Isaiah Rashad - Heavenly Father

I wanna throw it back for a second...Last January Isaiah Rashad dropped his first album, Cilvia Demo, working under the TDE (Top Dawg Entertainment) label. As a no-name to many cats out there, he served to be a pleasant, surprise addition to the music industry - exceeding expectations and showcasing a talent only waiting to reach further heights. Being that this was the man's debut album and he had not been too visible on the map before that, expectations for this release weren't very high to begin with. But with obvious standouts like "Shot You Down" and "R.I.P. Kevin Miller", Isaiah Rashad made a place for himself in the rap game. "Heavenly Father" might be the most impressive track though. It's damn multi-dimensional - featuring a sample of "Lord Hold Me in Your Arms" (quite a contrast considering Isaiah Rashad's blunt rap style and the spiritual/holy vibe of The Crowns of Glory). He makes it work, speeding up the sample, perfectly pairing it with this 'oh too honest' song about his insecurities, existential crises, and suicidal thoughts. Crying out to a higher power is something seen occasionally in rap, but never quite so openly. This album made me a fan real quick, and if you know anything about TDE and the Black Hippy crew, none of these dudes are ones to be slept on. Check out the track and the album and realize what you've been missing for over a year.




PEEP THESE SINGLES AS WELL:

Drake - If You're Reading This, It's Too Late (LP)

What can’t Sir Aubrey Graham do? We’ve seen him take an ownership role over a basketball team, deny an individual access to the homeland - Canada (he warned us in “Draft Day”), fornicate with the beloved Rihanna, and serve as the greatest cheerleader of all time…to numerous basketball teams! Aubrey, aka Drake (aka Drizzy), is an all-around talented fella, but most of all, his fans love him for his unrivaled musical instinct. We can talk about his flow, his beats, his voice…but the man’s got pure instinct. He’s shown it to us for years, but he gave us a gift with If You’re Reading This, It’s Too Late - an album/mixtape (hell, let’s call it an LP for legality’s sake) so raw, and seemingly candid, I’d believe him if Drizzy said that he created it in a matter of days.

As for the sound…it’s special. Each song is an individual work (unlike previous albums Nothing Was the Same and Take Care where the focus was on each album as a collective). At the same time, there’s a consistency in the flow of each tune, whether it’s uptempo or not. And each tells a story. “10 Bands”: he’s out here on his grind - no calls, phone off, drapes closed just getting to the money, making his music. “No Tellin’”: Drake’s attempt to rid this notion of his ‘softness’, plus the wonder of whether or not he’s about to “get it all” and his “switch up" - probably a play on the money Cash Money owes him and his impending departure, but we’ll leave that alone (just listen to “Now & Forever). "Jungle" reminds us that Drake loves his samples - and he's damn good on them as well. Then, there's “Madonna”, changing things up with that dark, smoother feel, which is fitting when the song’s about a hookup that could make the chick famous, which, of course, Drake never minds. I mean, he reminds us how lonely he is in “Company” - well played.

That brings me to this: I’m so damn happy with the features Drake incorporated on this tape. He and Wayne have been releasing straight fire through the summer to today, so much so that Drizzy simply took a song they did together on Sorry for the Wait 2 and added another verse to it to have it here. Party’s up and coming, and Drake’s showing time and time again that he’s looking to take the boy to the promised land - their work on “Preach” is filthy, but giving PARTYNEXTDOOR a near exclusive track on If You’re Reading This was a strong move. Even Travi$ Scott, in the aforementioned “Company”, was a pleasant surprise. With a sound similar to the likes of Party and The Weeknd, Mr. Scott was a sweet addition to such an already dark tune. 

Most importantly: Drake took this opportunity between big album releases to say, “fuck a radio hit” (amongst other things). Yeah, he hit us with that “this ain’t nothin' for the radio, but they'll still play it though” over a year ago, only to follow shortly with that silly radio song - “Started From the Bottom”. This time around, he meant it. Maybe it’s just the profanity (probably not), but upon listening to If You’re Reading This, you realize none of it belongs on the radio. The LP’s abrasive, very much so, with Drake finding every moment to remind his fellow artists that he’s simply the man. Drake’s got his “Enemies”, but they got nothing on him. If you’re not his “woe” or his mama, he ain’t fuckin’ with you. The beats almost speak for themselves (see: "6 God", "Used To”, “6 Man” - shoutout LOU WILL - and the other songs that make up the 47% of the tape that bangs off rip). Even calmer jams like “Now & Forever” and “Star67” provide that “fuck you” feel; but guess what: If You’re Reading This, It’s Too Late isn’t a “fuck you”, it’s a damn warning - a warning to all of us that the 6 God is ready to take off. Drake’s taken the top spot, and he’s looking to run away from the competition. Keep talking bad about the man; it only makes him better.

Here's some of the additional work the 6 God's been putting out to hold us while we patiently wait for his coming album, Views From the 6.

Check If You're Reading This, It's Too Late on Spotify or iTunes real quick if you haven't already. And EMAIL me for a download link if you're into that.

J. Cole - G.O.M.D.

Well, I spent the past few weeks hating on my man J. Cole’s album - I think I was on drugs(?). J. Cole’s lyricism has always been his strongest gift, and how I missed the beauty of that throughout Forest Hills Drive, I don’t know. Either way, there’s no question why there’s been so much hype surrounding this album since its release - raps about childhood, adolescence, the come up, success, the black man’s plight, white appropriation… Forest Hills Drive has it all. “Get Off My Dick” just embodies J. Cole’s immense greatness. My man made it and he’s here to let all of us know: the curious, the haters, the fans, the dick-riders. It’s abrasive, confrontational, and straight real. Oh, and this beat…it provides a perfect pairing of content and sound. Final verdict: don’t sleep on this man.