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Travis Scott’s ‘UTOPIA’ – Worth the 5 Year Wait?
A lifetime seems to have passed since the world got that first listening experience of Travis Scott’s ‘ASTROWORLD’. He’s since teased ‘UTOPIA’ on a public scale for three or four years at this stage. So the question is, did it live up to the hype that had slowly simmered and has since spewed into a chaotic anticipation for this illusive project? Or has all this frantic expectation all been for nothing?
Utopia, as a concept, is an idealistic place, but what does that sound like? I wanted to break down how I feel about each of the 19 tracks after having a couple of months to live with this vastly anticipated album…
HYAENA
We’re welcomed by an explosive vocal sample from British prog-rock band, Gentle Giant to introduce the project. This immediately grabs your attention, urging you to strap yourself in for what is inevitably going to be a rollercoaster of a musical experience.
HAIIIL HAIIIL HAAAAAIIIIL….
BANG, we are thrust into a barrage of anthemic drums and acoustic guitars which gets your heart pumping when the impact first hits. Within this three and a half minute intro, he’s leaned on sonics from prog-rock, drums and guitar comparable to stadium rock bands, a synths reminiscent of previous works of Travis in the outro of the track.
Travis’ solid flows match the unorthodox backing track, but although it is appears all over the spectrum of genres, none of it sounds out of place, per say. But as impactful as it is sonically, is it a track I’ll be revisiting a lot? Possibly not.
THANK GOD (ft. KayCyy)
A track that slowly builds from a low BPM, with Travis matching the pace for two short verses, accompanied by a brilliantly executed hook from KayCyy. Just as you begin to feel comfortable in the beat, it begins to shift and rise into the switch up.
I’d say the it’s cleanest transition on the project, that first kick of the 808, post-transition hits ruthlessly. You get that first beat and then the strings come in and the mood totally changed.
The beat, the strings and then classic trap snare mould effortlessly to allow Travis to flow. The transition makes the track for me, the mixing required to tackle that beat change was inch perfect. I must say the addition of the adlib from his daughter, Stormi, was a classy touch on his end.
MODERN JAM (ft Teezo Touchdown)
An absolute slam from first listen. The infectious energy this song omits is tantalising. As much as Travis nails his delivery on this track, the feature steals the show for me.
Teezo Touchdown, an artist I’ve only heard on a handful of tracks is honestly a breath of fresh air. He has a superb individuality in every aspect of his artistry, his cadence, delivery, aesthetic, literally everything. I find him a fascinating character and I love how he makes the end of this track his own.
A wonderfully distorted electronic boom-bap instrumental evolves into this bright and flamboyant embrace once Teezo is introduced, with synthesised keyboards leading this transition into something reminiscent of a 70s or 80s pop ballad. The range of sounds explored amongst this track alone is impressive and perfectly links together the classic Travis we expect in THANK GOD, to the brilliance of the next track.
MY EYES (ft Sampha & Justin Vernon)
Here we have it, the song that blew me away the most upon first listen. A deeper cut than we are used to from Travis. Love, wealth, tragedy, fame and everything in between weaved into these lyrics.
Part 1, is a foggy, bright scene, as if you’re floating in white space, being beautifully decorated by the vocals of Bon Iver’s Justin Vernon and Sampha, who add gentle tones to Travis’ raspy delivery.
Once Sampha has sowed his seeds, there is an triumphant instrumental change, transitioning sweetly into part 2, a silky electronic-trap beat where he continues to drip drops of personality into his lyrics. I’d say it is fair to say that his lyrics usually thrive due to what they sound like rather than what’s he’s actually saying. This time however, he’s actually got stuff to say.
He shares his feelings of guilt surrounding the tragedy at his Astroworld festival in November of 2021, where 10 people lost their lives in a crowd crush.
“I replay them nights, and right by my side, all I see is a sea of people that ride with me / If they knew what Scotty would do to jump off the stage and save him a child”
The lyrical content, paired with the hazy tones from the production makes for this track being a standout from the first listen and draws a line under a seriously impressive three track run to close the first segment of the album.
GOD’S COUNTRY / SIRENS
These next two tracks are odd for me because upon every listen they morph together and for whatever reason, they feel so forgettable. They don’t really grab me in a way that I felt upon first listen. they’ve slowly faded in interest levels the more I’ve lived with them, especially ‘SIRENS’.
Both beats are solid in tempo and suit Travis’ delivery but for whatever reason, neither track stands out for me in the context of the album.
Definitely two tracks that will do their thing in a live environment but in terms of ‘will I come back to this album for these tracks?’ The answer is no. Not to say they’re bad songs by any means, but I just don’t need them, they bulk out the first half of the album far too much.
MELTDOWN (ft Drake)
Finally, Drake finally sounds like he could be readying up to drop music of elite levels once again.
I’m here for this type of Drake feature. A sinister, threatening delivery as he serves up blows aimed towards Pharrell, as a scapegoat for Pusha T, continuing the beef of theirs that has been on for half a decade. This is the most conviction Drake has delivered on a verse for some time, it’s good to have this side of Drake back.
Travis delivers on part two of the instrumental, regaining his control of the track, and dominates over the second instrumental to boost his presence on the track instead of letting Drake take on another verse. Drake cooked, Travis cooked, they’ve got another hit for their repertoire of collaborations.
FE!N (ft Playboi Carti)
An electric, mega repetitive chorus, which was blatantly created for an explosive live performance. Travis does as expected on this track but Playboi Carti’s performance is what leaves listeners going back for more.
From the infectious, baby voiced performance of a Travis on the chorus, Carti’s intriguing vocal inflections for his verse makes for a decent track but like a lot of Carti’s work as of late, I’m not going to be coming back to it. It’s certainly a unique vocal delivery without a doubt but I gain nothing from listening to it. Just slightly organised noise.
The track, as a whole, does as intended, increasing the tempo to engage the rage that Travis always strives for. However, I find it sounds all too much like an experimental track you’d make with a friend when you first get a beat-making software pack. Very loud with very little purpose.
DELRESTO (ECHOES) [ft. Beyoncé]
Now this is a feature I was never anticipating but the combination makes for a spooky, EDM-themed track when you piece together all the components. Who would’ve thought that a techno/pop/house/trap crossover with a Beyoncé feature wouldn’t sound as unconventional as it is. I think Beyoncé’s performance is what makes this song as enticing as it is to go back to.
Her vocal delivery varies throughout and it adds to the diversity of the track. Sadly, it’s one of the tracks on this album that is too long for what it is, when you think it could start to fizzle out, it just keeps going. The song feels confused as to what it is supposed to be, intriguing to say the least.
I KNOW ?
As the story goes, Travis had the options of MAFIA or I KNOW on the album. Both bring a similar vibe to the album but I am glad he stuck with I KNOW.
I love both to be honest, the tempos and vocal ranges explored on both suit Travis’ sound down to a T. It’s a little bit gritty but you can hear how clean and glitzy the production is. Could play this on repeat quite easily when blaring it on the car’s speakers. Easily one of the standout tracks for me.
TOPIA TWINS (ft Rob49 & 21 Savage)
Another track that was blueprinted for the live shows, with another infectious hook. First time around I was convinced it was NBA YoungBoy as the opening featuring artist. When I found out it wasn’t and it was Rob49, I questioned why it wasn’t YoungBoy. Not to say that Rob49’s performance wasn’t decent enough but if you wanted someone with the Youngboy cadences and flow, why not just get YoungBoy?
Aside from that this has an electric chorus, as seen from Travis’ first performance of the track at Circus Maximus in Rome on 7th August, with the entire 60,000 capacity crowd chanting the irresistibly catchy chorus.
The 21 Savage feature does as intended but not totally sure if this is the type of instrumental I need to hear 21 rapping over. Quite an easy skip in regular listening environments.
CIRCUS MAXIMUS (ft. The Weeknd & Swae Lee)
Off the bat, we are stuck by these Black Skinhead-esque drums, heavy breathing intertwined into the beat for added energy levels. A track that has it’s moments but it sounds dated, as much as I’d like to say The Weeknd’s feature almost saves it from the ‘Yeezus’ comparisons, I just can’t unhear i, it’s too familiar for it to have been released in 2023.
PARASAIL (ft. Yung Lean & Dave Chappelle)
This is a track where I can see the vision. I can picture the type of hazy, smoke filled room where a track like this can be what it is supposed to be but my brain does not allow me to process this song as anything other than a background track, a daydream almost. Yung Lean blesses the track with his usual ‘love it or hate it’ kind of contribution that he is renowned for, I don’t hate it the route Travis was trying to go down but as a whole the track is a no from me.
SKITZO (ft. Young Thug)
Now this is where things start to get interesting again for me. I think this song is brilliant, in every aspect. The first instrumental oozes the south, cowbells, a slow 808, trap snares… love it, Travis bounces across part 1, emphatically. Young Thug shows out, he had the beat in the palm of his hand before it even began. Jumping from flow to flow and doing it so swiftly. Even when he sounds off beat, he’s killing it. The game misses Thug every day and features like this show it.
The transition into beat two is smooth but out of the three; it’s the instrumental I need the least. The track didn’t need to be six minutes long, especially for the second beat to be very reminiscent of ‘SICKO MODE’. Saying that, the final instrumental tones the track right back down into an easy finish and then is sequenced ideally to flow into LOST FOREVER.
LOST FOREVER (ft. Westside Gunn)
B-b-b-b-boooooom. Something told me that a Griselda x Travis collaboration would happen, but I could never imagine how it would actually sound, but the production team responsible captured the essence of both artists profoundly; This track is out of this world. The beat is dark and edgy, cutting really deep, the perfect environment for Westside Gunn to come in and tear it up and with production credits that contain The Alchemist and James Blake, I’m honestly not surprised it turned out as pristine as this.
LOOOVE (ft. Kid Cudi)
Cannot say this is one I need to say anything about. Wasn’t a huge fan on first listen and I’ve liked it less every time I’ve heard it. The chorus is annoying and the beat is a stimulation overload. There are little touches of the instrumental that show proficiency but as a whole, there is far too much going on in this track, and Kid Cudi’s contribution did nothing to save it.
K-POP (ft. Bad Bunny & The Weeknd)
The single that got everyone worried about what UTOPIA could end up being. I personally did not listen to the single when it dropped as I love to hear them in the context of the album before drawing conclusions. I admit, it misses the tone of what Travis is trying to achieve on this album but this does seem to be a more obscure branch on Travis’ conceptual tree of UTOPIA, with each branch going off in a different musical direction, some more successfully than others.
Bad Bunny and The Weeknd deliver with their appearances but it feels like it was created solely for the ability for it to accumulate billions and billions of streams in the long run, as both featuring artists have such prolifically loyal fan bases.
TELEKINESIS (ft. Future & SZA)
Wow. A masterpiece of a track, certainly my favourite on the album. As much as we could get to SZA’s sensational feature faster, I love the slow build up created by Future and Trav going back to back. Their nonchalant, monotone deliveries help to create this anticipation for the simply blockbuster finale that SZA puts on for us. Her vocals explode into the track, boosted by the horns and drums erupting from the backing track. A ray of sunshine comes beaming out of the misty, cloudy start to the track, but when SZA comes in, we’re all of a sudden propelled across a sky filled with colour. 10/10 track, honestly can’t flaw it.
TIL FURTHER NOTICE (ft James Blake & 21 Savage)
As album outros go, this has to be outro of the year so far, as much as there are patches of the album that don’t fit the bill, this final track closes the album off in a very concise manner. James Blake’s unmistakeable vocals bring us into the track at a perfect tempo, gliding parallel with the trap snare, leaving an easy tap in verse from 21 Savage, who eats up this Metro Boomin beat, as he always does. THIS is where we need to hear 21 Savage, not on TOPIA TWINS…
Travis delivers one of his best verses on the album to sign off, bringing the album to a close on a high, something that Travis usually delivers.
The amalgamation of the three of these artists on this final track ties it up quite nicely, considering there are points of this album that fade quite easily into the background. A full stop at the end of the project. Very much leaving listeners wanting more.
TO CONCLUDE…
From what Travis has served up to us, UTOPIA has no clear direction and can be interpreted a million different ways. Is Utopia supposed to be a perfect place or is utopia just a template for what you deem to be ‘perfect’?
Travis has delivered an album that has home runs but also has some serious misses. A serious critique of the album has to be the length, it did not need to be 19 tracks, and definitely did not need to be over 70+ minutes.
His production range across this project is truly impressive whereby every listener will be forced to go back and listen again to catch all the tricks and flips he does throughout, as some of the transitional work is superb and it truly elevates the scale of the album. However, there are too many tracks that sound too familiar, too many tracks that feel like they’ve been sat on for far too long for them to be making an impact in 2023.
Travis actually delivers a scattering of solid rapping performances across the project and a lot of it fits in snugly within his best work from his back catalogue. He hits the nail on the head with some of his experimental tracks, like MY EYES and TELEKENESIS but misses the mark with tracks like LOOOVE and PARASAIL.
The tracks I love, I’ll go back and play over and over but the ones I’m skipping, can easily be left behind. If you had to force me to put a rating on the project as a whole? I’d give it a generous 7 out of 10. And a lot of the leg work is done by the blatantly obvious attention to detail throughout the curation of these instrumentals.
The features that stood out really smashed it out the park but some really didn’t need to be there, and with the lyrical content throughout, there’s so little substance that’s it hard to defend it. As a live experience it will be explosive but I want the album to sound as good on the album as it would in a live performance, which is what all of his previous albums did very, very well.
I read people online in the days following UTOPIA’s release that this album is Travis’ magnus opus, but this project is too hit or miss to ever be described as such. For me, ASTROWORLD or Rodeo are much more representative of the essence of Travis Scott and UTOPIA seems to be a slight bump in the road along his borderline stellar discography so far.
From a first listen standpoint, it was a touch overwhelming with the sheer scale of some of the production in these tracks and as it had been such a long time since we had gotten a solo Travis album, it was easy to get overexcited. I know there will be people out there who believe the project is a cover to cover listen and it is an experience, but too much of is sounds stale to me.
Finally, I still have absolutely no idea what UTOPIA sounds like, so can it be worth a five year wait? Sadly not and I believe the lack of consistent themes or sonics goes against Travis on this occasion.
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Top 25 Albums of 2022
Phew, here we go again. After the resounding success of my 21 Albums of 2021 last year, the 2022 list had to be that bit bigger and that bit better, back with 25 albums for 2022!!
It’s been a whirlwind of a musical year and I already know I’ve missed off great projects from my final list but I’ve whittled down from a shortlist of 60+ albums into my top 25 of 2022.
Let’s waste no more of your precious time and get straight into the action. Enjoy and please feel free to let me know what I’ve missed, what albums you loved this year, which albums I’ve chosen that you hate, whatever you like! I’d love to hear what you think.
