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.

Listen: THat Part - @ScHoolBoyQ feat @kanyewest

After Oxymoron, the world hasn't heard much but a few guest pieces from ScHoolboy Q.

TDE confirmed that his project is already finished and they are just waiting on the go. If that wasn't good enough he dropped his first song since then last week titled THat Part. The song features Kanye West. Not my cup of tea first listen but it's definitely that signature bounce from Q and Ye. Maybe it'll grow on me, Listen for yourself after the break.

Review: Malibu - @AndersonPaak

Brandon Anderson Paak aka Anderson .Paak released his sophomore album Malibu last week. The Californian is not new to the music scene. His soulful, raspy voice was featured on a few tracks on Dr. Dre’s Compton last year. He also released an EP called Venice in 2014. Boy, this guy loves California. The artistry is evident as Paak make the whole album flow as a full body of work. Let’s get into the tracks.

The Bird - Super slow and soulful and takes you to a dream state. Mama was a farmer, papa was a farmer. This first track lets you know that you’re about to go down the rabbit hole. So enjoy the ride.

Heart Don't Stand a Chance - The first of many love songs. He refers to her heart being under siege because of his ways of persuasion.

The Waters (feat. BJ the Chicago Kid) - The waters that he is stepping into is the waters of stardom. The different waves that it brings are unusual, but with each on he washed and learns another lesson. 

The Seasons / Carry Me -  The two part title matches the two part song. The tempo starts off faster but almost halfway through he slows down to talk about his past, in particular his mother.

Put Me Thru - Jazzy and upbeat. We start to see a change in rhythm and  style, a stark change from the first two tracks.

Am I Wrong (featuring ScHoolboy Q) - Disco soul sound that you can get down to. He chose a dance beat to dance around the subject of the connection between dancing and sex. Clever. SchoolBoy Q also drops a few bars after the first two verses. 

Without You (feat. Rapsody) - The typical “can’t live with ‘em and can’t without em” song. The track has two perspectives the man’s played by Paak and the female’s perspective is played by Rapsody. She spits about  the man being a product of the relationship he was born out of, while Anderson says the life that a woman lives makes the woman in the relationship. Interesting stuff here. 

Parking Lot - The seductive lyrics contrast with the electro sounds. It revolves around a mystery girl that seems to always stay elusive to him.

Lite Weight (The Free Nationals United Fellowship Choir) -  I haven’t decided exactly what Paak refers to in this track. It seems like an addiction. To sex? alcohol? maybe both. The verses repeat themselves and the chorus is sung by the Free Nationals choir.

Room in Here (feat. The Game and Sonya Elise) - “I got a bullet in my heart and she’s the shooter” who knew that the Game was so sentimental?  He opens up about  stalking  a girl on Facebook and looking through her pictures (good to know girls aren't the only ones that do that!

Water Fall - The interlude (or “interluuube”) is pretty explicit; two minutes of sensuality. 

Your Prime - He really wants this girl to come back to bed with him. How do I know?  He only says it about 27 times. Hey, I guess persistence is key.

Come Down - Talks about the high that he blames on his friends, but he doesn't exactly want to come down. 

Silicon Valley - Paak shows his audience that he isn’t shallow. He tells the woman who hide their insecurities behind cosmetic surgery, clothes, and make up  their heart is what he really looks for in a lady. 

Celebrate - That’s exactly what he does. His town, his family, his progress, his life: all of it get acknowledgement in this track. It’s a real feel-good song. 

The Dreamer (Talib Kweli and Tinman Family Choir) - From “I wanted them Nikes, mama got me Lugz” to “I’m a product of the tube and the free lunch” the album finished with an ode to the struggle. Kweli sends a message to all of the dreamers to make theirs struggle into something beautiful, like he did.

