The Rap Music Plug Podcast

05/10/2021

I was honoured to have a rare conversation with Kincee BabyFace Pearlis to discuss his unique writing process

Uncovering the central theme of his avant-garde lyricism

The full Kincee BabyFace Pearlis interview in Ep. 52 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep52_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep52_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep52_YT

05/06/2021

Psychological Cheat Sheet 2 sounds like controlled chaos

Vic Spencer gives us a very honest and humorous performance

August Fanon laser-focuses on a jazzy sound that features great percussion and brass

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep48_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep48_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep48_YT

05/06/2021

A CONSTANT CONDENSATION is beautifully intimate, filled with raw creative energy

Amani is a special talent that you need to check out ASAP

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep47_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep47_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep47_YT

05/06/2021

La Maquina shows that Conway is better suited for the commercial lane, than Benny

That being said, ‘Griselda fatigue’ may becoming a thing

You think ‘Griselda fatigue’ is setting in? Lmk👇🏽👇🏽

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep51_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep51_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep51_YT

05/06/2021

Hus Kingspin put on a game clinic on Th*****me 2

Dropping slick lyricism, over silky smooth production mainly handled by Prynce P

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep50_Ap
Spot: https://cutt.ly/ep50_Sp
YT: https://cutt.ly/ep50_YT

05/06/2021

🚨 A new Lukah album is dropping late summer 🚨

Single with a Griselda feature dropping May 21st 👀

Who do you think the Griselda, and the other GxFR-adjacent features will be? 🤔

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep49_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep49_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep49_YT

05/06/2021

Hear Lukah explain how he was able to communicate street knowledge through his music

Using the magic of the artform to drop these jewels 💎

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep49_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep49_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep49_YT

05/06/2021

Lukah and Cities Aviv may seem very different on the surface

But they exist on a similar creative wavelength that connects their work, and makes their relationship so special

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep49_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep49_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep49_YT

05/06/2021

“When the Black Hand Touches You” is certainly an attention-grabbing title for an album

Hear Lukah explain the layers of significance to this title, and how it naturally evolved over time

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep49_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep49_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep49_YT

05/06/2021

“You can make it out.” - Lukah

This inspiring clip is just a taste of the jewels Lukah dropped in our conversation

He brought his music to life, and was as genuine as I hoped he’d be

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep49_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep49_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep49_YT

04/15/2021

🚨Haram is a psychedelic masterpiece and my Album of the Year🚨

The Alchemist gave his best production of his entire career

billy woods and ELUCID were spellbinding, waxing poetic on the pure and profane

Full review in Ep. 46 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast: https://rmpp.carrd.co

04/15/2021

ELUCID and billy woods will go down as a classic duo

Haram shows just how great of a foil ELUCID serves for woods, and vice versa

Full Haram review in Ep. 46 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast: rmpp.carrd.co

Both operate in the abstract realm surely, with a certain commonality in subject matter and overall perspective on the world

But woods' lyrics are often more concretely based in reality

Wheereas ELUCID is more overtly poetic

It's not like this is a new dynamic with Armand Hammer

but I think 2020’s BRASS with Moor Mother solidified this thought

As Moor Mother and woods hit you in two different, but complimentary ways
.. Which, in my humble opinion, ended up creating ANOTHER classic in BRASS

04/14/2021

The coldest take ever: is one of the best producers of all time 🗣

No second of Haram was put to waste

Props to and for the post-production work too

Ep. 46 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast for the full Haram review: https://rmpp.carrd.co

04/12/2021

What does Mach-Hommy and Westside Gunn reuniting mean for their careers?

I’m hoping West lends Mach that high-art album expertise of his

And I hope Mach inspires West to get hungrier again

Hear my full thoughts in Ep. 45 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast 👇🏽👇🏽
Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep45_Ap
Spot: https://cutt.ly/ep45_Sp
YT: https://cutt.ly/ep45_YT

04/11/2021

Repping where you’re from is a staple in hip-hop

2 Dolla Will speaks to why he think it’s important to rep Butte, and what makes his hometown unique

Catch the full interview with 2 Dolla Will in Ep. 44 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:
Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep44_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep44_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep44_YT

04/06/2021

2 Dolla speaks to the importance of knowing where your audience discovers music

And the benefits of using Bandcamp 👍🏽👍🏽

Check the full interview with 2 Dolla Will in Ep. 44 of The Rap Music Plug 🎙

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep44_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep44_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep44_YT

04/05/2021

Listen to how 2 Dolla Will took a different approach to recording the entertaining Red Snow 5

I was joined by the hilarious 2 Dolla Will in Ep. 44 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast!

