DEPTHFINDER #7: EXTRA PATRIOTIC EDITION

Listening to everything that came out on the 4th of July until I am driven to insanity

Welcome back to Depthfinder! Last time was a special one, thank you again to Bobby Vanecko for his incredible list, I promise we will have more amazing guests in the future, and I will make sure Bobby is back again. One thing he did that will be implemented in Depthfinder going forward is denoting where the artists are from next to their names - I find it quite important to know where artists are from, as it often influences their works, especially in styles such as regional Hip Hop music, which we discuss a lot here. Bobby also sent me the cover photo for this installment on Twitter, so we have that to thank him for, too. We also had two Depthfinder #6s in a row, which was definitely intentional to make up for skipping #4. Anyways.

In honor of Independence Day being on a Friday, I have decided to listen to as many of the 4th’s new releases throughout the following week and write about them all here - don’t worry, respect towards America the Beautiful is of utmost importance to me, so I have made extra effort to include as many international artists as I possibly. I usually stick to positivity on Depthfinder, but this is a fun exercise that sees me show love in real time to the music I connect with while also being able to provide insight into what I find bad or boring, challenging myself to write about things I don’t have much to say about, and attempting to find more new-to-me artists in order to fill out the list. One thing I will say as a disclaimer before you read this post - I wrote this one at my work computer, and during the process of sending it over, I lost all of my hyperlinks and special-character formatting, so when you see “Sao Paolo” written about 500 times in this article, please know that I know how it is actually spelled and that I mean it with no disrespect - I am just tired and ready to put this out, it will be better in the future. Al

Thank you for reading Depthfinder! It may be a few weeks before the next one is out, but I promise it will be the most MASSIVE one yet. After that, I will attempt to transition this into a weekly newsletter with more readable lengths to them. As always, you are all the best, and I’m excited for what is coming up next here. I hope you enjoy.

Sunlight Zone

Agnes (Vanersborg, SWE) - MILK: The first song on this list just so happened to be the last song I listened to. Let’s just say this dance pop track was a good sign for me to call it quits.

Brent Faiyaz (Columbia, MD) – tony soprano. / peter pan.: R&B as a genre of new music is not one I gravitate towards – to me, most of the alternative offerings in the style lack the effortlessness required to ensure smoothness and the classic-sounding tracks often pale in comparison to the actual classics. Brent Faiyaz has at times fallen into both of these potential pits, but “tony soprano.” is a strong single, boasting sultry vocals and climactic production that draws in elements of Hip-Hop without taking away any R&B gusto the track needs to be successful. “peter pan.”, while less interesting of a track to me, at least displays some nice production and some loungey vocals that would suit an interlude on a full-length effort well.

Cam (Huntington Beach, CA) – Everblue: See, I’m glad I’ve started including the artists’ home turfs in these write-ups, as “Huntington Beach, California” should allow this one to speak for itself. I’m sure Cam will enjoy her Best Country Album nods when her upcoming project releases.

Creepy Nuts (Osaka, JPN) - Mirage: So Creepy Nuts is by far the most popular artist on this list I had not previously heard of, which was one of two surprises - the other being “from Osaka, Japan” - I had while listening to this track. Definitely an uncanny track, “Mirage” had me thinking to myself “why can’t I understand the Spanish” the whole time. I was worried I lost my comprehension skills for a minute there, which would make me cry a lot more than finding out this is music being made across the Pacific.

DJ Blakes & Mc Gw (Sao Paolo, BRA) – Lets Go: This funk duo throws some Jock Jams-style flair on their new track, and the trancey take on this aesthetic brings in some welcome nostalgia, especially when layered with some of those tuims, which is essentially the monosodium glutamate of Brazilian music. While this isn’t the most memorable DJ Blakes production, the track is undoubtedly fun.

DJ PH DA SERRA, MC Marlon PH, Mc Petchako & Dj Lc (Rio de Janeiro / Divinopolis / Belo Horizonte, BRA) – Vem Fuder na Pele: If you don’t know a lick of Portuguese, translating the title of this track is enough to understand what you are getting into here. It is easy to overlook how raunchy funk can get if you don’t understand Portuguese, especially when the MCs use regional slang, but as a gringo, sometimes half the fun can be discovering the pure nastiness that hides under the surface of an otherwise unassuming track.

Dropkick Murphys (Quincy, MA) – For The People: What am I doing with my life?

d.silvestre (Sao Paolo, BRA) – O Que as Mulheres Querem: Funk as a musical clade thrives heavily on singles, but d.silvestre might have the throne when it comes to being an album artist. Never one to conform to the norms of Sao Paolo funk while staying true to a lot of the key motifs of the regional sound, such as repetition, danceability, catchiness, and electronic feel, this album feels more twerkable than his previous works yet still maintains that powerful noisiness that makes him a standout artist. That noise is evident from the start of the album, “Vem por Cima”, which prominently features drenching distorted 808s and a heavy, club-worthy pulse. The hard bass chills out on the second track, “Sem Moralismo”, but the four-on-the-floor drive of the song propagates even more raunch to keep the energy high. Every track flows in and out of one another despite how different they are, allowing this project to read like a true DJ set, and although the project spans less than 20 minutes, its brevity doesn’t impact the party’s ability to last all night long. Some other favorites on this album were “A Sacanagem Comecou” and “CORREDINOIS”, but it is easy to ignore favorites in favor of allowing the continuity of the album to be the true key to its excellence.

ian (Dallas, TX) - Oh Ok (xxl freestyle): I tend to defend ian’s older work with .cutspace and gyo, as that more IDM-influenced underground rap was worthwhile white boy SoundCloud fodder. He should probably return to doing that, but he might be too far gone. If you’re turning your XXL freestyle into a full-length track with a real beat, you are taking a page out of the DaBaby playbook (strike one). Given that ian, despite what many have said and will continue to say, is capable of making catchy tracks, writing memorable bars, and riding interesting beats. This track is repelling, fails to be cheeky with bars like “I’m feelin like I’m 50 Cent, bitch, I’m in da club”, which I’m sure you are also sick of seeing Genius lyric cards of, and features a beat with canned hype tracks in it that would make even Dan Schneider’s blood curdle. Enough has been said about ian and how necessary it is for him to crawl back into whatever hole (gated community) he emerged from, so no matter how dead the horse I just beat here was, I’m worried it still might be breathing.