25. Few Good Things – Saba
An artist who before 2022, I had never really heard anything from but ‘Few Good Things’ was a delight this year. Saba tests the water on a range of tones and tempos across the project, which is easy to see in the transition from ‘One Way or Every N**** With a Budget’ and ‘Survivor’s Guilt’, with the prior flowing so softly over summery beats, to the latter being a heavy-hitting trap-esque delivery. Both styles done to a decent standard, but nothing that blows the listener away. I find this sticks true to the whole project. Look forward to see where Saba goes from here.
For me, going from ‘Fearmonger’ into ‘Come My Way’ is the highlight of the project, the two tracks just mould together in tone and tempo perfectly.
24. Cocodrillo Turbo – Action Bronson
Action Bronson, one of the most charismatic artists in the rap scene, returned with another bombardment of sublime sonics from start to finish on ‘Cocodrillo Turbo’.
30 mins flies by as you are guided through a landscape audacious punchlines, brilliant featuring verses and instrumentals bursting with layer upon layer of strong drums.
Lyrically, Bronson is brash but oh so eloquent in the way he articulates his feelings on a track. An album for those with an acquired taste but you should check this out regardless.
23. SOS – SZA
The newest album on this list, over 5 years since her debut ‘Ctrl’, SZA returns with ‘SOS’ and this project sounds like it’s coming from a woman who has lived a lifetime of emotions since her debut.
An extensive album that is jam packed full of vulnerable storytelling, putting her emotions front and centre but while also experimenting with genre in and amongst her sensational RnB repertoire. She raps, she sings, she blows listeners away with the blasé nature in which she talks about her insecurities and her experiences because she just makes it all sounds so raw and unapologetic. Even when she knows she’s in the wrong for her emotional hurt.
Another masterpiece in the making, needs some time to live with listeners before it can be spoken about in the same respect as her debut.
22. $ouls $old $eperately – Freddie Gibbs
Freddie Gibbs invited us all to the $$$ Resort to be shown around the facilities and experience his newest project. For me, not Freddie’s strongest project to date but there is still a LOT to enjoy about this album.
Outside of the short run from track 3 to track 6, where I find Freddie trying to force the more mainstream rap sound into his work, the rest of the project is strong and has some stellar featuring performances. There is a huge amount of atmosphere created off the bat by ‘Couldnt Be Done’ and ‘Blackest In The Room’, which sets the ball rolling into the mundane of tracks 3-6.
After that though, Freddie falls back into his rapping bag on ‘Space Rabbit’ and keeps the tempo up from there to the close of the project. The features in the second half of the project are classy, with Pusha T, Musiq Soulchild, Raekwon and Scarface. For me though, Anderson .Paak’s hook and verse on ‘Feel No Pain’ steals the limelight for the features. He’s so effortless with how cool and calm he is on a track but he elevates every track he is on and Freddie’s performance shines thanks to the alley-oop from Paak.
21. RAMONA PARK BROKE MY HEART – Vince Staples
Continuing his flourishing form from his self titled ‘Vince Staples’ in 2021, Vince returns with ‘RAMONA PARK BROKE MY HEART’ and you won’t be shocked to hear he’s just as clinical in his delivery as the previous project.
Summery, head-bopping California-heavy tracks makes this album a perfect project for just letting it roll through as you change lanes, superb driving music. ‘Magic’ is one of the songs of the year for me, with DJ Mustard sculpting the perfect canvas for Vince to splash his hood-proud, anti-police and gang life lyrics. Sensational, watery bop from the Cali-born duo.
The nonchalant nature of Vince’s delivery will always feel so fulfilling when matched with the correct instrumental, and he finds those sweet spots all over this project.
20. Dawn FM – The Weeknd
An album that feels like it dropped years ago, fell out of my rotation for a while but when listening back, it’s one of the best projects of the early half of the year. Covered this on Palmieri Playlist, and I think I downplayed how good this project is because the concept of the project was executed brilliantly with Abel’s vocal range being stretched into sonics that add even more depth to his vocal performances. One that will get better and better with age.
19. Girls Night Out – Babyface
A project I was put onto by my guys over at the Two Stubborn Nigerians podcast, Babyface delivered a succinct album with stunning featuring vocals throughout. An album jam packed with, you guessed it, some of the best modern voices that Female R&B has to offer.
Start to finish, Babyface gives his featuring artists the spotlight, leaving himself minor verses in each of the tracks. All the women who feature absolutely shine, with Ari Lennox, Queen Naija, Kehlani, Coco Jones, Doechii and Ella Mai making the biggest splash on their respective tracks on the album. Babyface connected with a totally new audience when working with these extremely talented artists, opening the door for a younger generation to a catalogue of R&B that influenced huge numbers of artists we have today.
18. Tana Talk 4 – Benny The Butcher
One Griselda project that ticked all the boxes this year, even after covering this in the Palmieri Playlist earlier on this year, it has aged very well and stayed in rotation through 2022. ‘Tana Talk 4’ was a great project this past year with Benny doing what Benny does, bar after bar after bar of strong lyrics on gritty instrumentals. Very solid, happy with it’s position.
17. Spaceships On A Blade – Larry June
Another project I’ve covered on the Palmieri Playlist this year, certainly strong enough to glide oh so smoothly into my top 20, as smoothly as this project slides through your eardrums.
16. The Forever Story – JID
JID, an artist who I enjoy and technically is up there with the best rappers in the game, but with all the brilliance of his artistry, his projects rarely stick with me. I think the ‘Forever Story’ is his best project and there is some phenomenal music that was created on this project but you won’t catch JID as high on my list as other lists I have seen.
He starts off soft with a smooth, melodic introduction then comes in hot with ‘Raydar’, with him displaying his ferocious rapping ability, spraying all over this heavy 808 even before the slick beat switch. The range of flows he displays on that one track alone is dizzying, crazy technical ability.
‘Crack Sandwich’, ‘Surround Sound’, ‘Kody Blu 31’, ‘Can’t Punk Me’ and ‘Can’t Make You Change’ are all highlights from this album and he shows great versatility across the project, think it’ll be an album that will age like a bold red wine.
Dynamic instrumentation, lethal delivery and consistency throughout. Very good album and I’ll enjoy this album more as time goes on.
15. God Don’t Make Mistakes – Conway The Machine
Conway’s ‘GDMM’ album has bounced in and out of my rotation since I covered it on the Palmieri Playlist, but going back emphasises how great this album is.
Conway excels on this project, finding the perfect sweet spot between the rawness of the underground rap scene in his storytelling and the brilliance of the glitzy features and instrumentals. His most introspective album to date, La Machina was a solidified pick on this list long before a lot of these projects even dropped.
Tracks like ‘Wild Chapters’, ‘Piano Love’, ‘Guilty’, ‘Stressed’ and the album’s title track ‘God Don’t Make Mistakes’ are all reflective tracks, looking back into his past and how those experiences shaped him as an artist, as a hustler and as a man.
Lyrically scintillating, musically gritty and spooky. Conway was moulded for this type of rapping.
14. Only Built For Infinity Links – Quavo & Takeoff
When I heard that Quavo and Takeoff were branching off from the Migos to create an Uncle-Nephew tag team rap group, I wasn’t sure what to make of it or how it would end up sounding. My hopes were up when I saw the cover and the title, a nod to the legendary album ‘Only Built 4 Cuban Linx…’ by Wu Tang Clan’s Raekwon, produced by RZA.
The simple answer is it’s a continuation of formidable form that Takeoff always brings to the stage and the most listenable Quavo contributions that we’ve heard since ‘Huncho Jack, Jack Huncho’. As much as Quavo takes the reigns on most of these tracks, the most impactful and memorable performances come from Takeoff, which has to be said with a heavy heart.
An artist who brought his A game to every instrumental you put in his headphones, Takeoff is a talent that the world is going to miss and personally, that loss hit so much harder because of the long affinity I have had with his explosive flows, ear shattering adlibs and the coolest demeanour of the modern rap generation. This project was his space to spread his wings and he did exactly that. Takeoff’s explosive opening verse on ‘Two Infinity Links’ hits even harder now, RIP Takeoff.
The project as a whole is solid and I wanted to give Takeoff and Quavo their flowers on this list as this project should’ve been the start of more great music from the pair. Sadly we will never know.
13. WASTELAND – Brent Faiyaz
Ah, Brent. The man who’s voice will make you forget about how despicable some of his behaviour is, one of the best voices in modern R&B.
‘WASTELAND’ has been a fantastically enjoyable album for me this year, even with the story and message behind it being deeply upsetting when listening to the cut-scenes and interludes.
Putting that to the side for a moment, vocally Brent’s delivery is as soft yet powerful as always. A man who could harmonise the sh*t out of the most miserable moment and make it sound like a choir practice. Consistent themes surrounding toxicity in relationships, going from proclaiming his dedication to a woman on ‘ALL MINE’ (the title says it all) to leaving the mother of his child alone at the drop of a hat in later skits.
He effortlessly makes it all sound so good though. Another brilliant project from Brent, although I do wish that there wasn’t so many older tracks on here.
12. HEROES & VILLAINS – Metro Boomin
Metroooooo! If this album had dropped a month or two earlier, this would probably be top 5 for me. Metro Boomin returns with the usual suspects to curated an album that feels straight out of 2016.
From the dramatic John Legend intro, into Future’s ‘Superhero’ then into ‘Too Many Nights’ with Don Toliver, Metro got the ball rolling with serious momentum. Not much I can say other than there is No Skips. Travis Scott, A$AP Rocky, Young Nudy, Young Thug, 21 Savage, Takeoff, Future and DT all hit the mark with their impactful features. Shoutout to 21 on ‘Umbrella’, a haunting piano, paired with the slow 808 is nostalgic of Savage Mode topped with cutthroat delivery on a chilling beat.
Also, The Weeknd coming through and absolutely crushing the interpolation of ‘I Don’t Wanna Know’ by Mario Winans on ‘Creepin’ is sensational. And the 21 verse to top it off was a verse I never knew I needed.
Not to mention that Metro is now two for two on albums with Morgan Freeman. Who else can say that?
Hats off to Metro for the ‘Heroes Version’ of the project too, with the second half being nothing but instrumentals yet again. *chef kiss*
11. Joints – Blade Brown & K Trap
K Trap has been on a roll since ‘Warm’ hit the streets in May 2021, with two tapes dropping in 2022 and this one, a collaboration with UK trap-rap royalty, Blade Brown, is a hit for me.
The whole tape is the pair going back and forth across trap beats and flowing together seamlessly. I covered this on the Palmieri Playlist earlier on this year and it still sits very strongly in my opinion.
Still can’t get over Trappo’s verse on ‘Xtra Time’ the delivery is brutal and his punchlines hit ruthlessly on the beat. Start to finish, fantastic project.
Over halfway through the countdown, let’s get into some honourable mentions that didn’t quite make the cut. We had great projects such as: EARTHGANG ‘GHETTO GODS’, Nas ‘Kings Disease III’, Snoop Dogg & DJ Drama ‘Gangsta Grillz: I Still Got It’, Boldy James & Nicholas Craven ‘Fair Exhange No Robbery’, Kehlani ‘blue water road’, K Trap ‘The Last Whip II’, Little Simz ‘NO THANK YOU’, Babyface Ray ‘FACE’, Gunna ‘Drip Season 4Eva’, Danger Mouse & Black Thought ‘Chest Codes’, Lil Durk ‘7220’, Vory ‘Lost Souls’, Westside Gunn ‘Peace Fly God’, Burna Boy ‘Love, Damini’, Kenny Beats ‘Louie’, Symba & DJ Drama ‘Results Take Time’, Smino ‘Luv 4 Rent’, Jeezy & DJ Drama ‘SNOFALL’, Stormzy ‘This Is What I Mean’, and Armani Caesar ‘The Liz 2’ just to name some of the shortlist I curated for this list.
Even after this list here, there is still countless projects that dropped this year that showed fantastic growth to newer artists and staggering consistency from those who are veterans of the game! Now let’s get into the business end of the countdown.
10. Back For Everything – Kodak Black
Another strong year in the books for Kodak Black in 2022, releasing 2 solo projects and contributed heavily on the Sniper Gang tape from earlier in 2022. For me though, this album was his strongest this year, with ‘Let Me Know’ being a perfect intro track, enticing the listener to continue down the path the Florida-native leads us down.
I find Kodak to be one of the most consistent rapper in the game, constantly delivering projects of quality, even when he goes down different stylistic paths. This project is no exception and without the protection of multiple featuring artists. He always manages to find these pockets where you can just hop along with whatever flexy bars he wants to throw at you, while also reflecting heavily on where he’s come from.
Something that pops out prominently from this project is that Kodak is extremely diligent when putting projects together. He allows himself to have turn up tracks, deep and dark tracks and moments of introspection across a project. This project is no exception and he displays strong rapping performances all over this project that are complimented by intriguing instrumentals.
9. 2000 – Joey BadA$$
I mean, it only took a decade but damn I’m glad we finally got the follow up to ‘1999’. ‘2000’ has been a joy to listen to this year, with Joey creating his best album to date.
Off the bat, in the intro, he’s spitting “Who the best emcees? Kenny, Joey and Cole/ The holy trinity”. Putting himself in the same breath as Kendrick and J Cole is bold but at the same time, I can see it. As a rapper, a lyricist, a musician, Joey has to be considered in the upper echelons of this generation of rappers.
Since ‘1999’ Joey has matured immense amounts and you can hear it in the creation of this album. A lot of this stemming from the loss of his close friend and fellow Pro Era member Capital Steez in 2012. ‘Survivors Guilt’ shows Joey opening up about the loss of Steez and its heartbreaking to hear that he was targeted as a reason that Steez passed. I’m glad he was able to vocalise his frustrations surrounding the tragedy.
Across the board, the instrumentals are made for the sunshine, with tracks like ‘Cruise Control’, ‘Head High’, ‘One Of Us’, ‘Wanna Be Loved’ and ‘Zipcodes’ encapsulating light hearted lyricism matching up with musically rich beats.
Fabulous return from Joey, with cracking features to match the Brooklyn rapper’s infectious energy across this project.
8. KISS THE RING – Rome Streetz
Following the placements of Conway The Machine and Benny the Butcher, we move onto Griselda’s newest wordsmith, Rome Streetz. An emcee who has built a fan base in underground rap in his own right and has been celebrated as a supremely talented rapper and everything about this album confirms this.
Having heard him deliver in featuring verses on ‘Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Side B’ that appeared on last year’s list, I knew his Griselda debut was going to be something special.
Lyrically, he snaps from start to finish. Line after line of narcotic-slanging, high fashion wearing, money piling, Pyrex cooking lyrics that make for a superb listen. Rome does his thing on this album and I cannot wait for more contributions to the Griselda label. Might have to go back and delve into his underground work. Highly recommended if you love blaring and bopping your head along while driving.