This is R&B. To be honest, I probably wouldn't hear many of these songs on the radio, and I mean that as a compliment. It’s not the watered down soul that fits the pop sound of the mainstream radio. I hope for Anderson .Paak’s sake I’m wrong, because he deserves to be heard. Overall this guy has a crazy good voice, and this is an artistically deep album.

rating 4.0 out of 5.0

#ICYMIMonday: @PRhyme_Official Deluxe Version (@REALDJPREMIER & @Royceda59); A Niles P. Joint

The whole point of In Case You Missed It Monday (which is now known as #ICYMIMonday) is to explore albums that I either didn’t get to hear or heard but didn’t get to write about when they initially came out.  With that being said, I’m glad we got PRhyme Deluxe as it gives me a chance to right one of my wrongs since I’ve been with WTM.  I mean really, Royce Da 5’9” and DJ Premier form a group (PRhyme) and release an album and I don’t cover it immediately?  Adrian Younge is involved too?  What the hell was I thinking?  I’m ashamed of myself for letting it slip.  Fortunately a deluxe version gives me a reason to not only revisit it but also check out some

of the new tracks the duo cooked up for the occasion.  Being that there are a plethora of guests, it’s only right that I comb through it track by track.

PRhyme - It’s triple inception as the song title matches both the album and the group.  Royce, using a flow that alternates between hushed and blaring, talks about his recovery from alcoholism (which comes up a few times on the album) and warns against losing focus on your craft due to chasing women.  Good way to start.

Dat Sound Good (feat. Ab-Soul & Mac Miller) - The instrumental gives me a Cali vibe which makes sense with Soulo’s presence.  I’ve never been a Mac Miller fan and still aren’t but he doesn’t ruin the song.

U Looz - This is one of my favorite songs on the album despite being merely a minute and a half long.  Royce comes with his usual hard hitting bars and Preem is in his glory cutting and scratching.  Wish this was longer.

You Should Know (feat. Dwele) - This is possibly the best on the album.  The guitar is simple yet oh so relaxing.  Co-collaborator Adrian Younge’s fingerprints are omnipresent on this one.  Dwele gives just enough on the chorus in the midst of cut and scratched samples.  

Courtesy - Mary wrote about this video not too long ago.  The song still holds up and the organ is delightfully murderous.  

Wishin’ (feat. Common) - The beat is amongst the most intriguing as it starts slow, speeds up, then slows down again.  Common proves that he’s still the king of the Chi with his guest verse.

To Me, To You feat. Jay Electronica - This instrumental sounds like a comic book villain’s lair.  While he’s sharp on the entire album, Royce may be at his best lyrically here.  Jay Electronica makes an appearance that apparently wasn’t engineered as well (it sounds hollow) but is still strong as far as bars go.

Underground Kings (feat. ScHoolboy Q & Killer Mike) - This is actually the second time Royce rapped over a beat that used the Run DMC sample.  This time it’s more uptempo and he has assistance from Q, who has never sounded better and Killer Mike who strengthens his resumé as Atlanta’s finest.  

Microphone Preem feat. Slaughterhouse - You knew that Slaughterhouse would show up at some point and they make for a great posse cut over some sharp ass drums.  On the original version that came last year, this was the final track and worked great in that capacity.  All tracks after this one were made for the deluxe version this year.

Golden Era feat. Joey Bada$$ - It almost seems too perfect/tongue-in-cheek that Primo, Adrian, Royce and Joey would make a song called golden era.  As fate would have it, they do an excellent job making a new track that has old school aesthetics in both words and music.

Wishin’ II feat. Black Thought - It’s explained on the intro that Black Thought was supposed to be on the original version but dropped out after The Roots’ manager Richard Nichols died.  He makes up for lost time and beats the shit out of the beat, continuing an undefeated streak of slaying guest appearances.  

Highs and Lows feat. MF DOOM & Phonte - I covered this song when it came out last month.  It’s still a banger and more importantly fits into the grand scheme of this deluxe version.

Mode II feat. Logic - Both of these dudes truly go beast mode in a track that spans seven minutes of pure lyricism.  Royce never lets his foot off of the gas and Logic finally impresses me as he uses his own flow and holds his own.  This is a great way to end an album.

For years, Royce seemed like he was on the cusp of success and DJ Premier showed a knack for bringing the best out of emcees that might get overlooked otherwise.  It’s fitting that they found each other as Royce delivers on every ounce of his vast potential on every single track.  Preem gets the chance to lace the finest rappers from New York, Philly, DC, Atlanta, Cali, Chicago, NOLA, Jersey, & North Carolina with his world famous production acumen.  Having Adrian Younge assist with the beats makes the cipher complete.  This deluxe version doesn't feel like a money grab, instead functioning as an addendum to an already great work.  The new bonus tracks fit right in with the year-old ones in a harmonious way.  Christmas came early for the culture.  If you haven’t done so already, treat yourself to PRhyme Deluxe, whether it’s your first time or you're coming back around.

