Weekly Fix #47 ('20)

Welcome to the Weekly Fix, where I go over everything that I’ve listened to that has come out within the past week. I’ll give a little blurb about the project/single with my feelings on it thrown in there, throw some descriptors and other artists names to give you an idea what the project/single is like, and link to all applicable streaming services where you can find the music. The bottom section will be devoted to projects that have Bandcamp or online webstore links, to give a greater highlight to those artists who you can support directly. Click here to see a list of previous Fixes.

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What a Thanksgiving. Shit barely even feels like a holiday; pretty much my perfect day (and I didn’t have to work on Thanksgiving day for the first time probably since I’ve had a job). Let’s NOT celebrate the bloodthirsty pilgrims, and instead be thankful for the hundreds and hundreds of quality albums that have come out in 2020. I updated my Album of the Year list yesterday, and let me say the past month has brought some major changes. Expect that at the top of 2021.

As for this week, there were a LOT of projects, a lot of those RAPPING RAPPING projects, giving me the difficult task of pulling myself away from one project to spend time with another. Anyone who’s ever had two games come out on the same day knows my pain…so imagine 12 games come out on the same day and see how both excited and sad you get.

Russ blows all of my expectations out of the water with his EP, Rome Streetz come with a killer sequel to his tape with Farma Beats, Megan Thee Stallion has some shit to say on her debut project, and SAINt JHN continues to build his profile with another solid album. There were also some amazing Singles to keep track of, so make sure you tap in to the Week #47 (’20) Singles down below.

Alright y’all. Even though this week was a huge one, if history and my Upcoming Heat page is any indication, Black Friday is going to be a massively overloaded day. I see at least 7 huge projects, and if you double that for unexpected drops then I have my work cut out for me. The prooooblem is that not only do I have Thanksgiving driving to do this weekend (and being in a place where I can’t listen to anything), but I work on Sunday when I usually don’t, and next week is whenever my Monthly post comes out. So, what I’m saying is, if things are delayed, just know I’m working my hardest. I know there’s going to be a few all-nighters this week.

So that’s that; make sure you check out that Upcoming Heat page like I said to get the scoop on projects that are incoming, and have a good holiday.

Peace

Here’s a link to the Week #47 (’20) Playlists

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Here’s a link to the Week #47 (‘20) Singles

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Here’s a link to the Week #47 (’20) Art Appreciation post

-----STREAMING PROJECTS-----

Russ – CHOMP

Cover Artist: KidSuper

I’m going to need every single person who reads my shit here to put their misgivings to the side for this project. I like Russ’ last project, enough that I wrote about it here like two dozen Weekly Fixes ago or however the fuck long ago that was, but I still didn’t really consider myself a Russ “fan” as much as I did someone who is willing to give credit where credit is due. But guys, this shit right here, this CHOMP shit right here, this is hard as fuck, and there’s no easier way to say it. There are only five tracks, but in that twenty minutes you get massive, well-written, and well-rapped verses from Russ, who has CLEARLY upped his pen game in pretty much every aspect for this project, going for a more traditional approach to bars with the slick and detailed flows and competent wordplay. He has this big J. Cole energy on this project, jumping for the slam dunk on every track he’s on like he has something to prove… because he does have something to prove. Not only is he trying to demonstrate his skills for all of us listeners to remember, but he’s trying (and succeeding) to keep up with his guests on here. Unbelievably, across a short twenty minutes, Russ is able to get INCREDIBLE verses from Busta Rhymes, Benny the Butcher, Black Thought, and KXNG Crooked; Crook in particular drops what may very well be one of the best verses I’ve heard all year, NO cap in that statement, going on for damn near two minute with incredible cadence and flow. None of this even touches on the production, featuring beats from The Alchemist, 9th Wonder, and DJ Premier, alongside two of self-produced tracks from Russ himself that manage to keep up pace and keep you thoroughly entertained. Y’all, if you hate this man, please put those feelings in a box for a minute and listen to this project. Please.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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SAINt JHN – While The World Was Burning

Cover Artist: [Unknown]