JID (Atlanta, GA) – GLDU (Preluxe): I’ve been a known JID hater since long before he told me I had no hoes on Twitter, but I can at least admit he has some good tracks. I don’t think this EP has much of anything worthwhile. Save for “Lisa”, which I will get to in a minute, the production on this EP is about as bland as it gets. My initial impression was that these beats sounded like 2020s Eminem trap beats – imagine my reaction when he showed up at the end of the project. These beats are wide open, giving JID plenty of room to rap with expansive flows and at varied velocity, but at the end of the day, none of his raps, nor those of Lil Yachty or Eminem, are worthwhile. JID is a master at using some poetic devices such as alliteration, internal rhymes, assonance, and double entendres, to add a great deal of continuity to his verses. While that sort of attention to detail is impressive, it often pushes him into a sound where he displays himself as a less artistic and soulful iteration of many classic Southern rappers, especially when you consider his lyrics, which feel like placeholders meant to allow his schemes and devices to work as opposed to add content to his raps – this is not always the case with his music, but it sure is on these songs. The lone exception on this EP that I found surprisingly worthwhile, was “Lisa” with fellow Spillage Village alumnus 6LACK. I was unsure of the punchy, sample-driven beat at first, but in the end, I found it sort of beautiful. This beat allowed JID to slow it down and finally spit some meaningful bars, at least in comparison to the rest of the project. If this EP was synthesized to excite me about his upcoming full-length album, it failed, but I’m sure he doesn’t care, as college sophomores everywhere will glaze the project regardless of its quality and anoint him as the second coming of Andre.

KETTAMA, Shady Nasty & Fred again.. (Galway, IRL / Sydney, AUS / London, ENG): Air Maxes: KETTAMA is from Ireland, so that’s cool. I’ve been to Galway. Beautiful city.

Kesha (Los Angeles, CA) - . : When you think of “recession pop”, you probably think of Ke$ha’s ($ is important!) Animal, along with probably some LMFAO or Cobra Starship amongst others. Animal is one of the best pop albums I listened to as a 12-year old, and Kesha was the first pop girl who was making music that made my parents think “should he be listening to this?” that I can recall. If you are looking for pukedrunk pop bangers that you want to make you feel 12 again, this album is not for you.

Logic (Gaithersburg, MD) – The Adventures of Cocaine Larry: Look, I can’t stand Logic in the slightest, but the fact that I had to Google if this was a real Logic song or not should signal to you that it isn’t bad at all. Perhaps you can say the alteration of his voice on the song cleared me of some preconceived biases I had against the guy, but I not only enjoyed the new tone of his voice a lot more, but the manner in which he rapped over a swaying old-school inspired beat was quite enjoyable as well. I don’t think this song will suddenly turn me into a Logic fan, but I might have some more interest in his next album now.

Mc Saci & Guga Divulga (Rio de Janeiro, BRA) – Esses Becos: The first but likely not the last Mc Saci-donned track to appear on this list, this funk banger features a contagious, flamboyant delivery from the Funktroiter over a production featuring a tandem of chopped keys that feel like a go-to Omnisphere preset from 16yrold and liquid plucks that would’ve been tailormade for the Jetsonmade version of Whole Lotta Red.

Quebonafide (Warsaw, POL) – POLNOC / POLUDNIE: I don’t think I am Polish enough to fully understand this album. The diversity of sound from track to track here is baffling and every collaborator fits in without a fuss. From what I understand, Quebonafide is an extremely popular artist in Poland, so if for no other reason, this album was worth bumping to explore a major name from a country with music that is, literally and figuratively, extremely foreign to me.

Russell Dickerson (Union City, TN) – Sippin’ On Top Of The World: Back in 2021, someone attempted to steal my catalytic converter; however, they didn’t know what they were doing, didn’t actually steal the part, and instead caused significantly more damage to my car than simply stealing the thing would’ve. While I was getting my car fixed up, I rented a 1999 Acura TL that started shaking once it hit 65mph and had the radio stuck on a country station called 102.9 THE WOLF. I was in this rental for about two weeks, and by the end of it all, I knew every damn word to every song that station played. Russell Dickerson makes music that would fit right in on 102.9 THE WOLF - no trap beats, no pop overproduction, just shitty songwriting about drinking beer. This is a banger, get me a 30-rack of Busch Lite and find me the nearest pontoon ASAP.

Scarlxrd (Wolverhampton, ENG) – PENANCE: When I first heard Scarlxrd’s music, he was sort of being paraded around as a label’s attempt to create a Mr. Pibb to xxxtentacion’s Dr. Pepper. Heavily doused in the trap metal sound at that time, I was surprised to hear Scarlxrd making some Nu-Metal/Metalcore-type songs and dropping most of the trap sound from his music entirely. With those two genres coming back in full force, this may simply be a money move, but this is night-and-day better than anything I heard from him previously. What makes me think the move is authentic is the track lengths on this EP. These songs regularly extend over 4 and 5 minutes in length and don’t overstay their welcome nor die for viral moments. While I won’t go as far as saying this is a must-listen album, it was surely the one project here I went into with low expectations and came out surprised.

Sean Paul (St. Andrew, JAM) - Ginger: You know what they say: “it’s not the 4th of July without that new Sean Paul drop”. I’ll admit, I’m not the most well versed in Sean Paul’s music, but every song I’ve heard prior to this one just goes way harder.

Ski Mask The Slump God (Broward County, FL) – Catch Me Outside 2: Despite being released in 2018, “Catch Me Outside” remains one of Ski Mask’s most relevant songs. The Florida rapper has drifted out of the limelight a bit, mostly being kept alive by the older Gen Z crowd which obsesses over their late heroes Juice Wrld and xxxtentacion. His newer efforts lack that same viral pop that allowed him to explode as an artist in the late 2010s, and while overreliance on gimmicks has squeezed many lemons from that era dry, a more thoughtful return to them would’ve served this track better, as the beat here is atrocious and the lyrics are ian-caliber whiffs.

Summrs (Lafayette, LA) - BABYRINO: I have more opinions on The Great SoFaygo war than I do this song, but even if it could have more seasoning to it, whenever Summrs leans more into a Louisiana-influenced song, I typically enjoy it a bit more. I just wish he could provide anything more vocally here.

SXMPRA & Shakewell (New Zealand / San Fernando Valley, CA) – SHOOT SH*T: If you are stoked for whenever that new Pouya drops, you’ll probably be more into this song than I was.

Tanner Adell (Manhattan Beach, CA / Star Valley, WY) – Side Peach (sampler): Tanner Adell’s music on this teaser pack of tracks predating her upcoming album paints a picture of her desire for either pop or country stardom, but the songs here die with their Target brand songwriting and the aesthetic begging for algorithm recognition like its a fan holding a poster at a Drake concert hoping he will buy them an engagement ring for their partner. She’s crossed that one-million-a-month listener threshold on Spotify, showing that this strategy has worked in her favor for the time being, but without a lick of worthwhile songwriting on this collection of songs, I find it difficult to believe that success will last.

Ye (Chicago, IL) – Bully (LAST BREATH / LOSING YOUR MIND): I haven’t been keeping up with the new Ye releases for obvious reasons, and I guess I expected these tracks to be more brutal or offensive – they are just boring and lame. I don’t know if they use AI or not, but quite simply, I don’t care – if you are enjoying these tracks, we have bigger problems to address. I received plenty of flak from friends when I said “MEET YOUR PADRE” was my favorite song on Drake’s $ome $exy $ongs $ U; while that song is hardly noteworthy in the grand scheme of things, Ye’s entry into the Latin music sphere on “LAST BREATH” makes it look like it has the impact of Un Verano Sin Ti. “LOSING YOUR MIND” is somehow less interesting. Don’t waste your time, even if these two songs will take up less than seven minutes of it.