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.

Editorial Review: #AOTY 2014 picks by @RamseySaidWHAT

Well, this has definitely without a doubt been the hardest year for me to write this review. Hip-Hop has been interesting to say the least this year. From January to December plenty of comercial music released and I didn't find myself listening to most of any of it (crazy coming from a hip-hop blogger huh?). The music I looked forward to got pushed back like Kendrick and Joey Bada$$. It's safe to say I spent this year listening to lots of music from 2013, and mixtapes. The only exceptions were the albums that made this list and a few that just missed getting on the list. 2014 was really a year for singles as well. Don't believe me? Do me a favor, turn on the radio and all you'll is Iggy or Chris Brown murdering the charts (from a jail cell for most of the summer, go figure). Back to the topic at hand, my peers made a lot of points in their reviews when they said the year was good not great. Niles respectively declined and said there were enough quality albums to compile a decent list. I also have to agree with him when he said rap's heavy hitters were absent this year, but when based on the criteria (lyrics, production, flow, popularity, sales, and uniqueness), only a few stood out in my eyes. Please remember this is an opinion piece and not just a list of favorites. Please don't murder me too bad. The good one is for tomorrow. Until then, My album of the year picks for 2014 is as follows.

Number Five: NehruvianDOOM - Bishop Nehru & MF DOOM

If you've ever read anything I've written, you know I love music that reminds me of childhood. The 80's and 90's. NehruvianDOOM is an album born during the wrong decade and I love it. The production was superb, well it's produced soley by DOOM himself. The only exception was a collaboration with his partner Madlib on Dangerous. Although being produced by a legend Bishop Nehru still shined and was far from upstaged by his elder-statesman.  It's nice to see such young talent emerging reminding us hip-hop is still a young man's game. Niles actually did a review on this one so for more click here. NehruvianDOOM gets a 3.89 of 5 on the Ramsey Rating Scale.

Number Four: Oxymoron - ScHoolboy Q

I have a lot of respect for this album. In what seemed like a very very off year for the genre ScHoolboy Q came with a bang. His album dropped in January. For him to be able to stand the test of 12 months and even make the list is very impressive. Until July, you couldn't tell me this wasn't the best album in 2014. On top of being the first in the genre to really drop a major LP he was the first in the TDE stable who promised albums from the entire clan. The first and the only one of them to make the list, sorry Soulo. I happened to be off work and was able to stream his album listener with Rosenberg the eve of the release date. That was the first time I heard the deluxe version including songs like Collard Greens with Kendrick Lamar, Studio featuring BJ the Chicago Kid, and Man of the Year. Break the Bank and Yay Yay spoke to the pusher man ScHoolboy Q really was for him and his family, more importantly his daughter Joy you can see on the album cover (much like The Game's). Oxymoron start to finish was remarkable and definitely deserved to make everyone's top 10 including my own. I rated this a 3.91 of 5 on the Ramsey Rating Scale.

Number Three: Nobody's Smiling - Common

This is where it got hard for me. 3 through one have been interchangeable until actually sitting down and writing this. Nobody's Smiling was the only thing in my ears through the summer as far as hip-hop goes (well Rae Sremmurd too cuz those kids turn up man). I was gonna cover this one but I let Niles bless us with this review as well which you can find here. Tracks that stood out to me were Kingdom, Real, and the self title. Kingdom features Vince Staples and a choral background on the beat. The duo trade verses about their respective cities of Chicago and Long Beach, CA. Real features Elijah Blake (who this time I actually did the review on) and is somewhat the climatic turning point of the album where it takes a brief turn. Blake lays down crooning but catchy vocals. I live by the beach. This was one of those "Roll down the window and feel the warm air on a July day while listening to this with your shawty riding shotgun" tracks.

Don't be confused, Nobody's Smiling was not a happy album. I found it very timely as it released a week before the murder of Mike Brown in Ferguson, MO. The self title was an ode to Chicago but not in a Homecoming Kanye sense. Common spoke about the things not talked about. What I liked most about that track was the spoken word piece by Malik Yusef at the end of the track. Nobody's Smiling recieves 4.3 stars on the Ramsey Rating Scale.

