Editorial Review: Blank Face LP - @ScHoolBoyQ

Since Oxymoron, the announcement of Blank Face LP, and an amazing trailer I've been excited about this release. ScHoolBoy Q has grown and polished his sound. The trailer sets up like for a short film or movie. Question, did he entertain us in the theater? Is the follow up to Oxymoron going to hold enough water? Let's get to it.

The story begins with TorcH. Although not on the tracklist, it features recent XXL Freshman, Anderson .Paak. We'll hear more about him later. Lord Have Mercy is as it sounds. It's a prayer asking for forgiveness sharing his soul in being a rapper, gangster, father, son, and everything that makes Quincy himself. Swizz Beatz adds his signature sound and vocals throughout. Although an amazing producer, I've never liked his sound. It always sounds like there's way too much going on and I could say the same with this track as well. The lead single, THat Part grew on me like I predicted. I still don't like Kanye's verse. I don't know what it is but he's really been struggling recently with his flow. His first bar is trash, flat out. "Okay, okay, okay, okay, okay, OKAY!" Sounds like my silly attempts at rapping in forth grade. I'm curious on why the Black Hippy Remix didn't make the final cut, but oh well. It's not all bad & I really like the beat. It's West Coast G-Funk meets modernity. The beat changes like how it does in Mercy and a lot of other G.O.O.D Music productions. Then Kanye freestyles again in the end and it sounds silly, if anyone else recorded that they'd consider it an outtake and never leave it in. Maybe it's arrogance, maybe it's art but I'm not feeling it.

Hip-Hop is unique because the rappers are the reporters of their time and era. Groovy Tony is Q's journalistic report of the hood sh*t goes through on a daily. Jadakiss takes it from the 323 to Yonkers and tells his New York tale. This track is a two part combined with Eddie Kane. Same BPM but different beat makes for an awesome audio crossfade. Ali mixed the hell out of this project and it shows. I also love the choral vocals in the back of the second verse.

Know Ya Wrong features TDE's most recent signee, Lance Skiiiwalker whom we heard a lot from on Jay Rock's last project. Most of the tracks on the project do duel sided sounds and production. This is the same. Ride Out is one of my favorites. It really speaks to the crip in all of us and even features Vince Staples. Gritty, gangsta, everything you'd expect from this song just reading the tracklist cuz.

WHatever You Want with Candice Pillay takes an unusual dance, EDM feel. It's definitely the most pop sounding song on the project. Not really much cup of tea but someone will drink it. By Any Means changes back to a darker mood. Although not listed in the tracklist or producer credits it sounds like Isaiah Rashaad and Kendrick lent their talents to sing background. I really like the bounce in this. Q gonna do what he needs to do by any means. 

"Get yours, get yours get yours, by any means. you can f*ck my b*tch you can have my heaux."  

Dope Dealer features west coast OG E-40 and is produced by Metro Boomin. Doesn't sound like anything he's ever made before. It's as if he left Atlanta trap to west coast funk and it's clearly catered and crafted for the Cali duo. JoHn Muir and Big Body with Tha Dogg Pound gives ScHoolboy a chance to show off his emcee flows on a more core hip-hop sound. Big Body was produced by Tyler the Creator and has the quirky sound you'd expect from him. Neva CHange is another fan favorite for me. SZA comes in assisting with vocals on the hook and DJ Dahi flatters us with simplicity over the beat and mix.

Str8 Ballin pays homage to 2Pac's THug life and All Eyez on Me. This is the climactic part of the album where we really really see the most of Q. Black THougHts is where Quincy addresses the black community in what's wrong. This song has the most content and holds the most sentimental value to me. That's to be expected when Kendrick, Q, George Clinton and Terrace Martin get together. I would have loved to hear a verse from Ab-Soul here. I think he would have something awesome to say here, even if it's a wild conspiracy theory. I side-eyed the "All Lives Matter" line until I realized he was talking about the unity of Bloods and Crips. Anderson .Paak returns like he never left in the self-titled track. It almost serves as a remix to TorcH. Miguel and Justine Skye join forces with Q on Overtime. The mood is slow and calm and I recommend the thugs to compromise and add this to their playlist for their shorty, she'll appreciate it. Overtime is to Blank Face as Studio with BJ the Chicago Kid is to Oxymoron. Blank Face concludes with piano keys and 16's from Traffic, TF, and Q on Tookie Knows II. 

Blank Face is one of the more musical rap albums I've heard recently. The production uses a lot of instruments over artificial synthesizers and other electronically produced sounds. I think this will make his live sets awesome. It will sound like a more intimate experience than a studio crafted listen. I don't know if this was the plan but it seems like every member of Black Hippy is dropping albums kind of telling their Day in the Life or Coming of Age kind of story. Good Kid Maad City, 90059, These Days and now Blank Face are all their perspective Californication Chronicle from different parts of the Los Angeles county area. Ride Out, By Any Means,Neva CHange, Black THoughts, and Overtime will be in rotation for a long time for me. Blank Face LP gets a 4.25 of 5 Stars on the Ramsey Rating Scale. Listen to Blank Face after the break.

Editorial Review: 90059 - @JayRock

First and foremost I must say I'm disappointed. I'm disappointed that Top Dawg didn't release Jay Rock's sophomore album, 90059, much sooner.

