When tragedy struck in late 2021, Key Glock vowed to honor his Paper Route Empire mentor Young Dolph by putting his head down and going as hard as he can. This February, the 26-year-old rising star shared Glockoma 2, his first full-length since Dolph’s passing. The sequel to a fan-favorite 2018 mixtape, Glockoma 2 delivered a dose of unrefined, uncompromising street music to the masses…no frills, just Glizzock.

Rhyming over soulful, speaker-knocking trap beats, Glock shoulders the 15 track length, as always, without any features: “I might just go and pay myself for a feature/It’s Glizock, I be fresh and I finesse ya like a preacher,” he spits on the closing track “F*ck A Feature.” The Memphis rapper levels up his pen game, honing his his metaphors and sharpen his punchlines, while keeping the same suavity that his fans expect. The tape features production from the likes of BandPlay and Hitkidd, and is home to standout singles “Work” and “Dirt,” the Fall 2022 hit “From Nothin,“ the triumphant “Chromosomes,” and the cloudy lyrical showcase “Key Rex.” Over the summer, the young rapper changed his hue from red to blue, expanding the project with Glockoma 2 (Deluxe), home to the fiery “Presidential Rolex” and the motivational, TikTok-viral “Let’s Go.”

With Glockoma 2, Key Glock continued to cement his reputation as one of the most consistent rappers in the South–his unparalleled ear for instrumentals, knack for ice cold earworms, and admirable self-reliance has helped him become one of the region’s biggest young stars. Now with over 10 million monthly listeners on Spotify, Glock is ready to take a leap to mainstream stardom, and take his no holds-barred Memphis music with him to the top.

A titan in the scene since his teenaged years, powerhouse artist/producer Tainy is the sound architect behind reggaeton’s evolution from upstart genre to worldwide phenomenon. When superstars like Bad Bunny–who has called Tainy, “[his] favorite producer in the world“–J Balvin, Ozuna, Rauw Alejandro, and many more want to make an impact, Tainy is the first number they call.

This year, the Diamond-selling genre heavyweight decided to step out from behind the scenes, sharing DATA, his long-awaited, highly-adventurous debut album. Inspired by his extensive travels to Japan, DATA is an immersive and experimental effort, welcoming some of music’s biggest stars in innovative combinations as Tainy guides them on a tour through reggaeton’s rich history. Bad Bunny transforms into a 80s pop icon on “MOJABI GHOST,” aided by Tainy’s gated drums and nostalgic synth ribbons; Rauw Alejandro tries his hand at UK garage, gliding over a rare collaboration between Tainy, Skrillex, and Four Tet; “Mañana” combines the talents of psychedelic-soul-indie band The Marías with Puerto Rican emcee Young Miko. Tainy is still not averse to producing a reggaeton banger, though, as proven by the celebratory “La Baby” ft. Daddy Yankee, Feid & Sech, and “Fantasma | AVC,” a beat-shifting collaboration with Jhayco.

Already a winner of a Latin GRAMMY–for the Bad Bunny & Julieta Vargas-featuring “Lo Siento BB :/,” which earned Tainy his fifth Latin GRAMMY when it won Best Reggaeton Performance during this year’s ceremony–Tainy’s debut album was a validating moment: proof positive that Tainy ranks among the finest songwriters of his generation, in any genre.

Since his debut in 2013, when he was only 16, Chicago rhymer LUCKI has grown from an underground hero to one of the most popular rhymers on the planet, capable of selling out a national tour of 3,000-cap venues. His music has changed since the early years, but it hasn’t grown more commercial; the rapper still immerses listeners into his woozy world with his exquisite ear for instrumentals and hypnotic, mantra-like delivery.

