Post Malone - Stoney

Overview
Post Malone is a rapper/singer from Syracruse, New York. His delivery is very hood. It's different from Drake's style but definitely inspired by it lyrically. The issue is, there isn't anything on the album that can compete with Take Care. He's good, but not great. At his best, he's mildly talented. The novelty of his respect for the hood is the real selling point. His demographic cross-over is refreshing.
Defining Track
White Iverson is his debut single. It's good, it's catchy, and it's a good representation of the album. It's a little downbeat to be filled with so much bragging, but that's how most of his other songs are written too.
Final Thoughts
Post Malone sounds like the real deal. He's definitely in the streets. However, it's rare that someone pushes the hood while hitting high notes. Drake pushed being cultured during his singing phase and The Weeknd targeted hipsters. Post Malone is very different. His presentation is different. He's wise enough to pay dues for the market he wants.

Rap Independent
Post Malone - Stoney
7/10

Hodgy - Fireplace: TheNotTheOtherSide

    

Overview
Hodgy is a rapper from the infamous O.F. camp. After falling out with Tyler, the two still support each-other and collaborate with various members of the clique. This album is a total 180 from his initial image, but by beginning in the jerk movement and ghostwriting for "Bow Wow" he's already made a couple transitions. Fireplace is interesting but it's all hype. The album art is the most innovative part of it. Hodgy is wise to keep using the hip hop style that made him popular, but he only has one flow. There are no Hodgy songs that standout musically.
Defining Track
Final Hour is about looking after hip hop. If Final Hour is the future of hip hop, it will be a very underwhelming genre. The frustrating thing is he really is a good lyricist, he's just playing it safe on lack luster instrumentals, while abandoning the shock value/racism fighting he started his career with.
Final Thoughts
Hodgy is a good rapper. At a glance, you miss him from odd future's camp however, when you put him center stage, it's apparent that he wasn't in Tyler's shadow, he was just not as interesting or talented as Frank, Earl, or Tyler. With that said, he deserves more credit for helping build the collective. When Earl was gone, he was beta.

Rap Independent
Hodgy - Fireplace: TheNotTheOtherSide
7.2/10

The Weeknd - Starboy

    

Overview
The Weeknd is a singer-songwriter from Toronto, Canada. He started with a very hipster centric persona which is the undertone of the title, "Starboy". He had some of the most masculine/misogynistic themed messages but every song was sung softly and approach-ably. In this album's presentation he is trying to fight his common reception and reform his image due to the current cultural obsession and disdain for promiscuity. The new haircut and the upbeat vibe of the singles is a nice change of pace, but it seems like an effort that was abandoned half-way through. In the video for the first single, he kills his old self. Shortly after, he releases a song about waking up to a girl he doesn't recognize. What is the difference between the old Weeknd and the new Weeknd? A new haircut, less drugs, more money, and a bit more positive? The biggest image concern was the treatment of women. However, about the music specifically; his former albums were too heavy to replay casually. He's pushing his voice less, the melodies aren't as strong as some of his other songs, but it's understandable because he's now using dance and club beats.
Defining Track
Starboy is a collab with Daft Punk. It's very catchy and is a lot lighter than his usual style. The vocals are solid as always, and it's refreshing to hear him bragging thankfully for his money and musical success rather than his dark life. He talks about girls getting loose but it's mild and he needed to remain consistent to some extent to segway successfully.
Final Thoughts
This album has some nice moments. Starboy is much better than Kiss-Land. He's very talented vocally and as a writer which is why this album feels like it could have been great but was a little too awkward to really make it there.

Rap Independent
The Weeknd - Starboy
8/10

Nipsey Hussle - Famous Lies And Unpopular Truths

Overview
Nipsey Hussle is a rapper from Los Angeles California. He's a very basic rapper. He doesn't use pop level punchlines. His voice has a breathy-rasp quality. The issue with this album is the fact that too much of it's appeal is being authentically from the hood. Artists like Gucci Mane or Chief Keef have a very extreme and sinister presentation. Nipsey is a bit too soft to sell hood music without artistry.
Defining Track
County Jail is a song about going to prison. He paints the picture of his past. For some reason, he plays up fatherhood and religion. It's just awkward to make a song about prison and spend so much of it trying to convey being a good person rather than an edgy one.
Final Thoughts
This album is exactly what's wrong with the current hip hop game. It's lazy writing, bland production; Being from the hood does not make you incapable of making compelling music. Being hood doesn't automatically deserve respect either. This album is boring, uninspired, and there are much better songs written with simpler words.