Apple: https://cutt.ly/ep44_Ap
Spotify: https://cutt.ly/ep44_Sp
YouTube: https://cutt.ly/ep44_YT

03/29/2021

Benny’s latest venture into a commercial lane leads to middling results

I hope this was simply a misstep... and not a sign of what’s to come 😬

Ep. 43 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:
🍏: cutt.ly/ep43_Ap
Spot: cutt.ly/ep43_Sp
YT: cutt.ly/ep43_YT

The Plugs I Met 2 serves as a continuation of the cleaner more commercial sound that Benny brought with Burden of Proof

A sound I liked, which led me to say that Burden of Proof is my FAVOURITE Benny project

even more than fan-favourites in Tana Talk 3 and The Plugs I Met

The central problem with this latest release though

Is that the 2000s Rocafella style production on Burden of Proof fit the reflective lyrical subject matter of Benny way more

W/ Plugs 2, this more trappy sound would've benefitted more from gritty Benny, but we didn’t get that

In addition to the production being a continuation of Burden, Plugs 2 is also a continuation lyrically

Benny is rapping less from the POV of a guy right in the heat of the street drug-dealing action

Instead, he's more reflective, speaking from a POV of heightened maturity

On Plugs 2 though, I find Benny's lyrics are just not as insightful or precise as they needed to be

Benny surely fits well on these beats and seems comfortable... but in my opinion, TOO comfortable

03/23/2021

Lukah dropped the Album of the Year 🗣

Memphis MC Lukah is the next great rapper

I haven’t been so impressed by a young artist since KRIT

Ep. 42 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:
Apple: cutt.ly/ep42_Ap
Spot: cutt.ly/ep42_Sp
YT: cutt.ly/ep42_Yt

You know that feeling when you just KNOW you’re witnessing the start of something great?

That’s how I felt with Lukah when I heard When the Black Hand Touches You

Lukah has the lyrical sophistication of a seasoned veteran

And the perspective of a middle-aged man with a lot of life experience

stemming from the tough life lessons he learnt from the streets, as well as from the birth of his son

I get Scarface vibes from the subject matter, and from how wise Lukah comes off on this album

Lukah raps with so much conviction

This guy not only has a relentlessly passionate flow, but Lukah's raps are so clever, and are somehow matched by the potent subject matter

This is the most hard-hitting lyrical performance I’ve heard in a long time

I really do feel like I have stumbled upon the next great rapper, because the foundation of Lukah as an artist is solid as hell

Lukah and this album... is the fu***ng s**t!

Support great art👇🏽👇🏽
https://lukah.bandcamp.com/album/when-the-black-hand-touches-you

03/22/2021

ewonee’s production gave YUNGMORPHEUS a great pocket to deliver his best rapping performance yet 🔥

Ep. 41 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:
🍏: cutt.ly/ep41_Ap
Spot: cutt.ly/ep41_Sp
YT: cutt.ly/ep41_YT

*DISCLAIMER: Apologies to Morph and ewonee for saying Thumbing Thru THE Foliage throughout this review. My bad!

LA-based YUNGMORPHEUS teamed up with talented producer ewonee, to drop Thumbing Thru Foliage

As a great producer himself, I was curious to see how a YUNGMORPHEUS album would sound without touching the production, leaving it to ewonee

I think the end result of their collaboration was very good, as ewonee's groove-heavy sound and sample choices fit Morph's sound very well

I'm not sure if it's as a result of Morph solely focusing on the rapping. or if its just a natural progression in his artistic development

but I think this is Morph's best rapping yet

Morph finds himself in a pocket on these beats, feeding off of the groove-heavy production

I think the styles of ewonee and YUNGMORPHEUS were a great pairing on Thumbing Thru Foliage,

Morph is clearly on a good artistic path, with a knack for bottling up the anger and disdain that many folks feel towards our fu**ed up society

Stream/Buy Thumbing Thru Foliage here: https://yungmorpheus.bandcamp.com/album/thumbing-thru-foliage