Conductor Williams takes the reigns on the production, capturing the Griselda aesthetic perfectly, laying down the perfect foundation for Rome to do his thing, spray lyrics non-stop. Of course, there had to be the compulsory features from the likes of Armani Caesar, Conway, Stove God Cooks and the man himself Westside Gunn.
7. I NEVER LIKED YOU – Future
Honestly, I don’t think I need to say anything when it comes to Future and how crushingly consistent he is as an artist. ‘I NEVER LIKED YOU’ was 2022’s edition of what Future decided to give us, and like his previous 4 or 5 projects, it was class all the way through. One of those albums where you could play any of the songs and it’d get you in the mood to load up more of this legendary artist.
6.The Elephant Man’s Bones – Roc Marciano & The Alchemist
This one is special: a truly legendary producer, The Alchemist, teaming up with one of his idols, Roc Marciano, an OG of the underground rap scene, who’s been spitting since the 90s.
Anyone who listens to The Alchemist knows that he crafts and sculpts intricate instrumentation for each selected rapper to fly on. His ear for capturing essences that match up to the voice and ambience of each artist he works with is staggering. Never heard a rapper sound out of place or uncomfortable on an Alchemist beat.
Roc Marciano delivers clever, witty and powerful punchlines that shows even the newest listener (myself) why he’s been such an influence on multiple generations of emcees. The whole project is laced with throwback references and rhyme schemes that you’d need to see written down to catch it all, seriously clever lyricism.
Bump this whole project start to finish but take note of Quantum Leap into The Elephant Man’s Bones as a combo, is a special sonic experience.
This project is a match made in heaven and if you haven’t let this album grace your eardrums, please do yourself a favour and get this in your rotation.
5. ALPHA PLACE – Knucks
My favourite album to come out of the UK this year, Knucks tells his story of growing up on the estates of North London in a beautiful way.
Knucks is a storyteller. His delivery and tone helps the listener to envision the life he lead in the crispiest resolution. He articulates himself eloquently and this flows so beautifully on the instrumentals chosen for this album.
In an album jam-packed full of highlights, ‘Bible’ featuring Youngs Teflon has some of the strongest flows of the year. Both artists tackled this technical instrumental with tenacity and hit every one of the best drops in elite fashion.
Overall, I think Knucks needs his flowers on this project because he shines so brightly as an emcee, an artist and a curator in the instrumental selection and selection of featuring artists. It’s a staggering project and I cannot wait to hear more.
4. 10 – Westside Gunn
One of two projects of his I have thoroughly enjoyed this year but this one absolutely blew me away. Westside has taken the art of curating an album/mixtape to a whole new level with this tenth edition of the ‘Hitler Wears Hermes’ series.
DJ Drama had a scorching 2022 on his own and we find him introducing and signing off this project from the Griselda ring-leader. In short, I see no skips on this project, all 12 tracks are pieced together from an illustrious list of producers, featuring artists and skits that bring this experience together.
Westside has created a tape that sits perfectly between the mainstream and the underground. With household names like Busta Rhymes, A$AP Rocky, Run The Jewels and various Wu Tang Clan members featuring across the tape, one would think that those underground stars like Stove God Cooks and Rome Streetz, among others, would slide under the radar. You’d be wrong.
The magic of Westside Gunn’s projects is that he wants everyone to shine, and thanks to this classy collection of beats, all featuring artists flourish. Plus, hearing Stove God go crazy on ‘Shootouts In Soho’ after A$AP Rocky bounces across the beat. Fantastic juxtaposition between the mainstream and the underground on that track along.
Can’t lie, this would’ve broken my top 3 if it had released sooner, but wow, what a tape.
3. Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers – Kendrick Lamar
K Dot returned to deliver us ‘Mr Morale & The Big Steppers’ and in my opinion it is worthy of his illustrious discography to date. I’d be lying if I didn’t say that it took me 3/4 listens to really truly appreciate the artistry of this project, with Kendrick opening up about his experiences in therapy.
Kendrick uses this album to tackle issues from inside the home in a big way, while also opening up about infidelity and the worship surrounding his celebrity.
Whether it be the toxic back-and-forth on ‘We Cry Together’ to opening up about his daddy issues on ‘Father Time’, the monumental occurrence of having children has made Kendrick reflect on his past problems as a kid while learning at his own speed how to handle the stresses of family life.
For an album that is so hard hitting, the replay value is staggering, with tracks such as ‘N95’, ‘Silent Hill’ and ‘Rich Spirit’ all piecing together the journey that K Dot takes the listener on from the offset. An album that is produced in a more minimalist style compared to previous projects, but is still as powerful with the most honest songwriting he’s displayed so far. Brilliant project from a generational artist.
2. Melt My Eyes See Your Future (The Extended Edition) -Denzel Curry
Another I covered in extensive detail on the blog this year, this album hasn’t failed to disappoint every time I go back to it. A project that from the top shows superb growth from Denzel Curry artistically, while staying true to himself as a performer. An infectious project with a mature energy compared to previous projects, Denzel has transitioned into an artist who really pays attention to the finer details when creating his music.
Musically, this album saw Denzel step it up, with rich horns and drums being peppered across the project, and that’s before he released the extended edition. The extended edition takes 10 of the original tracks and introduces the audience to Cold Blooded Soul versions of the respective tracks. It’s safe to say it emphasises Curry’s ability to adapt his sound to fit a different tone and these soulful versions are the cherry on top a pretty perfect 2022 for Denzel. Take a bow.
1. It’s Almost Dry – Pusha T
Here we have it, the crème-de-la-crème of my Top 25 Albums of 2022. ‘It’s Almost Dry’ was a sensational experience for me in 2022, as I found myself playing it over and over and over again. From the unbelievable production to the catchy choruses to the features that didn’t miss once across the whole project.
From the first beat of ‘Brambleton’ I was drawn in immediately and I couldn’t take my attention away from it. The 50/50 split of production from Ye and Pharrell was a genius move, both superb producers who leave their distinct mark on their respective tracks.
Every track is delivered with venomous energy and each track is attacked by Pusha. No two tracks sounding even remotely alike, with ‘Let The Smokers Shine The Coupes’ taking the crown for me. Explosive instrumentally, lyrically vicious and every time it comes on it just consumes me. However, the best beat for me was ‘Dreamin’ Of The Past’, that Donnie Hathaway sample is golden and was perfectly selected by Ye.
This may not be the absolute best album of this year but I’ve enjoyed it from the first listen all the way to present day. Well worth the wait and it keeps getting better and better every time I go back to it. Album by album, Pusha is forcing his way into my all time rappers list and I LOVE it. What an artist, what a rapper, what an album.
“You hollerin’, “Top Five”, I Only See Top Me”
Dreamin Of The Past – Pusha T ft Ye.FIN.
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Palmieri Playlist Vol. 5
Welcome back to the most potent playlist in all the land, returning for Volume 5. Let’s waste no time, introducing the first project for this edition:
Reasonable Doubt – Jay-Z (1996)
Sometimes everybody just needs to go back and appreciate how truly unbelievable Jay-Z’s musical career has been, even from the very start of his discography, he stamped his authority on the rap game from the get go. Reasonable Doubt is the blueprint for MCs in creating an outstanding debut project and then kicking on and never letting up.
Start to finish the instrumental selection is top tier, only the best crafted for this illustrious debut. ‘Dead Presidents II’ is my personal favourite instrumental, with close second coming in the form of ‘Can I Live’, where producer Irv Gotti samples ‘The Look Of Love’ by Isaac Hayes in a special fashion, bring the 1970s to the brink of the new millennia.
The sampling selection across the Reasonable Doubt should be studied for how well it was executed, I need there to be a Jay-Z documentary somewhere in the pipeline because I need to see people’s reaction to experiencing these beats for the first time.
Classic beat after classic beat all over this album and the feature list stacks up. Blockbuster features from Foxy Brown, Mary J Blige, Notorious B.I.G., Big Jaz and others just help to give Jay a break from tearing it up. Biggie and Jay going back to back on a track is a joy to hear, two of the best MCs to ever grace the booth, produced by Brooklyn’s finest, God’s favourite DJ, Clark Kent and Dame Dash.
I really don’t need to say anything about the brilliance of Jay’s lyricism because he has a catalogue of music that proves that he is in his own league when it comes to bars but the fact he was THAT good from album number 1? Sensational.
Whoever you are, go back and experience this album over and over. It gets the ball rolling for the GOAT’s career. A truly timeless project that was so ahead of its time when you consider it released almost three decades ago. 1996, a great year for music and humans being born.
Rating: 9.6/10 – the highest rating so far in this series, and rightly so.
Demons Protected By Angels – NAV (2022)
Jumping from one extreme to the other – NAV. An artist who I enjoy for his unique voice and same-y bars but I always pay attention to what his new music sounds like ever since his ‘Perfect Timing’ tape with Metro Boomin.
I’m forever intrigued to see how he can remould his input into a fresh batch of instrumentals with the predictable features he’ll inject into tracks to make them a touch more dynamic than the auto-tuned tones of the Canadian-native, NAV.
This time around, Lil Uzi Vert, Gunna, Baby Face Ray, Bryson Tiller, Lil Baby, Travis Scott, Lil Durk and Future and more (?!) all grace the project with features, however Don Toliver came through with a typical knockout hook on ‘One Time’, a dreamy, psychedelic trip that compliments both him and Future’s featuring contributions.
Highlights of the album come in ‘Last Of The Mohicans’ where NAV bounces across a light 808 with a simple rhyme scheme that suits his tone perfectly. ‘Demons In My Cup’ is an attempt of reflecting on his drug abuse but due to the tone of the beat, it feels like a mismatch reflecting on the lyrical direction he was going down.
Even though he produced a lot of these beats, I’d think that when you produce your own music, you’d like to bring your A-Game to truly emphasise the strength of the backing tracks. I appreciate the attempts to be introspective, however the execution is not there on this occasion.
Rating: 4.2/10 – uninspiring and melancholy as a whole with a few shining lights but gains bonus points for the best cover art so far this year!
Spaceships On The Blade – Larry June (2022)
Larry June is a rapper I have become familiar with in the last few years and there is one word that encapsulates his whole aura – horizontal. This man is so laid back in his rapping style that he might as well be flat on the floor and I, for one, absolutely love it.
June’s newest album, ‘Spaceships On The Blade’, is a nonchalant collection of cruising music that is made for car speakers. Makes perfect sense that he hails from San Francisco because all music I’ve heard from him is sunshine in hip hop form.
He has a nostalgic quality to the way he rides a beat and as much as it could sound as if he’s stuck in a time warp, he’s clinical and hit the nail on the head with his flows when paired on a range of different instrumentals on the project.
June’s delivery has a blasé nature to it but he can hit melodic tones which match perfectly to the smooth selection of instrumentals, regardless of the tempo of the track. Lyrically he glides in and out of referencing luxury whips, jewellery pieces and how ‘fly’ he is, while also reflecting on where he came from. Not mad at it in the slightest as he has a satisfying ratio when balancing out the two ends of the lyrical spectrum. Not too much ‘look at me’ and also not too deep and meaningful, just a very easy listen.
“Another day in, it could have been my last; Made a lot of money and blew through it fast”
– Another Day, Pt. 2 –Curren$y and 2 Chainz come through with the strongest features on the album, with Chainz bopping succinctly along with his verse on ‘Still Boomin’. Highly recommend this to anyone who likes to just press play and let the album flow, thoroughly enjoyable.
Rating: 8/10 – very very solid. Looking forward to more from Larry.
LOUIE – Kenny Beats (2022)
This project really caught me off guard as I hadn’t a clue it was in the works, but Kenny Beats dropped a solo album of instrumentals and wasn’t surprised when I was presented with 33 minutes of superb vibes.
A producer known for his sonic range, Kenny deviates from what we have learned to expect, coming through with soulful, RnB tones that just melt in the eardrums. ‘Parenthesis’ is sumptuously silky and sets the listener on a journey through a colourful landscape of light and bouncy instrumentals.
You can hear Kenny’s musical abilities through the range of different drumming tempos, bass line experimentations and the great use of horns and guitars spread across every track.
Each song has it’s sprinkling hip hop influence, whether it comes from the soft bass lines or an increase in BPM, complimented by ranging wind instruments and horns along with melodious vocals from unnamed backing vocalists to make this project sail along oh so smoothly. ‘Really Really’ is a snappy instrumental that brings a beautifully simple drum sequence to centre stage, probably my favourite beat on the project.
Those with a keen ear would pick up Northampton’s own, Slowthai, coming through with a short verse appearance that sounds like it’s coming down a bad telephone line. All in all, a very summery-sounding project to keep the mood up on these cold, damp autumn/winter mornings.
Rating: 7.7/10 – very pleasant, would have loved to have heard a couple of proper feature verses.
Huncho Jack, Jack Huncho – Travis Scott & Quavo (2017)
A bit of a forgotten relic, and for me, a supremely underrated project when looking back at it. Released back in the days where you had a Quavo-heavy album every few months, it was brought into the world at a time where the sound was absurdly oversaturated. But when you go back and listen to what they created, it’s a solid collaborative project.
We’ve known for years about the chemistry between Travis Scott and Quavo and a joint album always made sense, so there’s no surprise that the end product has excellent examples of this chemistry. ‘Black & Chinese’, ‘Huncho Jack’, ‘Motorcycle Patches’ and ‘How U Feel’ are just some of the tracks where the pair flow together effortlessly on brisk instrumentals, made for indoor arenas and high octane audiences.
Lyrically, it is a showcase of flashy, expensive things which usually wouldn’t be overly interesting, but when the first line of the first song goes like this, how can you be mad?
“All these damn chains, Modern Slavery, but this ain’t 1800 so they pay me (CASH!)”
– Modern Slavery –Not one for the lyrical rap lovers but a collection of high-BPM, turn up tracks and a solid project overall with some excellent production. Not bad from two voices who are responsible for a handful of the modern rap game’s most emphatic songs.
Rating: 7/10
To check out the whole edition of this playlist, start to finish, click here to find the link to my Spotify page, where you can access all the previous editions too.
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Getting Techy With It: How Technical Sneaker Brands are stirring up the Mainstream Sneaker Scene.
‘Traditionally’ the world of sneakers has been dominated by the all-conquering brands of Nike, Jordan, Adidas, Converse and Puma but in recent years, some subtlety and some blatantly, technical sneaker brands have forced their way into the mainstream sneaker space in a way that nobody can ignore. Brands that once sat on the niche side of the sneaker world, are now starting to take centre stage of rotations of sneaker heads around the globe.
New Balance, ASICS and Salomon are among the brands that are forcing a change in the way ‘cool’ sneakers are viewed by footwear traditionalists. Gone are the days where the only logical options for the year’s most exciting releases being an Air Jordan retro or another iteration of whatever Yeezy model (and now because of ties being cut with Ye) is being pumped out. Today, there is real variety and this is thanks to brands such as the three listed above.