Rap Independent
Nipsey Hussle - Famous Lies And Unpopular Truths
4/10

Danny Brown - Atrocity Exhibition

Overview
Danny Brown is an indie rapper from Detroit Michigan. The success of "XXX" made him abandon his "Hybrid" mixtape style for a voice transitioning flow in his following releases. With that said, Atrocity Exhibition revisits some of his earlier deliveries. There's a surprising amount of guitar. It's integrated well but depending on how well the album is received, the effort may be overlooked. The nice part is that it makes the album feel very cutting edge.
Defining Track
The song "Really Doe" is a collab with Kendrick Lamar, Ab-Soul, and Earl Sweatshirt. The line up is hard hitting, but it capsulizes a moment where conscious rap wasn't resented. All of these rappers are maintaining hype from a previous trend and haven't made many current waves in their genre. That's important because the concept of the song is people challenging how relevant they are. Earl Sweatshirt usually goes harder but he's trying to act hard (or more adult) and simplify his flow. It's as awkward as 50 cent trying to spit a tongue twister.
Final Thoughts
The title Atrocity Exhibition really takes the museum concept into an interesting, sarcastic spin off place. The energy of the album is nice. It's not looking for a massive audience like Kendrick and Asap Rocky did with their albums. It's made for the crowd that made him famous and it sounds like something they would like.

Rap Independent
Danny Brown - Atrocity Exhibition
8.5/10

Jeff Chery - Vega

Overview
Jeff Chery is a rapper from Flatbush, New York. His style is like Kevin Gates mixed with Travis Scott or PARTYNEXTDOOR. Although, the production is nice, it's very standard hip hop. His flows vary but his lyrics are very simple. Jeff Chery is consistent, but not impressive and has very little star power.
Defining Track
What you doing is a fun song. It's got a strong trap song vibe but it isn't really about trapping. It has a shout out to Bobby Shmurda.
Final Thoughts
At its best, it's passable. It's arguably hood but it isn't innovative. It just feels very amateur. Jeff is almost singing; he's almost rapping, but there are artists like Dej Loaf, Lil Wayne, and even Fetty Wap that are a lot more effective blending the two styles.

Rap Independent
Jeff Chery - Vega
5/10

Travis Scott - Birds In The Trap Sing Mcknight

Overview
Travis Scott is an experimental hip hop artist from Houston, Texas. He's not really a singer. He psuedo-sings with heavy auto-tune. He's a decent rapper but lyrics are not the selling point of this album. The production is very good. The music overall is comparable to Kid Cudi. Travis Scott isn't bursting with personality, but he has a lot of confidence and is very convicted. Like the album title, most of the songs don't have a very coherent message.
Defining Track
Wonderful is a collab with the Weeknd. It's very good and it's interesting that he isn't completely outshined by a vocalist as seasoned as the Weeknd is. It's not really geared towards women but it's essentially a duet. It just seems like a missed opportunity.
Final Thoughts
Travis Scott is very well-connected. You'll find his music in all the right places, but it's carried by his cool persona moreso than anything musical. This album won't have serious fans, the songs won't have serious fans, but he does and will continue to.

Rap Independent
Travis Scott - Birds In The Trap Sing Mckknight
7.8/10

Hodgy Beats - Dukkha

Overview

Hodgy Beats is a rapper from Pasedena California. After an explosive music career in Odd Future, he has retained his exceptional fame status and created a new album. Dukkha is very humbly presented but it's a decent album. The issue is lyrical complexity is a thoroughly blazed trail. There are other intelligent rappers. Several.
Defining Track
Hunger for More is a good song. The instrumental is mainly piano. His lines are consistent but not memorable. He uses autotune for some psuedo-singing.
Final Thoughts
Odd Future was an amazing project but Dukkha is a nostalgic afterthought. One collab with Tyler or Earl would have made this release awesome but Hodgy doesn't have enough star power to sell his own collectiveless music.

