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Album Review: Nas & Hit-Boy-King’s Disease III

Nas

Last week, Nas and Hit-Boy set the industry ablaze with their new King’s Disease installment, King’s Disease III.  A lot of people are saying that this is the album of the year.  In fact, some are even saying this is a top 5 Nas album!  That’s saying a lot as he has been rapping since 1993.  This is a great album, Nas nor Hit-Boy disappoint.

On the intro track, “Ghetto Reporter”, the Queens emcee admits just what I have been thinking about him.  It’s funny because these past few years I’ve been saying to myself Damn, Nas has never dropped this much in his career in a short time frame.  He told us to cherish it and we sure will!  Escobar dropped King’s Disease I in 2020 and both KDII and Magic in 2021, all with Hit-Boy.  They say you’re only as good as your last, therefore Nas claims KDIII is better than all of them.  Nas also talks about the state of hip-hop in 2022.

                “They drew up contracts for our n*****, Dru Hill to Dru Down/

                And I’m prayin they set/

                Instead, most artists don’t live as good as the execs/

                And they end up depressed

                Scarred by A&Rs, the music be changing”

Nas is up on game on how the industry does these rappers.  He hints at why rappers’ music constantly changes.

What Hit-Boy did with “Legit” is unfair!  This might solidify Hit as the best producer in the game right now.  He turned a scene from the classic movie, The 5 Heartbeats, into a sound that only Nas can float on.  And boy, did he float! Nas references the movie early in his verse with his Eddie King bar.  Esco continues to empathize with the young rappers coming up as he raps:

                “What’s the cost of a CD when fifteen-hundred places one sell?/

                What’s that to fifteen-hundred peas on one scale?/

                For a starvin’ artist tryna sneak out and reroute”

Nas doesn’t blame artists for taking another route besides music to make money based on the industry’s profit model.  But, at the same time, he is encouraging them to stay legit.

On “Thun” arguably, the best song on the album, the Queens rapper salutes all of Queens, New York in this one.  Nas has always been a great storyteller.  When he raps, you can almost always picture the words in your head.  You can tell Nas has grown as he laughs about his beef with Jay-Z after all these years.  It’s crazy that he is still listening to Takeover 20 years later.  I bet Hov went to listen to “Ether” after receiving that text.  This might be the Queens anthem now.

Let’s just face it, Nas and Hit are on a big run!  So, calling them “Michael & Quincy” is not far off.  In songs like “30”, “Hood 2 Hood” and “Recession Proof”, Nas and Hit-Boy complement each other styles.  Nas has been around for 30 Summers and doesn’t look like he has any plans on stopping soon.

“Reminisce, another gem off the album, Nas mentions that everyone was calling him the greatest after he dropped his first album, Illmatic.  He adds that no one was rapping like him in 93, once again claiming the crown.  As the song goes on, the New York legend keeps reflecting, but ends the song by saying that you shouldn’t reminisce as it is not good to live in the past.  Nas is focused on being present and enjoying today because he’s doing amazing things right now.  He gives a shout-out to Mary J. Blige to let her know what they did back then was legendary and to still be doing it now is amazing.

Nas- The Elite

We all know Nasty Nas is one of the best and he believes so as well.  On “Serious Interlude” and “I’m on Fire”, Nas shows off how fly he is and his ability to still rap like this over 20 years in.  This trend continues on “WTF SMH”, but in the second half of the song Nas gives us a lesson.  Hit-Boy does an amazing job by switching up the sound so that Nas could give us a lot of knowledge.  The easy listening instrumental allows us to focus on the game his partner is giving us. It’s evident that the way black people treat each other weighs heavily on the 49-year-old emcee.  It’s a theme that is prevalent throughout the album.

Overall, I rate this project as a Platinum album.   Nas and Hit-Boy do it again, as they don’t seem to miss on the near hour-long project.  From the beginning all the way through to “First Time”, “Beef” and “Don’t Shoot”, Nas has again proved that he can do this for another 30 summers!  As long as he has Hit-Boy by his side, he has nothing to worry about.

