billboard BREAKDOWN - hot 100 - march 31, 2018 (VIDEO)

Heh, this turned out WAY more controversial than I expected... eh, it happens.

Next up, something way better than everything I'm talking about here - enjoy!

billboard BREAKDOWN - hot 100 - march 31, 2018

You know, given how the past week has been it's been very tempting of me to just step up in here, say the Billboard Hot 100 shit itself inside out like most of the rest of this year - and let's not mince words, it's about as bad as I've seen it in the past few years - but hey, it could have been worse, right? We didn't get a full album bomb from XXXTENTACION, and while I sure as hell don't think our replacements are anything close to good, I have to keep reassuring myself with the thoughts that this could be a much more miserable experience than it is.

the top albums/songs of the midyear - 2017 (VIDEO)

And there is THAT weight off my shoulder. Whew, ton of work to get that out... and yet it's not over, as I've got another special video dropping soon, so stay tuned!

the top albums/songs of the midyear - 2017

There have been a lot of people who have said that 2017 has not been a good year for music, on the charts or otherwise... and from a certain point of view I can see it. Hip-hop in particular has had a really rough past few months, and between pop stars flopping, mainstream country continuing to spiral, and entirely too many records from established acts not living up to their potential, indie or mainstream, I can see why people are calling 2017 a disappointment.

I can also say that I don't buy it for a second, because for me, 2017 has been awesome. I already have plenty of songs to line my list of the best hits, and going into this point at the midyear, I have more records that I've scored 9/10 than ever before. Granted, it also seems like one of those years where the critical darlings aren't quite crossing over in the same way, and if you haven't heard of most of my favourites, that would be why - and that's not even counting the stuff I had to cut, and man, there were a few rough choices there. I think part of this comes from Patreon helping to shape my requests - once the scheduling got figured out as part of this experiment, things began to click and I started covering a lot of stuff I really loved. 

So you all know the drill by this point: twelve albums in order - an order that could shuffle by the end of 2017 - twenty-four songs in chronological order of my reviewing them (yes, I'm expanding the list, it's that kind of year), and keep in mind that if they don't make this list they've still got a real shot for the list at the end of the year, so let's get this started with...

video review: 'ALL-AMERIKKKAN BADA$$' by joey bada$$

So yeah, have to admit, this turned out amazingly well, really happy how all of this came together in both an album and a review (especially given how quickly I slammed all of it together).

Beyond that, next up is Kendrick and then something truly horrific, so stay tuned!

album review: 'all-amerikkkan bada$$' by joey bada$$

I have to be honest: I wasn't really sure where Joey Bada$$ was going to be taking this new sophomore project.

I mean, I wasn't surprised he was pivoting towards more of a political, socially aware sound as buzz was suggesting - it seemed a natural stepping point, especially given that his mixtapes and full-length debut in 2015 made that progression seem inevitable. After all, many of those older MCs he idolized in his production and flows and style did pivot to making more conscious music, it's a sensible step.

But here's the other truth: I haven't exactly listened to a lot of Joey Bada$$ since he dropped his full-length debut in very early 2015. Part of this might have been bad timing: I covered his record in between hip-hop albums from Lupe Fiasco and Doomtree, and I have to admit he may have gotten overshadowed in my mind and on my playlists because of it... which isn't really fair, because he's a great rapper with a knack for textured, old-school East-Coast production and some insightful, layered bars. And for a lot of people it's probably going to happen again, this time with Kendrick dropping his newest album off the back of a huge single. In short, Joey Bada$$ has had some rotten luck in terms of timing, and thus I wanted to ensure I gave this record its due before everyone forgets about it like what happened with Drake a few weeks ago. And while I bet for a bunch of you that was the first time you thought about More Life in a minute, let's stick to the subject at hand: how is All-Amerikkkan Bada$$?

video review: 'b4.da.$$' by joey bada$$

Goddamn, I'm so glad I took some extra time to really take this album in and get it, because if I had reviewed it after the shitty day I had yesterday, I would have been a lot less kind. Either way, damn good record, definitely check this out.

Next up, Billboard BREAKDOWN, then some Sleater-Kinney and Doomtree - let's see if we can keep this streak of great albums going, so stay tuned!

album review: 'b4.da.$$' by joey bada$$

Of the many, many album requests that I get every day, this is probably the most requested album thus far in 2015 - for a rapper who landed on the XXL Freshmen list but had no major airplay singles and was actually preferring to stay independent than sign to a major label. A new rapper erupting out of Brooklyn, affiliated with Big K.R.I.T. and Mick Jenkins with critically acclaimed mixtapes and a visceral sound and flow that definitely grabbed attention.

Yep, it's time to talk about Joey Bada$$, affiliated with Pro Era, who erupted into the game around 2012 with his hit mixtape 1999 that drew a lot of attention from hip-hop heads and critics and started getting him major hype. As it was for me, Joey Bada$$ always struck me a very good rapper with a lot of talent and definitely a strong technical lyricist, but I was waiting for him to put together a more cohesive project that rose beyond his old school boom-bap flavour. Because sure, I definitely preferred that more lyrical focus that he took in terms of technical craft, but I wanted to see what was it that separated him from his influences. He followed 1999 with the even more slick and melodic Summer Knights, and sure, it was enjoyable, but there was a certain lack of immediacy and punch to it that meant it wasn't a tape I was inclined to revisit. Definitely not bad and I appreciated Joey Bada$$' increased maturity, but after his explosive presence on Mick Jenkins' The Water[s] mixtape last year, I knew I wanted to see Joey Bada$$ bring the same fire to a project of his own. So I took the time to check out his debut album B4.DA.$$ - how is it?