Released in July, s*x m*ney dr*gs continues the momentum from 2022’s FLAWLESS LIKE ME, diving deeper into his world of hazy hedonism, at once reveling in the spoils of luxury living and bemoaning the emptiness of it all. The album boasts some of the most adventurous production of any major rap album this year, with stellar instrumentals from the likes of Tay Keith, Cash Cobain, Internet Money, and LUCKI’s regular collaborator Brent Rambo. Featuring a lone guest verse from Veeze, the album made an immediate impact, with over 8 million streams in 24 hours, and over 41.9 million streams across platforms in just three days, en route to a #15 peak on the Billboard 200.

Before he went to prison, 03 Greedo recorded thousands of new tracks, storing them away in his vault and using them to feed the streets during his bid. In January 2023, Greedo shared his collaboration with L.A. producer Mike Free, Free 03, the title of which turned out to be prophetic: shortly after the album came out, Greedo became a free man, ending his sentence after 4.5 years.

Featuring music recorded over the prison phone and more cut before he started his time in 2018, Free 03 is a potent refinement of Greedo’s inimitable sound. Songs like “Today” and “I Can’t Control Myself” showcase his talent for spinning taffy-like melodies, while missives like “Took A Lil Minute” and “Breakfast” benefit from his supernatural spitting. The tape boasts standout guest appearances from Greedo’s close friend OhGeesy and the late great Drakeo The Ruler, whose verse on mixtape highlight “No Free Features” rekindles the chemistry from legendary L.A. street hits like “Ion Rap Beef,” “Out The Slums,” and “Let’s Go.”

A quintessential document of the new L.A. sound, Free 03 is contemplative and celebratory, looking forward to a productive future while mourning the many friends and collaborators Greedo lost while he was away. The album earned critical acclaim, including from Pitchfork, who said, “Free 03 blends this celebratory post-prison rush with the emotional fallout from his sentence: a collection of songs that grooves and seethes, always remaining focused on greener pastures.”

King Von made an immeasurable impact in his short career, immortalizing O-Block with his visceral and detailed storytelling. This year, Von’s estate shared Grandson, the rapper’s second posthumous album, a collection of crazy stories that live up to the best in Von’s discography.

Grandson was lovingly assembled by Von’s closest collaborators, including regular producer Chopsquad DJ and close friend Lil Durk, who appears on standout “From The Hood.” The album hosts the visceral lead single “Robberies,” a missive about the lack of options availble in neighborhoods Von’s, and “Jimmy,” which is as gripping and intense as any crime novel, dramatically underscoring how the desperate need to survive can lead to an inescapable cycle of violence. Beyond Durk, fellow Chicago icons like Polo G (“Phil Jackson”) and G Herbo (“Real Oppy”) pop by to pay their respects, while the appearance of local legend Tink allows Von to show his softer side on “Jealous.” The tape ends with the spoken word “Family Dedication 2,“ a heartfelt message from Von to the people he loved the most.

Though Grandson might be the last the world hears from King Von, the album is a worthy monument to his singular storytelling ability, eloquently making the case that the late he was one of his generation’s most special talents.

Pi’erre Bourne’s vast, internet-savvy fanbase makes a habit of collecting the artist/producer’s snippets, sharing different versions from different years, comparing them to one another, and begging Pi’erre to make them official. Offering a gift to those devoted fans, Pi’erre shared Grails, collecting some of his most requested snippets, each re-recorded with new vocals and given official release for the first time.

The 8-track project is a showcase for the SossHouse CEO’s taffy-like melodies and candy-coated production, offering silly relationship dramas like “IG” alongside punchline-heavy flexers like “George Lopez.” The tape’s highlight is “NY In June,” a euphoric love song with glorious self-harmonies and a pleasing 808 thump.

Now that these songs are out in the open, they’ve become a staple of Pi’erre’s live show, including his Coachella performance, and continue to fuel debate among his legion of online partisans: which version of which grail is best? Pi’erre’s game of choose-your-own-adventure rages on with his next album, coming soon.