03/16/2021

Drake may currently be on the most successful run in hip-hop history 😲

Listen to how Drake has remained atop the mainstream of rap w/ surgical precision

Ep. 40 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:
🍏: cutt.ly/kzMooTj
Spot: cutt.ly/BzMogoJ
YT: cutt.ly/zzMoT4k

In Ep. 40, I first give you my thoughts on this 3-pack, Scary Hours 2

But then I discuss how I think Drake has been able to sustain this incredible run of success

And come to the conclusion as to whether this current Drake run is the most successful run in hip-hop history

Drake's sometimes vulture-like tendency to hop on trends has kept his sound evolving, without having to necessarily branch outside of the mainstream

That distinction is important to make because it’s not the same way another A-lister, like Kanye, had historically stayed relevant

Kanye, an artist known for staying ahead of the curve and making cutting-edge music at his peak

Melted genre lines and experimented in bold ways that genuinely made him appeal to people outside the mainstream hip-hop crowd

Drake on the other hand, has played a delicate dance in making slight adjustments to his core sound with machine-like precision

All the while keeping the fundamentals of his sound and persona still firmly rooted in the mainstream

Because Drake at his core is still the guy who will rap and sing over beats that are hot for the time

With a persona based on relationships, toxicity, and superiority

Add in an amazing knack for catchy songwriting, and a downright spiritual connection with the Instagram caption
.. and you have what could be the most successful run in hip-hop history

03/15/2021

Rome Streetz shows off an infectious hunger and energy on the DJ Muggs produced Death & The Magician

Rome is easily one of the most talented MCs out rn

Ep. 39 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:
Spot: cutt.ly/ep39_Sp
🍏: cutt.ly/ep39_Ap
YT: cutt.ly/ep39_YT

Legendary producer DJ Muggs linked up with up and coming MC Rome Streetz

For a collab album that has been buzzing in the hip-hop world ever since its release

The Muggs production was solid as hell, but we all expected that

What we wanted to see is what this latest partner of Muggs, Rome Streetz, would be able to do with the Muggs pack

I am happy to say that Rome Streetz accomplished exactly what he set out to do on Death & The Magician

Rome’s hunger gives these songs a strong sense of energy and urgency that keeps me engaged throughout the whole record

Rome’s delivery and flow is absolutely top notch

Every verse here is rapped like it's the last verse he'll ever be able to spit

You can clearly tell that Rome understood the moment that was Death & The Magician

Making sure he made a lasting impression with legend DJ Muggs

03/09/2021

Listen to how Adé Hakim describes his remarkably distinct and soulful sound 🔈

Timeless, high frequency, simplistic

Ep. 38 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:
Spot: ofbd.co/n/4kg
🍏 : ofbd.co/n/2gj
YT: ofbd.co/n/3j4

03/03/2021

Tha YOD Fahim is another great addition to the Your Old Droog x Tha God Fahim catalog👌🏽

The duo brings lively production and strong rapping performances

Ep. 37 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:
Spot: ofbd.co/n/YQO
🍏: ofbd.co/n/Ww4
YT: ofbd.co/n/X78

While Wolf on Wall St. felt like a Fahim album in terms of how straight forward it was

I feel like the more varied production, and the fact that there are solo Droog songs on this album, makes Tha YOD Fahim feel like Droog took the lead creatively

This album is more dynamic than its predecessor

These beats are more dynamic and varied than the one-tone grey sounding Wolf on Wall St.

Fahim continues to perform well just like he did on Wolf... showing that he is very underrated and deserves real respect as an MC

Droog on the other hand sounded re-invigorated here, after a still solid, but overall sort of Droog "auto-pilot" performance on Wolf

Tha YOD Fahim is not the same supremely impressive affair that was Dump YOD, but it gets better and better with every listen

03/03/2021

TYRON is an admirable effort to portray the duality of slowthai’s tortured psyche

That lacks the lyrical precision to make a significant impact

Ep. 36 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast here:
Spot: ofbd.co/n/V5B
Apple: ofbd.co/n/QNM
YT: ofbd.co/n/RMz

With TYRON, slowthai took an interesting approach as he split the album up into two distinct sides

The first side being more aggressive and high-energy, whereas the second side being much more introspective and lowkey

