Weekly Fix #16

Very slow week. I’m writing this over the weekend wondering if Kanye is going to drop something (I’m not getting my hopes up), and I think that explains the crickets coming from the mainstream right now. DaBaby had the balls to go ahead with his drop, but everyone else seemingly decided to take the week off. Next week should be better, at least in the underground, since Danny Brown and billy woods are dropping projects.

Some may have noticed a change to the release schedule of my content, and here’s a general rundown: Playlists will come out on Mondays, the FIX will come on Tuesdays, and Write-Ups and Monthlies will be on Wednesdays/Thursdays. There isn’t a set day for the Podcast yet, it’s just whenever we get done. Speaking of that, we skipped a week to upgrade our recording equipment (Episode 5 still on the way). Thank y’all for reading and listening!

Here’s a link to the Week #16 Playlists for y’all

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DaBaby – KIRK
INTRO may have been slightly misleading going into the project, because we definitely didn’t get a pivot to a more reflective DaBaby, but we got a better version of Baby on Baby. The beats are more interesting and utilize more instruments, the monotony is broken up by a number of quality features, and, while he doesn’t go in a lyrical miracle direction, I feel like his punchlines and wordplay are sharper here. KIRK is a solid project that satisfies me as a DaBaby fan, and I hope he keeps going in this direction as more money is thrown at him.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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LNDN DRGS – Affiliated
This album is high-society soul meets LA westside, with the instrumentals being the highlight of the night musically. Sean House is not only well versed in the ins and outs of the G Funk sound, but he is also a fantastic sampler, with a couple tracks on here being minimal soul-sample driven beauties. Jay Worthy does his thing as an average rapper that doesn’t wow me as much as contents me. There is a guest on every track here, and the vast majority of them are fire: TF, Casey Veggies, Problem, A$ton Matthews, and Conway are all perfect fits for Sean’s style.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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Eric Bellinger – Saved by the Bellinger
If you’re looking for a Chris Brown album that won’t take you an entire day to listen to, then I’m pleased to introduce you to Mr. Bellinger. His voice is great, and the instrumentals he hops on are bangers. The feature department is a bit lacking here; I would have like a couple more good names to go along with Wale’s 10 second verse. Nevertheless, the album is bouncy, sexy, and features a talented singer, so I’m happy.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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Sosamann – Trap Sauce: The Album
Surprisingly good, given that I’ve never given Sosamann the time of day despite being on quite a few projects I’ve listened to. The production is 100% holding him up here, and his rap style is the same style Sauce Walka uses almost to a T, but the album is short enough and the instrumentals cool enough that it warrants a listen if you like mindless trap music. Like Eric Bellinger’s project I wish that there were more features here, because some of these instrumentals could be ripped apart by more capable emcee.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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Chuck Cross – Get Familiar
The album came out months ago, but they guy finally got it on streaming services. It’s a pretty vanilla album, with rudimentary soul sampling and boom-bap drums, but he has a lot of good guests on here that make it worth your while. Conway, Skyzoo, Napoleon the Legend, and this dude ENU who I had never heard of but impressed the hell out of me.  

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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-------SINGLES-------

38 Spesh (Feat. Benny the Butcher & Conway the Machine) – Never Seen A Man Cry
These dudes just do not miss… how is this possible? A recreation of the classic Scarface beat (the entire album coming soon, 1994, is also made up of remade beats from the year 1994, all produced by 38), 38 Spesh and the Griselda boys demolish this beat with fantastic wordplay. Conway in particular with the “pockets on Lizzo” line had me howling.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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Wiki – Eggs
Only the second collaboration between Wiki and Madlib, which is a crime, but I’m glad we’re getting more quality. It’s one of the more straightforward Madlib beats, but I can’t deny that the sample is catchy as hell. Wiki really seems like his listlessly wandering in hip-hop right now, and I pray to the hip-hop gods this guy can get back into a good spot where he makes music that capitalizes on his potential.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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Statik Selektah & CJ Fly (Feat. Joey Bada$$) – Rudebwoy
Much better than anything CJ or Joey have put out in a long time. Statik throws it back to a better time in Pro Era history, where there was a hope for a group of leaders in a golden age revival. I love how the lyrical subject of the track references their Caribbean roots; it gives the track so much personality and style that someone like CJ Fly (who admittedly wasn’t the best out of the PE crew) needs to be successful. Hopefully Statik will be able to make CJ a palatable emcee for the length of the project.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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French Montana (Feat. Cardi B & Post Malone) – Writing on the Wall
French Montana is terrible on this track (like he is on most tracks to be fair; Suicide Doors was a fluke). The beat is also a terrible, flavorless dance track. Post Malone has a pretty good verse however, and Cardi B hits a nice flow that I love listening to. Unfortunately, with the hook being as much of a boldfaced radio grab as it is, I see the track getting big.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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Young Scooter (Feat. Lil Baby) – Petty
Besides Gucci Mane’s literal clone of himself, I don’t think there’s a person in hip-hop more obviously a clone of someone than Scooter is to Guwop. It still sounds good if you pretend it’s Gucci, and the beat slaps in all the same ways, but I’d still rather be listening to Wop. Lil Baby has a pretty good feature on here which is what will keep me coming back.

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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Joe Moses (Feat. Young Thug & RJmrLA) – All Rap
A very good LA collaboration with Thugger, the second that I’ve heard this year that has wowed me. Moses has always been hella underrated to me; this guy has an excellent voice and a gangsta attitude that just never caught on amongst all the YG affiliates. I love his verse, love Thugs verse which is one of his best this year, and I love how RJ wasn’t relegated to hook duty and has a good verse. All around great track.

Here’s the Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music link to listen to All Rap:

Spotify/YouTube/Apple Music

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