One can’t really praise nor criticize Harlem rapper A$AP Rocky without sounding redundant from everyone else. I wasn’t the biggest fan of his when his first mixtape Live.Love.A$AP when it came out a couple of years ago – mainly because I wasn’t a fan of the cloud rap type of production. But in the time it took for his long awaited (and delayed) debut album to come to fruition, the cloud rap style has grown on me a little bit. So to my surprise, Rocky was able to mix in modern to his typical hazzy flow to deliver a rather consistent and engaging listen with Long.Live.A$AP. [Read more...]
Music Review: A$AP Rocky’s ‘Long.Live.ASAP’
01/14/2013 by Leave a Comment
Album Review: Kendrick Lamar’s ‘good kid, m.A.A.d. city’
10/30/2012 by Leave a Comment
What does a good movie have to do to engage you as a viewer? Contain a good plot? Some character development along the way? Maybe even some comedic moments sprinkled on top? Now, what makes a good rap album? Some bragadocious rhymes? Rapping about what everyone else in the game raps about? Although sometimes Compton rapper Kendrick Lamar dips his pen into the “good rap album” section of this intro, it seems like he went ahead and penned the next great hood drama, entitled good kid, m.A.A.d. city. [Read more...]
Review of Nicki Minaj’s “Pink Friday…Roman Reloaded”
04/02/2012 by 1 Comment
Nicki Minaj is going through an identity crisis. And that is not just because she is portraying different personalities in her music. Minaj is labeled as hip-hop, an MC if you were. She even got the nod on MTV’s Hottest MCs list at number four. But she is also a pop artist, making songs that are both radio friendly and club ready. So where exactly would you put her? [Read more...]
Review of Tyga’s ‘Careless World – Rise of the Last King’
02/22/2012 by Leave a Comment
When it comes to hip-hop, being named a “king” holds a lot of weight. Today, there are about three kings of the game right now; Lil Wayne, Kanye West, and Jay-Z. With their huge fanbase, lyrical prowess, and the almighty album sales, these three have what it takes to call themselves hip-hop royalty. This is just one of the reasons why I can’t take Tyga, a member of Lil Wayne’s Young Money, seriously as the “Last King” (as his album title implies). A couple other reasons has to do with where he started (remember Coconut Juice, anyone?) and this incredibly hilarious video of his hit single “Rack City.” [Read more...]