Written By: Brandon Simmons

 

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FMHipHop: New Music Weekend Roundup

It’s Monday and it’s time for another FMHipHop music round up!  We all know Nas and Hit-Boy dropped King’s Disease III this past weekend, but a couple of other artists put projects out too.  Let’s take a look!

Glorilla-Anyways, Life’s Great…

GloRilla took off with “F.N.F.” and never looked back!  The new Memphis rapper dropped her EP,Anyways, Life’s Great over the weekend.  GloRilla is not new to dropping projects as she has dropped two mixtapes thus far in her career.  She released Most Likely Up Next in 2019 and followed that up with P Status in 2020.  Now, being signed to Yo Gotti’s CMG label under Interscope Records, this is the Rookie’s first official project.  With 9 tracks, Glorilla gives fans a few hit records, including features from Cardi B (“Tomorrow 2”) and Niki Pooh.  Fans went crazy on social media after Glorilla dropped the album cover and track list.

SleazyWorld Go-Where The Shooters Be

After Lil Baby jumped on his hit song “Sleazyworld Flow” for the remix, Sleazyworld Go has been having a good year.  He also received a co-sign from G Herbo.  His album,Where The Shooters Be, is here just a week later than projected.  It was supposed to come out on November 4th, but out of respect for Takeoff’s untimely passing, Sleazyworld Go decided to push it back one week.  Apparently, the new rapper has a lot to say on this album, with it being over 20 tracks.  Fredo Bang, Lil Baby, G Herbo, Rich The Kid, and PGF Nuk are all featured on the album!

Bleu-TANTRA

Yung Bleu is back again with another project!  He dropped TANTRA over the weekend under his imprint, Moon Boy University.  Bleu was busy on this album as he called on big artists for a few verses.  The Alabama rapper receives verses from Fivio Foreign, ZAYN, Nicki Minaj, French Montana, Lucky Daye, Lil Wayne, Ty Dolla $ign, and Ne-Yo.  Bleu shows his fans he can do it all as he not only performed the songs but wrote and produced them as well.

Check out all projects available on streaming services!

Written By: Brandon Simmons

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The Game’s New Album Title Was Actually Given To Lil Durk First

The Game
Image Source: NRK P3

The Game‘s new album Drillmatic: Heart vs. Mind will be arriving in a few weeks. The eye-grabbing title is a reference to the classic Hip-Hop masterpiece Illmatic by the famous Nas. In one of his most recent exclusives with HipHopDX, The Game explains originally giving his Drillmatic album title idea to Lil Durk years ago. After highlighting how it’d fit Durk due to him being from Chicago, he stated, “I text Durk like, ‘Yo, call your next album Drillmatic.’ And he was like, ‘Yo, that’s fire.’ And then two years passed and he didn’t call nothing Drillmatic so I was like, ‘I’ma reel that back in.’” Oddly, Lil Durk never bothered to use the title after The Game shared the idea.

 

Nas Blessing The Game With Illmatic Reference

As mentioned above, The Game’s new album title plays on Nas’ 1994 classic album Illmatic. Well, he & producer Hit-Boy ran into Nas during the fourth day of recording the album. Nas gave the duo permission & had no issue with the idea at all. All The Game is simply trying to do is bridge the gap between rap generations, “Drill is now. All these kids, it’s drill this, drill that and so I gotta get they attention because I want the new school to understand my school, we can coexist.” It’ll be exciting to see how he accomplishes this on Drillmatic: Heart vs. Mind.

 

Drillmatic: Heart vs. Mind Coming Soon

The Game is extremely confident about the quality of his upcoming album. He’s said, “I don’t care who got an album coming out, I don’t care who dropped — nothing’s gonna be better than this album…” In another interview, he boasted about being the best rapper alive. Will Drillmatic: Heart vs. Mind live up to all of the hype built up.

Read more of FM Hip-Hop’s featured articles today.