Rap Independent
Hodgy Beats - Dukkha
6.5/10

Frank Ocean - Blond

    

Overview
Frank Ocean is an indie rnb singer from Long Beach California. Although he had ghost written for several mainstream artists, he was in the background until the advent of Odd Future's success. His music was original enough to associate with their clan but it was very formal and classy in contrast to their rebellion angle. Nevertheless, he established himself with a skater filled audience. The biggest change from his first release, "Channel Orange" is he's a lot more confident. You can tell that he's had a lot of experiences and has spent a lot of time with some very cool people. The title blond, fits as the evolution of his previous title and the songs do the name justice. The album is very elegant. There's lots of professional instrumentation, the lyrics are interesting and meaningful, and the vocals are soulful. One surprise is that the falsetto of his biggest song, "Thinking Bout You" isn't pushed in any of the songs. Although the album is very good, none of the songs seem meant to stand alone.
Defining Track
The first song, Nikes is about not being in love for the right reasons. There's pitch altering and the beat is very slow and spacial. He makes a few jokes and tells a bit of a story. It's not all that cohesive, but it's entertaining. There's a few drug references and like most of the other songs, it's very easy to imagine listening to it under the influence (not a suggestion though).
Final Thoughts
The album is a little somber like "Channel Orange." It's probably the first fully sung rnb album to have so little to do with relationships. Frank Ocean has a nice voice but he isn't really pushing it in any of these songs. As a whole the album is wonderful but individually, none of the songs compare to "Thinkin Bout You" or even "Pyramids." With all that said, Frank's back!

Rap Independent
Frank Ocean - Blond
9/10

(R.I. Revisit) Lil Wayne - Carter 3

Overview
Lil Wayne is a rapper from New Orleans and unlike most artists that make weed-pop, he nearly built his entire image around the use of green herbs. From breaking away from the Hot Boyz, to experimenting with skating, Lil Wayne has covered a lot of ground. Tha Carter 3 is an album that has the production of a movie soundtrack. On top of that, it was the proving ground for rap analogies, metaphors, and comedy.
Defining Track
Lollipop was the first single from the album and his personality was the focal point of the entire song. The crude and outlandish presentation camouflaged the fact that he was partially singing while at the same time representing thug culture.
Final Thoughts
Lil Wayne has always coasted on personality more so than technical skill. Tha Carter 3 put comedic word play on the map and there are a lot artist who imitate that to this day.

Rap Independent
Lil Wayne - Tha Carter 3
9/10

G-Eazy - These Things Happen

Overview

G-Eazy is a rapper from Oakland California. These things happen is his third studio album. His punchlines are delivered similar to a lot of high-profile hip hop songs but his internet subject matters and overall presentation is very independent.

Defining Track

I mean it feat. Remo is one of the singles and features an artist that sings almost identical to Future. The song is good and feels like an anthem for conviction and arrogance. However, the lyrics are memorable.
Final Thoughts
G-Eazy is a very consistent artist. Not all of the tracks are exciting, but the least of them are still fairly decent. G portrays himself as a laid back ladies man with street smarts. It's not revolutionary, but it works for him.

Rap Independent
G-Eazy - These Things Happen
7/10

Lokye - Goon Life (R.I. Review)

Overview
Lokye is a trill-wave rapper from New York City. Goon life has sung lyrics, pitch lowered areas, gang vocals; it's varied. The instrumentals are not complicated but they're well put together and stand out. Lokye's verses are party themed but unlike the music in the background his lyrics are extremely straight forward.
Defining Track
Rah is a song about confidence. There's a couple Lil B style lines, and the music feels like a laid back ASAP mob beat, but it's catchy.
Final Thoughts
Goon Life is very professional to be recorded pre-label. However Lokye needs an angle. Trill-wave music is cool, but there's a lot of competition in that lane.