The newest album from one of pop-rap/R&B’s most underrated gems at the moment, SAINt JHN comes through with more of what makes him great: amazing melodies, great rapping whenever he feels like it, solid song ideas, and hooks for days that all seem to get stuck in your head. There’s a wispy passion to his voice that I can’t get enough of, with a ton of range and utility as he goes from his highest registers while singing on down to his lowest while rapping, coming across as both menacing and vulnerable. That’s the coolest thing about JHN in my opinion: like A Boogie and Kid Cudi, he has a foot in both the R&B and the rap game, being able to seamlessly blend the two styles together in ways that are engaging and memorable. The overall sound of the beats and instrumentals is about the same as his previous projects, both woozy and punchy, trap-y and pop-y, but the execution is elevated across the whole thing, with each song sounding well-conceived and written to be a single. This is especially evident in the clear level-up from his past projects: the features. His feature-game is triple what it used to be, banking on his slow-burn to fame with names like Future, JID, DaBaby, A Boogie, and Kanye West, among others. I think this is about as good of an album that we can get from SAINt JHN at the moment, incorporating all of his strengths while demonstrating few weaknesses. A talent to watch going into the 2020’s I think we’re only seeing the beginning of what will surely be a massive career.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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Megan Thee Stallion – Good News

Cover Artist: [Unknown]

It’s hard for me to wrap my head around the fact that this is technically her debut album, one that a lot of people have been waiting for to make a determination on what direction her career is going, because it seems like, in the 2 or so years she’s been making waves, she’s already lived through a whole careers-worth of musical events. Her breakout mixtape, hit singles from Big Ol’ Freak to Savage, and an “All Eyes on Me” moment with her relationship and subsequent fallout with Tory Lanez. We’ve sort of been living in this world where Megan is an established rapper, but it wasn’t until now that it was sort of on paper. This album is an affirmation of what we all knew about Megan Thee Stallion, that her cornering of the ultra-sexualized female rap market is not a joke: this shit is real, and this shit is fire. That being said, there are some caveats found in the album that I need to get out of the way: the album has a very strong start, like the first 70% of it is back-to-back bangers with great energy and beats that are full of personality, but I think the last leg struggles a bit to break out of the mold set for them. That is until you get to all of the album singles, which are oddly grouped up at the very end of the album, seemingly afterthoughts in the grand scheme. I would have liked to have seen better sequencing in this regard, but that’s a minor flaw in the face of an album that is unflinchingly dedicated to Megan’s character: a sex-crazed street gangsta/boss, with the sex talk and violence talk coming in pretty much equal servings on this project. You could compare her to the Nicki’s and Cardi’s of the game, but her influence from scenes found in Memphis and Atlanta means that the hardcore hip-hop element of her music sets her apart from all of her contemporaries. That Savage money was put to good use on this album in regards to beats, because there are some amazing cuts on here, both in the trap lane and the pop-rap lane, with the latter in particular utilizing amazing looped samples to create some nostalgic club cuts. Which leaves us with the features, which are great and cause no problems on the project: guys like 2 Chainz, Big Sean, DaBaby, and Lil Durk stand shoulder to shoulder with Yung Miami, J.T., and SZA, and all bring their own spice to the project, but Megan brings enough of her own bravado that a solo track is no problem to me whatsoever. This is a good album, a great continuance of a career that has already reached great heights, and hopefully a point that catapults Megan into even more of a worldwide icon.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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DaBaby – My Brother’s Keeper (Long Live G)

Cover Artist: [Unknown]

For those of you who haven’t kept up with DaBaby recently, the man has had a particularly hard few years. First, he blew up, which is difficult for anyone who has been grinding for so long, but especially for DaBaby given that a catalyst for his rise was a shootout at a Wal-Mart. He barely had a year of fame before he lost his father, putting out his KIRK album partly as a tribute to him. Since that time, the public perception of DaBaby has strangely soured, a mystery to me if we’re being completely honest given that I think his music is merely getting better. All of this going on in the limelight, and then tragedy strikes again: DaBaby’s older brother commits suicide not to long ago. All of this pain, all of this pressure, has culminated in this short album right here, one where he is making great effort to speak on the feelings in his heart, the anguish both he and his family have been experiencing, and the loss of the people closest to him. He still has the goofy and funny bars in there on occasion, but we should all be giving this guy praise for forgoing those topics for the most part in favor of real emotion, real emptiness being spit on the microphone. I can only imagine what the man is going through these days, and being able to tell us about what he’s going through is more than I would have every expected from the man. There were glimpses of this in KIRK, but now we have a whole album of it, showing DaBaby as an infinitely more mature artist than he was merely a year ago. The beats can be a bit more soft-spoken, still utilizing the thumping drums but with a more sentimental edge. The features on here are a bit strange if I’m being honest: Meek works well, and although I like what Polo and NoCap being to the track Handgun, I feel like the album’s message would have been clearer without them. This isn’t my favorite DaBaby album, but this is his best album, with the maturity and growth shown being the most significant in his career thus far.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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Rich The Kid & YoungBoy Never Broke Again – Nobody Safe