New Balance have come leaps and bounds since I last wrote about them (see that here if you fancy it!) and there is no sign of them slowing down. Since then, they’ve continued their extensive catalogue of collaborations with KITH, Stray Rats, JJJJound and Salehe Bembury; Joefreshgoods has dropped a selection of show-stopping projects and this year the brand has stepped up their work with Teddy Santis, founder and creative director of Aimé Leon Dore.
Having such a high standards in their collaborative cohort creates increased interest in retro silhouettes across the board, with models 550, 990v1,2 & 3, 993, 580, 90/60 and others all having touches of magic applied by these illustrious creatives. Creating buzz around these collabs then gives people an interest in general release versions of the same silhouettes, overall boosting the excitement surrounding the brand as a whole as consumers can’t wait to see what is coming next.
Following the landslide success of the 2002R’s performance for the brand, New Balance’s 1906R silhouette has started to make serious waves on the internet and will inevitably be a residing success too, they simply cannot miss at the moment.
Joe Freshgoods x New Balance 993 
Joe Freshgoods x New Balance 993 
Joe Freshgoods x New Balance 90/60 
Joe Freshgoods x New Balance 2002R 
Salehe Bembury x New Balance 990v2 (Unreleased) 
Salehe Bembury x New Balance 574 Yurt 
JJJJound x New Balance 990v3 
New Balance 1906R 
Teddy Santis x New Balance 990v1 
Teddy Santis x New Balance 990v2 
Stray Rats x New Balance MT580 In the past 18 months or so, Salomon has emerged as a sports brand that is changing the sneaker landscape even further, taking technical, sport-specific equipment and forcing their way into the spotlight if you like it or not.
Originally established in 1947 creating skiing equipment in the French Alps by François Salomon and assisted by his wife and son, Georges. His son went on to take the brand into the global outdoor sporting brand it is known as today. In terms of the sneaker space, there are a handful of silhouettes that have grasped the imagination of sneaker heads on both sides of the Atlantic.
The standout shapes that the masses are paying attention to are the Salomon XT-4, XT-6, XT-6 ADV and the ACS Pro Advanced. The essentially laceless system is genius and has created a batch of sneaker heads who haven’t tied laces in months now and as an owner of a pair of XT-6s, I believe the hype. Yes, they are more of an acquired taste to a New Balance or ASICS silhouette but they’ve well and truly shaken up what can be deemed as genuinely cool, high quality product.
Hidden NY x Salomon XT-4 
Salomon XT-6 ADV 
END. x Salomon XT-Wings 2 ‘Scirocco’ 
L’Art de L’Automobile x Salomon ACS Pro Advanced 
Salomon ACS Pro Advanced 
Salomon ACS Pro Advanced 
Salomon XT-4 
Salomon XT-6 ADV 
Huckberry x Salomon XT-6 ASICS is a Japanese sportswear brand that has been consistently on the niche side of the sneaker world for years now and in the couple of years or so, they’ve become more prominent with great collaborations.
Historically, ASICS was founded in September 1949 (originally Onitsuka Co., Ltd), manufacturing basketball footwear in Japan. They were the footwear of choice for athletes across a huge range of sports in the Olympics from the 1950s onwards, giving the brand global recognition from the early days. 21-time Grand Slam winner, Novak Djokovic is an ASICS footwear athlete.
They first came to my attention as a fashion-sneaker brand around a decade ago when KITH and Ronnie Fieg collaborated on a Gel Lyte III and that specific relationship goes back 15 years in total. The 10th Anniversary of the collaboration was celebrated with Gel Lyte V in the ‘Salmon Toe’ colourway as well as a ‘Leather Back’ version of the same silhouette to reflect on the 2011 Gel Lyte III collab.
KITH return with collaborations with ASICS this year for the 15th Anniversary of their relationship, putting his signature superb materials across a range of classic silhouettes.
In the last year though, they’ve had some excellent collaborative work with JJJJound being the standout for me. The Gel Kayano 14 was the canvas and comes in simple but beautifully executed tones. One of those collaborations where you really need to know what you’re looking for to know what they are. I have seen this collaboration on the vast majority Instagram sneaker blogs posting this collaboration as one of the shoes of the summer.
This has led to a heavy year for the Gel Kayano 14, with general release versions being head turners in their own respect along with a colourful collaborative effort with ICE STUDIOS. Fantastic silhouette being given the spotlight it deserves.
Other more low-key collaborations on a wide range of silhouettes have kept the needle constantly moving for ASICS this year, with NAKED, Pleasures, Awake NY, AFEW, Atmos, Sneaker Politics and Bodega all among the names to grace a silhouette this calendar year.
Collaborations are always going to keep the consumer interested in what outside creatives are going to bring to the table but the brand has always created footwear with clean, simple colour blocking and will continue to do so. The only difference now is that so many more people will be paying attention.
One thing about all three of these brands is that the colour palettes that can be enabled on the silhouettes is insane, the colour blocking options paired with the range of materials possible creates this unstoppable force for endless creativity. This happens to be a reason why I love some of the design of these shoes so much, something different.
ASICS x Naked GEL-1130 
Pleasures x ASICS GEL-NANDI 
ASICS x Ice Studios Gel Kayano 14 
ASICS x JJJJound Gel Kayano 14 
ASICS x Sneaker Politics Gel Lyte III 
ASICS x Bodega Gel MC-Plus 
ASICS x Kith Gel Lyte V ‘Salmon Toe’ & ‘Leatherback’ 
ASICS x Gel Lyte III 
ASICS x Kith EX89 Of course the likes of Nike, Adidas, Converse and others are going to continue to sit towards the top of the sneaker world but nobody can deny the product being released from elsewhere. Brands like these have truly put a stop to the days where the coolest drops were just retros from Nike or Adidas. And personally, I love it. Enjoy the variety. Wear what you like and what you enjoy. No game in trying something new.
Up next for the blog, the Top 25 Albums of 2022… it’s going to be a BIG one.
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‘Melt My Eyez See Your Future’, Denzel Curry has found his Creative Sweet Spot.
Ever since the 2016 XXL Freshman list that included the likes of 21 Savage, Lil Uzi Vert and Kodak Black just to name a few, Denzel Curry stood out with his electric flows and fierce delivery. The Florida-native has since released 4 studio albums since 2016 and each of them have their own characteristics to make them special and exploratory.
The second of the 4, ‘TA13OO’, was an eerie encounter with 3 stages that broke down the three moods Curry was capturing, all reflecting the headspace he was in when creating each segment. To this day there aren’t many rap albums that I’ve heard that’ve been as interestingly obscure as ‘TA13OO’.
TA13OO, 2018 
ZUU, 2019 Then into ‘ZUU’, where Denzel dives back into the rawness of the Miami rap scene, reverting back to explosive flows and vivid imagery from start to finish. For me, this is my favourite Denzel project of his first 4. He displays this brutally intense delivery, which draws you in over and over again, and is encapsulated in ‘WISH’ featuring Kiddo Marv, not only is the sample from The B.B. & Q. Band’s hit ‘Genie’ a thing of beauty in how it hits with the heaviest of 808s.
Pairing that with vicious verbal delivery being laid down by both artists on the track just puts the cherry on top. Plus, props to Denzel for being the only rapper I’ve ever heard make ‘Nicaragua’ sound so ordinary over a rap beat.
Now onto this new project, ‘Melt My Eyez See Your Future’, 14 tracks, 45 mins that I believe to be his most well balanced project to date.
Starting as he intends to continue, Denzel Curry opens with this hazy stroll through his self reflection over the pace-setting percussion and eases perfectly into the lead single ‘Walkin’.
As a lead single, ‘Walkin’ is perfect. Denzel verbally paints a picture of a sunset walk where he is just letting out his inner conscious littered with wordplay, punchlines and summery imagery. Staggeringly after the song dropped, HipHopNumbers on Twitter broke the track down and the results were truly incredible.
For more analytics on music, check out HipHopNumbers on Twitter For anybody who has listened to Denzel, these stats won’t be any surprise as his technical ability in spitting a whole host of delivery styles is known across his discography. However something about this track in particular makes it all seem so refined and perfected. From the beat changes to the rhyme schemes, Curry seems to have perfected his craft and it shines through across this whole album.
Denzel Curry’s beat selection has always been something special, always finding the perfect producer to reflect the mood and tone of the track he wants to create. Whether it is a boom-bap style track or a beat where he can explore his repertoire of voices.
Take the run from ‘Worst Comes to Worst’ down to ‘Ain’t No Way’ for example. The prior mentioned track starts with a chanting backdrop of ‘Da, da-da-da, da-da’, sounding as if it could’ve come from a rebellious march. This instrumental allows for the perfect tempo to allow Curry to discuss institutional issues. From there ‘The Last’ shows Denzel touching on racial injustices across the music industry, wider society and a reaction to what unfolded in the George Floyd case.
He has the writing ability to discuss hard-hitting topic areas while delivering tracks that can be enjoyed in the car, at the beach, in the club because the beat selection allows for him to be creative in juxtaposing ways. He can be powerful and political in his lyrics but can flip the script and go into telling a story, like on ‘Mental’ which has a transcendent chorus that just melts into your ear drums.
Bridget Perez is responsible for that infectious hook and that brings me swiftly onto my final point. Every featuring artists selected, did EXACTLY what was assigned from them from every possible aspect. Further to Perez’s feature, T-Pain took me back to the days of ‘Good Life’ with his iconic staple sound, perfect for the head-bopping summer driving jams; especially considering Denzel’s croakier shouting voice just adds the perfect balance to the track.
It should be banned to have a lineup as strong as ‘Ain’t No Way’. 6lack on the hook, serenading. Rico Nasty on a verse, energy. JID on a verse, intricate. What else is there to say?
“Humble as a bitch but not today”
– 6lack –Along with standout performances on both ‘Angelz’ and ‘Sanjuro’ from Karriem Riggins and 454, slowthai was a sensational selection for his contributions to ‘Zatoichi’, his grungy/punky vocals feed into Denzel’s tones like a fish in water. Naturally brilliant.
As a whole I feel Denzel Curry has taken all the experimentation from his previous projects and morphed them into this superbly smooth sonic while not letting off the gas with the flows and lyricism.
This album is concise, captures every vibe necessary, and the quality of his music is just getting better and better. Superb.
What are your thoughts on the project? What’s your favourite song? Is Denzel just getting better with every album?
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Palmieri Playlist Vol. 4
Here we are, back again for the fourth instalment of the Palmieri Playlist, one of the most diverse collections of music you’re likely to find on all of the internet. Let’s get straight into it, and if you stick around until the end, there will be a link to the series of all the playlists I’ve written about so far. Let’s go!
Blade Brown & K Trap – Joints
Two of the hardest rappers in the UK, Blade Brown & K Trap team up for ‘Joints’, and to sum it up, I absolutely love this project.
Everything about this collaboration makes perfect sense, they have an infectious chemistry and their characters really bounce off each other, with stellar consequences.
They make 11 tracks fly by in 31 minutes and neither of them take their foot off the throttle from beat 1. A featureless project that allows both Blade and Trapo to deliver their flawless flows over an elite selection of trap beats.
Blade Brown has been delivering consistent music for plenty of years now but I think this project has emphasised to me the strength and abilities of K-Trap and how his distinctive voice helps for punchlines to hit that little bit harder.
For example, just take in the first verse of ‘Xtra Time’ for a second. The pace of the beat was sculpted to allow Trapo to drop bar after bar its ruthless conviction, until Blade comes with the the coldest hook I’ve heard in quite a while:
“They’ve never seen fifty grands,
They’ve never seen fifty bands,
By the time you get your food,
It’s been through like fifty hands.”Go take this album in and let these two take you on a journey through the world of weapons, narcotics and copious amounts of cash. This album won’t be leaving the rotation for a while.
Rating: 8.6/10
21 Savage, Offset & Metro Boomin’ – Without Warning
A classic project at this stage. I use it as a dark and moody drive home after the evening shift, this spooky Halloween-release from 21 Savage and Offset ticks all the boxes for a heavyweight collaborative project.
The Atlanta natives teamed up with Metro Boomin, debatably one of the most prolific trap-producers of all time, to create a concise, 33 minute album that leaves no stone unturned. With features from Travis Scott and Quavo, 21 and Offset are mostly left to their own devices and have solo opportunities to leave their mark on the project, all weaved together by Metro.
As much as the rapping performances are sensational on this project and they nail the hazy-horror sonic from start to finish, the production takes centre stage for me.
From the transitions between songs like a river merging into the ocean. The ways in which percussion is used on this album is sensational from Metro, using the snares in each beat to dictate the aggression and velocity of the flows from the rappers. Along with bass line for ‘Ric Flair Drip’ Metro leaves an abundance of his most groundbreaking instrumentals across ‘Without Warning’ and any collaborative album with Metro’s production will always make for a hard hitting project.
Flexing, flashy diamonds, fierce and ferocious from start to finish. Honourable mention to 21’s performance on ‘Choppa Hate N*****’ which has to be up there for his most definitive rapping performances to date. Then the transition into ‘Nightmare’ is just effortless from Metro.
Rating: 9/10
Fousheé – time machine
Armed with the softest, haziest voice, Fousheé came to my attention after her standout feature on Vince Staples’ self-titled project on the track ‘Take Me Home’.
I’m glad I delved deeper into her discography because ‘time machine’ is a short, snappy pack of 9 tracks that offers whispering melodies that mix indie, RnB and soulful vocals to mesmerise the listener into a euphoric trance.
‘enjoy the silence’ is a smooth summery bop that entices you in with a light guitar and then leads you into another hypnotic string led ‘I don’t love you no more’. Gentle, dreamy vocals paired up with endless harmonies creates this cloud-like aesthetic in my head.
I really enjoy the high pitch optics range her voice sits in as she displays fantastic ability to fill the space on these tracks. Not a project that will satisfy everybody but this ticks plenty of boxes for me.
“Cause he never met a bitch like Fousheé”
From ‘clap for him (ft. Lil Yachty)’Rating: 7.4/10
Benny The Butcher – Tana Talk 4
Following the instant impact that Conway the Machine’s ‘God Don’t Make Mistakes’ left on Griselda listeners, the attention fell on the release of the long awaited ‘Tana Talk 4’ from Benny the Butcher.
Introducing the album with the lead single ‘Johnny P’s Caddy’ with J. Cole’s best feature in years gets the ball rolling on another listening experience for The Butcher. Immediately followed up by another show stopping verse from Stove God Cooks has Benny the Butcher almost playing catch up with the elite levels his featuring artists bring in the opening 2 tracks.
With production almost entirely materialised by Daringer and The Alchemist, they capture this eerie, mob-esque backdrop for Benny to paint pictures in vivid detail from his hard-comings from his past life and how he raised his profile into rap stardom.
As much as Benny’s performances on this style of production is brilliant, I just wish there was a bit more variation in the beat selection. I believe Benny has supreme talent and writes some of the best raps in the game but I need to hear him body more styles of instrumentals.
