Month: March 2019

While many big names and projects have popped back up since the start of 2019, one major figure has been missing for a while now, namely Lil Uzi Vert. Ever since being blocked by his label and Don Cannon, he has been unable to release his upcoming project Eternal Atake, and decided to quit making music. It’s been about 2 months since he came to Instagram to talk about retiring from music, and it seems like the problem has finally been resolved with a little help from Jay Z and Roc Nation.

Reportedly by Complex News, Jay Z and Roc Nation have successfully dealt with Lil Uzi’s legal issues with his former label and Don Cannon/DJ Drama, and Mr. Vert is now being solely managed by them. Lil Uzi has been recently posting of the success with his new label, frequently using the caption and hashtag ‘Free Uzi‘. On March 28th, Uzi released a celebratory song of the same name, and it’s available on all music streaming platforms.

Jay Z and Roc Nation are not unfamiliar to helping out artists in need; Jay was one of Lil Wayne’s main helping hands during his own legal fights with Cash Money Records, and he even helped Wayne pay off his taxes while in the process. On top of that, Jay apparently helped pay for Meek Mill’s lawyers when he was in legal trouble in Philly in 2017.

Now with Uzi free from his label and officially a member of Roc Nation, there’s one question on everyone’s mind: when is Eternal Atake going to drop?

The album is rumored to be entirely finished, and if the main problem delaying it was the legal issues with his old label, then we should be seeing a release very soon. The release of “Free Uzi” today backs up this thought process, as it’s his first song dropped since his last album, Luv is Rage 2, back in 2017. Tons of leaks and snippets of the project have been released as well, and while nothing can be totally confirmed, it seems as if the album is just sitting around at the moment.

While there are still many questions, it’s good to see that Lil Uzi Vert is back to making music and has escaped the struggle of Generation Now’s legal battle. On another note, men like Jay Z are a blessing to the music industry, and it’s been thanks to him that a lot of artists have been able to continue making music.

In February of 2015, Drake surprised everyone when he released If You’re Reading This It’s Too Late, an unannounced mixtape made up of 17 tracks and over an hour of material. While the reasons behind its release aren’t entirely certain, with some speculating it was to help Lil Wayne’s contractual agreement with Cash Money Records, what is known is that IYRTITL is easily Drake’s best project to date. It debuted at number one on the Billboard 200 and sold 495,000 copies in its first week. With such huge success, it’s time to look back on the tracks that made this mixtape the pinnacle of Drake’s career thus far.

Energy

Gritty and relentless with hard flows; the second track demonstrates Drake at his most confident, calling out his adversaries of draining him of his energy. Coincidentally, his energy on this track is at its peak, almost sounding out of breath at times. The beat is simple but effective, with the reverbed piano line sounding deep and ominous under Drake’s vocals.

10 Bands

Directly following is ’10 Bands’, a track with a more relaxed Drake and a harder beat, with the bell line underlaying the entire song. On this, Drizzy spits about the money he’s made and the critics continuing to sleep on him as a rapper. He “ain’t trippin’” though, as is repeated on the refrain, and Drake continues to show confidence in himself as a great rapper (and proving it, too).

Jungle

One of the calmer tracks on the mixtape, Drake sings of loving a girl so much that she makes him feel like a baby the way he ‘drools’ over her. He also describes how she’s so wild that she’s ‘from the Jungle’ (hence the title). The hook and instrumental are what make this song, with the former reminding me almost of an early jazz sample with its choice of melody. The instrumental seams comfortably around it, with bouncy sounds of reverb and piano chords that are deep and lush. Out of Drake’s prettier tracks, this is one of the most memorable.

Know Yourself

“Runnin’ through the six with my WOEs“. Easily the most recognizeable line of 2015, it comes from this track and describes how Drake runs the city he’s from, Toronto. The song starts slower and over time gains in momentum as Drake begins going in on top of the changing instrumental. With the beat being very open, Drizzy has plenty of room to spit line after line of braggadocious wordplay.

While this represents only a handful of tracks off of the mixtape, the rest essentially follows the same formula while keeping ideas fresh and inventive; simple, compelling instrumentals with confident Drake flows over top. It may seem cut and dry, but the simplicity is exactly what allows Drake the room to expand himself all over this project in terms of rhymes, personality, and storytelling. It’s an incredible project, and If You’re Reading This, It’s Too Late remains as arguably Drake’s best work to date.

With today’s rap scene constantly changing, the sounds, styles, and cast are generally being cycled just as rapidly. Every month can be defined by a set of new tracks, albums, and snippets of music to come. A lot of this is due to the beauty of the internet and how quickly new material can become viral. With that being said, what songs are representing the current sound? Here’s a list of some of today’s rap hits that are the most genre-defining and telling of what could be to come.

Blueface – Bleed It

At this point, everyone knows of Blueface’s biggest hit “Thotiana“, and it’s definitely his most successful song, for sure. However, “Bleed It” just has so much more to it that not only makes it a more enjoyable song, but also demonstrates the potential Blueface has to become one of the next big names in trap. The beat hits hard, the mixing is on par, and the hook is infectious. Not to mention, his “off-beat” flow has the same flavoring but sounds much more controlled. Overall, this track shows all the signs of a rapper coming into his own, and it’s only a matter of time before Blueface is on billboards everywhere.

J Cole – Middle Child

With this song, J Cole proves that there’s still a place for non-trappers in the rap scene. He sounds confident and experienced, challenging others to come at him if they really think he’s fallen off. His lyrics describe some of the troubles that he’s witnessed in places like the projects, as well as references to conversations with Jay Z, 21 Savage, and Kodak Black. Delightfully, the hook on this track ties it together the most, displaying the most energy and ruthlessness I’ve heard from J Cole in a while. Not to mention, his singing voice sounds good, something that can’t always be said about Hollywood Cole. This is some of his best stuff in a while, and this upcoming album should be one of his best to date.

Gunna – Outstanding

One of the biggest names of 2018, Gunna is still going strong into 2019 with the release of Drip or Drown 2. Along with Lil Baby, Gunna has respectably defined the current sound, guiding production, flow, and lyrics into the direction it’s heading. On this track, Gunna displays every attribute that makes his music likable to so many people: great production, catchy hooks, and the usual drug-laced lyrics. It’s probably the single most defining track of today’s trap sound, and it will most likely be the formula for some time to come.

Juice WRLD – Robbery

The breakout “Lucid Dreams” star, Juice WRLD is back with his emo-rap style, a subgenre that seems to be taking hold of the mainstream more and more. Off his new album Death Race for Love, “Robbery” demonstrates Juice WRLD’s development as an artist the best; the instrumental sounds clear and interesting, and Juice’s vocals are great, showing how good of a singer he really is. His blending of emo and rap is way more cohesive on this project, too, with this track specifically featuring the iconic rattling hi hats and snares while Juice spits lyrics of lost love and heartbreak. While some of emo-raps biggest stars, such as Lil Peep and XXXTentacion, have faced tragic deaths, the demand for the genre is as strong as ever, and Juice WRLD seems to be the driving force to take it into the future.

While there are definitely many more defining tracks of today, these songs are the MOST so. The sounds of these four songs alone can succinctly define the beginning of 2019, and will most likely guide where the scene is going for the remainder of the year. Like it or not, many of these trap rappers are here to stay, and it will take a major event for the current course to change.