Happy Tuesday and welcome back to Pocket Full of Stones. I haven’t published one of these since coronavirus took over the world, so I want to wish you and your loved ones good health and peace of mind. I hope the music below helps take the edge off these troubling times.
You know the drill: 5 albums (plus honorable mentions), 5 singles, a choice throwback, a bunch of hyperlinks, and a few playlists. This edition captures my favorite raps of Q1 2020. Let’s get into it...
ALBUMS
Producers: Bobby Raps, Brandon Finessin, Bugz Ronin, Cashmere Cat, Cash (XO), Chief Keef, Cousin Vinny, Danny Wolf, Dez Wright, Don Cannon, DY Krazy, Felipe S, Harold Harper, Ike Beatz, Kid808, KidWond3r, Loesoe, Lyle Leduff, Mayyzo, Money Musik, NAV, Oogie Mane, Outtatown, Pi’erre Bourne, Pro Logic, Starboy, Supah Mario, TM88, Treshaun Beatz, Wheezy, Yung Lan
Label: Atlantic Records x Generation Now
Standout tracks: “Lo Mein”, “POP”, “You Better Move” “Celebration Station”, “Venetia”, “P2”, “Myron”, “Bean (Kobe)” ft. Chief Keef, “Yessirskiii” ft. 21 Savage, “Moon Relate”, “Come This Way”, “Trap This Way (This Way)”, “No Auto” ft. Lil Durk, “Leaders” ft. NAV
Eternal Atake, the sophomore studio album from rap’s most eccentric dance pioneer, is a sprawling, psychedelic masterpiece that lived up to some exceedingly high expectations. Philly-based production collective Working on Dying and a handful of modern rap’s sonic visionaries (TM88, Wheezy, Chief Keef) serve up production that sounds beamed-in from a more advanced universe, and Lil Uzi Vert moonwalks all over it. He styles his ass off on tracks 1-6, sings his heart out on tracks 6-12, and finds a happy medium on the homestretch.
As if Eternal Atake wasn’t enough of a triumph, Uzi followed it up a week later with Lil Uzi Vert Vs. The World 2, a deliriously fun “deluxe album” that doesn’t sacrifice an ounce of EA’s momentum. He made the smart choice of stacking the second disc with top-tier features: an effortlessly catchy Chief Keef appearance, a hilariously cheeky 21 Savage verse, and a vicious no-autotune 16 from Lil Durk over a BM JR sample, to name a few. But Uzi remains the star of the show, delivering some of the most acrobatic rap performances you’ll find anywhere on solo cuts like “Moon Relate” and “Come This Way”.
The enigmatic, immensely creative 25 year-old born Symere Woods dropped not one but two early album-of-the-year contenders and dominated the charts without breaking a sweat. Even in the shadow of a pandemic, that’s worth celebrating.
Producers: Aloy, Ayo 2 11, Bankroll Got It, Based1, Cam Beats, HDezzy, Moody, Osa Beats, Yung Glizzy, Yung Lando, Yung Tago, Zay Garcon
Label: Cinematic Music Group
Standout Tracks: “Blackavelli Story”, “1500 Block”, “Feel Like Guwop”, “Major Pain”, “Nightmares Come True”, “Today”, “Percocet Challenge”, “ZaZa”
“I never glorified this life I live”. Those are the first words out of Ola Runt’s mouth on his latest mixtape Mama Tried, and he means them.
Across 14 dizzying tracks, Ola paints a meticulous and unromantic picture of Atlanta street life, down to the details in his similes (“Feel like Guwop, get your shooter shot / Chopstick in my hand like the waitress brought some sushi out”).
This frenzy of contorted syllables and panicked inflections provides a compelling introduction to one of New Atlanta’s leading lights. Along with rising stars like Baby Plug and Lil Kee, Ola Runt is shaping the future of the city’s sound. He’s already signed to Gucci Mane, and the winking, wild-eyed virtuosity he displays on Mama Tried suggests he’s only getting warmed up.
Producers: 20Rocket, BL$$D, COUPE, DJ Marc B, Jake One, Maurice “Lamb” McAdams, Mojo Krazy, WhatItDoFlip, Young Lord Sean
Label: RCA Records x Same Plate Entertainment
Standout Tracks: All of them
Young Nudy’s album-for-album consistency is approaching Shy Glizzy caliber (which, to be clear, is nonpareil). The 27 year-old’s latest offering Anyways is a dreamy, ebullient addition to his yearslong string of first-rate projects (Sli’merre, Faded In The Booth, Slimeball 3, Nudy Land).
