Jermaine returns hungrier than ever before, and with a few welcome surprises.
Whenever J.Cole says he’s gonna drop an album, the whole world stops and listens, as one of hip-hop’s leading figures he doesn’t beat around the bush. Instead of feeding into months of hype and promotion, he simply says he’s got a new album, it’s coming out in a little over a week, and he bounces. It’s enough to get listeners foaming at the mouths as they hypothesize what the album will sound like, what concept it will follow, and whether it will continue his run going double platinum with no features.
Admittedly, I disliked Cole’s last album KOD, while a…
Revisiting the Chattanooga rapper’s debut studio album, 4 years later
Released back in September 2016, The Sun’s Tirade was Isaiah Rashad’s debut studio album with Top Dawg Entertainment. Following 2014’s Cilvia Tape Demo mixtape, Rashad came back into the limelight 2 years later with an album full of soulful production detailing his bouts with depression, self-doubt, and family. With the release of his newest single “Lay Wit Ya” his first taste of new music in nearly 5 years, alongside the anticipation for his follow-up album, The House Is Burning, slated for release next month, let’s revisit one of the most underrated rap albums of the past decade.
From a production…
How Abel pulled off his cinematic masterpiece
“TONIGHT WE START A BRAIN MELTING PSYCHOTIC CHAPTER LET’S GOOOO” tweeted The Weeknd one late November evening in 2019. The eerie out of the blue announcement followed by the blurred, monochromatic picture of the artist would signify the start of his next album run. Little did we know that this would also be the start of a whole new chapter in Abel’s career. He would use this new project to reinvent himself by experimenting with different styles of production and developing a stylized concept that only he could pull off.
After Hours is the sixth studio album by the Toronto…
The mixtape that introduced us to The Weeknd
In 2011 Abel Tesfaye was a mere blip on the radar. Having dropped out of high school a few years prior, he was living in Parkdale with a few friends, dabbling in excessive drug use and partying, but behind all this, a true star was being made. On March 21st, Abel would become The Weeknd when he released his first official project titled House of Balloons. A mixtape that would start his journey from a lowly misfit out of Scarborough to one of music’s biggest artists. Moreover, his dark, atmospheric, and moody take on R&B would shift the genre in…
The soundtrack to the apocalypse
If there’s one band who refuses to be boxed into one style or sound that would surely be Bring Me The Horizon. Since their inception in the early 2000’s, they shifted from earsplitting death-core on their debut Count Your Blessings, to melodic metal-core starting with 2010’s There Is A Hell… to full-blown pop-rock meets electronica on last year’s Amo, my favourite album of 2019. The change in sound has certainly divided their fanbase, but the quintet is more than confident with their choice to constantly subvert expectations, and the results have been quite stellar. …
The use of Childish Gambino’s “Redbone” in Jordan Peele’s Get Out
I will be spoiling plot points from the film Get Out. So if you haven’t watched the film as of yet. Give it a watch and then come back to this article. The film has been out for years now, so surely most have already seen it. If you haven’t, I highly recommend checking it out, it’s best to watch with zero expectations and very few spoilers. With that out of the way, let’s dive in.
Get Out is a 2017 psychological thriller directed by Jordan Peele (MAD TV, Key & Peele) in his directorial debut and first foray into…
It might be released this Friday
The internet is buzzing right now as news has surfaced that Kanye West is reportedly dropping a new album very soon, and by soon I mean by this Friday, the album being the long-awaited DONDA. Images and videos of Kanye previewing the album began to surface over the weekend, below you can catch Kanye (on the left dressed with a mask) sitting down with Kevin Durant and Justin Laboy listening to the album.
Revisiting the band’s heaviest album
Ask a Slipknot fan what they think is the band’s best album and their answer will be Iowa, without any hesitation. Released in August 2001, Slipknot’s second studio album has been regarded by many as the heaviest and darkest album in their discography. Nothing released after has compared to the sheer ferocity that is Iowa. This album pushed the band to their most extreme, with its brutal production and chaotic recording process that would’ve torn apart any other band.
I’ve listened to my fair share of metal, metalcore, hardcore, etc. In my twenty-something years of life. However, nothing compares to…
A hazy look at the life of Vince Staples
Hailing from Long Beach, California, Vince Staples has made a name for himself as hip-hop’s West Coast provocateur. Listen to an interview or check his Twitter and you’ll notice the 28-year-old is miles beyond his age. If rap didn’t work out, he could’ve easily been a comedian. However, outside of his clever wit, humour, and attention-grabbing personality, he is somewhat of an outsider in the rap game. While touching on the reality he lived dealing with gang banging, friends dying and more in Ramona Park, Vince’s music has been steeped in nihilism and self-reflection. …
The House Is Burning is slated for July 30th.
After being radio silent for almost 5 years, rapper Isaiah Rashad has announced that his second studio album The House Is Burning will drop on July 30th. After years of speculation and snippets, the TDE signee will make his triumphant return by this month’s end. His last full-length release was 2016’s The Sun’s Tirade. Lauded by many (and myself included) for its laid-back production, Rashad’s deeply personal lyricism, and overall tone. You can check out my review of his last album down below.
So far he’s treated listeners with two lead singles: “Lay Wit Ya” feat. Duke Deuce and “Headshots…
Mark Chinapen
I like to pretend I’m a critic.