As a whole though, ‘Tana Talk 4’ is Benny picking up where he left the Tana Talk series. It is still succinct and satisfies the demand for braggadocios bars about whipping up bricks and flexing the longevity he has displayed in the music game. Delivering project after project of great music comes naturally to the Griselda tribe at this stage and this is another to add to the catalog.
For me the standout tracks are ‘Back 2x’, ‘Super Plug’, ‘Uncle Bun’ and ‘10 More Commandments’, which I enjoy as a continuation of Biggie’s classic ‘10 Crack Commandments’.
Honourable mention to ‘Weekends in The Perry’s’ featuring Boldy James, the most laid back beat being bodied by the coolest voice in hip-hop these days in Boldy.
Rating 8.3/10
Nigo – I Know Nigo
An album curated and produced by the legendary Japanese fashion designer, DJ and record producer, Nigo, he uses this as a project to create a dream team of collaborators for a compilation album that delves into so many pockets of different genres. With drill/trap beats all the way to Bowser’s Castle-esque instrumentals, Nigo experiments with the range of inspirational pools across this project.
With A$AP Rocky, A$AP Ferg, Pusha T, Clipse, Pharrell Williams, Kid Cudi, Tyler the Creator and Teriyaki Boyz among the artists featured, Nigo teams up with hip-hop heavyweights and creates this quirky 11-track project that screams summertime for me.
I must say at this stage, Pusha T has used the two tracks he features on here to continue the crazy rollout for his upcoming project: ‘Punch Bowls’ and ‘Hear Me Clearly’ are examples of a rapper who knows he has the power to crush the game with a project, regardless of when he drops. He can drop whenever, wherever, with an album of any length and it’ll be stellar. He’s just teasing us with his new album and it’s frustrating the life out of me.
As for the rest of this project, there are a couple of tracks that aren’t for me so much, for example the beat for ‘Functional Addict’ feels a bit too much like something I could have made in year 8 music, but the vocal performances help to make the track listenable, with Pharrell and Gunna taking control and turning the track around.
‘Come On, Let’s Go’ has to be the standout track for me though. Tyler just embodies the attitude needed to thrive on this instrumental, and the music video captures the aesthetic perfectly too. Check that out here!
As a whole the project is playful and definitely something that could be played in clubs in the summer coming up. So looking forward to see where this album suits best, environment-wise.
Rating: 7.5/10
Aaaand that concludes the 4th edition of the Palmieri Playlist! Follow me over on Spotify to listen to the whole collection so far!
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Palmieri Playlist Vol. 3
Welcome to the third edition of the most elite personal playlist of yours truly. We know how this goes by now so let’s get into what’s been in the rotation in recent weeks.
EARTHGANG – GHETTO GODS
This was a project I was extremely excited for when the news broke that EARTHGANG were back in the studio working on an album. The Atlanta rap duo are part of the incredible roster of artists that J. Cole has formulated over at Dreamville and to say they fit the label like a glove would not be an over-exaggeration.
GHETTO GODS has both Johnny Venus and Doctur Dot morphing their sounds around a range of sonics, with heavy 808s for high-octane spraying, smoother, soul-sampled instrumentals for more melodic tales and downplayed beats to allow for the rapper to really shine. They display they can cover so many bases while the project does not lose it’s concise flow.
‘WATERBOYZ’ is a superb track, with earth-shattering featuring verses from JID and J. Cole to complete a quartet of Dreamville royalty. the instrumental sets the perfect foundation for all of these rappers to really flow from start to finish. For me though, Doctur Dot’s verse at number 3 out of 4 takes the crown for me.
Other standout features come from Musiq Soulchild, Baby Tate and Ari Lennox along with surprise feature on ‘POWER’ from CeeLo Green and Nick Cannon. An extremely diverse choice of features to match EARTHGANG’s range of sounds explored on this project. Would highly recommend.
Rating: 8.2/10
Conway The Machine – God Don’t Make Mistakes
Coming with his final release with Shady Records, Conway the Machine delivers his most introspective album to date.
The fierce Griselda lyricist captivates listeners with his signature aggression when delivering the story of his hard come up. From previous records I have explored of Conway’s he has never gone into the level of detail that he dives into on ‘God Don’t Make Mistakes’.
From PTSD and coping mechanisms to people around him only supporting when he was up, Conway discusses how his inner circle picked him up in his lowest times.
My eyes opened wide when I sat back and really listened to tracks like ‘Guilty’, ‘God Don’t Make Mistakes’ and ‘Stressed’.
The latter has Conway breaking down some of the shortcomings in his life, from his near-fatal incident where he was shot in the face and neck and admitting for the first time on a track that he lost a child during childbirth. I take my hat off to any artist who has the strength to throw their deepest vulnerabilities into their music, let alone when you break it down multiple times across the project.
Putting all his cards on the table and maintaining the immense quality in his rhyme schemes and flows shows that he truly is one of the best lyricists and rappers of this generation. He creates the most vivid images in his rhymes and the fact that other artists in the industry only rap about their triumphs rather than the moments that create the character you are listening to.
To finish off this segment, the production and the features throughout is stellar. With Daringer, The Alchemist, Hit-Boy and Cozmo among some of the names who enabled Conway to shine in the way he deserves with their exceptional beat-making capabilities. Features from TI, Jill Scott, Novel, Rick Ross, Lil Wayne, Jae Skee and the usual suspects of Griselda all add their contributions to an album that proves why Conway needs to have more respect put on his name.
Rating: 8.6/10
Mariah the Scientist – RY RY WORLD
A name you may not have heard of before, and if I’m honest, I wouldn’t have heard of her either if it wasn’t for a certain someone blaring this project around our flat… but I’m glad she did because this project is extremely good!
The Atlanta-native RnB singer could easily be compared to a Snoh Aalegra or a Jhené Aiko and RY RY WORLD is a fantastic project to bring a laidback vibe to your day.
At just 28 minutes it is a bite sized project that packs a punch with a selection of sumptuous melodies, dreamy instrumentals and two monumental names for featuring artists in Lil Baby and Young Thug.
Although Mariah’s skill set is similar to that of the pre-mentioned artists, she has a unique tone that makes her voice stand out from the crowd. I can’t quite put my finger on it but I think her choice of instrumentals plays a part in this, with pretty heavy 808s but they’re downplayed to help her vocals take centre stage.
‘Always n Forever’ is by far the standout track. She hit all the right peaks, perfectly complimented by the beat and topped off by a Lil Baby verse that is more sentimental to his usual tracks. An infectious hook helps to bring this track up to the next level. Superb stuff.
I’d like to hear how she expands her sound in future projects but this 2021 project is a great introduction to another supremely talented vocalist in the RnB lane.
Rating 7.7/10
Incognito (Apple Music Essentials Playlist)
Incognito fall quite far from what I regard as my go-to listening experience but recently I was taken to a sensational night of jazz at the legendary Ronnie Scott’s club in Soho, London.
Being a fan of pure forms of music, a jazz night is always going to tick boxes for me but I was blown away by how commanding Incognito were on stage and how every musician and vocalist were all in a league of their own.
They opened with a track called ‘Parisienne Girl’, which was originally released back in 1980. I was taken aback by a sensational saxophone performance and I was hooked for the rest of the night. This naturally led me to go back and find a compilation of their impressive catalogue of 18 studio albums and their tracks are just as impactful in the comfort of your own home.
All I can say is if you enjoy rhythm, bass, jazz, blues and everything in between, you’re going to love exploring the discography of this brilliant band.
Rating: 9.4/10
Hotboii – Life Of A Hotboii
Hotboii, a name I had heard of briefly but never delved into what his music really sounded like until I heard a clip of his track ‘Don’t Need Time’ on Louis Theroux’s newest series ‘Forbidden America’, when he looked deeply into the Florida rap scene.
The short snippet I heard led me to the track, the track then led me to his newest album and I was pleasantly surprised by how strong this album is. ‘Life Of A Hotboii’ is the third studio album of the Orlando rapper and I found that he has potential to be a prolific storyteller when selecting the right beats. He contains a hybrid sound of the likes of Kodak Black, Lil Baby and NBA YoungBoy in places, but he definitely has his own story to tell.
‘Dreams’ opens up the album where Hotboii breaks down his multiple issues with the law, telling his mum he’ll never go back to jail but when he finds himself incarcerated again, he sounds remorseful. It’s prominent amongst rappers who come from gang affiliated backgrounds who sensationalise the lifestyle of committing various crimes but Hotboii sounds reflective when he looks back at what he’s done in the past.
This theme continues while he balances the success he has found while dodging the obstacles of the legal system in America. ‘Doctor’ featuring Lil Tjay is a track with a catchy hook that brings the lifestyle of the street and the lifestyle of a rapper into the same bracket. ‘I Really’ adopts the classic Detroit rap scene beat with 42 Dugg absolutely dominating all over the track with Moneybagg Yo adding his two-pence into a song that has a real bop to it when played with a substantial level of volume.
As much as the project isn’t perfect, you can hear that Hotboii has all the potential to become Florida’s next great export, following Kodak Black and his ability to cover both bases of nonchalant flexing and deep storytelling while also displaying a wide range of flows and delivery styles. Fingers crossed we continue to see Hotboii grow into the artist he aspires to be.
Rating: 7/10
Future – HNDRXX
Let’s rewind to 2017, where Future released a pair of sensational projects on consecutive weeks. ‘FUTURE’, the trap rap edition and this masterpiece, ‘HNDRXX’, an RnB heavy album that has Future sounding like he’d never seen a trap house in all his days.
If I’m totally honest, there are no skips on this project, Future finds a way to make a 69 minute album so easy to enjoy. This album is Future displaying both vulnerability through his display of emotion but also a man who has no remorse for what he did in the wake of having his heart broken.
The antihero status that Future has earned for himself on Twitter as the totem-pole for misogyny is slightly countered by how he delivers this album. Even with the main line of the hook for ‘My Collection’ being “even if I hit you once you part of my collection”, as if he’s collecting women like Pokémon cards or trophies of his escapades.
Regardless of whether his morality is questionable or brilliant, the album is superb and one of his most concise when enjoying the project as a whole. I love this project and I’ve always had a soft spot for ‘HNDRXX’ over ‘FUTURE’, regardless of how good both albums are, even while neither being his best.
Rating: 8.5/10
I hope you have enjoyed this latest edition of the Palmieri Playlist and hope it’s given you some inspiration to go listen to some of these great projects!
While you are here, go follow me on Spotify and catch up with the Palmieri Playlist collection, just here!!
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The Palmieri Playlist Vol. 2
It’s that time again, where we take a look at what has been on the always potent, Palmieri Playlist, back for Volume 2. No matter if it was released yesterday, 2 years ago or 30 years ago, it can always be reflected on this prestigious playlist. So without any further hesitation, let’s jump into this! F
Find the full playlist on Spotify, HERE!
LIVE LIFE FAST – Roddy Ricch
Roddy Ricch, I didn’t want to have to start off like this but here we are. Listeners have been waiting for a follow up to Please Excuse Me For Being Antisocial and after anticipating a drop for the whole of 2021, LIVE LIFE FAST finally dropped on the 17th December 2021.
To be honest, after listening for a few weeks, it’s a let down for me. As much as it isn’t bad, there is nothing that shows he has progressed from his debut solo album.
I enjoy Thailand, Rollercoastin, Hibachi, Moved to Miami and Late at Night but there are far too many tracks that follow the same blueprint. As much as the features save these tracks from being totally mediocre, I feel like there is a dynamism missing from the whole project.
Fivio Foreign demonstrated why he’s the go-to for a feature on a drill beat, as much as I’d love to hear him flourish on another sonic, he showed Roddy how it is done on ‘murda one’ . Kodak Black and 21 Savage added some spice to ‘hibachi’, Ty Dolla $ign and Alex Isley provide moreish melodies on ‘slow it down’ but the track just stops after 55 seconds, there was potential for Roddy to get into his ‘God’s Eyes’ bag but he clearly didn’t bother.
The production is one dimensional in too many of the tracks and it allows Roddy to just blend into the beat and that isn’t necessarily a good thing. There too many forgettable tracks that are so close to being brilliant but they lack that injection of energy or identity to make them have the playback value.
It feels lazy and lacklustre when you consider it took him over 2 years to release new music. It’s sad because Roddy has all the ability in the world to have followed up PEMFBA with something truly special but we’ve ended up with a track list full of discards from the last project.
There are glimpses of his superb artistry in patches across this album but it feels like he ran out of ideas when cooking this up. There are rumours of Feed The Streets 3 releasing this year, so fingers crossed he kept all the elite tracks for that.
Rating: 5.4/10, left me wanting so much more.
Dawn FM – The Weeknd
Dawn FM has the listeners tuning into an abstract, synth-pop radio station, 103.5FM, where The Weeknd experiments with his voice to create a sonic totally unique amongst his discography. He recruits Jim Carrey to appear as his charismatic radio presenter to guide us through this purgatorial journey to the afterlife.
‘Gasoline’ left question marks after initial listens with his drastic change in accent and voice but when the chorus comes into swing, his sensational vocals come shining through. Following the frosty introduction to the album, we have the EDM-heavy-track ‘How Do I Make You Love Me?’ The hook is infectious and is certainly a standout from the get-go.
The Weeknd has this ability to blend dance rhythms and synths into a pop format and it creates a very easy listen but can lead to a few songs that could be discarded. For me, there is no need for tracks 10-12. They all mould into one block of noise that I find them forgetful, no matter how many times I go through the project.
Saying that, the sections where Abel triumphs are superb. His clear influence shines through in certain hooks, vocal runs and cadences where he sounds scarily like Michael Jackson. Even some of the instrumentals sound Thriller-Era MJ, and you have to pinch yourself and remind yourself it is The Weeknd at times.
For example, the very start of ‘Sacrifice’, the guitar riffs mirror Billie Jean/Thriller and is presented into a 2022 sound. If MJ was still making music now, I wouldn’t be startled if it was a spitting image of sections of this project. In terms of vocal performance, he is as close to the King Of Pop that we have in this modern era of music – such a brilliant talent and we should feel lucky to be consuming his art in the present.
Features from Tyler, The Creator and Lil Wayne helps to remind us we aren’t in a time warp, listening to 80s vinyl. The decision to put Lil Wayne on the album was a classy touch on ‘I Heard You’re Married’. He’s always so refreshing to hear because no matter the genre/sonic, Lil Wayne is going to stamp his authority on the track as he has done throughout his illustrious career.
All in all, very good in executing his concept, and the use of Quincy Jones for ‘A Tale By Quincy’ and Jim Carrey for his short monologues and ‘Phantom Regret by Jim’ to conclude the album was an impressive use of familiar voices to knit the whole project together. Minus the filler halfway through, strong project from Abel.