WE RAN 2013 WITH OUT DROPPING 1 ALBUM. I WONDER WUTS GONE HAPPEN IN 2014 WHEN I DROP 6.. THEY NOT READY 4 THIS #TDE #HiiiPoWeR TAKE OVER

— dangeroo kipawaa TDE (@dangerookipawaa) December 22, 2013

I remember when they first announced the tweet above. Unfortunately it never came through as we had to wait til this year to get Kendrick and Rock's projects. Fortunately for the fans, the wait was well worth it. 90059 begins with Necessary. Super west coast sounding introduction to the album that takes the first 40 seconds before Rock commences by the dropping of bars. The project as a whole is basically the story of Rock and where he's from if you didn't get that from the title. I think his story telling abilities is above average and the first track is a great example.

Easy Bake is next up. It leaked in late August. The song has a A side/B side feel. Side A Rock trades bars with Kendrick Lamar on the same verse after they each did one solo. I like how Jay Rock changes his the tone of his voice depending on the mood of the song throughout the album. Part two is interluded with Rock the radio personality as DJ Turn-Up on WTOP Radio. You can tell that was influenced by the WBallz Interlude from the classic Doggystyle by Snoop Dogg (or Lion whatever he calls himself these days). The beat drops and SZA joins the gents caressing the music with her lovely voice. Rock returns to the song with slick wordplay and witty punchlines.

"Show you why they hate more niggas than Uncle Ruckus. Rollin' up that boondock, some call it moon rock..."

Track three is Gumbo and my favorite on the entire album. The production was laid down nicely and Rock is articulate. Gumbo was the second single the released before the album dropped. I especially liked verse two and how he shows us where he's is coming from. It ends on a less serious note where one of the homies was singing the catchy hook in the whip. That leads into a funny conversation about Mrs. Johnson and her gumbo (not sure if that was an innuendo). Wanna Ride features Isaiah Rashad. Isaiah does well singing a catchy hook. It just hurts my soul he didn't bless us with a verse himself. Jay Rock does more than enough to hold the song together perfectly. Rock plays Captain Save-A-Hoe in The Ways. This features Sir, the first of three assists from non-TDE artists (we'll get into that later). He raps about a young woman hanging around her peers who engage in the activities a harlot would (I laughed so hard typing that), and how it's rubbed off on her. Now that's the Art of Peer Pressure huh? No matter, Sir and Rock still gonna have fun when shawty and her friends roll through. Telegram (Going Krazy) follows up. This is probably the most boring track here. Not a skip entirely because the hook sang by Lance Skiiiwalker was catchy. Lance Skiiiwalker in this project serves opposite Jay Rock like an alter ego. The brother is multifaceted and talented. This precedes the self titled 90059. That was the third single released about a month before the album. Lance Skiiiwalker makes another appearance. This time belligerent and drunk. Sound familiar? 

Painted by John Wallace

Vice City is the Black Hippy posse cut we've been waiting for since pressing play. They focus their verses on their vices as these guys like to talk about. The growing wealth, fame, and women have an effect on how their life is now. Kenny's hook between verses from ScHoolboy Q and Ab-Soul is tough. This is easily another fan favorite and I'm surprised it's not on the radio. Ab-Soul hangs around singing the Intro to the next song, Fly on the Wall. The mood changes again and Jay Rock is joined by Rap Legend Busta Rhymes. If Kendrick is the caterpillar turned butterfly, Jay Rock's analogy is the fly on the wall. I could explain but this is a really introspective song you should hear for yourself. Busta really sheds light on the simile and mentors Rock. Where throughout the album Rock spilled his guts on multiple trials of his life, his mentor provides a different perspective on morality. I was really impressed with the delivery. He even talks about how they met and found a way to make it rhyme. He even adds another jab on the ongoing discussion about rappers writing their own lyrics.

The second to last song is Money Trees Deuce. This was the first single and I was so excited to hear it when it first released as the original was my favorite song on GKMC where Jay Rock stole the show. If I could compare it with the original I'd conclude that like all things the sequel is never as good as the original. Let me explain. As far as content and verses from Rock, this one far surpassed the first. The hook sang by Anna Wise and Kendrick on the original was catchier and the beat by DJ Dahi was waaaay better than the sequel. That's not to take away from Flippa and JProof's production, because this wasn't supposed to be super produced where you'd lose focus of the lyrics unless you were really paying attention. The song fades out with Rock giving words of encouragement we all could use. The flow and story are very similar and Money Trees Deuce still impressed and retains that ever important replay value. Winding down, the album ends with The Message. This definitely wasn't Grandmaster Flash or Melly Mel. He could have ended the album with Money Trees Deuce and the way it faded out would have been perfect. The Message isn't horrible but wouldn't be missed if left off. It raps up everything he said in the last ten tracks like the conclusion of a fourth grader's public speaking assignment. Vic Smitty sings the hook where I'm also unimpressed. It sounds more harsh than it is; however it's still not good or bad, just wouldn't be otherwise missed.

Although a bit annoying as a fan the promotion was great for the TDE vet. For the most part I think he's the most slept on act out of their stable. The pre-order and release of his album was the most interesting I've ever seen. There literally wasn't a projected date. Just after a certain number of fans ordered, they'd release it in it's entirety. He didn't have too many singles out which is important when you are trying to bless the public with new material. The album was 11 tracks. Fairly short in time but he doesn't waste it. Aside from the outro everything he said  needed to be heard. I was duly surprised to see Parental Advisory and Pay For It featuring K. Dot and Chantal didn't make the final cut. Who knows, maybe that will be on a deluxe version. All in all 90059 is the zip. It's the story of where he's from. I'd to call it the middle ground of Kendrick's Good Kid Maad City and YG's My Krazy Life. I guess that's what it is to be Jay Rock, the blood from Watts, Los Angeles. The question used to be where is Jay Rock? Now it's where's he going? 90059 gets 4.4 of 5 stars on the Ramsey Rating Scale. You can listen to 90059 in it's entirety below after the break.