The first side fails to make the connection between the more hedonistic party animal lyrical content

and the underlying elements of destructive behaviour, and defence mechanisms that these lyrics are supposed to represent

The purpose of the first side, of setting the stage for the realization and vulnerability displayed on the second half

isn’t clearly articulated and mainly just come off as bangers that showcase his wild side

The second disc though is much more memorable

This album has a lot more to offer than wild energy and cold-hearted bangers

but it unfortunately spends a good portion of the album trying to portray the duality of slowthai's complicated psyche in an unfocused-manner

Still, TYRON has some great qualities to it, especially on the second half of this album, which is much more engaging, from a lyrical and musical standpoint

which solidifies TYRON as certainly a worthwhile and admirable effort from slowthai

03/01/2021

JET MagaZINE ‘21 Reissue is a supremely fun 24 minutes of ‘marriage music’

Koncept Jack$on & Ohbliv gave us gorgeous colourful production, and dizzying lyricism - a true AOTY contender

Spot: ofbd.co/n/PMy
🍏: ofbd.co/n/NEm
YT: ofbd.co/n/OEB

Ohbliv successfully created a tapestry of the brightest and most gorgeous old-school soul and funk

And what's even more special about these beats is the tempo and rhythms

These aren't the type of productions that just ANY rapper could rap over...

Luckily for us, these beats were tailor-made for Koncept Jack$on, as his rapid-fire flow is equally as relentless as the production, with an almost dizzying display of rapping being put forward

Koncept impresses with nice wordplay crammed into seemingly impossible flows

However, no individual performance from either of these guys is the key.. It's the synergy between Jack$on and Ohbliv that makes this album special

The JET MagaZINE '21 Reissue is a classic better than the sum of its parts kind of album, because it is not meant for listening to as stand-alone tracks

This is a supremely enjoyable album that puts me in a really good mood... and in times like this, I really appreciate that

02/23/2021

02/23/2021

Conway showed that the growth he has displayed since FKTG, was not just a fluke

Ep. 34 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast for the review of Conway & Big Ghost’s latest LP:
Spot: ofbd.co/n/LYp
YT: ofbd.co/n/KYl
Apple: ofbd.co/n/JY9

- Conway was at a crossroads in 2020... and proved his doubters his wrong

- His full-length album From a King to a God was finally the fulsome and mature effort that many of us were looking for, serving as maybe the best album of Conway's career

- Now fast forward only a few months... If It Bleeds It Can Be Killed shows that Conway's growth displayed on FKTG wasn’t just a fluke

- Conway sticks to his guns, pun intended, but continues to expand his subject matter to more personal territory

- Conway continues to show growth lyrically, but also from an album construction standpoint

- The album stands out in Conway's vast catalog is due to him and Big Ghost Ltd. creating a well-rounded album that features songs that are as luxurious as they are murderous

- The beats here are the best I've heard from Big Ghost to-date

- The flow of this album too is much improved from No One Mourns the Wicked, because there is no unnecessary lulls or wastes of space this time around

- Instead, we get 30 minutes of Conway in peak form, with production that matches his talent... all in a neat and trim package.... All killer, no filler 🔥🔥🔥

02/22/2021

YUNGMORPHEUS’ States of Precarity shows that fiery anti-establishment lyricism and smooth production can be a great combination👌🏽

Check the review in Ep. 33 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:
Spot: ofbd.co/n/GYr
YT: ofbd.co/n/EZm
Apple: ofbd.co/n/DYA

- This album is another strong addition to this movement of thoughtful and socially conscious rappers...

- ... who opt for a more laid back and less explicitly 'on the nose' lyrical approach... along with a significant emphasis and attention to the aesthetics of the music

- you can hear a sense of very palpable disdain and vitriol towards law enforcement and the US American capitalist society

- YUNGMORPHEUS does a great job of creating an atmosphere that is smoky, wavy, which fits in with the thoughtful smoked out subject matter

- YUNGMORPHEUS showed a strong command on the boards, and on the mic that makes this a colourful and entertaining listen, with a lot of substance in the equation that elevates the album experience

02/18/2021

Hip-Hop is beautiful 🙏🏽

It connects people of all backgrounds together, giving us real perspective that helps us grow

The interview with Rick Chyme in Ep. 32 of The Rap Music Plug Podcast:
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YT: ofbd.co/n/lv7
🍏: ofbd.co/n/kwr