YoungBoy Never Broke Again (Baton Rouge, LA) – Singles for MASA: On Independence Day, perhaps no artist made me prouder to be an American than NBA YoungBoy, who has now dropped the final TEN songs to his upcoming THIRTY track album MASA, which I assume would not be the title of this project without Donald Trump pardoning the rapper in May. I can forgive this decision, though, as all ten of these tracks hit in at least some way. My favorites so far are “Kickboxer”, which sees YoungBoy meld some of his Louisiana roots with some Chicago and Atlanta spice in what is perhaps the best agreeable rap-hit type song of the year, and “Diesel”, a more Louisiana-focuses track focused on flexing unreleased designer. Easily some of the Baton Rouge native’s most mainstream-ready tracks, the essence of YoungBoy still rings louder than the chart-topping ability of these tracks, and if the final third of the upcoming album is this good, I cannot wait for the full length to officially release.

Twilight Zone

Asian Doll, Icewear Vezzo & 42 Dugg (Dallas, TX / Detroit, MI) – BANKROLL: Correct me if I’m wrong, but 42 Dugg is a free man, right? Whatever vocal preset they gave him here sounds like they ran a GTL recording through a talkbox.

B6 (Atlanta, GA) – Leverage: B6 dropped one of my favorite trap projects of the year thusfar in Run Still Legendary, and while Leverage doesn’t hit as hard for me, it is still a fun 40ish minutes of rap music. While I would never suggest B6’s lyrical content should be words to live by, the overall uncouth and offensive nature of some of his bars, especially when postulated in his delivery which feels as if he is asking a question which he then immediately answers, adds a healthy amount of disgust to this tracklist. “King of the Pirates”, “Dark Web Hacker”, “Oh Lord” featuring Athens, GA native Babystaydown, and “Mad Hatter” were some of my favorite tracks on this album, but the wide variety of lyrical tricks and strong trap beats will allow different songs to jell with different people well.

Barca Na Batida, Eo niel & Mc Saci – Missao Dada e Missao Cumprida (Recife / Sao Paolo, BRA): You won’t confuse this song with something other than Brazilian, but that batida beat, I assume courtesy of Barca Na Batida, helps transcend genres from different hemispheres of the Portuguese-speaking world.

Base Hollow (USA / Sweden) – REVIVAL: Base Hollow first showed up on my radar when they appeared on an Instagram story listing “artists that nobody listens to”. While they have racked up over 700,000 monthly listeners, they have less than 5,000 followers on the service. Limited information is available about the alleged duo other than they are “American and Swedish”. This is quite possibly an AI scam artist given the volume of drops the duo has and the sheer amount of big-name features, which are apparently legally licensed verses from songs already by these artists, but if that is truly the case, I have no idea where that money is coming from. It has to be a large sum, as these beats are so barren in the soul department that it would take a significant chunk of change in order to persuade me to syndicate my verses over these abominable productions. I’ll leave it at this: when you go to the airport and see those little convenience stores littered with books with massive block lettering over stock-image covers, typically authored by someone like James Patterson or Jodi Picoult, this is the musical equivalent of what I assume that pulp sounds like.

Big Sad 1900 & Cypress Moreno (Los Angeles, CA) – For The Fans: These two rising Los Angeles artist linked together for a quick EP dedicated to their fans, something I always appreciate when I see it. The music here is not always to the standards these artists typically set for themselves, especially from an engineering perspective, “6AM (Over Jealousy)” is a strong cut to close out the EP, easily the best on the project.

CHAMELEO (Sao Paolo, BRA) - SOBRECARGA: A deluxe follow-up to 2023’s ALTA TENSAO, an album I haven’t listened to, SOBRECARGA wasn’t as memorable as an experience as it was a fun one. Utilizing various Brazilian electronic musicians to reinvent those past tracks, this is collection of club ready bangers would’ve been a perfect fit for a Pride afterparty had it came out a few weeks earlier.

DJ MAVICC, DJ GH7 & Mc Pikachu (Sao Paolo, BRA) – Automotivo Expansor: Last year, I would’ve told you DJ MAVICC was one of my favorite Brazilian artists, but his 2025 output hasn’t hit as hard with me, “Automotivo Expansor” included, but I will say there is some beauty in the fact that the long passages between drops and the clashing of sounds within said drops does make this track feel like you have no clue where the f*** you are.

DJ YAN DO FLAMENGO, MC JF, Mc Vuk Vuk & MC Dioguinho (Flamengo / Sao Paolo, BRA) – Sarra Sarra: Banger. When the beat drops on this one, it hits with bright color despite its nocturnal atmosphere. When DJ YAN DO FLAMENGO is handed the keys to a funk track, there is always potential that it is going to make you levitate, and this track does just that.

DJ YAN DO FLAMENGO, Mc Pedrin do Engenha, Mc Gw & Mc Vidal (Flamengo / Rio de Janeiro, BRA) – Sou Apaixonado em Puta: Another track where I have to give DJ YAN some credit: while the production on its own is strong, it might not be possible to make a funk track that sounds more like that title than this one.

EBK Pig & EBK Jaaybo (Stockton, CA) – G Elite: At this point, it isn’t a Depthfinder without an EBK rapper making an appearance. Let’s get this out of the way - Jaaybo kills his feature verse on this track. As the type species in the EBK genus, this shouldn’t be that shocking to you, but I want to take a moment to talk about EBK Pig. A lot of rappers from NorCal start their names with EBK, and their music is not always created equally. Just when I thought I’d heard them all, EBK Pig shows up on my radar this year, and despite his name not doing him any favors in the first-impression department, he has quickly risen in the EBK power rankings and is constantly an artist I’m looking forward to hearing new tracks from. This one is one of his best yet.

G40 & 8x8 Bocci (West Palm Beach, FL) - 4 PURPLE: My wishes have been granted. G40 is perhaps Florida’s best rapper when it comes to making sinister drill music, and 8x8 Bocci is one of regional rap’s most consistent producers regardless of state or city in 2025. Eerie Philly-style tracks like “NO LUV”, an aptly named two-way street, and “26 STEPZ AHEAD”, a depressing, methodical, exercise in self-awareness, are obvious standouts, but songs like “PICASSO”, a song where G40 “turns killing to art” but also paints a vivid picture of his upbringing, make sure the rest of the tracklist isn’t one dimensional or low quality.

GAUPA (Falun, SWE) – FYR: Some oldhead-ready stoner rock with heavy psych tones from Sweden here; while I wasn’t super into this project, I know a few dudes with long beards at the bar who definitely are.

Haiti Babii (Stockton, CA) - Makaveli: I think most people still only know about Haiti Babii for that one radio freestyle, but this song is a legitimate West Coast banger, paying homage to 2Pac and proving he is more than just a viral moment. Also, it is cool that he was open about being on the autism spectrum on this track, even if his lyric referencing this didn’t seem too keen on the doctor’s analysis, especially given that many people were maybe saying that about him derogatorily after that aforementioned freestyle – that takes some guts.