Number Two: 2014 Forest Hills Drive - J. Cole

This is for you Jermaine. You did the same thing Childish Gambino did last year with this December release thing. That left Glover with only a honorable mention last year. It's only right that Cole stops here. Just like Common, Forest Hills Drive was timely. Common got the initial murder, Cole got the indictment verdict. 2014 Forest Hills Drive makes my list because it came with no promotion, no singles, and was still arguably the emcee's best project in his impressive discography. As all Cole albums I find myself able to relate to him. He speaks to me in different ways. The frustration and longing for freedom in me was heard in the Intro and January 28th. "Do you wanna be, happy?" Reminiscing to my first time was Wet Dreamz "Cuz I aint never did this before." Wet Dreamz was a nice storyteller track. Simple boom bap beat that doesn't overshadow what he's saying. A Tale of 2 Citez is by far the hardest track on the album. Gritty beat, gritty bars, instant repeat. G.O.M.D. is another one of those acronym tracks kinda like IDFWU. That's all I have to say about that (Forest Gump voice*). 2014 Forest Hills Drive was my favorite album this year. Perhaps if it were out longer and the initial buzz wore off I could rate it fairly with the rest. Because of that, I have to stop you there (again). Cole World huh? 2014 Forest Hills Drive gets 4.79 on the Ramsey Rating Scale.

Number One: Under Pressure - Logic

I can't believe all of the other contributors to the site missed this one. Under Pressure was dope through and through. Frankly, I'm tired of everyone sleeping on Young Sinatra. He's been around for awhile and just now made the XXL Freshman list this past year. On top of the Editor's (me) nod on the AOTY list, iTunes also voted him as the best hip-hop album in 2014 as well. And no it's not cuz his skin pale because he still won't sell like Eminem or Adele (get it?). To the point. Under Pressure was fuego, the one fire album no one listened to. The self title track was my favorite for three reasons. One, it was self produced and done with such flare. Two was the video. The visual was insane and shot like it was a first person shooter. Three, flow. He engaged you with all of the before mentioned things but when you listen to what he said and how it was delivered it was nuts. Other impressive tracks were Driving Miss Daisy featuring Childish Gambino and Buried Alive. Under Pressure was different and equally amazing considering it was a debut album. Not a ton of features so you really see what Logic can bring to the table. I gave Under Pressure 4.71 on the Ramsey Rating Scale. It scores less than Forest Hills Drive but I believe it was still the better album of the two, how's that for an Oxymoron and I'm not talking ScHoolboy (okay the puns are corny).

I said before I started writing this was difficult to judge this year. It was hard to leave out Nicki Minaj and Ab Soul off my AOTY list. I also struggled leaving Anomaly by Lacrae off as a crossover album. I generally hate Christian Rap. I love Gospel, I love hip-hop. I separate church and state (literally). Isaiah Rashaad also impressed with his Cilvia Demo towards the top of the year but couldn't hang with the rest. Those are my picks, hope you enjoyed reading. Keep listening mates.

Royal Throne: #AOTY 2014 by @AQueens_Crown

2014 has got to be the  hardest year of my life this far. It just drained me emotional, and spiritual but I managed to make it out alright. Only because of my love music and the energy it provides me. With that being said it was a weird year for hip-hop. With artist albums leaking weeks before the release date, resulting in a lack of sales for a lot of artist. In 2014 only one album went platinum and is was Taylor Swift's 1989 selling 1.2 million in its first week . The music industry has taken a major hit in revenue sales due to these leaked albums. Even so this was a pretty dry year for hip-hop albums in my opinion. Here is my top five best albums of the year.  


5) YG - My Krazy Life

When I heard YG was dropping an album I thought great another piece of trash is being dropped. Boy was I wrong. I loved it and was so surprised. I really liked that is was a story being told in this album about his life living in Compton.  YG's MY Krazy Life made my list of top five for the fact that I played this album a lot when it came out. My favorite tracks are Bicken Back Being Bool, and Left, Right. I know there was a lot of hype around him this year. Hopefully  he continues to live up to it.

4) Nicki Minaj - Pink Print 
I was honestly surprised to actually like this album. I have never been a fan of her music before because of all that pop music crap, but after hearing a couple tracks I was impressed. I really like the track with Meek Mill on it Buy a Heart and Feeling Myself . You can really tell she bared her soul with this album. Talking about the death of her cousin, and the hopes of having a child in the near future. Now I'm not saying I'm a Barbs, but the Pink Print will not get skipped when it comes on. 