Rating: 7.7/10, could be 8 and above if the whole album was as stellar as ‘ How Do I Make You Love Me?’, ‘Out of Time’ and ‘ Sacrifice’.
Super Tecmo Bo – Boldy James & The Alchemist
The most electrifying rapper-producer partnership of the past couple of year are continuing their truly ridiculous run.
Following ‘Bo Jackson’, ‘Super Tecmo Bo’ is 26 minutes of tantalising technique from both parties. The Alchemist sculpts tracks to allow Boldy James to just let it all out. Boldy’s monotone flows just work so perfectly when the instrumental has so many layers, which The Alchemist brings to every track he gets his producer credits on. Boldy doesn’t need to bring variation in his vocals to a track because whatever changes or flair needs to be added comes in the form of an additional layer in the production.
Lyrically, Boldy has this ability to make rhyme schemes go on stretch for an entire verse and it just helps the nod-along value escalate to heights that are difficult to be captured in this genre. This leads to 9 tracks of street stories, rap references and sports analogies all weaved into one body of supremely authentic rap.
‘Great Adventures’ on its own deserves its own breakdown. The Alchemist opens up with chimes, creating a whimsical feel and they make appearances throughout to beautifully blend in with the bluesy-bass line and silky synths. Boldy does what he does best, verbalising his process of being on the streets and throwing in basketball references to bulk out the levels of clever punchlines: “Chauncey want a Billups, Chucky want a Atkins (227)”.
The track run from ‘Hot Water Tank’ through to ‘300 Fences’ is one of the best I have heard from the underground rap scene in the past 3 years.
Rating: 8.8/10, fantastic listen, see no sign of these two slowing down.
DS4EVER – Gunna
Gunna, the absolute don of flowing effortlessly over sumptuous beat selections, and DS4EVER is a continuation of exactly that.
Yes, there is always going to be some truly absurd lyrics to come from Gunna and his collaborators, go no further than Young Thug on ‘mop’: “I nutted all over her face (mop), and now she look like a cow (mop)”. But as ridiculous as the lyricism can be on a Gunna record, I’m not here for the lyrical spiritual, I’m here for smoooth flows on aquatic instrumentals.
From the Kodak Black assisted ‘how you did that’ to ‘alotta cake’ and all the way to ‘missing me’, Gunna displays exactly why lyrics and punchlines aren’t always the most important.
‘pushin p’ has become an internet phenomenon with everybody wondering what on earth ‘p’ could actually be. Future and Gunna go back and forth on this heavy 808-led track and it sets the tone for every other feature on the album. Lil Baby, Kodak Black, 21 Savage, G Herbo and Roddy Ricch all add layers of quality to the silky foundations laid down by Gunna.
Although he wasn’t lyrical throughout, on ‘livin wild’, Gunna recounts the experience of his mentor, Young Thug, being rushed into the intensive care unit in 2020 following kidney and liver failure. To me, it was a sentimental and vulnerable side of Gunna that we rarely, if ever, see and I am here for it, it proves he hasn’t just got the floating flows and drip-references in the locker.
As a whole, extremely enjoyable album to listen to and for me, a vast improvement from ‘WUNNA’. I’m sure the Gunna features are going to be rolling in all of 2022.
Rating: 7.9/10, pleasantly surprised by how fluid the whole project is, definitely has the replay value.
80s Baby – Skrapz
Finally, something the UK rap scene has been awaiting since it’s release, Skrapz’s 80s Baby mixtape finally making it onto streaming services since it’s 2014 release, I had to delve back into the brilliance of this mixtape.
Skrapz breaks down the trials and tribulations of the trapper’s lifestyle, and does so effortlessly while paying homage to his influences deriving from the 90s era rap and RnB.
The whole project is a nostalgia-fest with instrumentals from 2Pac, Biggie, Mobb Deep, The Fugees, DMX, and Missy Elliott just to name a few. Skrapz does all of the instrumentals justice by applying his infectious flow with this collection of freestyles, which helped to make it one of the highest-rated mixtapes the UK has ever seen. If you haven’t heard any of it before, please go and indulge in it because this project introduced me to Skrapz and how serious his pen game really is.
Rating: 8.5/10. Great blast of nostalgia from one of the UK’s most notoriously consistent MCs.
Pilot Talk 4 – Curren$y
Curren$y, every time I look his name up there’s a new ‘tape out and every time he delivers these tiny doses of weed-infused bangers.
Pilot Talk 4 is the latest to come from the New Orleans rapper, and he never finds a way to sound oh so slick over some sexy instrumentals. ‘Big Game Fishing’ is a dreamy, horn-led journey to introduce the project, where Curren$y soars above all and makes it all sound so simple.
Curren$y’s instrumental choices are always superb and regardless of how different they can be, they always sound nostalgic. He has this ability to make everything sound like the perfect car ride. A sunset cruise is what comes to mind; you can hear the colours that come from the musically rich beats and it sounds like a blood orange hue, seeping out of the horizon when the day is coming to an end.
His consistent use of horns on all tracks just makes it sound so classy, like we could be sat in an ancient blues club somewhere on the strip in New Orleans. The influence from his hometown just oozes out.
Jay Electronica is the only feature and does exactly what he always does, lyrically glides through the sax-led beat on ‘AD6’. You don’t need a lot of features when each track is a snappy, southern sway.
“Musical drug Lord, smoking out his sports car”, taken from ‘There It Is’, encapsulates what Curren$y sounds like each and every time, an artist who drops off little packs of music to those loyal listeners who are always tuned in. The weed/car/sports references just blend together so perfectly each time.
Rating 7.6/10. Very solid as always.
Dying To Live – Kodak Black
With Kodak still trying to find his feet following his latest stint behind bars, he has come back in recent months with impressive displays on Gunna’s album, Roddy Ricch’s album and on the recent Sniper Gang project ‘Sniper Gang Presents Syko Bob & Snapkatt: Nightmare Babies’.
I felt it was only right to go back to the last album of his that I believe was extremely concise and absurdly underrated and under appreciated.
Dying To Live has Kodak dissecting his past hardships from losing loved ones to violence, the effects fame and how he wants others to learn from mistakes he has made in his life: “Listen, do as I say, don’t do as I do”. Kodak is his biggest critic at times where he knows that his actions were flawed and is first to address it when he believes he is 100% in the wrong.
The whole project is reflective throughout but there are tracks where Kodak gets into his nonchalantly confident bag. The surprisingly inoffensive Lil Pump verse on ‘Gnarly’ has Kodak bouncing on the beat and it’s playful while he and Pump very much compliment each other. While Juice Wrld adds his trademark brilliance to ‘MoshPit’.
From the 16 tracks, only 4 featuring artists, with Travis Scott and Offset assisting on one of the most recognisable instrumentals of the past 5 years or so. The lack of featuring artists allows the listener to really listen to Kodak in his wordsmith bag, where he reflects and turns the tone inside and out. ‘This Forever’, ‘Malcolm X.X.X.’, ‘Close To The Grave’ and ‘Transgression’ are all knockout tracks where Kodak shows the level of his ability to express himself on a beat.
To conclude, I’d be playing myself if I didn’t mention my favourite track, ‘Calling My Spirit’. Kodak is flawless on this track. He just simply glides over the soft strokes of an acoustic guitar and it’s possibly the most comfortable we’ve ever heard Kodak on a track. Really hoping for more from Kodak in 2022 because from recent performances, he could be back to his very best, braggadocios but humble in remembering where it all started for him.
Rating: 8.3/10, well balanced, introspective and lyrically powerful.
Hope you have enjoyed this volume of the Palmieri Playlist. If you missed the first, find it here. Catch you next time for volume 3, let me know what you think of this series so far!
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My Qualms With Drake’s Music
Aubrey Drake Graham. The man who has brought a generation of music lovers endless moments and memories thanks to his iconic delivery, beat selection and ability to capture emotion.
Once upon a time I would’ve been excited for every Drake release, but in the past few years I’ve been left wanting more and generally disappointed by the standard of music being released. Unfortunately, 2021’s ‘Certified Lover Boy’ has confirmed to me that Drake is past the stage of caring about the quality of the music he releases.
Today, I want to go into what has changed in Drake’s music in the past decade for me to have fallen out of love with the art he is releasing.
My introduction to Drake came in the form of ‘Forever’ the super track where he linked up with Kanye West, Lil Wayne and Eminem. This gave me an excitement for what his next album was going to bring and ‘Thank Me Later’ was a very good first impression for me.
Tracks like ‘Miss Me’, ‘Find Your Love’, ‘Over’ and ‘Fireworks’ were highlights in a project that set Drake up for the landslide of popularity that came afterwards.
‘Take Care’. What is there left to say about this album? A masterpiece when it came out and has gone on to age like a fine wine, simply superb. From start to finish it really demonstrated the chokehold that Drake had taken on the rap game with this beautiful hybrid album, including some of his greatest rapping performances as well as some of the most sentimental RnB cuts of the past 10 years.
2011’s Take Care has gone down as a modern classic. ‘Headlines’, ‘Crew Love’, ‘Take Care’, ‘Make Me Proud’, ‘Marvins Room’, the track list is damn-near flawless and it will go down as top 3 Drake projects ever.
In the years following ‘Take Care’, we got ‘Nothing Was The Same’, ‘If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late’ and ‘What A Time To Be Alive’, his collaboration mixtape with Future.
These three outstanding projects cemented Drake’s name as the number one artist in the world in terms of popularity and how everything he touched turned to plaques. Everything he does still turns to plaques, don’t get me wrong, but for me this is where it started to go downhill.
Now we get to my problem with where Drake has directed his music, because it just feels like he stopped trying. Every studio album released post-2015 has felt extremely lacklustre and as if he doesn’t feel like he has to try anymore. There will be punchy one liners or a silky melody here and there but there is just a lack of force and passion being put into these projects.
2021’s Certified Lover Boy, provided not only the worst album cover of the year but gave us absolutely no context as to what it was like to be a CLB. ‘Views’, ‘Scorpion’ and ‘Certified Lover Boy’ are all identical: each album has anywhere from 2 to 6 good songs, and then the rest is mindless filler that does nothing but make me want to listen to something else.
‘Certified Lover Boy’ contains some of the most cringe-worthy lyrics that wouldn’t sound out of place in a parody video.
I mean, “Said you’re a lesbian, girl, me too”, “I’m too sexy for this syrup, Too sexy for your girl, Too sexy for this world”, “I don’t know how I expected you to get your clout up and get your money up”.
At times I wondered ‘who does this guy actually think he is’, saying this absolute nonsense and wrapping it up with good production and flashy features and pumping it out the masses. Does he only create lyrics that sound like Instagram captions?
It is as if Drake figured out a formula as to how to make an album that is going to do fantastic in terms of numbers-wise, but in doing so has stopped creating projects that mean something and instead are just repetitive rehashes of songs he has done before.
There is a profuse lack of progression in Drake’s sound, and that is where I feel I lose interest because why would I want to listen to project after project of identical tracks?
These days large portions of his albums are dedicated to throwing his money in people’s faces. Whether it is his entourage, the women in his life, other artists in the industry… we get it, 98% of your house is made of marble and your private jet is bigger than most airliners but none of it sounds original, despite little to no artists reaching these heights.
2017’s More Life playlist is a collection of songs that captured a more expansive sound from the likes of ‘Scorpion’ and ‘Views’. Yes, there has been a handful of mixtapes/extended plays, etc. that have been more entertaining, like ‘More Life’ had a collection of songs that were brilliant but as a project there was no cohesion. It was a great sonic to capture the soundtrack for the summer of 2017 and I appreciate it for what it was but it still left listeners wanting more substance.
I’ve found with the past 5 or 6 years of Drake projects that I pick and choose individual songs that I like, but very rarely will go back and indulge in them because the rest of that project just doesn’t hit for me.
Considering everyone loves to compare Drake and Kanye, let me do the same. Not a single Kanye West album sounds similar to another, because why would you cover a base that you’ve covered once already? ‘DONDA’, ‘Jesus Is King’ & ‘Ye’, Kanye’s last 3 albums are all totally different and the production quality in the music is still there (say what you like about the lyrical content): but you could pick out album cuts from ‘CLB’, ‘Scorpion’ & ‘Views’ and I genuinely wouldn’t be able to tell you which album each was pulled from.
I may sound like I’m repeating myself but it’s because I absolutely love Drake’s music and as a fan I’m extremely frustrated that his music quality has plateaued. ‘If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late’ is one of my favourite projects to come out of the past decade and I delve back into it from time to time.
It says a lot that the best song Drake has released this year has been ‘Wants & Needs’ featuring Lil Baby. The reason that song shines is because Baby devours that instrumental and totally outshines Drake on it.
All I wanted to get out of this was to speak my truth when it comes to Drake. Call me what you like for my views but nothing was the same ever since 2015 when it comes to Drizzy’s discography. All I am asking for is for him to take care in producing his next body of work, to give his career more life and stop regurgitating the same shit over and over. I’ll laugh now but cry later at how his music has deteriorated in the last few years but I hope you will thank me later for opening your eyes to the fraudulent activities of Aubrey Drake Graham.
But hey, what do I know? CLB will go platinum somewhere along the line and people will continue to eat up the shit that Drake is serving them. I just pray that something new and original comes next from the king of Toronto.
Thank you for reading my rant, keep an eye out for my 21 top albums of 2021, coming soon.
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Top 21 Albums Of 2021
2021. Another year for the history books and upon curating this list I realised not only has the standard of music released this year been brilliant, but the range of music I’ve listened to has expanded vastly from years gone by.
So for this reason, I wanted to round off the year with a star-studded list of artists I believe deserve a spot in the most illustrious countdown in music journalism. The albums I have selected have taken me on a range of journeys this year and they may not be the absolute best albums released, they’re the ones I rated the highest.
Without hesitating too much, buckle in as we take a trip through my Top 21 Albums/Projects of 2021.
21. We’re All Alone In This Together – Dave
We begin with Dave. An album that featured in volume 1 of the Palmieri Playlist earlier on this year, this is Dave picking up where he left off.
Taking deep dives into his thoughts on politics, growing up in an environment where most don’t make it out, and what life after success is like; Dave supplies his huge fan base with a project that sells the lavish life while still staying humble and true to where he comes from. The title indicates his take on mental health and potentially wider society, that in reality there is only one person who is truly there for you, and that is you.
Lyrically, Dave always is on point with his punchlines and wordplay. His flows are solid and to say that his features were intelligent would be an obtuse understatement. Snoh Aalegra, Wizkid, Stormzy and James Blake add their own brilliance to their tracks. Not to mention ‘In The Fire’ being a truly ridiculous collection of top tier rappers on one track and all of them really brought something to the table.
All in all, great project, would like to hear a wider range of instrumentals on the next one!
