Week #49 ('21) Singles
Welcome to my Singles post, where I go over all of the loose songs released over the past week so. These are songs that are not currently attached to projects, and may either be promotional singles for an upcoming project or songs dropped at the random whim of the artist. I’ll show you the single, where to find it out in the wild, and a little blurb about it for my thoughts/further context. Click here to see previous Singles posts.
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Justin Tyme (Feat. Ransom, Method Man, & Raekwon) – Live By The Code
I have searched and scoured the internet for anything about this Justin Tyme dude, and I can’t find a goddamn thing. He’s got an Instagram/Twitter and all that jazz, but I can’t find where this dude is from or anything like that. He’s got an accent, which I’m pretty sure is French, but still raps in that gritty 90’s fashion. But the real reason why I was trying to find out the man’s info is because I need to know HOW THE FUCK HE HAS ALMOST A DOZEN A-TIER SPITTERS ON SINGLES THIS WEEK. Who is this man that is pulling Method Man and Raekwon on a track? Ransom? That I’ve never heard of this guy is incredible, and I think y’all out there who want that really faithful 90’s hip-hop need to check this out and be just as amazed. Shoutout to Nicholas Craven on the beat too. Justin’s got an album out at the top of next year: with features like this, he has a guaranteed listen from me.
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Chris Webby (Feat. Nems) – Politically Incorrect
The title made me cringe a bit, I won’t lie, but this track is actually fucking hilarious once you get down to it. Nems is comically vulgar, like he always is of course, and Chris flexing a little bit of that Slim Shady muscle himself is hilarious too. Ironically it’s quite tasteful with the punchlines on this one: I would rather have jokes that are landing and making me genuinely laugh rather than being dumb with the “cancel culture” jokes like I thought it was gonna be. Over the top is how I would describe this shit: if you fuck with Wayne-level jokes spit in that boom-bap cadence (think like Cypress Hill or something like that) this is gonna be where you’re going this week.
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Juicy J & Wiz Khalifa – Pop That Trunk
A lot of artists move on from their past material at some point. Most just don’t want to talk about their past material because they have all this cool shiny new stuff coming out. Well Juicy and the rest of the Three Six crew are totally different, constantly calling back to those early albums, often directly sampling those early records for some heavy nostalgia. Pop That Trunk has this killer sample of a Kingpin Skinny Pimp album, a classic Memphis-sounding record that gives this new single here some edge. You’re getting that Juicy flow, a decent Wiz verse, and a hook that just won’t leave your mind any time soon. Also it slaps, so there’s that. That last Juicy J album was amazing, so if we’re getting another I’m all ears. Hell, a Juicy and Wiz collaborative project would also be fire.
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Justin Tyme (Feat. R.A. the Rugged Man, Canibus, Nine, Ruste Juxx, Teflon, Rockness Monsta, Lil Fame, & Billy Danze – The Heat Iz On (Iron Bars)
I pretty much said everything I needed to say above with the Live By The Code single: I gotta know who this Justin Tyme guy is so that I can figure out how he’s pulling these dudes. So many bars on this one, so many emcees, it’s fucking mind-boggling how a track can even contain this much raw shit. Again, I’m loving Justin himself, it’s an accent we don’t hear very often in American hip-hop, and the way he blends in with these more traditional cats is crazy. If you want that 90’s feel with gold-medalists of rap, this is where you need to be.
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Tory Lanez – ’87 Stingray
I can’t even lie, I think this new Tory Lanez album might be his best if these singles are telegraphing anything. Everything that he’s doing on the mic melodically, everything related to song structure, everything his engineer is doing to make these beats sound incredibly authentic, and what his music video production arm is coming up with for these singles is all some of the most inspired shit I’ve seen in hip-hop. It’s different, fresh, but still has that familiar feel of that cheese of the 80’s. Listen to this shit, go back and listen to Lady of Namek (and watch that video too), and get ready for this album he’s got coming this Friday.
