(Reminder: this is based on what I like to call the “body of work,” which means I take into account everything from the quality of the music as a whole, the storytelling, the message, the cohesion, the production, the lyricism, the replay value, etc.)
10. Please Don't Cry - Rapsody
9. Soul Burger - Ab-Soul
Contrary to him laying out some of his own faults, it feels like Soul is in a really good place. Ab-Soul has always been a wordsmith, but with his last few albums, he’s opened up and become more vulnerable, which has resulted in really good bodies of work. Soul Burger, which is a tribute to his friend Doeburger who passed away, adds to this trend. The vulnerability shows up in songs like “I, Myself & Me,” “Peace” and “The Sky Is Limitless.” But along with the deep, introspective songs, Soul gives us some bangers like “Crazier” with JID where both of them go off. Ab-Soul has been on a roll, and I’m here for it.
8. Angel Eyes - Kenny Mason
He recently tweeted Angel Eyes is a project for anyone who’s lost someone or something close to them. This comes to fruition in a skit at the end of “Relief” where a girl leaves Kenny a voicemail and reveals his grandpa has passed away. As the project leads into the song “Hoodrat,” I believe the theme that’s being portrayed is something along the lines of how it’s easy to get caught up in the money, clout, fame, etc. and use that as a shield or a mask, but sometimes it’s too late and what’s really important (like family) is lost once the mask finally comes off. I really think Kenny Mason has a solid career ahead of him. Hop on the bandwagon while you can!
7. The Crossroads - Cordae
For example, on “06 Dreamin’,” Cordae tells the story about his mom trying out for American Idol and Making the Band and ultimately not making it, which springboarded him to pursue a music career. I appreciate that glimpse into his story. It just feels like Cordae is a genuine dude who cares about his family and comes up with clever bars to tell us about his life. I dig his vibe, and I truly think if he continues on this trajectory, he could be one of the few from this generation of rappers to take the torch from the likes of Kendrick Lamar and J. Cole.
6. The Death of Slim Shady - Eminem
If you know me, you know I love albums that tell a story. The Death of Slim Shady is Eminem’s first truly cohesive and conceptual album. Essentially, Slim Shady is trying to cancel Eminem by saying outlandish things about little people, the mentally disabled, transgenders and more. The majority of the album (the first 11 songs or so) are mostly told through the perspective of Slim Shady. Then, on “Guilty Conscience 2,” we hear Eminem and Slim Shady going back-and-forth with Eminem ultimately killing off Slim Shady. After that, we get somber, introspective songs like “Temporary” and “Somebody Save Me.”
Yes, this album has its flaws, but Eminem’s rapping abilities are still God-tier, and I thought the concept was fun and well-executed. The run from “Evil” to “Fuel” is insane, and I’m so happy we got an Eminem-JID collab. I’m excited to see what Eminem does next!
5. Dark Times - Vince Staples
Vince raps about some heavy stuff on this album, but I think it goes to show that with the bad comes the good. I think Vince recognizes a lot of things are out of his control in his life, and I think with him putting this skit at the end of the album, he’s telling us there will be dark times. But in that darkness, we must find the light. Everything is exactly as it should be, and even though times might be tough, life is still a beautiful thing.
4. Alligator Bites Never Heal - Doechii
3. World Wide Whack - Tierra Whack
2. Chromakopia - Tyler, the Creator
Throughout the 14 songs on the album, Tyler seems to take his mom’s words of wisdom to heart and begins to learn new things about himself. He eventually takes his mask off and feels comfortable becoming his true self. I’d like to go back to Tyler’s career trajectory again. We heard some rather homophobic lines throughout the Goblin album, heard him seemingly admit to his bisexuality on Flower Boy and IGOR, and now we’ve arrived at Chromakopia where he freely talks about his polygamous preferences and his sexuality amongst other things. Tyler has taken his mask off, found himself and shares his light with the world. Chromakopia is a beautiful album with a wide range of emotions and tones. My favorites from this album include “St. Chroma,” “Noid,” “Judge Judy,” “Take Your Mask Off” and “Thought I Was Dead.” There’s a fun cast of features on this project, but Tyler is always at the forefront. I think everyone can benefit from Tyler’s message on this album.
1. GNX - Kendrick Lamar
I’ve also read the comparisons to 2Pac’s Makaveli album. I’ve heard the theories about GNX being a “mixtape” that will eventually lead to the “album.” I’ve seen the metadata that lists GNX as “CD1,” which obviously leads to speculation of a “CD2.” And while part of me wants to buy into that because this project definitely feels like a mixtape, I’m going to take GNX at face value and appreciate what it is until those theories may or may not come true. (Remember when DAMN. came out and theories of a rumored NATION album rang through the Twittersphere and then never came to fruition? Yeah. Me too.)
I saw pgLang colleague Tanna Leone tweet, “Stream GNX for me. I always wanted bro to have more fun.” To me, GNX feels like a fun ode to LA. Kendrick capitalized on the sound that proved to be popular from “Not Like Us” and doubled down on those vibes for this project. I think it’s conceivable that Kendrick wanted to get out of his head, not overthink anything and create a fun album for LA.
With that being said, on the first track “wacced out murals,” Kendrick even says, “This is not for lyricists. I swear it’s not the sentiments. Fuck a double entendre. I want y'all to feel this shit.” Maybe Kendrick is being literal. Maybe he didn’t want to make a deeply layered project with an overarching message. Despite all of that, we still get a great project with little bit of everything. “wacced out murals” feels like the perfect transition from the Drake beef into this project. “squabble up” feels like it’s going to be the hit. “luther” is the lovey-dovey song. “tv off” feels like it was made for his upcoming Super Bowl performance with multiple nods toward New Orleans and football. “reincarnated” and “heart pt. 6” are masterclass storytelling songs. “gloria” is a metaphor about his pen. Plus Kendrick put on a ton of up-and-coming LA rappers with guest spots all throughout GNX.
I’m a Kendrick stan, but I’m objective enough to admit this isn’t my favorite Kendrick album, and even then, he puts out top-tier quality that’s better than the rest. Go ahead, and call me a Kendrick-glazer–I don’t care. I really think it’s time to have a conversation about Kendrick being the greatest of all-time.
Honorable Mentions
Better Me Than You - Big Sean
Shadowbox - MAVI
The Auditorium Vol. 1 - Common & Pete Rock
Might Delete Later - J. Cole
Blue Lips - ScHoolboy Q
Penith - Lil Dicky
Ultra 85 - Logic
BRAVADO + INTiMO - IDK
Missionary - Snoop Dogg & Dr. Dre
The FORCE - LL Cool J
Shameless Plug
The Connection - Trey Alessio (yes, that's me)
Watch the film here: www.youtube.com/watch?v=yo1VhPVgRYo&t=87s
Listen to the music here: artists.landr.com/055855340245