 

Written by: Oryah Brown | Instagram: @oryah.wav

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The Game Once Stole A Skateboard From Tyler, The Creator

Image Source: Getty Images
Image Source: Getty Images

The Game is currently on a press run while getting ready to release his new album “Drillmatic – Mind Vs. Heart“. In a recent clip from HipHopDX, he recounts a time when he stole a skateboard from Tyler, the Creator years ago. This was after being asked about their collaboration “Martians vs Goblins” from his 2011 project The R.E.D. Album. Additionally, he hilariously ends off by telling the interviewer that he still has Tyler’s stolen skateboard to this day. The two have always had a pretty positive relationship & this is just another humorous story between respected West Coast rap peers. Here’s the full clip from HipHopDX linked below:

 

More Details About The Story & Their Friendship

Before stealing the board, he recalls pulling up on the Odd Future leader & the other collective members at a store in California. While Tyler’s crew thought The Game stopped by to say hello, the Compton legend immediately snatched one of their skateboards. Tyler even chased after the rapper who already drove off with the board, and he even reached out to The Game for a few months afterward to have it returned. Again, it’s pretty funny hearing stories about real genuine interactions between industry friends. While the two are still cool, it’d be nice to get a new collaboration between both artists this decade.

 

The Game Is Still Dropping Music In 2022

As previously mentioned, The Game is dropping a new album this summer that is primarily produced by Hit-Boy. It’s unfortunately seen quite a few delays, but should still be available for fans this summer. So far we’ve gotten two singles including “Violence” & “Eazy” with Kanye West. Despite questions about the upcoming project, one thing that’s certain is The Game’s confidence in his rapping ability is still high. Recently, he even claimed being the biggest & best rapper in the world. Are you ready for new music from one of the West Coast’s best talents?

Read more of FM Hip-Hop’s featured articles today.

 

Written by: Oryah Brown | Instagram: @oryah.wav

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The Game Claims To Be The Biggest & Best Rapper In The World

Image Source: Getty Images
Image Source: Getty Images

While promoting his upcoming album Drillmatic – Mind Vs. Heart, The Game made bold claims about his current status in Hip-Hop. During an interview on 360 With Speedy Morman, the Compton rap veteran says he’s the biggest & best rapper in the world. He certainly has a solid enough discography to at least support his argument for being the best rapper lyrically. Naturally, many fans disagree & find The Game’s comments to be controversial. Check out his full statement in a clip DJ Akademiks posted on Instagram 2 days ago (June 8th):

 

 

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A post shared by DJ Akademiks (@akademiks)

The Game’s New Album: Drillmatic – Mind Vs.

Some are excited for next week, but others have some friction with The Game’s new album. Most notably, Asian Doll recently called out the West Coast icon for naming the album similarly to hers. Asian Doll’s “Let’s Do A Drill” also happens to be dropping the same date at Hit-Boy & The Game which doesn’t help. With that said, The Game has yet to comment on Asian Doll’s claims of him copying her.

 

Are You Ready For Next Week?

Between the recent controversies & the album’s name being a reference to the classic Nas album Illmatic, I think The Game will provide fans with an entertaining listen. He understandably is very adamant & serious about believing this opinion about himself, and all rappers should competitively feel like they’re the best at their craft. Hopefully, Drillmatic will live up to both expectations & his view of himself. Read more of FM Hip-Hop’s featured articles today.

 

Written by: Oryah Brown | Instagram: @oryah.wav

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Rapper Asian Doll Speculates That The Game Copied Her Album

Image Source: Getty Images
Image Source: Getty Images

Asian Doll quickly deleted a tweet she made on Sunday (May 31st) claiming that The Game’s new album copies hers. The main reason the self-proclaimed “Queen of Drill” points out is the similarity in both artists’ album names. Asian Doll’s album is called “Let’s Do A Drill‘ whereas The Game’s new album is boldly named “Drillmatic” interestingly. This probably wouldn’t be an issue if both releases weren’t dropping on June 17th. While her release date might’ve been set by her label first, The Game started promoting this album years ago. Take a look at this Instagram post from No Jumper with a screenshot of Asian Doll’s deleted tweet below:

 

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A post shared by No Jumper 🏀 (@nojumper)

 

Does Asian Doll Have A Valid Argument?