3) Schoolboy Q - Oxymoron

You can't tell me that anyone listened to Q's without feeling like a baller futuristic groovy gansta with an attitude. Within it's first week Oxymoron debuted at number one on Billboard's list. That helped earn a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Album. One of my favorite songs is Prescription/Oxymoron. You can really hear his struggle with drug addiction. That's something you don't hear about from most rappres these days. Instead most brag about it as if its something to be proud of. Afterwards you get haunting vibes from What They Want making me feel like no one can touch me.

2) Childish Gambino - STN MTN / Kauai
I loved this dual sided concept album. Upon first hearing about it I thought it would be an extension of Because the Internet. I was nicely surprised it wasn't. I wrote more about it in my review of the project here.

1) J.Cole - 2014 Forest Hills Drive

As far as numbers goes this album did really well in the first week considering that he didn't drop a single or do promotion tour. The album itself is a great piece of work. He spoke on a variety of subjects. I really liked this album for the main fact that I agreed with what he spoke about. From the racial tension in hip-hop today, when you have "rappers" like Iggy Azalea doing a terrible job of respecting  hip-hop culture. Making lame pop hits claiming its hip-hop then being rewarded for it. How love is all that really matters. Love for your family, for your friends. We get caught up in the capitalist system of thinking that money will make us happy. So we spend all our time trying to get money only to realize that it can't make us happy. He had a great interview with Angie Martinez on Power 105.1 FM talking all about the capitalistic system we live in, as well as the state of the black man in America. If you haven't given it a listen you can check it out below.

Watch: Hunnid Stax featuing ScHoolboy Q - Ab-Soul (Official Video)

How convenient is that???

Just a half hour after staff writer Niles C drops the review to These Days... TDE releases the official video to Hunnid Stax featuring ScHoolboy Q. What are the odds of that? You can check Ab-Soul's visual below, hope you enjoy.

Ab Soul - "These Days" album review by Niles Cavanaugh

So this is how I had an existential crisis while attempting to review Ab-Soul's newest album These Days... for the past couple of weeks.

Going even further back, I was always intrigued by the idea of Ab-Soul as an MC. I caught onto him around the time his second independent album Control System was released. That had a number of good songs, but my mind was blown at the lyrical dexterity he showed on the track ILLuminate. I was slightly disappointed when I didn't get that same feeling with the rest of the album. It was solid, but not captivating. It's also worth mentioning that the four members of TDE supergroup Black Hippy each have their own shtick of sorts. Kendrick Lamar is the regular kid in a violent environment. ScHoolboy Q is the former gangster turned party animal. Jay Rock is the (still active?) gangbanger that can be found in all red. Soulo's thing is apparently conspiracy theories and skepticism heightened by marijuanna and DMT. I personally aren't into conspiracy theories so some of the themes used in his lyrics generally won't connect with me. I also wanted to hear him over more varied beats, as he falls into the modern-day hip-hop pit of using trap beats (almost think dark synths and that ever-present snare drum) but with much more lyrical skill and varied content than your average trap rapper.

So coming into These Days... I was cautiously expecting progression and grown from the Carson, CA spitter. Maybe turn down the almost paranoid theories in his lyrics while simultaneously turning up a more varied beat selection. And it started off well enough. It opened with God's Reign featuring TDE's first lady SZA on a hook that's hauntingly lovely. Soul was very introspective lyrically and clearly wanted to set the tone early. This was easily one of my favorite tracks.

Then we run into a conundrum that has been brought into the world by the advent of social media and new promotion tactics. The next three songs Tree of Life, Hunnid Stax and Dub Sac had already been released via TDE's SoundCloud in previous months. Hunnid Stax featuring label mate ScHoolboy Q, was released fairly recently as a way to get people hyped for the album. The other two were posted months ago. While still all solid tracks, it just feels like they copied and pasted songs onto the album in a rush to get it out. I've said it before and I'll say it again, if you hear too many songs on an album before it drops, it changes how you process the overall project. So even if these three songs were all good, I still got a "been here before" type of vibe.