Jesse Welles (The Ozarks, AR) – Pilgrim: Jesse Welles, an artist attempting to be the Greta Van Fleet of Bob Dylans, comes through with one of the most excruciating albums of the year with Pilgrim. This is an album that feels attack-proofed in concept, as his lyrical content covering the ills of capitalism and the United States Government have been used by many to defend this album as good, claiming that you disagree if you think otherwise. The way he talks about these ills are as if he unearthed them himself and is teaching his followers about his findings, as if his commentary covers anything but the most surface-level examples of these topics. This felt most blatant to me on the obnoxious opener “We’re All Gonna Die”, a song that feels like someone shoving shards of glass in your earholes and like a juicy nightcrawler on a hook designed for Billboard to bite and call the Arkansas native “the next Bob Dylan”, especially the way he mentions the corporation Blackrock as if he is the only person who actually knows what kind of business they muddle in. This song is so awful, I cannot help but recommend others listen to it, if not so I won’t be alone in my misery. When he swears on this album, it is pins-and-needles the same way that one James Blunt song is. Sierra Ferrell, an artist I enjoy, couldn’t save “Far from home” with her appearance, and Billy Strings, an artist I loathe, couldn’t ruin “Philanthropist” with his, as Welles does the honor himself. If reading the titles of the songs on this album gave you bad vibes, listening to this album will make sure those low expectations you’ve set were too lenient. I cannot believe I listened to this entire album, but I’m sure if a monthly pilgrimage to the Vegas Sphere to give Dead and Company thousands of dollars or adoration of Greta Van Fleet because real music is dead seem to be ideas you’re on board with, perhaps Jesse Welles can be a new favorite.

KindlyNxsh (Johannesburg, SAF) – SOLDIER IN TRANSIT: Not even two minutes into “SOLDIER”, the tonesetter on South African rapper KindlyNxsh’s new album, does he both say “If you don’t think I’m dope, you must be on coke” and reference Fanboy and Chum Chum (side note: one of my favorite fun facts is that Nickelodeon rejected picking up Adventure Time in favor of Fanboy and Chum Chum. Business is booming). While this may sound agitating on the surface (Pi’erre Bourne lyricism, if you will), these are exactly the details you look for in South African rap lyricism, especially with the expressive delivery styles commonly found in the Underground. KindlyNxsh, however, is one of South Africa’s rappers furthest from the underground, coming through with a cleaner sound and takes influence from a wider range of American artists than many of his peers, but from both lyrical and production standpoints, it is expressly South African in composition. This juxtaposition leads to several highs and lows. The second track, for example, reads like one of the more Flower Boy-influenced cuts on Eem Triplin’s Melody of a Memory, and while some of the lyrical content is interesting, such as when he discusses complex emotions due to not knowing his mother tongue, the production often fails to complement his lyrical style. Another track that didn’t always work for me was “PLAYMAKER”, which draws from Dreamville satellite JID in style (this is an assumption I made before he namedropped the Atlanta native in this exact song). Lyrically, this song feels messy, similar to many JID tracks in all fairness, but lacks the use of literary devices to add some continuity to his raps the way JID often does – at least the beat is superior to most of the ones found on newer JID tracks. There were two tracks in particular that were real standouts to me. One was “PICTURE PERFECT”, which features an awesome MEERTOBEATZ production predicated on call-and-response between a guitar loop and a chant effect and sees the rapper flow with a G Herbo-style cadence. The second is “CHANGE”, a self-produced banger with real pop appeal and one of two songs (the other being “FEEL IT!”) with a more creative Don Toliver flair to it – his autotuned vocal passages, sometimes featuring tasteful backing tracks to give it more of a collaborative feel – are an absolute success. While this will never be an essential South African rap release to me, KindlyNxsh is an essential South African rapper, and this project could serve as an ideal bridge to Americans with more mainstream-focused rap tastes getting into South Africa’s excellent rap scene.

KrispyLife Kidd (Flint, MI) – Just Like That: Flint veteran KrispyLife Kidd draws from the endless pool of Milwaukee twerk anthems and adds his own personal flair to it on “Just Like That”, a raunchy, cake-loving single that serves its purpose but doesn’t contain the typical humor of his best songs. It’s pretty dime-a-dozen.

Matt OX (Philadelphia, PA) - OUTTA MY BRAIN: Here’s the issue with most of Matt OX’s new music: he quite simply went harder when he was 12 years old - not even purely as a gimmick, he was actually just making better music.

Nine Vicious (Athens, GA) – FOR NOTHING: Few artists give me worse vibes than Nine Vicious. Sure, the numerous allegations levied against him, some which he has confirmed and doubled down on in his music don’t help, but as far as Young Thug progeny go, Nine Vicious is the only one who feels like he is spitting in his mentor’s face with his music. I will give him a bit of credit for this album, though, as it does sound better from both a rapping and production perspective as some of his previous projects that seemed more keen on just letting you know that he’s not gay.

Oliveira Mc 011, MC Kelme, DJ Fernandez & DJ Mendes (Sao Paolo, BRA) – NO BICO DA GLOCK: HEAVY drums on this one. The rest of the song is fun, too, especially Kelme and Oliveira’s tandem vocals, but I was obsessed with the beat here.

Oliveira Mc 011, MC Lobao & DJ Odio (Sao Paolo, BRA) – RITMADA DA ZN: It’s a decent track, but my complaint lies in the AI-generated cover art baiting you into thinking this is going to be one of the most booming songs ever created, and it doesn’t even come close.

Rell Vert & M Row (Chicago, NY / Manhattan, NY) – One Up: A nice meeting-of-the-minds between two of drill’s most bustling scenes, this song is full of examples of one-upping the opps, my favorite being calling them and telling them they’re bogus for missing you at close range.

Rival Consoles (Leicester, ENG) – Landscape from Memory: Man, this was a disappointing one for me. I saw many opinionated people I respect online drool over this new Rival Consoles record, but I just found it so flat. The electronic textures were flavorless to me, and the way these songs were structured and evolved never hooked me. Perhaps I should just chalk this one up as “not for me”, but I struggle even labeling this project as that, it just didn’t seem quality to me.

Rx Papi (Rochester, NY) - Goin Haimov: Pap is feeling himself on this one - his voices he’s doing here are quite the spectacle. I could single out dozens of bars on here that I thought were wild or hilarious, but fitting the 4th of July theme, I’ll choose “You don’t really live that rap shit I found out about you / you think you Osama I’m Obama when them n****s found em”. Another one: “I’ll send your BD to the store he’s a fucking buster / bitch got a fat ass butt this a dunker dunker”

Rundown Spaz (Pine Bluff, AR) – Non Active Clowns: Insane Philly/Chicago drill beat on this one – Rundown Spaz raps with the Deep South and Chicago influencing his delivery on “Non Active Clowns”, a song filled with choice words about the subject’s all-talk behavior and what their partners should do about it, all while reaffirming that Rundown Spaz stands on ground claiming his actions are much more farm-to-table.

