featuring remix and had a Billboard #1 shootout with Doja Cat and Nicki Minaj. Musically she also lent a feature out to one of the most talked about songs of 2020 Cardi B's WAP . Not to mention she made headlines for months after allegedly being shot in the foot by Tory Lanez. She is following up last years Fever  mixtape and this years Suga EP with her studio debut album Good News . Review By Lav: There are few voices in the modern hip hop game as hilarious, charming and overwhelming as Hot Girl Meg. From last years Hot Girl Summer  becoming an anthem before it was even released to her near constant presence across every facet of the music industry and social media one thing is clear, nobody can get enough of Megan. I felt the same way despite coming off pretty mild on her EP e

Nas is a New York rapper who made hip hop history with his 1994 debut album Illmatic  which is still considered among the greatest of all time. It has been a turbulent road since then as Nas has tried to reach a similar level of success with mixed results. Following up his 7 track Nasir  produced entirely by Kanye West in 2018 King's Disease  features front to back production from Hit Boy.  Review By Lavender: I like Illmatic  as much as anyone but with 25 years between then and now it is safe to say that Nas has not had a very consistent career. Though most of his albums at least have points where they show off his immense talent it is often just that, moments. The last record we heard from Nas definitely had those moments particularly the excellent Cops Shot The Kid . While there isn't a song as good as that one to be found here, King's Disease  is definitely an improvement as an album. The record is 13 tracks and under 40 minutes but the brevity manages to pay off at a f