The next song is actually new and one of the best of the album. World Runners has Soulo channeling his inner Kid Cudi with a spacey vibe, albeit with more rapping. It also features a surprising Lupe Fiasco and his frequent collaborator Nikki Jean on backup vocals. Unfortunately the next three songs are lame. Nevermind That features some dope guitar work on the beat but also is very MMG-centric, even featuring the disgustingly over saturated Rick Ross. TWACT is a party jam featuring a DJ Mustard beat that I think is mediocre. Just Have Fun is the best of the three, a trippy drug journey, but it's still underwhelming. It's like we had to pay for the quality of World Runners with three subpar tracks in a row, as is the industry. Kendrick Lamar's Interlude features a similar jazzy beat by Terrace Martin which is bogarted by K Dot, hence the title. It's companion piece to Ab-Soul's Outro on Kendrick's Section 80 a few years back. THIS IS THE TYPE OF BEAT I WANT TO HEAR SOULO ON!!! It's outside the box and old school. I feel he could have a West Coast rakim-lite type of career if he went more down this route. This is one of my favorites. It's followed by the somber yet spectacular Closure which has Soulo singing for the most part and assisted by Jhene Aiko. I'm not mad at this instance of rapper singing at all. A very necessary change of pace type of track which is followed by Sapiosexual produced by J. Cole. This song was made for the clubs and radio and it shows. Hard. Not amazing. It then flows into another exceptional yet previously heard track Stigmata that has one of my new favorite MC's Action Bronson and also Asaad. It's heavily influenced by The Cross by Nas, although more layered instrumentally. I almost don't care that this song was released already, I still love it. Feelin' Us includes a very smooth vibe and a Jay Rock sighting (or hearing for that matter), which is always welcome. RaVaughn (Ne-Yo's latest Motown and Compound Ent. Signee) sings the hook which adds to the cooled out ambiance of the song. Easily one of the tops songs on the album and also a candidate for a single & video. Ride Slow is the penultimate song, a "spooky," as Soul puts it, song that also includes Danny Brown and Delusional Thomas. At over seven minutes long, it's bloated but still solid if you can sit through it. Speaking of bloated, the album concludes with W.R.O.H. which clocks in at 23 minutes. It's actually a misleading time since it contains a song of regular length that serves as a good finale. it then goes silent and leads to a recorded battle of sorts against Daylyt. This could have easily been a bonus track on a deluxe version or something and doesn't serve much purpose here. I wasn't all that interested in it in the grand scheme of things but it was kinda cool.

So, Ab-Soul delivered a solid album. One thing you'll notice is this album has A LOT of features. I feel like Soulo is good to the point where he doesn't really need that many guest artists. That seems to come with the territory of most modern-day hip-hop albums on major labels. My main conflict is this: Ab-Soul is extremely skilled and talented. Some say he's the best on his label, but around 60% of the time when I hear his own songs, I can't help but want more. I kinda got what I wished for on this album lyrically at least. He stepped away from the conspiracy theories a little bit and made an album that was lighter on terms of lyrical content at least by his standards. I couldn't help but feel sometimes he was trying to somewhat replicate ScHoolboy Q's vibe in hopes of reaching the same (commercial) success. That doesn't necessarliy work because like I said before. These are two different MCs with two different personalities, but what if this was just another side of Ab-Soul that we haven't seen previously? Additionally, I always griped about his selection of the same type of trap-ish beats. I hoped to hear him on more jazz-inspired or sample-heavy beats, but what if that's not him? What if he's doing exactly what is right for his skill set and abilities as an artist and I'm constantly wanting Soulo to fit into my criteria for what a dope MC is? Yeesh. Anyway this is a good album. Not spectacular, and too many cooks can spoil the broth sometimes in terms of guest appearances, but this is a good step forward and knowing Ab-Soul, he can build from this and continue to grow.

Rating: 3.85 out of 5.

Opinion - My Krazy Life by YG album review by Niles Cavanaugh

"So this YG album I have to review sucks kind of.  Beats all sound the same."
"Well it's probably made to sell."

That was a conversation I had with my homegirl Jazzy about My Krazy Life. When Ramsey assigned it to me he described it as the gangbanger perspective to the same Compton Kendrick Lamar spoke about in his debut album.  Listening to it on the long and taxing drive home from Cherry Hill, I found that Ramsey was right about it.  This album tells a story, albeit loosely, of a day in the life of a Tree Top Piru Blood in Compton.