Samthing Soweto (Soweto, SA) – Touch is a Move (Good Morning): I’m not going to lie and act like I was particularly engaged with this album, as mentally, I was a bit cloudy during my listen, but Samthing Soweto is has a beautiful manner of singing and this album was pleasant in my ears regardless.

Savv4x, Damien Cruise & Isaac (Toronto, CAN) - Riders: Maybe I should’ve seen the horseback-adorned album cover and thought differently, but Savv and company dropping a country rap banger hit me like a second alarm clock at 7:10 AM on a sleepy Tuesday morning. I honestly love this style of track; when Sada Baby, for example, makes them, I always have some good fun: add a dangerously Torontan accent and we are cooking with grease.

smokedope2016 & Hackle (Virginia Beach, VA / San Jose, CA) - Buff: I wish the chemistry between smokedope2016 and Hackle was more natural feeling on “Buff”, but even if the two shared a covalent bond, this track would still feel fairly average for a smokedope2016 song. Little of Hackle’s personal style is allowed to shine through the cloudy beat here, but there is nothing worth changing in regards to production anyways - the beat, as most smokedope beats are, is tranquil, hazy, and lush

Tommy 2 & Bashfortheworld (Glencrest / Dallas, TX) – Drac In My Pocket: Sort of an average Texas rap cut, Bashfortheworld fits the menacing keys of this song better than Tommy 2 does, and it pales in comparison to tracks like “Phone Ringing” from the Glencrest artist.

Tony Shhnow & YoDogg (Atlanta, GA) – Need It: Tony Shhnow and YoDogg deserve a lot of credit for their performance on “Need It”. While the beat here is fun, it’s not one you’d likely put in your portfolio if you had to show an artist your top productions. It does, however, have a lot of room on it, and with emotive, vibrant performances, these two take up all of it and glue the parts of this track into a summery track that glows like a classic SoundCloud hit.

Warhol.SS & Lil Tony (Chicago, IL / Atlanta, GA) - Deion Sanders: Lil Tony’s commanding baritone and Warhol’s gravely flows pair well together as they trade bars on “Deion Sanders”, an impressive song given that it contains a COVID reference in the hook that didn’t make me roll my eyes. That is old man rap behavior.

We Lost The Sea (Sydney, AUS) – A Single Flower: This album is an hour-plus post-rock movie full of highs and lows. I don’t think the band’s use of atmosphere was eventful here, leaving the whole painting a bit unfinished; however, the hard rock tones on the guitars added a ton of gloom and gruel to the album, allowing for the more guitar-centric parts to become my favorites on the album.

YeloHill & Steelz (Long Beach, CA) – Hotstepper: This track was just okay to me, but I did love the G Perico homage on it – I wouldn’t be mad if I heard more West Coast rap tracks blatantly acknowledging his impact on the scene.

Yody 4x (West Palm Beach, FL) – IN THE AIR: If you’ve never listened to a Yody song before, listen to pretty much any of his other songs before you get to this one. Sure, his raps here are intentional and carry weight due to personal subject matter, but this sample has been tucked in for decades at this point and is ready for bedtime - probably one of my biggest pet peeves in Hip-Hop music.

Yung Hood (Corsicana, TX) – Crawfish: Yung Hood is just fire I reckon. He has a good Texas old-soul streak to him, but unlike BigXThaPlug, an artist who is strictly a mainstream staple at this point, Yung Hood still has that raw streak to him, which pairs up with that classic Texas feel on “Crawfish” to make the song hit.

Midnight Zone

5v (Germany) – Rain Check: I used to listen to 5v a lot, the whole time thinking he’s Polish. This made me feel dumb, as this song is unmistakably in German. Over the years, 5v has crafted a healthy platter of melodic cyberspace-dwelling raps that will have your friends who kind of know who Bladee is asking “is this Bladee?” Yes, some of his older work feels more indebted to Drain Gang and company, but “Rain Check” feels like 5v at his best, still glowing with that European Sad Boy aura but leaving his mark in a more bespoke manner and making for an enjoyable song.

Caal Vo (Atlanta, GA) – Things Just Got So Bad: I am a Caal Vo defender, and I believe he still makes enjoyable singles on a regular basis. If you were looking for proof of this, I wouldn’t suggest starting with this song, which is perhaps my least favorite of his 2025 drops.

CARLLO YABOY (Denmark / Ghana) – Die For You: I don’t know how CARLLO YABOY even found his way onto my radar for this list, but I’m glad we can include some Afrobeats here, probably for the first time on Depthfinder. Afrobeats is a relative blindspot for me, but I know enough to say this track lacks the valence that my favorite songs in the style ooze. I do have to give CARLLO YABOY credit for his work ethic, as he does all of the recording, singing, production, and instrumentation on his own on all of his tracks, which is incredible, impressive, and something that will encourage me to check out more of his music, as I’m convinced he has the potential to make a more engaging track than “Die For You”.

Charbel Haber, Nicolas Jaar & Sarry Moussa (Beirut, LEB / New York, NY) - Crashing waves dance to the rhythm set by the broadcast journalist revealing the tragedies of the day: Lately, I’ve been feeling the depression crush me a little more than usual. There’s a lot to think about right now: new scenes depravity daily, unhealthy relationships within my family, the feeling of being stuck in a loop, and just general life stress that has left me overtired and overthinking. This album, which I consider the best ambient album of 2025 so far (even if I’m behind in general in this department), brought me a sense of peace and clarity, using its improvisational chaos and wide range of highly-detailed tones to chaperone me around all of my emotions I’ve felt over the past month or so. On the other side, I came out with a lot less grime on the windshield of my thoughts, which were no longer racing at Zach Edey Lamborghini speeds. This was an album I listened to at the perfect time and one I found exceedingly thoughtful. Personal connection aside, this album features Sary Moussa processing guitar, electronics, and bass clarinet played by Charbel Haber and Nicolas Jaar in real time and is influenced by the aggression displayed by Israel against, at the time of recording, Lebanon, the home of both Haber and Moussa, while Nicolas Jaar is of Palestinian descent on his father’s side.

Humildes (Brazil) – Humildes Vol. 3 [Lado A]: Easily one of my favorite albums from this exercise, the first side of Humildes Vol. 3 is stocked with a healthy offering of Brazilian goodies from tons of artists operating in seemingly endless styles. DJWDO48 splices funk with atmospheric breaks on “NO CHAO ELA VAI DE 4 vs FALA BAIXINHO”, DJ VN DA VILA sends Pitbull’s taste in samples into overdrive on “Agudo ranca timpano”, DJ Rodriguinho and Dudda drop a nuke on deep house on “house de piranha”, and Fllw spoils the sound of their track by titling it “BANGER RITMADO EXPLODE SUBWOOFER”. I could go on and on about every track on this album, but I couldn’t tell you a favorite song yet - it is so diverse in sound and successful in execution from start to finish. Definitely spin this one, and maybe Lado B afterwards.