Where this album ranks in Nudy’s discography is a moot point - all of his recent work offers an intoxicating brew of horny thoughts, casual threats, and shimmering cotton candy production. Nudy sounds like a veteran at this point, but he’s nowhere near out of material. Press play to cheer yourself up.
Producers: The Alchemist
Label: ALC Records x EMPIRE
Standout Tracks: “Carruth”, “Giant Slide”, “Surf & Turf” ft. Vince Staples, “Run-Ins”, “Pinto”, “S.N.O.R.T.” ft. Freddie Gibbs, “Speed Demon Freestyle”, “Phone Bill”
In the fall of 2013, I interviewed veteran Detroit rapper Boldy James for the UVA school paper. I asked him if he found recording music therapeutic, and I’ll never forget his answer:
“It’s therapeutic more than anything because I need a punching bag. You can’t fuck 24/7, you can’t smoke weed 24/7, you can’t drink 24/7, you gotta have different outlets to channel that energy. Rapping is one of my main outlets to get the stress out and alleviate the pain — [it’s] like medicine. It coats my stomach when I’m having stomach aches, it unstuffs my nose when I’m having sinus issues and shit. I will run to rap quicker than I’ll run to a gun, quicker than I’ll run to a family member for help, quicker than I’ll run to one of my homeboys in the street for a couple dollars. I try to stay focused and keep my eyes on the prize.”
The writerly dedication described in that quote is front-and-center on The Price of Tea in China, Boldy’s full-length collaboration with The Alchemist. Alc conjures an eerie, putrefied atmosphere for Boldy’s deadpan drug dealer poetics, and the final product is as vivid as a Scorsese film: “Outside in the cold with a runny nose / Roadrunning, running dope, I love to run the road / Had a run, ran it up, now we off and running / You might’ve caught me down bad, but never caught me running.”
Producers: DaveO, Dupri1, L-Finguz, Vega Wins*
Label: EMPIRE x Shootergang Kony
Standout Tracks: “A Sinner’s Story”, “Jungle”, “Bussdown ft. Teejay3k & Nef The Pharaoh”, “Dearly Departed” ft. Mozzy, “Street Talk” ft. OMB Peezy
Red Paint Revered is the most refined offering yet from prodigious Sacramento native Shootergang Kony. The 21 year-old’s biting, world-weary flow is endlessly adaptable, and he delves into post-hyphy slappers and melodramatic synth churns with the same steely composure.
In this masterclass on wry humor and literary flair, Kony rattles off three-dimensional stories of drive-by shootings and courthouse betrayals while studiously keeping his rhythm. At 14 songs and 37 minutes, Red Paint Reverend is the work of a natural storyteller with a bottomless supply of material and zero tolerance for filler.
*This producer list is incomplete because I couldn’t find comprehensive liner notes for Red Paint Reverend anywhere online. If anyone knows where to find the album’s complete credits, hit me up. Producers deserve their props.
HONORABLE MENTION ALBUMS & EPs
NBA Youngboy - Still Flexin, Still Steppin (Apple / Spotify)
AKAI SOLO - Ride Alone, Fly Together (Bandcamp)
Knxwledge - Meek Vol 5. (Bandcamp)
Money Man - Epidemic (Apple / Spotify) & State of Emergency (Apple / Spotify)
HOOK - CRASHED MY CAR (Apple / Spotify) & PRETTY BITTY: THE MIXTAPE (SoundCloud)
SINGLES
Oz Sparx - “Antisocial” (prod. ???)
Philadelphian wunderkind Oz Sparx is easily one of my favorite upcoming rappers, and “Antisocial” could be his catchiest song yet. The careful balance of intricacy and simplicity that Sparx strikes on the chorus - “Wait a minute, all these racks up in my pocket, Imma spend it / Catch a body, and I’m sliding off in that Audi, and it’s tinted / I’m on oxys, and I’m icy bitch, no hockey, bitch I’m winning / Maserati, yeah I’m dripping teriyaki just like chicken” - is just marvelous.