Some may believe that Asian Doll might be onto something by suggesting the legendary Compton rapper copied her album naming & release date. Both artists utilize the popular term “drill” in their official titles. However, I don’t think this will pose an issue for either artist’s first week sales because they both attract two completely different demographics. Additionally, the term “drill” is so popular now even outside of Hip-Hop & street culture. Perhaps she wasn’t even trying to suggest that the game copied her & was simply just pointing out the coincidence. The deletion of the tweet can equally be a sign of the previous sentence being true as well as her calling out The Game.

 

Are You Ready For Both Rappers’ Albums?

Asian Doll’s “Let’s Do A Drill‘ is dropping the same day as The Game’s “Drillmatic” in a couple of weeks. Hit-Boy is the key contributing producer for The Game’s upcoming album & doesn’t disappoint. Asian Doll is still on the rise & already has some quality songs in her discography. This new album of hers may be the one to lift her status up & propel her career further. Read more of FM Hip-Hop’s featured articles today.

 

Written by: Oryah Brown | Instagram: @oryah.wav

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Pacman & Hit-Boy Keep The Marathon Going

Pacman Presents "Bulletproof Soul," Produced By Hit-Boy
Pacman da Gunman. Image source: James Mooney.

Pacman da Gunman and Hit-Boy joined forces to create the “Bulletproof Soul” project. It came out earlier this month and is a great project. Pacman is also known to be with Nipsey Hussle’s All Money In Records. Now, he is thoroughly keeping Nipsey’s legacy and the marathon going.

Hit-Boy Makes Hits

The project starts off with “Not Your Average.” Giving a nice intro to begin the record, Hit presents a beat that will undoubtedly nod your head. Meanwhile, Pacman flows through the two-minute song, delivering California raps on a beat that sounds so California. 

“Bangin Late” follows, with a beat similar to “Not Your Average,” though more elevated. Hit and Pacman then pick up where they just left off to deliver a slapper. This one is to be played at maximum volume at the L.A. house party, on AUX, of course.

Presenting an anthem for the streets, Pacman also lets you know that he’s been out here for a long time, and if he doesn’t know you, you’re new here. 

Many people probably understand Pac. If you’re a part of the culture, you most likely grew up in the streets, also having to do certain (usually illegal) things until recognition. Pac was out here and knows who’s who. According to the artist, the ones getting their names now just started into this lifestyle and haven’t spent enough time involving themselves in illegal activities. Consequentially, this apparently means these artists are not real.

Pacman’s Pen

“Told Us Not To Do It,” one of Pacman’s most popular songs off his discography (according to Spotify), features Peezy. Hit-Boy is in the rhythm as the instrumentals flow right into each other. 

As previously mentioned, “Bangin Late” seems like a more elevated beat than “Not Your Average.” Meanwhile, “Told Us Not To Do It” seems even higher than “Bangin Late!” 

As soon as the beat drop, your head starts to nod again. Peezy executes his guest verse while mentioning that “The Marathon” is still going. Long live Nipsey Hussle!

Hit-Boy switches up the tempo for a minute for Pacman to really vent. In “The Cycle,” featuring B.Carr, Pacman struggles with losing people as he asks to talk to God. He realizes this is the cycle of living in the streets or possibly just the process of life. B. Carr does a great job on the chorus as he sums this song up, relating to how Pacman’s feeling.

California Vibe

There’s no way this project does not give you a California vibe! “New Heat” is a song you want to listen to while driving down the L.A. freeway, top-down with the sun in your face. Hit-Boy can make you feel good with this easy-listening record after heavy-hearted “The Cycle.” 