Being that West Coast hip-hop has been on an upswing the last couple of years (especially with ScHoolboy Q dropping Oxymoron a couple weeks ago), I was intrigued by this concept. As I listened on my trip home, I was sorely disappointed.

My Krazy Life does loosely tell a story of a day in the life of a blood in Compton, or Bompton if you choose. Lyrically and content wise, you aren't being sold a false bill of goods here. The subject matter is somewhat repetitive but makes sense. Smoking drinking, partying, fighting shooting, hanging out with your set f*ckin chicks are apparently what happens in a typical day for a blood around the way. I have no issue with that because you can tell YG isn't bullsh*ttin' listeners in any way shape or form. He's just speaking on what he knows on songs such as BPT or the blood-coded Bicken Back Being Bool. He also frequently uses interpolations of throwback West Coast hits in his rhymes. While he may not have the same lyrical technique and flow finesse as The Game, any of TDE, Fashawn, Crooked I, Murs, or any other left coast MC out there, YG still speaks in authentic language and comes from the heart in most of his raps. He's not going to be in anyone's top 5 dead or alive list, but tolerable lyrically, albeit average.

The main trouble with My Krazy Life is the beats. If you're going to be an average newcomer newcomer in a hip-hop scene that seemingly sees thousands of releases per week, you have to be carried by top-notch production if you don't have the necessary wordplay to stand out. YG doesn't have that. Out of a possible 17-18 songs (depending on the edition you purchased) the aforementioned DJ Mustard either solely produced or at least had a hand in produced or at least had a hand in producing 12 of them. The beats stay true to the album's California roots but largely get repetitive and boring after awhile. I understand that you want any album to have a consistent vibe when it comes to production, but almost all of this sounds the same. In an interview with Hip-Hop DX review, DJ Mustard compared the album to Dr. Dre's classic The Chronic. while that album had a consistent vibe and formula, you could at least tell the songs apart. I got the feeling that the beats were like a modern day g-funk soundtrack of an old video game or something. Combined with the subject matter that's standard at best, you aren't looking at anything Earth shattering.

There are a few gems here, don't get me wrong. I Just Wanna Party is pretty good and comes with a double assist by ScHoolboy Q and Jay Rock. Really Be shows that YG can avoid getting completely eaten alive by current California hip-hop king Kendrick Lamar. 1 AM is too short yet solid, and Sorry Momma is the best song on the album. It's an introspective joint co-produced by Terrance Martin and DJ Mustard that survives an appearance by new guy Ty Dolla Sign. Even the bonus track Bompton has replay value. Overall this album has a lot of filler, and like Jazzy implied, this album was seemingly made to sell. There's an obligatory Drake appearance on Who Do You Love? and the radio smash My N*gga (or My Hitta as heard on the radio) sounds like your average irritating hit hip-hop song of today. The original features label boss Young Jeezy and fellow new act Rich Homie Quan. The remix on the deluxe edition features Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj, and Meek Mill. Clearly this was built for spins and nothing else.

Overall, this album fell short of the expectations that I had. While it does show a gangster's view of Compton, it ultimately sputters once you realize that gangsters don't do much and seemingly don't leave the neighborhood in which they reside. Put these stories over mostly bland beats, and you don't have much of a memorable album. It doesn't compare to good kid, m.A.A.d city or Oxymoron because it lacks the rich production and lyrical diversity to keep up with it's peers. This album will have and audience though. Fans of a new school radio rap will find it catchy. People from Compton and like areas in Cali (shoutouts to Tori who also put me on the album) will be able to relate to some of the culture and references and therefore embrace it. At the end of the day, My Krazy Life sounds like other albums before it and will eventually sound like other albums after it. It won't go down as a classic, or make my top 10 of 2014. It'll just kind of something that happened. It was an album that was made to sell and it shows.

Short backstory: hailing from Compton, YG is a Tree Top Piru Blood who is signed to Jeezy's CTE World/Def Jam. He released a number of mixtapes and frequently collaborated with producer DJ Mustard starting in 2010.

Oxymoron - Schoolboy Q: In Stores Now

 

The day is finally here!

Schoolboy Q has released Oxymoron. You can find it in stores everywhere. It is also on iTunes and Amazon or wherever you can purchase music online. Below are the first singles off of the TDE and Cali native's record. Oxymoron is easily WTM's early favorite for #AOTY 2014.