With two outstanding albums and a few mesmerizing singles under his belt, Oz Sparx is in the running for most underrated rapper in America. Which brings me to his fiercest competition...
Baby Plug - “No Fifties” (prod. Section8)
Atlanta native Baby Plug is a star in the making. On his latest EP Icey Baby - a five track collaboration with producer Yung Icey - the 19 year-old flexed depth and versatility beyond his years without showing his cards or overplaying his hand.
YouTube loosie “No Fifties” is my favorite iteration of Baby Plug’s style so far. There’s a reticence to his writing and personality that leaves me hanging on every word, and it’s compounded by his deep reservoir of inventive cadences.
In Baby Plug’s stream of consciousness, baleful details (“Glock 19 with one in the nose, it’s on me but nobody knows”) get interrupted by sobering epiphanies (“Damn, my n***a done killed my bro”). It’s intuitive yet totally unexpected, inviting the listener to stay tuned for the next twist.
Taleban Dooda - “Tru Colors” (prod. Hero Tha Producer)
After Oz Sparx and Baby Plug, the most slept-on rapper in the USA has to be Taleban Dooda. The Tampa upstart has only released a handful of singles and one EP with fellow Floridian Rees Money, but his style is fully-formed.
Dooda’s high-pitched, honeydew vocals make his murderous threats sound damn near sentimental. Like a male counterpart to Dej Loaf, he imbues blunt lyrics - “shit can get wicked, put you on a stretcher”- with texture and tension that most rappers couldn’t dream of.
Calboy - “Wild Wild” (prod. Jetsonmade)
Chicago rapper Calboy and North Carolina producer Jetsonmade are both Pocket Full of Stones favorites, so it’s only right that I recommend their first collaboration.
“Wild Wild”, from Calboy’s Long Live The Kings EP, is a potent meeting of the minds. Calboy’s bleary delivery finds a natural counterpoint in Jetsonmade’s bouncy, saxophone-laden instrumental. On the song’s second half, he takes full advantage of the beat’s deep pockets and spits one of the most evocative verses I’ve heard this year: “Got a real broken heart, I ain’t got no feelings, can’t get too sad / I was 16, eight ball in my jeans, got that shit from my dad”.
Slatt Zy - “Remorse” (prod. ???)*
With bona fide superstars like YNW Melly and stars-to-be like Hotboii and Taleban Dooda, Florida-based firm 100k Management boasts one of the strongest rosters in rap today. Chattanooga rapper Slatt Zy is 100k’s latest recruit, and he’s already living up to the company’s lofty standards.
His recent single “Remorse” is a sun-soaked, off-the-cuff banger. Slatt Zy’s voice is so rich and teeming with soul that he makes juvenilia (“Gimme that pussy I wanna fuck fuck / Like a fuckin’ Snicker, wanna nut nut”) sound like pure gospel.
*I couldn’t figure out who produced “Remorse” or Oz Sparx’s “Antisocial”. Please send any leads to jackellis85@gmail.com.
REQUIRED READING
Pop Smoke’s Majesty and Menace - Briana Younger, The New Yorker
Remembering Pop Smoke, Brooklyn Rap’s Key Figure Gone Too Soon - Alphonse Pierre, Pitchfork
Remembering Pop Smoke, a Rapper Who Brought Brooklyn to the World - Jon Caramanica, The New York Times
MAJOR IN HISTORY
Ab-Soul ft. Danny Brown & Jhene Aiko - “Terrorist Threats” (prod. Dave Free)
When the reality of the coronavirus began to set in, I was compelled to throw on one of my favorite apocalyptic rap albums: Ab-Soul’s 2012 opus Control System. Dystopian music is a strange comfort in dystopian times, but it feels appropriate. “Babylon, Babylon, out my window all I see is Babylon / On the news all I see is Babylon, and all n****s do is just babble on”.
PLAYLISTS
Finally, I linked three new playlists below the jump. I hope these provide a diverse enough cross-section of today’s rap that casual fans and diehards alike can discover something new.
I’m also tossing my favorite songs and rap opinions into the void on Twitter, so throw your boy a follow if you’re into that sort of thing and still have an account on Jack Dorsey’s hellsite.
This has been Pocket Full of Stones. Stay safe, keep your loved ones close, and protect your sanity.
Fresh Batch pt. 6 (Apple / Spotify)