With the help of J Stone, Pacman helps listeners envision the L.A. life: beautiful women, fancy cars, sunny weather, big blunts, and plenty of jewelry!

The California ride then continues with “Find A Balance,” as Pacman shows his versatility by giving something the women can take and listen to. Hit-Boy takes a classic sample and turns it into my favorite song off the album!

Accompanied by Dom Kennedy, both West Coast emcees explain to women how to handle a hustler. Turns out it’s also not easy. Pacman keeps the ride going on “Cold Nights on 60th St” as he reminisces while Hit-Boy drives. He reflects on Nipsey’s advice, and as the song plays out, it reminds me of Nipsey and Swizz Beatz’s “Been Down.”

The project ends with “Ask God,” featuring Yhung T.O. and “Til We Meet Again.” The ode to Nipsey as Pacman hopes to reconnect with his friend one day. He pays homage to him for the message he spoke and how he influenced the world. He mentions his loved ones, such as Black Sam, Nipsey’s brother, Imani and Kross, Nipsey’s children, and his wife, Lauren London. Throughout the project, Pacman’s relationship with God and the afterlife is a recurring theme. He manages to keep his faith while battling through loss and struggle.

 

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A post shared by HIT-BOY AKA Tony Fontana (@hitboy)

The Marathon Must Go On

I rate this project an 8 out of 10, B+! I am a fan of this tape, and this is the second straight project Pacman has executed on. With Hit-Boy’s production, the project rises to another level! Pacman’s writing ability and Hit-Boy’s production genius can take listeners to many different places in under 25 minutes! There are songs for the club, songs for the streets, songs for the car, songs for the women, songs for a cookout, songs for a funeral, etc.

Bulletproof Soul does not disappoint. Big shout out to Pacman da Gunman and Hit-Boy, The Marathon Continues!

WRITTEN BY: Brandon Simmons

Listen To “Bulletproof Soul” By Pacman da Gunman & Hit-Boy Below:

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Hit-Boy Assembles the Rap Dream Team

Hit-Boy assembles his rap producer Dream Team

Fans of rap know a powerhouse when they hear it. Whether it is a legendary rappers first bars, or the first bars of an album that would go on to top charts for over a decade to come. We know what’s good, and we know what’s good together.

Certain rappers just make magic when they pool their minds together. Their fans love to speculate on these pairings, and it turns out the rappers do as well. Hit-Boy sparked Twitter’s imagination when he responded to a fun tweet about assembling a producer team.

Hit-Boy’s Dream Team

The producer is legendary by himself, but it was fascinating to see what talent he would choose to be on his Dream Team.

“me ye just blaze and alchemist. Fr fr I can cover any style of the 808 shit y’all want from polo G juicewrld to Travis scott. have just blaze pull up wit a few soulful vibes then have alchemist slide wit the dark soul. Ye can oversee it and add where he pleases. Classic fr. (Hit-Boy)”

Hit-Boy has already worked with these artists before, and many more included on the list. Every time has been gold. Getting all four artists in a room together would be something magical, and it may be closer than we think. Hit-Boy and The Alchemist are already collaborating on Half Moon Bay.

There are rumors going about that while creating this song, Ye was in the studio as well. Somebody ask if they snuck Blaze in there. This is likely going to be the closest we’re going to get to the Dream Team, at least for now.

Fan Reactions

Fans jumped on the opportunity to share their opinions. None of them could agree with each other, but all were excited.

What do you think? Let us know your Dream Team, and if Hit-Boy is on it!

by Chris Colasurdo
@cfcolasurdo on Twitter

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Jay Electronica Virtually Toasts Drake, Ye, And The Game On Twitter

Jay Electronica performing
Source: Getty

Recently, Jay Electronica complimented Drake, The Game, Kanye West, and Hit-Boy over a series of tweets.

Jay started with Drake first, calling him a legend after “Champagne Poetry.”