Cover Artist: [Unknown]

Alright, so the question that pretty much everyone has bene asking in response to this album is this: why? Who asked for this collaboration? I was fully prepared to adopt the same mindset, but the lead single to this thing, Bankroll, had me thinking this might actually be something quality. While I do think the album as a whole is fraught with derivative tracks and a few duds, I think RTK and NBA actually have a lot of chemistry, creating a true-blue collaborative experience more than a lot of other “duos” have professed to do. Rich the Kid is much more melodic on this album than he usually is, which plays well into YoungBoy’s reliance on melody himself, as well as the beats, being glossy and processed pop-trap. YoungBoy and Rich aren’t coming with anything you haven’t heard before, from them specifically or from anyone else in this lane of popular hip-hop, but I think they put in the effort throughout the album to make things entertaining, justifying the collab more than I thought they could from the outset. I think the biggest point of pleasure for me with Nobody Safe are the instrumentals, and even whenever I feel like NBA and Rich are punching under their weight, I can always rely on the trap instrumentals to be of assured quality. Automatic, Doors Up, and Sorry Mama are all A-tier trap instrumentals, showing the duo’s connections in the game bearing rich fruit arguably more than their combined voices ever could. The last point here is with the features, and we have two guys who approach guests from the complete opposite points of view: Rich packs his projects out with TONS of features, while YoungBoy usually opts for none. There is a good balance between these two viewpoints on this album: Quando Rondo makes an appearance (one of the only rappers NBA enlists regularly), Lil Wayne has a great verse, and Rod Wave makes the track Sorry Mama much more than the sum of its parts. Overall, I think this could have been a lot worse, and I think that anyone who fucks with the autotuned melodic trap of today will find a handful of tracks to save off of this one.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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Meek Mill – Quarantine Pack

Cover Artist: [Unknown]

Meek is a fan of dropping these short little 3-4 track EPs every once in a while, usually unrelated to anything he has going on at the moment. These are collections of low-stakes tracks that usually seek to broaden Meek’s feature base (which is already huge as it is, but what’s the harm in adding a few names to the collection?), with Quarantine Pack giving us fire collaborations with Detroit’s 42 Dugg, King Vory (twice), and a great verse from Lil Durk. I think Dugg in particular gives us a standout performance on GTA, coming with energy that unexpectedly matches the mania that Meek brings on the track; that, and the West-Coast-tinged beat, makes that track a clear highlight for me, the song on this EP that I truly hope lands on Mill’s next album. The other songs have a decent amount of singing on them, something that isn’t exactly rare in the Meek Mill discography, but it is strange to see so concentrated here on this EP. There’s not really much more to say to it than that: if you want some great pop-rap/hardcore hip-hop to throw on while working out, you can’t do much better.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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-------SOUP’S HOT DEALS-------

Roc Marciano – Mt. Marci

Investment: $40.00

Cover Artist: josuethomas

Coming off of Marcielago, I was not expecting this kind of project from Marciano again. This is a full disclaimer to everyone who got hip to Roc off of his last album: this album sounds nothing like it, for the most part. This project may as well have been called RoseBudd’s Revenge 3, because the minimalism on this project is off the charts (below the charts??) in the best ways. Think back to a track like Bed Spring King, a track with literally one instrumental element stretched out in a cold and unfeeling manner, as being a point of reference for this album. No drums have always been Roc’s thing for was long as he’s been in the game, with his songs having few if any, but I think Mt. Marci takes it to a whole new level in terms of a hand-off approach, stripping back every aspect of his production in favor of ice-cold soundscapes where you could hear a pin drop. Maybe that’s the point here, climbing Mt. Marci as an idea, with the summit being devoid of any sound but the wind… but Roc Marciano is the only rapper alive that can find a pocket in a gust of wind. Roc still has not lost a single iota of his pimpishness and rugged flow, able to find new ways to describe his lifestyle and businesses in creative and hilarious ways, all the while forging his own flows across beats that have almost nothing to grab on to. I’ll say this: as a listener who enjoys every Roc Marciano project as a classic, and whose favorite is Marcielago, I would say this album doesn’t quite hit those same levels in my eyes, but sits right there with the RoseBudd series as a must-listen in Roc Marciano’s discography. My only true source of disappointment here is in the features department. I love hearing from Stove God Cook$ again, ScHoolboy Q is a great addition to the Roc collaborators, and KOOL-fuckin’-KEITH is a legendary pairing... but I wanted more. And that Trent Truce guy was not doing it for me. Keep your eyes peeled for the streaming links for this project coming in the next few weeks; Roc has always been steep with this entry fees, worth it for those of us who love the man, but $40 is a tall order for the uninitiated. It’ll be a couple weeks, but those streaming links will come.