JEW3LZ, GrindHard E & Tony Rose (San Diego, CA / Flint & Lansing, MI) – TRIGGER HAPPY: JEW3LZ is a solid producer, but I find it strange that this is a beat he would keep for a solo release, as it doesn’t present him as someone with distinct style. The two Michigan guys work well over it, though, and E somehow doesn’t mention STDs once during his verse.

kay anthony, WESTSIDE BOOGIE & RUNITUPJAY! (Flabush, NY / Long Beach, CA / South Bronx, NY) – Way Back - Remix: Someone should’ve informed kay anthony and company that we already did the Valentine’s Day rap roundup in February, this would’ve been one of the more romantic offerings on the list.

King Louie (Chicago, IL) - Tony Block: Usually, I am a proponent of contemporary releases from Chicago Drill OG King Louie, but this project is mostly not it. He’s got bars about Ted Lasso and says shit like “I’m getting sloppy from a neat freak” on here - hell, most of my takeaways from this project are the same as the ones I got from that new Too $hort album: dude loves getting his dick sucked. It’s not all bad, though, as “Premium Smoke” is a banger and proof the Drill Mount Rushmore member still has it.

MC WL, Mc Saci, Mc Pretchako & Complexo dos Hits (Rio de Janeiro / Divinopolis / Belo Horizonte, BRA) - A Mais Gostosa: The 12-headed monster that is Complexo do Hits laces these three MCs with a Mineira beat driven by a steel drum stab, heavy bass, and a TikTok sound effect currently frustrating me because I don’t know its origin. The song overall is fine, but I do love the fact that the energy of the track increases with every MC performance.

MODAR, Lowfeye & Emtee (South Africa) - Year 64: Usually when a track features Lowfeye, you can expect pristine vocal melodies in multiple languages, but he can legitimately rap too, spicing up his flows with some range that functions not only as melody but also as a bounce amplifier. He is complemented well here by the more rap-oriented Emtee, as his no-chaser delivery buoys the melodic nuance of Lowfeye. A solid song to be the debut single released by producer collective MODAR.

Ralo (Atlanta, GA) – Chosen (Deluxe): The deluxe to February’s Chosen dropped on the 4^th, but since I didn’t listen to that project when it was released, I got through the entirety of this saga for this writeup. Ralo raps with a ton of passion and pride, but he is prone to losing some impact from lyrical choices – on the first song, he says something like “the only time you see me frown is when its upside down”, which is as close to a zero as you can possibly get with wordplay. When he’s leaning into the rawer and stranger elements of his portfolio, he can pop off, though. I love when you can feel his drive on “Slime Survivor”, a track where you can feel the veins bursting out his neck as he peaks the studio mic. The next track, “Respect The Dead” featuring Tay Savage, who puts in a nice performance that emulates Lil Dude in a way, does anything but respect the dead, even using some wacky vocal inflections to add to the dark nonchalance of the track. The songs that make up the deluxe portion of this project are more consistently bangers; the Baby Mel-esque vocal strain of “Tuesday” allows the song to hit the hardest for me. Overall, this project doesn’t move the needle in either direction for Ralo but does contain enough solid tracks to make the album worth a spin.

Recognize Ali & Tragedy Khadafi (Accra, GHA / Queensbridge, NY) – The Past The Present And The Future: I love when artists from different generations link up for a full-length collaboration. In Hip-Hop, this is an uncommon occurrence, but Recognize Ali has the old-school ethics to match Tragedy Khadafi’s classic underground sound, and Khadafi has the energy and dedication to allow the “present” and “future” aspects of this album to be true statements even when the Queensbridge veteran dons the mic. A lot of older rappers lose it in an obvious way, sounding old as a synonym for washed, tired, or out of style. Tragedy Khadafi sounds old on this record as he has Covid conspiracies he needs to put on wax, which is much more desirable to hear due to him sounding fresh in the booth spitting this bars as well as it being relevant old man lyrical content. If that statement alone turned you off from checking out The Past The Present And The Future, don’t let it – lyrically speaking, there is far more good than bad on just about every song, and the old-school influenced underground production is lively and cunning. This is one of my favorite rap albums of the year so far released by someone over the age of 50 (spoiler alert for an end of the year list coming to Depthfinder this December)

sneak (Athens, GA) – FRAMED IN RED: I’ve officially decided I am a sneak fan. As far as Playboi Carti alternatives go, he is one of the few that actually feel worthwhile. This EP, while drenched in opium influence, injects a tasteful amount of R&B-esque melody within the vocals, allowing sneak’s artistry to stand out as personal despite influenced. “PRAGUE” was my favorite track on this project, but all six songs hit in some manner.

snoa (Leicester, ENG) – hottest: Probably the 83rd best snoa song to drop this year, he still provided the most enjoyable listen from any artist from Leicester on this list. My favorite part was the little autotuned adlib that pops up around the 48 second mark, although it was a bit of a tease, as in my head he was going to switch up his vocal style to sound like that for the remainder of the song, but continued with the drab sound which he’s utilized to more success on other hits from this year.

Sorry… (Athens, GRE) – Fragile: I love Black Metal, but some DSBM can be harder for me to get into. Sorry… makes DSBM, but they are a band. I feel like that alone makes it harder to express hopelessness and drown in depression as the personal nature of the suffering is lost. This album also suffers a bit from some bland vintage metal elements making the project feel like it is shooting for more pop appeal compared to some other examples within the genre. I’ve seen some online call Sorry… the worst band making DSBM; this is my first experience with the group, but from what I’ve heard (although from a personal background perspective I could be missing something), that is an overstatement, but little of what is occurring on Fragile is noteworthy.

squillo (New Jersey) - BLV: I had a lot of fun with this new squillo album. Usually, I prefer him as a singles artist due to his corrosive delivery and production sometimes losing potency after too many songs in a row. If you are a basketball fan, you will love squillo’s ball knowledge found throughout this project - he’s always had a knack for namedropping hoopers from Kevin Durant to Alex Len on his songs, and he’s kicked that tendency up a notch on BLV

Tha God Fahim & Richard Milli (Atlanta, GA) - Omega Beams: I used to be a massive Dump Gawd fan, but lately, I don’t find myself catching his new releases as often, and I’m not too sure why. After enjoying some classic-sounding cuts on his new project The Dumplorian, produced by MR. SKIP, I was a little more underwhelmed with this one, as most of the front half of the tracklist contained some of Fahim’s lazier raps and some less inspired beats. Fortunately, the duo turns it up for the final three cuts on the album, with “Don’t Get Seasick” being the cream of the crop - the slick shit talk over the fittingly lost-at-sea lo-fi loops just swirl together in a delectable fashion.

Tony Moxberg & Benny the Butcher (Yonkers / Buffalo, NY) – Run it Up: In order to enjoy this song, I’m convinced you have to hate modern Hip-Hop so much that you automatically glaze anything that is remotely influenced by the old-school, and Benny the Butcher is a deity to you. This is one of the most unlistenable rap songs in the old-school-is-king field that I have ever heard.

