T.R.U. Tunez R Us

On this past Friday, rapper ScHoolboy Q released his highly anticipated 5th album CrasH Talk. Although it’s been three long years since his last project, Blank Face LP, it was well worth the wait. The album is quintessentially Q, as he still channels his aggression and facetiousness as a key part of his flow. What makes CrasH Talk a little different is Q uses this album to tell a naturally flowing story. He’s no stranger to being exposed within his music, he often shares his past troubles in a way that is vulnerable, yet still G, as he did on Oxymoron. But the difference now is we can tell Q has matured in his own right, both within his music and his life. Between smooth transitions and raw, in your face lyrics, ScHoolboy Q is definitely in his bag right now.

This here isn’t one set theme of this album it seems, but all the songs seem to share a common factor, it’s all very vivid and very real experiences that Q has decided to share with the world. It explores many avenues, such as what it was like growing up on his block. On the track “Tales,” he opens with the line, “Tell you all about it, from mopeds to dope heads,” which is rattling to hear, but honestly it’s not that surprising, knowing that he was raised in the streets of LA. Then there’s the gangsta persona of Q we all know and love, which really comes through on all the tracks, but shines the most on the leading single “Numb Dumb Juice” where he says, “Got a plan, we gon’ kill this man, the gun won’t jam, it’s all on sight, I might get life, that’s on my life,” letting us know that if we didn’t know already, Q is with the shits without hesitation. Despite this apparent belligerency, we also see a more sensitive side of Q on “Drunk (feat. 6LACK)” where he denies his intoxication while admitting his feelings towards a significant other. Finally there’s an obvious sense of contentment within Q’s life. On the track “CrasH,” he speaks on how far he’s become, and how he still has to go further. The album closes out with “Attention,” where he shouts out himself and his idols with a few accolades from his career. “Front row at the Grammy’s, I’m gettin’ praises from Jay. Fuck this award, I’m happy he know my name. Favorite rapper Nas been told me that I’m the best, had a couple sessions with Dre, he knew I would win. Alchemist my favorite producer, and he my friend.” Now that’s a lengthy name drop, but it’s definitely a respectable one done with taste.

Production wise, the album comes just as hard as it did lyrically. Between the intricate beats that vibe with his flows, some more mellow when the story telling is more apparent, while others serve hype, quickly paced with jarring 808’s to match is aggressive attitude. The transitions flow so smoothly which really makes his story stick, such as from the album opener “Gang Gang” to “Tales,” and “Die Wit Em” to “CrasH.” It’s best to listen to this album top to bottom at least once before diving in at any order, as it’s better to appreciate that way.

After listening to this album, it seems essentially that ScHoolboy Q took 3 years to put out something like this. He’s in a different place, and it really shows. It’s amazing to see his growth from Habits and Contradictions all the way until now. Even if it takes 3 more years for his next project, it’ll be well worth the wait.

🚨 New album alert! 🚨 Rico Nasty & her producer Kenny Beats dropped an album today titled Anger Management. It’s a short project, checking in at only 9 songs, but it’s nothing short of great. As you could expect from the title, it’s packed with the aggressive energy that Rico is very well known for. The album seems to flow between a mood shift, it starts off angrily but as it proceeds, it’s obvious Rico is calming down, and it ends on a lighter note. She still manages to address what’s on her mind, from motivating us to get it together & reminding us in other words n****s ain’t s**t 😅 to telling us that knowing that relaying how she feels to us keeps her going, because she knows someone out there can relate. And her producer Kenny Beats really went off on the entire album, especially on this interpolation of Jay Z’s “Dirt On Your Shoulder.” 🔥 He manages to layer his daring beats with Rico’s amped voice and bars in a way where it’s in your face, but still not obnoxious. All in all it’s a good project and you should check it out! What’s your favorite song? Let us know!