==> Roc Marciano's Website <==

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Rome Streetz & Farma Beats – Kontraband

Investment: $25.00

Cover Artist: Greg Rappa

There is nothing more reminiscent of the 90’s than whenever Rome Streetz teams up with a quality producer and goes STUPID across a project. Last time it was Joyeria with The Artivist, and this time he’s teamed up with Farma Beats again for a sequel to their Street Farmacy tape from 2018, and I have to say, I think the two have outdone themselves on this one. Don’t get me wrong, I love that original album, but Kontraband feels like the stakes have been raised, both instrumentally and lyrically, with both Farma and Rome seeing this as an opportunity to show the hip-hop community how hard they can really come. I feel like Rome Streetz as a rapper has only gotten sharper as his career has progressed, and that progression is on full display on Kontraband: his flows are like water, incorporating a relentless stream of internal rhyme schemes that make each bar a neat package of satisfaction. There are even a few tracks on here that hit those storytelling notes perfectly, with one in particular, Laced, being an amazingly detailed account of the life of a street junkie. He channels this big Nas, Kool G Rap, and Big L energy in his rapping, sharpening these influences as he goes along in his career but still carving out his niche in the genre of ultra-dense rhyming. As for Farma Beats, it all comes down to those sample choices: the man has an ear for sounds that can be both grimy and cinematic, giving that 90’s nostalgia while still bringing the variety in the samples. Probably my favorite beat on here is the one on The Ballad of the Lone Wolf, sounding like it’s pulled directly from a Clint Eastwood movie. I love every minute of this project, every verse and every beat (which doesn’t even touch the quality performances from Radamiz, Ransom, and Daniel Son, a killer lineup of guests for sure), and I can’t wait to see how Rome Streetz’ profile in the game grows from here, because this mans’ ability needs flowers immediately (same goes for Farma Beats). Listen to this if you’ve been looking for the 90’s to return in major fashion.

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Ras Kass – I’m Not Clearing Shxt

Investment: $15.00

Cover Artist: [Unknown]

There’s something to be said about longevity when talking about an artist like Ras Kass, someone who has occupied pretty much the same space for well over 25 years; he’s a walking definition of your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper. His style remains unchanged on this newest album here, with shouting loud his opinions, whether it be those directed towards politics or hip-hop as a whole, being the centerpiece of his attention-grabbing style. I wouldn’t say his lyrics ever transcend into anything truly challenging (at least not to the level where he has the right to talk down on the “mumble rappers” or whatever of todays hip-hop landscape), but they’re entertaining and full of energy in that distinctly 90’s way, with clever turns of phrase and well thought out wordplay being his mainstay. The combination of his intelligence, aggressive delivery, and, most importantly in my eyes when it comes to I’m Not Clearing Shxt, the beats, give us an album that brings back everything we love about classic hip-hop. I mention the beats because every one of them is fantastic, incorporating amazing samples across the entire thing, really hammering home that “fuck sample clearance” theme the title sets us up with: Level Up, Chuck Berry, and Animal Crackers are all phenomenally produced tracks, full of positive energy. If you’re looking for bars, old-school beats, and a great host of featured guests that include faces like Termanology, Hus Kingpin, Ice-T, Kool Keith, and Masta Ace, then don’t pass this one up.

==> Black House Inc. Website <==

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??? & Starker – Rap Money

Investment: $35.00

Cover Artist: 1000Words

Many of the projects coming out of Massachusetts right now all have a similar individuality to them, with each one scratching that itch for something you’ve never heard before, but still being something that you can identify as a part of the Nack/divino-verse. More characters in the rap game are coming to embrace these sounds, bringing their own skills sets to a sound that takes those skills and flips them in their head in front of completely insane production. Deflated horns, weirdly dense and crinkly drums (or relatively no drums at all), tempo shifts and oddly-timed samples; a mix of sounds that, somehow, come together into something that’s coherent. I promise you all that this is a good thing, being some of the most creative art being made in that raw side of underground hip-hop today. Where this album makes its own impression is with the cast: ???, pronounced “THE HIDDEN CHARACTER” (the “?” is silent; I think I’ve said this joke in every post he’s come up in but’s its still funny to me so deal with it) is a rapper whose ties to the Estee Nack/al.divino group goes back a ways, but emerged as crystal clear this past year with a ton of features on their respective albums. He joins Starker, someone whose ties to the collective have grown stronger recently, who has developed mostly independently of the movement, but has come to similar conclusions whenever it comes to rap flows. They all have this hurried, overwhelm-with-words approach to writing their verses, full of some insane and technically impressive displays of rapping, mostly consisting of clever alliteration and consonance that link all of their words together in this river of rhyming words. I will say that this project has a little bit more of a solid foundation in comparison to some of the other projects that have come out in their scene (like Starker’s Secrets or ???’s “THEHIDDENCHARACTER”), with the beats and rapping being ever-so-slightly more accessible, at least in comparison to someone like al.divino or Estee Nack. A fantastic project, one that builds out this sound more, adds more layers, and more great faces to love. Listen if you want some of that weirdness in your life.