Standout tracks: Survivors Guilt, Verdansk, Clash, In The Fire, Law of Attraction
20. Heaux Tales – Jazmine Sullivan
Not an album I know, but this extended play from Jazmine Sullivan is a 32 minute insight into the thrills and spills that come from love and sex from the feminine point of view.
Sullivan displays a use of multiple voices, from her super-smooth melodic voice, to her rapping tones and colloquial exchanges with herself, and this is all just in track 1!
‘Put It Down’ is unreal because the start of the song has Jazmine running around and doing all these things and doing favours for this man, but only providing she gets exactly what she needs in exchange. I mean, the chorus reads: “I can’t help it/it’s a shame what he do to me/My girls ask me what it is, I say it’s the D/I start going out my mind when he come around”. She sounds guilty for letting a man get into her feelings like this, but says it so shamelessly that you have to nod your head and appreciate the vocal runs that she throws down.
‘Heaux Tales’ feels communal with the introspective use of interludes from a range of female voices, creating a sense of a shared voice in regards to how women feel about the power of sex and what they can get out of it. I love that this album has such realness to it in regards to how men have this idea that women can’t be openly sexual beings in the same way that men proclaim their ‘sexual power’. I feel like Jazmine levels the playing field with this project, and I’m all here for it.
Moral of the story, mind your own business and let anybody get up to whatever they please! Jazmine just wraps this all up in soulful runs that makes you dream of what the studio sessions were like, wow. Brilliant album, amazing vocalist.
Standout tracks: Pick Up Your Feelings, Price Tags, Put It Down, The Other Side, On It
19. TYRON – Slowthai
If you didn’t catch it, I wrote a whole piece about this album and how Slowthai is breaking down barriers in how creatively different one artist can truly be. The juxtaposition of both sides of this album is sublime and ‘Thai really captures the tones he was going for perfectly. I’ll keep this one short and sweet, go check out my piece on TYRON.
I really loved the tribute to the NHS, it was a sentimental touch when you consider the album released in a really tough time for the world during COVID.
Standout tracks: MAZZA, focus, feel away, CANCELLED, WOT, nhs
18. Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Sincerely Adolf/Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Side B – Westside Gunn
‘Hitler Wears Hermes 8: Side B’ cover Westside Gunn released two bodies of work this year to add to his ‘Hitler Wears Hermes’ mixtape series to continue the reputation of Griselda having the most competent work rate of any hip hop label in the game. A label where quality music is being released from artists who don’t get the attention that their talent may deserve.
Both editions are examples of intelligent artist selection on incredible instrumentals. From start to finish of each project, from (some of) his solo tracks, to songs where other artists get the spotlight, Westside Gunn makes sure that everyone shines on these projects.
Branding himself as a ‘curator’ is clever because it makes listeners realise that he is here to construct projects that allow the producers and the featuring artists to take centre stage with the assistance of his ever-so-subtle ad-lib work and expertise to piece a project together.
Westside’s nasal delivery admittedly adds a unique sonic to an intricate hip-hop beat but unfortunately I feel as if his lyrics, as rashly lavish and obnoxious they may be, can get lost amongst more hard-hitting lyricists like Conway The Machine, Benny The Butcher, Jay Electronica and Stove God Cooks.
Saying this, the featuring artists make these mixtapes special. On ‘Sincerely Hitler’ Stove God Cooks is all over both sides, demonstrating fantastic ability to take a track by the neck and execute profoundly. ‘Side B’ has outrageous featuring performances from Jay Electronica, Jay Worthy, Tyler the Creator, Armani Caesar, Mach-Hommy and 2 Chainz just to name a few.
Standout Tracks: Draymond, Vogue cover, Westheimer, Big AL, Hell On Earth pt 2., Free Kutter, Forest Lawn, Best Dressed Demons, Ostertag, Eddie Kingston, 99 Avirex
17. Thanks For Waiting – Potter Payper
Potter Payper proved (again) in 2021 why he is one of the most influential, inspirational voices in the UK rap scene.
‘Thanks For Waiting’ is another display of vivid storytelling, elite wordplay and a fantastic flow that keeps you strapped in to hear what Potter has to say.
From whipping up crack at his Nan’s house to living a lavish life of lobster tails and drizzling olive oil on his salad, Potter has gone from the very bottom to the very top and does not sound like slowing down any time soon.
He has found a way to tell stories of the trap and prison life and weave them up into top tier instrumentals to create an extremely raw but brilliantly crafted album that will only get better with more listens. This project is Potter showing us once again that he’s one of the most consistent rappers in the UK and that since his release from jail in early 2020, nothing is going to hold him back.
Standout Tracks: Johnny On The Spot, Rappers Lie, Eastender, Catch Up, Nothing’s Free, In My Sleep
16. Temporary Highs in Violet Skies – Snoh Aalegra
A name that I’ve known for a while but never really delved into until 2020, Snoh Aalegra’s ‘Temporary Highs In The Violet Skies’ is a wonderful listen. The tones and melodies she focuses on throughout make you feel like you’re floating in the clouds of an early summer sunrise.
The instrumentals throughout sound dreamy and smooth, then throw in features from Tyler, The Creator and her jazz-infused tones help create a sweet listening experience for everyone who loves a bit of RnB.
Snoh finds a magical way to wrap up her emotional pain in a calm, cool and collected vocal inflections to make what she is saying almost flow straight through you. There are moments on the project where you just sit in awe of the beauty oooozing out of the instrumentals paired with her silky voice: see ‘TANGERINE DREAM’ if you want to know what I mean. Perfect track for me.
This is Snoh coming into her own sound and the experimental sounds being explored on this album just make me extremely excited for what is to come next.
Standout tracks: JUST LIKE THAT, INDECISIVE, WE DONT HAVE TO TALK ABOUT IT, NEON PEACH, ON MY MIND, TANGERINE DREAM.
15. Pray For Haiti – Mach-Hommy
Since being introduced to the works of Griselda Records, barring Conway The Machine’s ‘From a King To A God’, no album has surprised me more from a first listen than ‘Pray For Haiti’.
Mach-Hommy teamed up with Westside Gunn as executive producer and struck gold. Mach dedicates this project to his homeland of Haiti that has seen decades of conflict due to it “being the poorest country in the Western Hemisphere” as stated in the outro to ‘The 26th Letter’.
Not only is the album peppered in pungent punchlines but there are constant nods to his home culture, with creole being used throughout (including the track names) and a whole skit called ‘Kreyol’. I feel like this is Mach’s way in which to shed light on the travesties that are going on right now in Haiti. This mixture of surgical detailing, crazy flows and consistent homages to Haiti creates a project that makes me want to go back and listen to what Mach-Hommy is all about.
Honourable shoutout to Conductor Williams, one of the producers in the arsenal of Griselda who leaves his unique stamp all over this project. There is a hearty use of horns on this album to help dictate the feelings being portrayed and Mach’s rapping and singing voices hit the correct tone each time. Now I need to get round to ‘Balen’s Cho (Hot Candles)’ that dropped at the very start of December. Looking forward to hearing more.
Standout Tracks: The Stellar Ray Project, No Blood No Sweat, Kriminel, Makrel Jaxon, Marie
14. Voice Of The Heroes – Lil Baby & Lil Durk
A collaboration album that I really didn’t know we needed. But wow, this project was just song after song of two artists who are hitting the peak of their powers after years of growth. The duo came together on DJ Khaled’s ‘Every Chance That I Get’ and the potential for a collaboration became blatantly obvious.
Both Baby and Durk attack this album as if they have something to prove, despite Baby not putting a foot wrong since ‘Freestyle’ and Durk being a seasoned veteran of the Chicago music scene. They take their stances with Durk being the ‘voice’ of the streets and Baby being the ‘hero’, possibly to imply he has saved the rap game? He may have a point because since his emergence, he has brought a level of excitement back to who’s going to match him for current form. It feels like there is competition in the game again, after a long time of similar artists being at the very top.
With a few helping hands along the way from Travis Scott, Meek Mill, Young Thug and Rod Wave, the album slots together nicely and there is a concise rhythm to the project.
From start to finish, they bounce off each other so well, from the tempos they are carrying to the flows they are delivering. The chemistry the pair demonstrated is class and I would love to hear a part 2 to this collaboration.
Standout Tracks: Medical, Man Of My Word, 2040, Hats Off, How It Feels, Please
13. Kings Disease 2 – Nas
Nasty Nas, back at it again. Following the ever so slightly disappointing predecessor to ‘Kings Disease 2’, regardless of the fact it won a Grammy, Nas is back to creating some of his best work.
Hitboy sculpts together the perfect instrumentals to allow Nas to do what Nas does best, get off bar after bar with plenty of hard hitting punchlines and statements that only himself and Jay-Z can make when it comes to rapping: “My photo the Jordan logo for this rap shit”.
This album is a projection of Nas’ legacy; reflecting on what he did to get to the top, how his life changed when he got to the top and how he will always be relevant. He is a gatekeeper for hip-hop at this stage and I am here for it. There are not many artists these days who will happily have 3 verses of themselves just rapping, he really has stayed true to himself but has adapted his overall sound to continue to be dominant.
And to be honest, anybody who has the audacity to throw a Lauryn Hill feature on their album in 2021 has to receive their props, easily top 3 features of the year!
Standout tracks: Death Row East, YKTV, Nobody, No Phony Love, Brunch On Sundays, My Bible, Moments, Store Run
12. The Plugs I Met 2 – Benny The Butcher & Harry Fraud
Benny The Butcher had another brilliant campaign in 2021 with the release of ‘Pyrex Picasso’ and ‘Trust The Sopranos’ coming later in the year but for me ‘The Plugs I Met 2’ was the crème-de-la-crème.
Linking up with super-producer Harry Fraud, the duo pieced together a pretty sublime body of work that ticks all the boxes for a Griselda project: outstanding lyricism, sumptuous instrumental selection and featuring artists who bring their top tier pen-game to the table.
The intro track, ‘When Tony Met Sosa’, has an iconic feel behind it, the saxophone-led instrumental sets the pace perfectly for Benny to paint his lyrical pictures on a nostalgic canvas. Then you are thrown straight into ‘Overall’ where Benny secured posthumous verse from the late Chinx. The first two tracks set the bar extremely high for the rest of the project and of course, Benny prolifically glides across the rest of the album.
In terms of rapper-producer collabs, this is easily one of the strongest examples to release in recent years. With Harry Fraud constantly alley-ooping Benny for ferocious slams time after time. At this stage there aren’t many rappers who are as prolific, and this just happened to be 1 of the 3 brilliant projects he released this year! Number 12 on this list does not do this project justice but the top 10 is extremely contentious.
Standout tracks: All of them! There’s a Fat Joe verse on Talkin’ Back where they both go crazy over a classic flute instrumental.
11. The Off Season – J. Cole
One of the finest rappers of this generation returned with another superb body of work. 39 minutes of J Cole demonstrating why he should never be left out of any GOAT conversations.
With an opening verse that starts like this, there is no way he could be left off this list: “This shit too easy for me now/N****, Cole been goin’ plat’ since back when CDs was around/What you sold, I tripled that, I can’t believe these fuckin’ clowns/Look how everybody clappin’ when your thirty-song album do a measly hundred thou’”
This album has Cole letting people know that he is truly not to be underestimated. His variation in flows, rhyme schemes and instrumentals let’s him demonstrate that he is still as special as he has shown before.
The featuring artists were a perfect choice from Cole. 21 Savage and Morray were the perfect counter balance for eachother on ‘my life’, Bas went absolutely bananas on ‘100 Mil’ and all on his 2 other appearances, Lil Baby matched Cole bar-for-bar on ‘Pride Is The Devil’ and 6lack blesses ‘Let Go of my Hand’ in the chorus for some smooth complimenting melodies.
Another project in the books for Cole and he has shown that he is still that guy. Hope it isn’t too long until we hear Jermaine again.
Standout tracks: My Life, 100 Mil’, The Climb Back, Amari, Pride Is The Devil, Hunger on Hillside
HALFWAY WARNING!
We reach the halfway stage of our countdown and I think it is only right to mention the fantastic projects that didn’t quite make the cut, but still stood out enough to be shortlisted.
My honourable mentions go out to: Conway The Machine ‘La Maquina’, Ghetts ‘Conflict Of Interest’, Roddy Ricch ‘LIVE LIFE FAST’, Unknown T ‘Adolescence’, Digga D ‘Made In The Pyrex’, Giveon ‘When It’s all Said and Done … Take Time’, Vibbar ‘You Should Be Here’, Doja Cat ‘Planet Her’, Skepta ‘All In EP’, Headie One ‘Too Loyal For My Own Good’, The Alchemist ‘This Thing Of Ours 2’, J Balvin ‘JOSE’, Little Simz ‘Sometimes I Might Be Introvert’, Skrapz ‘Be Right Back’, Lute ‘Gold Mouf’, Jordy ‘SMH’, Fredo ‘Independence Day’, AJ Tracey ‘Flu Game’, Maxo Kream ‘WEIGHT OF THE WORLD’, Tems ‘If Orange Was A Place’, H.E.R. ‘Back Of My Mind’, Migos ‘Culture III’ and all the projects Curren$y released this year.
I apologise for the extensive list but like I said at the top, the quality of music released this year has been truly exceptional. Although some of the albums above are excellent projects, they just are not bodies of work I find myself going back to. But less of that, let’s get the top 10 kicked off!
10. Still Over It – Summer Walker
There aren’t many artists in the music industry who can emphasise their feelings more effectively than Summer Walker. Have you ever heard anyone directly address an ex with as much conviction as “London, did you screw this bitch for real?” in the opening track?!
‘Still Over It’ is Summer Walker’s message to her Ex who cheated on her while she was pregnant with their child. This album is her just letting it all out, explaining how it all made her feel and how she was coping with the heartbreak of betrayal.
Summer gift wraps this package of resentment in a lovely bow of beautiful melodies and smooth instrumentation but the attitude behind what she is saying is pure and you can hear it in her voice at points. This dynamic brings a sense of reality to the album and makes you wonder what on earth someone must be thinking to actually do that to a loved one.
She really pours it all out on this project and she shows her tenacious ability to let her emotions out in the rawest way possible, through music. Quick mention to how fantastic the featuring artists were on this album, with SZA, Ari Lennox, Pharrell Williams and Lil Durk all leaving their stamp on an extremely memorable album.
Standout tracks: Bitter, No Love, Dat Right There, Reciprocate, Insane, Ex For A Reason, Unloyal, Closure.
9. Provisional License – M1llionz
Birmingham rapper M1llionz takes the crown for best UK project of the year following the noise made surrounding ‘Lagga’ in 2020.
The Intro is outstanding for me, he does not hesitate or hold back in letting his feelings be known, with the opening line being “They say the only two outcomes from the street life is dead or in jail”. This sets the pace for the remainder of the album where he takes us on a journey through the trap and everything that comes with it.