YBN Lil Bro & Babytron (Birmingham, AL / Ypsilanti, MI) – Back in Action: BabyTron kicks this track off by saying he knows when a bum is coming because he can hear his Ford squealing, while YBN Lil Bro finishes things up by detailing how he kicks a girl out of his house in the style of Leo Johnson. About what you’d expect from these two.

The Abyss

5.11 (???) – fortification: I’m not sure if 5.11 is a producer or a host (or where they are from, the SoundCloud says “Afghanistan”), but many rappers grace the dark plug-leaning beats on fortification, mostly without leaving much of an impression. The most memorable lyric on this album to me came from xuur, who pronounced gyro (as in the Greek food) how its spelled, a forgivable mistake but one that caught me off guard.

A November Morning (San Jose, CA) – In the Shadows of Absence: A new band to me, A November Morning impressed me a ton with this new record, which features drawn-out songs that have idyllic post-hardcore elbow-throwing ability and classic screamo structure and evolution. While the rest of the album still hits like a truck, “Your Name, Forever”, was an high-gravity introduction that wastes no time throughout its nearly 8-minute runtime, making in my favorite track on the EP.

Ariaty & Babylowski1 (Gauteng, SAF) – Gold bull: With South African rappers growing in popularity on a daily basis, it's easy to wonder when Babylowski1 will receive his shine - he flows with allure over this pad-laden Ariaty beat featuring some of the snappiest drums he’s ever produced.

Ariaty & santana (South Africa) – TV: This new single from Ariaty and santana was solid enough to get me excited for their upcoming collaborative project. I won’t say too much here, but you can check back on maybe even the next Depthfinder to hear more about that project as a whole (please subscribe)

chisa & Bloodyneon (Brussels, BEL) – seum: I’m begging, anyone, please invent a time machine so we can send chisa to 2009.

DJ Geive, Oliveira MC 011 & Meno Saaint (Sao Paolo, BRA) – Vem uma de Cada Vez

DJ Luan Lima, MC WK, Mc Saci, Mc Th, MC KF & PK Delas (Rio De Janeiro, BRA) – Medley pro Marina: As a gringo keen on the more madness-oriented tracks in Brazil’s funk sphere, I typically gravitate towards DJ-driven funk tracks moreso than those showcasing the MCs. DJ Luan Lima lays down a barebones carioca funk beat here; in essence, it is the funk equivalent to a pounding-on-the-lunchtable remake of Clipse’s “Grindin’” type beat. Despite it feeling a bit too trope-oriented in its slim composition, the pockets it created provide the five MCs featured with several degrees of freedom, all maximizing the space in their own ways. This song upped my affinity for these types of funk tracks and made me excited to stumble upon other medleys in the future.

Durkalini & Kizzel (Roanoake, AL) – N-Z (P-MIX): One of several P-MIX tracks Durkalini has dropped this year, this track with Kizzel flexes classiness while engaging in crassness, a blend only Pastor Pyro can execute in this manner.

El Princi, Mc Taliba, DJ Ivan Figueredo, TRATTO DE LA CALLE, Skorps & DJ MAVICC (Brazil) – Caballota [Arrocha Rave]: As someone who recently learned what arrocha music is, I can say with full confidence that this track leans more towards “rave”. Definitely a fun song, the energy everyone provides here make you feel like you are trying to dance with a stranger while wearing drunk goggles.

kadin - insecure: I’ve liked a lot of kadin’s music, and while I can appreciate it sticking with the 4th of July theme a bit more than most of this list’s inclusions, this is one of his weaker tracks. Opting for a flow and aesthetic that contains notes of SkinnyBoi CJ and Amour Neveah, he doesn’t bring the same blend of unflappability, awkwardness, and humor that those two artists do. I don’t want to discredit his voice, as he is a different person, but kadin has felt like he’s built a more organic sound on projects such as Reawakening and directionless than he did on this track.

Mr. Loco & Eternal THUG LIFE (Bay Area, CA) – Boot Camp Coalition: I won’t pretend I am a Chicano rap expert, but I have a feeling that this isn’t the movement’s crown jewel.

Ovthex & King Doudou (France) - Hydrate: King Doudou is an artist I’m aware of, but one I never know how to feel about. Despite being French, he draws heavily from cultural dance music styles from places like La Republica Dominicana, Cote d’Ivoire, Brasilia, and New Jersey, and while he has obvious talent as a dance musician, he isn’t as good at making the regional styles as those from those said regions. On projects like Sin Limites MixXxtape, he compensates for that a bit by thrusting his genre bending skill, personal flair, and tracklist composition ability to the forefront. On this single, I was disappointed as soon as I heard French uttered instead of Portuguese - it just felt too much like an exercise in appropriation as opposed to appreciation. I am not Brazilian and I can’t tell you if the making of this track was right or wrong, but at the end of the day, it just didn’t feel as natural to me as some of King Doudou’s other productions, even if Ovthex has the boisterous personality required to make a funk track glow.

Percatric (Atlanta, GA) – Juan on Juan: We talk about Perc a lot on this newsletter, so I’m going to spin this entry in a different direction. Overall, I hate the utilization of AI for cover art, and it is running rampant throughout Hip-Hop right now, especially in the less popular realms of the genre. I get it, sometimes you can generate ridiculous images for free that sometimes get a smile out of me, but they never surpass organic album imagery. The one positive I can draw from this wave, however, is that it has allowed some artists to drop singles at astounding rates, perhaps giving us great new tracks that we otherwise would’ve either never heard or would’ve had to wait longer to hear. Percatric, however, throws a major wrench in this theory – maybe some rappers are too insecure to put a picture of themselves on the cover of near-daily single releases, but I promise you, I look forward to how he’s going to pose on a random Tuesday more than any image of Ernie and Bert riding in a GNX or Quagmire selling Runtz to Bart Simpson.

reddglk – Hot Pocket: I was physically and mentally unprepared for the Crazy Frog sample the same way I was unprepared for The Fray sample the first time I heard “Where i go wrong” – these tracks are similar as to how neither should work as well as they do.

Scott Taylor & Slimesito – Obscure: If you take the lyrical mean of every Slimesito song and wrote a verse with the result, this would probably be what you’d generate. Perhaps his most formulaic writing thusfar.

Suicidewave (Novosibirsk, RUS) – Feeling: Suicidewave is a veteran of the Witch House scene, probably best known for his 2014 album VV17CHOUT IV. Making quality witch house music as a whole is sort of a lost recipe as this point, and Feeling is a fairly bland release, lacking in anything worth grabbing onto as a selling point to opt for this project over the artist’s older music. The highlight is for sure the album’s closing track, “Leave”, which turns the genre’s staple timbres into a 6-minute ambient cloud that sends the project off on a luscious note.

Vsplifff & V# (Vietnam) - E-GIRL: I haven’t been keeping up with Viet rap and Vpop as much as I used to, and while this track wasn’t as good as my favorites on Splifff Tape or Love Plugg, it was nice to jump back into the genre a bit. There is much more distinct Viet rap out there.