Rapper Bandmanrill and producer/artist MCVERTT energized the Newark music scene with a ferocious, hard-hitting blend of rap and Jersey club. Along with their close associate, booming-voiced Bronx rapper Sha Ek, the artists bridged the Hudson River-sized gap between club music and New York drill, showcasing the high-octane hybrid genre in the compilation tape, Defiant Presents: Jiggy In Jersey (ft. MCVERTT).

An action-packed tape with a tracklist even longer than its title, Defiant Presents: Jiggy In Jersey (ft. MCVERTT) offers 27 tracks featuring the three artists in various combinations, with occasional drop-ins from guests like Trippie Redd and Maiya The Don, who duels with Bandmanrill atop a Crystal Waters sample in the frenetic “Mr. D.C.T. Pt. 2.” Bandman and Sha trade lightning quick bars on songs like “Movin’ Tac” and “Crash Out,” while MCVERTT kicks off the proceedings with the ferocious, TikTok-viral “Face Down” ft. A$AP Ferg and Sexyy Red. But the three artists are at their best as they join forces: among others, the triumvirate connect for the symphonic drill banger “Pistons,” the haunting “Movin’ Tac,” and of course, the ultimate three-man weave, “Jiggy In Jersey Pt. 3.”

Defiant Presents: Jiggy In Jersey (ft. MCVERTT) earned acclaim from critics, including Pitchfork, who said it “fires on all cylinders,” Stereogum, who called it “absolutely wild,” and BET, who said that the tape could “set the East Coast standard.”

DC The Don – FUNERAL 
(Rostrum Records) 
press release | link

Boundlessly inventive with a gift for easy melody, rising rapper DC The Don inhabits a universe of his own creation. The rapper cultivated a loyal legion of followers, who responded to his audacious blend of rage raps, glitchy hyperpop, tuneful emo, and more, culminating in DC’s fan-voted victory in XXL Freshman’s 10th Spot Competition.

In May, the 24-year-old Milwaukee rapper shared FUNERAL, his most accomplished project to date. FUNERAL is an immersive look inside DC The Don’s world of hard-edged raps and soaring melodies, skillfully blending the two sides of his personality that dominated each half of last year’s ambitious My Own Worst Enemy. Over the course of the 16-track album, DC works with a core crew of producers to craft a danceable, uptempo new sound that incorporates elements of club, trap, bubblegum pop, emo, dubstep, and everything else that catches the omnivorous rapper’s fancy. “Hate Being Lonely” glides along on a danceable R&B groove, while standout “12AM” ratchets up adrenaline with a surgically-inserted five-beat pattern. On the emotional closer “intuition,” DC pours out his heart over gentle acoustic guitars: “I trust my heart, my intuition/My heart has no hate for you or competition/I said, I’m gonna do whatever what I want without your damn permission.” 

Later expanded into FUNERAL (DELUXE), which bolstered the alternative rock influence and added a guest spot from 6LACK, FUNERAL is the latest step in DC’s evolution into one of the key voices of his internet-pilled generation. Stay tuned, he’s only beginning his rise.

RAP SH!T: The Mixtape (Soundtrack from the Max Original Series, S2)
(Raedio/Def Jam)
announcement press release | pre-save link

Chief Keef’s remarkable rise in 2012 changed the face of rap music forever, igniting a drill movement that has spread worldwide over the past decade. In the immediate aftermath of that fateful year, Sosa retreated inward, sharing the experimental and mind-bending Almighty So mixtape in 2013. Home to fan-favorites like “Blew My High” and “Ape Sh*t,” Almighty So developed a cult following, becoming a go-to pick for discerning fans of the rapper’s massive discography.

Now, riding a new creative high and making money moves as the founder of his own imprint 43B, Keef returns to the recesses of his mind with Almighty So 2, his next mixtape. Home to recent singles like “Racks Stuffed Inna Couch” and the TikTok-viral “Tony Montana Flow,” the upcoming project promises new flows, bombastic instrumentals, and clever phrases that only Sosa could turn. Stay tuned for more updates.