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Rappin’ 4-Tay (Feat. Ice T, Vinnie Paz, Lazy Dubb, Mr. Nickel, & Necro) – OG Gangsta Shit
I knew I had seen this guy’s name before in my library, and it turns out it’s from a 2Pac album of all places: this dude had a guest appearance on All Eyez on Me incredibly enough, which is a huge change of scenery considering what you’re getting on this track. The beat on this one isn’t an old dude trying those West Coast Gangsta sounds of the mid 90’s in today’s airspace, it’s an oldhead embracing new sounds in the best way. The beat is detailed, quick, and cold with those wintery synths, and everyone is having to come a bit more bloodthirsty and nimbler as a result. You normally wouldn’t hear guys like Ice T and Vinnie Paz rapping at faster than a lumber, but they adapt to the beat wonderfully; hearing guys like Vinnie/Necro with the likes of Tay and T is such a strange combo that actually comes together quite well. I’m not sure if he’s got an album on the way, but the execution here warrants more digging for sure.
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Phro. & Guilty Simpson – On The Block
I don’t know much about this guy Phro. other than that he has an EP with Guilty Simpson coming out soon called “Guilty by Association”, with On The Block here leading us into that project. Excellent percussion on this beat, sharp sample and instrumental loop, and a nice brisk BPM makes this a beat that I might not have seen Guilty on in my minds-eye, but seeing it in action connects those dots and make this an excellent Simpson cut. Lots of soul in the bars and the beat, an energy that I have faith that these two can maintain across a spread of tracks. Keep a lookout for that project, Guilty by Association, out before too long.
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Joyner Lucas (Feat. Lil Durk) – Rambo
This track will hit you immediately with those heavenly woodwind notes, keep you fed with the quick bars and solid flows, give you a good feature, and leave you feeling like you got a pretty big meal. Durk says some weird shit, I gotta get that one out of the way, but the flows here (and the melodies too, especially in Joyner’s case) are more than enough to distract me from a couple of stray cheese bars. The back and forth between these two is pretty cool, I’m liking how Joyner can dip into some singing and still maintain some of the density in his bars. This is as elegant and technical as melodic trap music can get, a fun little track that hopefully means a good Joyner Lucas album is on the way.
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Unscathed, C-Lance, & Apathy (Feat. Celph Titled) – Sea Devil
Apathy and Celph are two of the most brutal motherfuckers with microphones, so seeing them on feature duty already has me ready to see how this Unscathed fella will stack up. It was a large task, but I think he does some serious work on this track, a bit more on the grimy side up against the brute nature of Ap and Celph, but still some quality shit. The rapping already had me impressed, but Unscathed is looking to come out with an album with C-Lance, and let me tell you the beat on here is a slapper. A great sample, tried and true, lots of silliness and bounce to it with that cinematic edge. I’m hoping for an album sooner rather than later from Unscathed and C-Lance, but the bars on this one will keep me fed for a minute.
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Cordae (Feat. Lil Wayne) – Sinister
At 2:30 seconds, you’re really getting a lot of value for your time all things considered, because both the bars and the hooks are on point with this one. The hook is quick and an earworm if there ever was one, and both Cordae and Wayne are in peak form on this bitch: each dude could have gone on for another 8 bars easily, but this bite-sized track gives us bite-sized verses to go with it. Cordae has some infectious swagger, both on his verse and chorus, and Wayne is out to kill on his feature with some hilariously hard punchlines. Special shoutout to this beat though, with a super groovy bassline keeping everyone in line. If Cordae’s album is anything like this, a bit more mature and less self-serious, I think we’re looking at a banger on the horizon.
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OT The Real (Feat. Benny the Butcher) – Coke & Guns
OT’s got a project coming out with DJ Green Lantern soon, and this track is an amazing addition to the string of singles we’ve been blessed with beforehand. Loving the slightly off-key keyboard notes and the subdued drums on this one, and the way these guys attack the beat is some special shit as well. I mean the Butcher will always come through with that solid shit, but people have got to start giving this OT guy his flowers man, because the hoarse voice and gem-laced bars he’s coming with is showing me he’s destined for great shit in the game, really putting on for Philadelphia in a positive way. If you like that Griselda-esque drug raps, this one is for you in every way.
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