The Brummy rapper has a playful use of lyricism that is brilliantly emphasised by the sturdy accent that comes out of the English Midlands. Match this up with ferocious drill beats and relentless flows and M1llionz hits the nail on the head for a debut album.
One aspect of M1llionz’s delivery that hits differently is his Jamaican inflections that he flows in and out of throughout. This adds a totally different angle to anything you are likely to hear in music, like how many artists from Birmingham not only embrace their raw accent but also dip into their heritage to create a totally unique sonic experience.
Just the cherry on top of this debut album is the narrative that the rapper takes you on, where he is taking a woman on a mission in the car but he only has his provisional license. This gives the whole project context as it is a situation that huge amounts of people will go through when trying to survive in an environment where the whole system is against you.
Think this album was supremely slept on and should get more credit for what M1llionz has created for a debut album. If you are a fan of UK rap or just rap generally, please go listen to this album because for a debut project, M1llionz absolutely smashes this out the park.
Standout tracks: Honestly, listen to all of it. There are no skips at all.
8. DONDA – Kanye West
(Yes this is the album cover) In a similar manner to how Westside Gunn pieces together projects to allow other artists to take the glory, Ye does something similar with ‘DONDA’ but will not allow anybody to forget that this is his album at the end of the day.
Following the extensive rollout process surrounding the album, DONDA released and immediately set the internet on fire with all the reactions. I must say, of course with the number of tracks there will be fillers/unneeded tracks BUT when you find the magical mix of the tracks you do like (choosing between the part 2s to some of the tracks), the genius just oozes out. And let’s not even go too deep into the strength released on the deluxe!
Ye did what Ye does, creates sounds unique to him, mixing sonics from gospel, trap, drill, soul, RnB and hip-hop and morphing them into a commemorative album for his late mother. I love the use of monologues from Donda herself and it was a powerful touch for Ye to have Larry Hoover Jr speaking about the trials and tribulations of his father who has been incarcerated for decades for the outro to ‘Jesus Lord’.
The production is amazing and for there to be so many different features and voices on the album, the end product is a succinct tribute that blends Ye’s resurgence of gospel and mixes it in with sonic seasoning from 808s & Heartbreak, The Life Of Pablo and Yeezus. I find it incredible that the production and featuring credits are extensive but the album does not feel overcrowded, despite there being as many tracks as there are.
The features that shone through were Fivio Foreign, Don Toliver, Kid Cudi, Andre 3000, The Lox, Baby Keem, The Weeknd, Roddy Ricch, Vory, Griselda and Jay Electronica.
Some may love it, some may hate it but Ye has created ANOTHER album that is very different to what has come before and has mastered it into an album that will age like a fine wine.
Honourable mention to the masterpiece that is ‘Come To Life’, the piano breakdown is epic to say the least, being performed by Zen Micheline Hung, a 10 year old pianist. A truly incredible moment on a special project.
Standout tracks: 24, Jail, Come To Life, Life Of The Party, Moon, Jonah, Jesus Lord (part 1 & 2), Hurricane, No Child Left Behind, Pure Souls, Off The Grid (just to name a few)
7. Bo Jackson – Boldy James & The Alchemist
Boldy James. A Griselda rapper who for me came out of absolutely nowhere but am I glad I stumbled across his work because he is outrageous. He has this abnormal ability to make extremely vivid stories sound so blasé thanks to the monotone nature of his vocals.
Bo Jackson. This EP has cemented this duo of Boldy and the Alchemist as one of the most potent and consistently brilliant in the genre at the moment. Following ‘The Price Of Tea in China’, the pair have continued their fine form with 14 tracks full of effortless flows, flawless instrumentals and features who understand the assignment.
Dylan Green on Pitchfork describes the album perfectly: “He doesn’t recall memories of stained prison windows and being dehydrated on drug runs so much as he actively relives them, every fragment a scar on his brain”.
Boldy has this talent to nonchalantly speak about the life & death situations he has been through in his life. His monotone delivery implies that he really lived the stuff he raps about and his lack of emotion in his voice is the damage left behind. There are stages on the album when his flow totally switches and he does it without a bat of an eyelid, while maintaining high level imagery, references and punchlines.
The feature selection is unbelievable, Freddie Gibbs, Curren$y, Benny The Butcher, Earl Sweatshirt and Stove God Cooks who all leave their distinctive storytelling tendencies all over their verses. And one last shoutout to the Alchemist, who’s relentless workrate really makes you wonder if there are any producers who consistently create instrumentals to the standard Al brings to the scene. Continues to prove why he’s one of the GOATs of hip-hop production.
As I completed writing this whole piece, Boldy & The Alchemist went and dropped a perfect project called ‘Super Tecmo Bo’ which is another unbelievable example of two artists coming together and producing pure magic. Just too late of a release to get a spot on the top 21 I’m afraid.
Standout tracks: Steel Wool, E.P.M.D., Fake Flowers, 3rd Person, Turpentine, Photographic Memories, Flight Risk
6. The House Is Burning – Isaiah Rashad
Isaiah Rashad’s looong anticipated follow-up to the brilliant ‘The Sun’s Tirade’ back in 2016, listeners where not sure what to expect at all after Rashad’s extensive hiatus from the music world.
This project contains an introspective quality that allows Rashad to verbalise and express his trauma in a reflective tone. As simple as all the instrumentals are, Rashad’s voice sometimes get lost amongst all the noise, which could be a reflection of his headspace in the creation of this project. This may not necessarily be a negative though because when you break down what it is that he is saying, he is examining himself and picking what parts he wants to take with him on the next stage of his journey. Like what would happen if your house was burning and you had to pick what bits you had to take with you.
Sonically, the album is so laid back it is almost horizontal with a consistent use of soulful samples used from start to finish, coupled with a variation of southern-style 808s to keep the tempo up. It was a quintessential TDE project with his Tennessee-twang to set him apart from his elite label-mates.
Top features were brought to the table by Smino, SZA, 6lack and Lil Uzi Vert that bring their own powerhouse vocals to their tracks. That SZA verse is one of the best feature verses to come out of 2021, needing a new album from her in 2022.
My only criticism is that there is no demonstration of Rashad coming out of his comfort zone or creating new dynamic to his music. Very very strong album and I have really enjoyed experiencing this album this year but would love to hear more experimentation on the next project for Rashad to take himself to another level.
Standout tracks: HBU2, Hey Mista, Claymore, From The Garden and RIP Young
5. Life Of A Don – Don Toliver
Life Of A Don. The album I have listened to most this year, not only because it was my most anticipated project of the year, but also in the build up to my appearance on the Two Stubborn Nigerians Podcast, I had to absorb the whole thing.
As a whole, I loved this project. I think the sequencing, production and vocal performances help to turn this album into a pretty glorious sequel to the masterpiece that was ‘Heaven Or Hell’. ‘XSCAPE’ sets the tone with Latin vibes to get your hips moving then the psychedelic trip through Don’s interpretation of trap, RnB, pop and hip-hop begins.
The RnB cuts on this album are as sweet as the first time I pressed play and the track placement in the project to break it up is idyllic. ‘Double Standards’ gets better every single time I hear it, with the bass line being extracted and countered with the use of soft acoustic guitars. The bridge and outro to that track encapsulates the work of Mike Dean perfectly.
I think what this album has done for Don is stamp himself down as an artist who is going to keep you guessing. The ambiguity in which his sound progressed throughout the album is brilliant because there are bits and pieces of inspiration being pulled from all over. From the Latin guitars at the top of the project, to the Justin Timberlake sample on ‘Swangin On Westheimer’ and all the way through to the club-worthy ‘Get Throwed’ and onto the full stop on the album ‘BOGUS’.
And not to mention my personal song of the year, ‘What You Need’ sounding as elite as it did when it dropped before the summer, phenomenal track.
Barring ‘Smoke’ being one track the album didn’t need at all, the album is extremely good for a sophomore project but I would love to see Don go even further and experiment with a deeper sound. Whether that be lyrically dissecting something or pairing up with a producer and capturing a moment with a like-minded creative.
Some of the mixing sounded a touch rushed but will give Don the benefit of the doubt with his album dropping at the tail-end of a surge in a global pandemic and while he was in the middle of a US tour. Just like ‘Heaven Or Hell’, ‘Life Of A Don’ will stay in the rotation for a long time to come.
Standout tracks: Swangin On Westheimer, 2AM, Company pt. 2, You, What You Need, Way Bigger, Crossfaded
4. The Melodic Blue – Baby Keem
May be a crazy placement for Baby Keem’s debut studio album, but to say I was extremely impressed would be an understatement. I must say some parts did sound clunky at the start but this album has sounded better with every listen.
From start to finish, you can feel how much Keem is actively experimenting with sounds, voices, flows, tones and everything in between. Amongst all this experimentation, you can see the direction he is heading in as he attacks instrumentals while altering his voice to almost play alternate characters. Definitely something that he has picked up along the way with Kendrick Lamar being his cousin.
One thing that you notice from the first listen is that he absolutely loves a beat change. This comes from his own personal production process, as he is a producer before a rapper. His process is centred around creating a batch of beats and then simply free-styling over the instrumentals.
You can hear the pure, raw talent in his production but his delivery and flow is exceptional on the varied range of sonics that he explores on the album. On the uptempo tracks he has this untamed, relentless flow that can keep going and going and going without him taking a breath. Then with the ‘blue’ tracks on the album where he gets deeper into his issues growing up, you can distinctly hear where he draws his influence from Ye and Kendrick’s production styles, with this atmospheric use of drums to really knock you back when listening.
His lyricism covers everything from coping with his mother’s alcohol problems and how he had to grow up fast with constantly changing living situations, going between his mother’s, aunty’s and his grandmother’s house. But Keem’s music does not cover just his shortcomings in his upbringing but his preferences in sex and women, discussing what he saw growing up in such a chaotic place while sounding reminiscent and nostalgic about the whole thing.
Side note, ‘range brothers’ would be one of the songs of the year if it cut off before the whole ‘top of the morning’ meme that Kendrick brought to the track. That instrumental and flow from Keem and Kendrick is outstanding up until that beat change. Go play that song LOUD and just listen to the intricacies of the bass line. Unreal project, Baby Keem is going all the way to the top and to think he produced and performed this whole project at the age of 21! For me, Keem is Artist of the Year, what a tremendous talent.
Standout tracks: range brothers, scars, gorgeous, lost souls, durag activity, 16 and trademark usa
3. Vince Staples – Vince Staples
Considering the story behind this album: Vince blowing all his album budget and not liking what he had created, he headed over to Kenny Beats and teamed up to create a supremely concise, extremely pure album that feels beautifully crafted but raw all in one. Sweet, smooth melodies and instrumentals compliment Vince’s liquid flow and delivery from start to finish.
Coming in at 22 mins and 10 tracks long, you could zone out and miss the whole thing but when you really listen to the stories being told and absorb the sounds it is being expressed through, you have to appreciate the art that Vince has crafted here. When watching his Tiny Desk performance, you learn that this album was produced with a full live band and created in the essence of a classic session album.
Reminiscing on his reality growing up in North Long Beach, Vince paints pictures of experiencing gang culture and what about his life has changed after the success of ‘Big Fish Theory’ and ‘Prima Donna’. I couldn’t praise this project enough, just please go and absorb this genuinely brilliant self-titled project.
Standout Tracks: SUNDOWN TOWN, LAW OF AVERAGES, ARE YOU WITH THAT, LIL FADE, TAKE ME HOME and THE SHINING
2. Call Me If You Get Lost – Tyler, The Creator
This album will forever make me feel like it’s summertime. What a project. For me, this is the most impressive album from Tyler’s illustrious run of form he has been on since ‘Flower Boy’ and the growth has been immense.
With the legendary DJ Drama hosting the album, Tyler takes the listener on a journey through Switzerland, exploring the lavish luxuries that his success can buy him. This feels like a celebration of what his hard work in the past decade has done for him, allowing him to see the world and expand his mind as to what inspires him. Whether it is the sun beaming on an icy blue lake in the Swiss Alps or something as simple as having a clean pedicure.
Musically, this album is sublime. There is a rich use of horns, strings and drums throughout that just ooooozes class, and not to mention Tyler’s brilliant vocal performances from start to finish. From the rapping displays on ‘CORSO’, ‘LUMBERJACK’ and ‘MANIFESTO’ to the swooning melodies of ‘WUSYANAME’ and ‘SWEET/I THOUGHT YOU WANTED TO DANCE), the juxtaposition of his voice on this album is impeccable.
The whole project just feels like a celebration of success and this is a fantastic display from one of the most creative minds in the music industry.
Standout tracks: WUSYANAME, HOT WIND BLOWS, MANIFESTO, CORSO, RUN IT UP, WILSHIRE
1. An Evening With Silk Sonic – Silk Sonic
As much as this album was a late release in the year, I can see no way that this isn’t the best album of 2021.
At the top of the year if you told me that Bruno Mars & Anderson Paak were to join forces and release an RnB/funk/soul/blues album and it be borderline flawless, I would’ve laughed to be honest. It’s 9 tracks of outstanding vocal performances from both, exquisite musical depth and capturing the essence of the 70s so sweetly that it can’t do anything but make you smile. My respect for both artists sky rocketed because I knew they were exceptional talents, but they took this album to a totally different planet.
From the lead single ‘Leave The Door Open’ which grabbed everyone’s attention upon first listen in the first half of the year, to the soulful symphonies of ‘After Last Night’ and all the way down to ‘Blast Off’, there isn’t a song that lacks in quality.
Every track is phenomenal and the sequencing is spot on. All I have to say is, it’s a damn shame it wasn’t released earlier in the year. All we can hope for is more Silk Sonic music to come and pray this isn’t just a one off to let these two sensational musicians flex their muscles. 10/10 wouldn’t change a thing and the legend that is Bootsy Collins hosting the album was just a cherry on top of a perfect cake. There aren’t many albums that are stitched with pure gold, made with the most luxurious materials and packaged in a way that you feel bad for unwrapping it.
Superb, sublime, silky, sonically sensational, sumptuous, sexy, sassy and just ohhh sooo smoooooth.
Standout tracks: All of them, but if I had to pick one/two… ‘Fly as Me’ and ‘Put On A Smile’. The first time I heard the chorus of ‘Put On A Smile’, my jaw dropped. I genuinely couldn’t believe what I was hearing. Please go and experience this album in the car, on a speaker in the house, in your headphones on the way to work… it’s stellar. Silk Sonic, take a bow.
THERE WE HAVE IT
If you made it this far, give yourself a pat on the back because although it was a longer read, trust me it took me weeks to put this list together, as well as changing my mind halfway through writing and after re listening to projects. It was a pleasure but glad it is over (I’m sure you are too!).
‘Til 2022, I’ll be seeing you! Hope you have enjoyed the content you’ve read and I am appreciative to every single person who has read one or shared one or all of my blog posts. It means the world, honestly. Wishing you all a happy festive period and the most fruitful new year!
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The Palmieri Playlist 