“For Drake’s bars on Champagne Poetry alone, his face gets carved in the pyramids,” he tweeted.

https://twitter.com/JayElectronica/status/1484760084869795845?s=20

A few hours later, he turned his sights on Kanye, The Game, and Hit-Boy for their work on “Easy.”

“E A Z Y is one of the greatest records of all times. Don’t @ me. You’re unqualified to debate me. @kanyewest @Hit_Boy @thegame My life was never E A Z Y.”

https://twitter.com/JayElectronica/status/1485009526117994496?s=20

He also shared a video of a text with Kanye and “Easy” playing in the back. In the clip, West informed him that he’s working in LA and Miami. Shortly after, Jay complimented his verse on the song and said he wanted a part in it.

https://twitter.com/JayElectronica/status/1484424247938367490?s=20

Jay Electronica’s Posts

Even before this, Jay respected his fellow rappers, Drake and Kanye. He even posted quotes from them on Twitter.

“This the part where I find a new part of me to explore. –Drake.“

“Don’t ever fix your lips like collagen to say something that you gon end up apologin. Ye.”

He has posted many quotes in respect of other artists. However, this excitement could also come from his new album, A Written Testimony, streaming over on Tidal. The rapper has been sharing song releases for it for months and it currently has ten songs.

“The greatest Entendre ever said by any rapper ever is the Immaculate Conception/My God is so hard to conceive bar was said by @sc on here. These are facts. Don’t @ me. You are unqualified. Yes you! Don’t get blocked. That ain’t P,” one of the many tweets said.

For more news on hip-hop, check us out at @FMHipHop: Twitter, Instagram, Facebook.

Written by Anthony Jamal Bicy | Instagram | Twitter

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Hit-Boy Says Jay-Z Almost Had The “Sicko Mode” Beat

Hit-Boy reveals Jay-Z nearly got the beat to "Sicko Mode"

In a recent interview with DJ Akademiks, Hit-Boy revealed that the beat to the hit song “Sicko Mode” almost belonged to Jay-Z. The now-legendary producer said that he held onto that particular beat for two years. Eventually, Travis Scott picked it up and incorporated it into Astroworld. “Sicko Mode” would go on to be an iconic song, get nominated for two Grammy Awards, and become certified Diamond. “Sicko Mode” was Scott’s first song to reach #1 on Billboard’s Hot 100.

Interview with DJ Akademics

Last week, DJ Akademics interviewed Hit-Boy asking about his career. It was during this interview where Hit-Boy revealed that Jay-Z nearly snagged the beat to “Sicko Mode.”

“You know what’s funny? I played it for Hov,” Hit-Boy told DJ Akademiks. “When it dropped, [Jay-Z] was like, ‘Yo, I had this f###### “Sicko Mode” beat.’ I’m like, ‘Yep.’ [laughs].”

Jay-Z may have missed out on the sensation that was “Sicko Mode,” but he’s also had his share of success. In 2011 he and Hit-Boy worked with Kanye West to produce “N-ggas in Paris.” “Paris” would go on to win a Grammy for Best Rap Song in 2013, an award “Sicko Mode” was nominated for, but was beaten out by “God’s Plan.”

The Success of Hit-Boy

Hit-Boy is a producer, making hits and waves in the hip-hop world. For starters, he has just been awarded BET’s Hip Hop Producer of The Year award for the second year in a row. This is the fourth time Hit-Boy has won producer of the year overall.

In addition, Hit-Boy has been nominated for no less than nine Grammy Awards. He won three of those for, “N-ggas in Paris,” “Racks in the Middle,” and Nas’s King’s Disease. In an interview with Variety, Hit-Boy expresses his joy and gratefulness at his success, “We’re in a crazy era where certain people like to discredit the Grammys or discredit the award shows, period. It’s not everything, but it is a high honor.”

Hit-Boy is undoubtedly one of the most influential producers of our age. He’s worked with big names like Kanye, Beyoncé, Drake, and Nas X, and together they have created gold.

 

by Chris Colasurdo
@cfcolasurdo on Twitter