The Trenches

BABYMULA (Milwaukee, WI) – The Life Of Baby: I wasn’t super excited going into this new BABYMULA tape, given most of his work in the past was quite simply okay to solid to me, but he surprised me here with his best tape yet. A sleek 16 minutes with no wasted time, the Milwaukee artist uses faint melodic touches in his voice in tandem with smooth flows and beats to make this project stick. Like many Milwaukee artists which appear in this tier in the newsletter, the overall mix and recording quality is technically low, but that rawness allows this project to smack in the car. My favorite track was “Speed”, featuring some of my favorite lyrics on the project, like “I went broke and went missing / b*tch I went distant, whole time I was fishing” and “all these Ls I took I still got shoes on ‘cause I can’t see defeat”. On the opening track, a lowkey lowend bop titled “Turn Me Up”, BABYMULA suavely delivers “I’m swingin’ dracs like a rock band / feel like Big Time Rush”, which is the perfect amount of nonsense a song detailing love for percs and drank should provide. Plenty of other songs on this tape, such as “Bust ‘Em Down”, “CBFW”, “Lonely”, and “Cross The Line” deliver quality moments as well – this is yet another quality specimen in the growing library of low-budget but high-quality Milwaukee rap tapes from 2025.

Ballhard Mook (Milwaukee, WI) – Bag Too / Lost Files, Vol. 1: I’m not deep in the weeds with Ballhard Mook’s music, so I’m honestly not sure if he uploaded both a single and an EP on the 4th or one of these had been released previously. It doesn’t matter much, as all five of these songs hit. Lost Files features some recognizable beats if you are a Milwaukee rap sicko, but songs like “Cold Shoulder” shows that Mook is capable of reinventing them with his own style. “Twin Hoes”, the following track, is perhaps the most debonair performance I’ve ever heard from Mook, drifting effortlessly over a beat that feels like you’re in the car wash and they just sprayed the rainbow fluid on your windshield.

Big Reese (Milwaukee, WI) – Ain’t A Thang: Big Reese knows how to make sure every scrap of that funky bassline is used up on this one - one of those rare new rap songs you can picture some oldheads feeling due to its classic bounce. From a lyrical perspective, this is far from Big Reese’s most interesting song; thankfully, this one is more about the grooves.

Emi P (Philadelphia, PA) - KINGJESTER: As a rapper, I’m not to keen on Emi P, but this guy knows a thing or two about beats: “POP!”, “PIRATESHIP”, and “FUTON” are just a few examples of some pristine productions you can find on this album. “FUTON”, produced by Subjxct 5, the producer equivalent of The Holy Spirit, also features Papoo2oo4, who kills his guest spot - Emi P is strong enough on this track to make the verse not go to waste, either. “SUNNYD”, a flowery cut with pitched-up vocals, probably boasts my favorite Emi P solo performance on the whole album. For a Hip-Hop album made by an artist whose rapping leaves a lot to be desired in my eyes, this album is solid, and Emi P needs respect for his prodigious taste in classic underground Hip-Hop production.

Foenem (Milwaukee, WI) – Slippery slope: “I’m in the shower with two hoes I told them don’t drop the soap” … alright.

Heezy the Artist & Spaidez (Milwaukee, WI) – Heezy Presents: Spaidez “Love Language”: This EP is a collaboration between two Milwaukee artists that have been at it for over a decade yet remain unrecognized despite both making quality music at high volumes. This new EP is a lo-fi, emotional collection of lowend tracks that, while far from either artists’ best work, still have memorable moments in them. The most emotional moment occurs on “Haliburton”, which showcases lyrics concerning a mother’s fight with cancer, while the most entertaining moment occurs on “Love Potion No. 26” with a classic Milwaukee autotuned reinterpretation of Nate Dogg’s guest spot on the 50 Cent classic “21 Questions”.

Jody $WANK (Brooklyn, NY) – 99 Til iNFiNiTi: Jody $WANK has energy that makes him feel like he’s your friend who gets high and starts rapping and is honestly way better than you expect him to be. He kind of reads like a Pi’erre minion on this project, most often reminding me of Chavo. While this project is fairly short, it would’ve hit much harder had he cut some of the fat off of it - too many of these tracks are run-of-the-mill, especially compared to my favorite tracks on the album, “B. i. M. R.” and “HiT MY PLUG”

Lil Hawa (Philadelphia, PA) – Better Duck: When will the Queen of Philadelphia get her flowers? Another virulent rap over another baleful beat resulting in another dark yet enticing rap banger from the city of Philadelphia. While I understand why the scene and the sound can be polarizing, I feel like Lil Hawa operates in perhaps the most agreeable manner of anyone cooking up in this sound while also staying true to its dark matter backbone.

Mer Leau & DJ LUCAS (??? / Western Mass) - Ambulance: First off, Mer Leau is a hilarious white boy rapper name. Second, whatever DJ’s price for a feature is, it’s worth its weight in goal. I couldn’t tell you anything about Mer Leau’s performance here other than it was a forgettable melodic thing going on. DJ doesn’t fit this track whatsoever, but that doesn’t stop him from a full-throttle takeover of the track, hardly phoning it in on this otherwise mediocre track.

Stuxxa, Bfb Da Packman, MBM Zer0, Marsosa & Mablooo (Maryland / Michigan) – A-Z: This track is obviously the result of money being thrown at Bfb Da Packman, but give him credit - he has fun on this track and doesn’t completely phone it in despite being by far the biggest name and biggest talent on the track. Producer Stuxxa should get some credit too, as this is not a bad beat at all and has some nice moments mixed in here to emphasize the start of the track’s highlight verse.

ScootFazo & 392 Lil Head (Canton, OH / Lynwood, MI) – BELTGANGWORLDWIDE: 392 Lil Head has been a new-to-me artist that has stuck with me in 2025, so seeing him collab with Canton’s ScootFazo (Ohio rap has also been hitting in 2025) was a recipe designed to mesh with me. The EP starts out strong with “BeltsWrldwide”, a banger that combines that Southern rap bounce with that Midwest rap grit that often describes some of Ohio’s best Hip-Hop tracks, and follows it up with three other equally-strong cuts, my favorite being the grimace-inducing “Striker Music”

Ty Kalil (Columbus, OH) – Off da Porch: I didn’t like this album much, but not a lick of me wanted to hate on Ty Kalil. The Columbus native seems like he loves rapping and has room for improvement, something that feels nothing short of inevitable. My favorite song was “Backdoor”, which is a track with potent bounce and a nice guest spot from one of Ohio’s best in 9ina. If Kalil improves his lyrics, he could be an artist that can wow you with his stylistic range and innate ability to alchemize with his collaborators, it’s just not all the way there yet

Ugli Cee & biz (???) - KEMET: Maybe they’re from Milwaukee, but they’re doing something in their music that gives me pause from claiming that. These two have a lot of songs together that bang, but this one’s beat feels like a downward spiral. Certified Trapper could probably make this one work, but Ugli Cee and biz feel almost too sane to maximize its potential. I’m posting this late, so I can say this - on 7/11/2025, these two dropped a song called “HIGH SODIUM”, which would be a better introduction to their music than “KEMET” is.