==> Bandcamp <==

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Rasheed Chappell & Buckwild – Sinners and Saints

Investment: $14.98

Cover Artist: Pecue Design

Buckwild has been having a killer year, coming back from a few year hiatus to hit us with project after project, both in solo and collaborative capacities. First off he’s got two different compilation albums to hang his hat on, Fully Loaded and Music is My Religion, albums that feature EVERYONE you could imagine when you think of quality underground talent today as well as some of the best boom-bap beats you can find in todays’ game. But, and I think more importantly to maintain his profile in the modern underground landscape, are the full albums he’s done with individual emcees. Almost a year ago now we got his album Trafficante with Rochester’s own Pounds, then Flee Lord’s 4th album of 2020 Hand Me My Flowers was an entire Buckwild affair, leading us now into this newest project, and probably the project of his so far that makes the most sense in terms of the rapper in question, Sinner and Saints with Rasheed Chappell. I’ve always thought that Buckwild’s beats would do better with an emcee that isn’t trying to overpower the instrumental, and he couldn’t have found a better pairing than Trust Gang’s Rasheed Chappell, who lives within the beat, using it to extend his voice rather than battling with it. What I mean by that is that Rasheed is one of the most respectful emcees in the game, letting the beats, skits, and features breathe, picking and choosing his words carefully whenever he decides to get some rapping in there. His style is thoughtful, smart, and empathetic, speaking on the world in ways that are both personal to him and relatable. He isn’t flashy in any capacity, giving each word the weight it deserves, often pushing his features forward to perform and speak *their* minds over his own. He reminds me of a Talib Kweli type figure, very aware of his position both in hip-hop and his life, realizing the blessing that a project with Buckwild is. I wish there was more time to relish in the compatibility here, as I don’t think 30 minutes is enough to really let their minds run wild (the perfection really starts to come together near the end with The Blue Hood and Black Owned, two of Rasheed’s best songs to date). Sinners and Saints is another reason why Chappell should be on your watchlist, and why Buckwild will be apart of hip-hop for as long as it lives.

==> Buckwild's Website <==

Spotify/Apple Music

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RLX & Brown13 – Panaeng

Investment: $30.00

A very short EP, 4 tracks at 11 minutes, but each track has its own little story to tell. RLX and Brown13 are two cats who are closely associated with CRIMEAPPLE’s whole “Manteca” thing he has going on right now, a movement that encompasses both hip-hop and fashion, and one whose fans are some of the most dedicated out there. Manteca banks on that feeling of being a supreme drug overlord, and not in the Cocaine Cowboys type way I mean in that true Columbian/Medellín WHITE type of way, that luxurious and lavish type of way, that Escobarian type way. If CRIMEAPPLE has the persona of a kingpin, I think RLX stands as one of his premier henchman, an intelligent and reflective rapper that takes the high-life message and breaks it down into it’s more street-wise elements. More than that, I think RLX brings a distinct smoothness to this scene; CRIME and Primo Profit can be very rough figures, both in flow and subject matter, but RLX is consistent and steady with his flow, his voice having this youthful and egoist quality to it, and his lyrics being more of a poetic way of describing the drug life. I do think a lot of these impressions I’m describing are helped along by the production from Brown13, the long-time DJ on CRIMEAPPLE’s team and beatmaker. The tracks Insight and Lotus have this very 80’s groove to them, sounding like something JLVSN or Tone Beats would have come up with, like something that would have played in a movie about the drug trade from ’85. Panacea and Lah Capital on the other hand are much more deadly, the tight loops and the piano/flute samples raising those stakes to convey genuine danger. Like I said at the top, there’s little material here, but it all has a statement, it all has a vibe, and everything is in its place on Panaeng. Listen if you want a quick infusion of some quality rhymes and lyrics, along with a host of quality beats.

==> CRIMEAPPLE's Website <==

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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