Nas, Travis Scott, Ice Spice, And More Hip-Hop Releases You Need To Hear!
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Today is Friday, which means there are a ton of new releases to look forward to from some of your favorite Hip-Hop artists. To help you unwind and enjoy the weekend, check out VIBE’s picks of songs and albums you should hear and add to your soundtrack of weekend festivities.
Nas – Magic 2
When Nas drops an album it’s akin to a holiday and the release of his Magic 2 project is a festive occasion, indeed. With his recent hot streak of magnificent bodies of work, the Queens legend resumes his onslaught with 11 selections, as he gives listeners a reminder of why he’s regarded among the greatest to ever do it. On “Abracadabra,” the lyricist turned venture capitalist basks in his greatness, saluting he and Hit-Boy’s collaborations, rhyming “2020 we did the first one/ Five album run, now the curse won/ It’s a blessed one/ By the time y’all hear this, we’ll be halfway through the next one.”
50 Cent’s appearance on “Office Hours” was highly anticipated, but its finished result pales in comparison to the hype. But that doesn’t break Esco’s stride, as he floats on standout selections like “Black Magic,” “Motion,” and “Bokeem Woodbine,” a trifecta that nearly removes any memory of the slight misstep. The poetic flow continues to impress on for the duration of the album. He closes out the proceedings on a high note with “Pistols On Your Album Cover,” which finds Nas lyrically prancing atop piano keys and sturdy percussion. Over three decades into his music career, Nasty Nas appears to have found the creative fountain of youth, with Magic 2 being the latest product of fire water sprung from that well. – Preezy Brown
Ice Spice –Like..? (Deluxe)
Ice Spice has defied the trend of putting deluxe projects out within a week of the original release. The Like..? (Deluxe) adds five new records to her popular EP, namely the Nicki Minaj remix to “Princess Diana,” her popular “On The Radar Freestyle,” “Deli” (which has been teased a lot within the last week), and “Butterfly Ku.” The Bronx star continues to show that she can do more than drill or drill-adjacent records with the pop-leaning “How High?” as she plays around with melodies and a more backpack rap-type flow. “Butterfly Ku” is quintessential “get sturdy” music and “Deli” is like taking “In Ha Mood” and increasing the bpm. There is a clear improvement in her delivery, cadence, and punchlines. She leans on a few popular lines that have been used in her previous songs but finds ways to create variation. While, at this moment, none of the records seem to have smash hit potential, they are quality offerings that feed her listeners and continue a run of simply good music. – Armon Sadler
Babyface Ray – Summer’s Mine
After breaking out with his FACE and MOB projects in 2022, Babyface Ray returns with Summer’s Mine, a collection that ups the ante and positions the Detroit rhymer for greater pastures. Clocking in at 16 tracks, Summer’s Mine finds its author firing off from the onset with “ScarFACE,” where he asserts himself as the boss over airy synths provided RIF and CameOne. While Ray is a star in his own right, he pays homage to his peer Luh Tyler by borrowing his flow for a collaborative effort alongside Los and Nutty before running through a succession of heaters including “Racks N,” “Jackboys,” and “Fly Gods.” Summer’s Mine is not just an album title, but a cocksure declaration that Babyface Ray ensures is closer to fact than fiction with his performance on this long player. – PB
Travis Scott Feat. Bad Bunny And The Weeknd – “KPOP”
On paper, “K-Pop” looks like what you’d get if you put the names of the highest streaming artists of the last five years into a lottery ball machine and picked out three. Travis Scott and The Weeknd are of course no strangers to one another when it comes to collaboration, but the presence of Bad Bunny makes this an interesting mashup. Benito mostly carries the record, which leans into his brand of Latin trap-pop. Cactus Jack opens the record with his signature autotune vocals which, per usual, sounds cool but doesn’t conceptually amount to much. The Puerto Rican superstar jumps in next and floats over the tribal-sounding drum pattern. His vocals crescendo early into his verse as he hits higher octaves. The Weeknd and Scott harmonize on the chorus and Abel adds some vocal riffs in the beat break before his verse about drugs and a woman in St. Tropez calling his name. Overall, this is a very fun Bad Bunny and Weeknd record with Trav adding his strengths. It will go over well sonically in an outside environment, even if there aren’t any memorable lyrics. – AS
Black Milk – Everybody Good?
Tenured double threat Black Milk plates his latest serving Everybody Good? with all the quality garnishments on a slice of food for thought. “On everything I love, every night/ Tomorrow and today ain’t gon’ be alike,” the Detroit native raps on “God Willing,” an introductory number on which he welcomes his base back for another round of complex musings over captivating soundscapes. Everybody Good? includes a healthy heaping of contributions from collaborators, as Raphael Saddiq, Karriem Riggins, Mick Jenkins, and Quelle Chris join in on the craftsmanship of this work of art. Brilliance ensues on the guitar-laden “Ain’t Nobody Coming Down To Save You,” while he zones into his mental space on the finale cut “Yeah Really,” as gets analytical while employing a conversational flow. – PB
A$AP Rocky – “RIOT (Rowdy Pipe’n)”
A$AP Rocky is feeling revolutionary on “RIOT (Roddy Pipe’n),” though the vocal energy and sonics don’t necessarily match. His voice is loud and aggressive, but the production is slow and mellow. It doesn’t exactly give off marching and protesting type of music, but it is 2023 and things change. Lyrically, he doesn’t seem to stay on one topic, reverting to his usual flexing of luxuries, “smoking exotic” and sex references. He says “I’m way more deadly with my pen involved” but the bars here leave a lot to desire; And “Pu**y ni**a that’s your menopause” did not achieve what he set out for it. There’s potential for a good song here if the Harlem fashion killa was able to bring his A-game lyrically. The production is solid though and that is something Rocky will always have going for him, especially when enlisting the help of the legend Pharrell Williams. – AS
Valee And Harry Fraud – Virtuoso
Chicago’s Valee takes flight with New York boardsman Harry Fraud on Virtuoso, a collaborative album that finds the Fake Shore Drive artist delivering a bevy of slappers with replay value. Valee comes correct on joints like “Sea Bass,” “Vibrant,” and “Dutty,” yet, the results occasionally vary. Uninspired hooks on numbers like “Yeah But Um” leave a bit to be desired. That said, the song is still a bop, for all intents and purposes, so it’s not a glaring offense, particularly when Valee makes up for it with collaborative efforts alongside 03 Greedo, Twista, Saba, MAVI, Z Money, and RXKNephew. A few years removed from his G.O.O.D. Music stint, Valee remains a force without the seismic cosigns on the strength of good music. Pun wholly intended. – PB
Kaliii – “K Toven”
Kaliii continues her homage to classic records and takes it all the way back to Beethoven’s “Fur Elise” on “K Toven.” The iconic piano melody is sped up and soon joined by a drill-EDM hybrid-like beat. She brings the energy, dismissing other women who don’t match up to her. “Heard them bi**hes say they outside/ Where they at?/ We gon’ slide/ Running through his bag like it’s mine/ Said I love ‘em/ I was lyin’,” she raps. The true treat here is her ability to weave between an upbeat cadence and then a staccato, bullet-point delivery. The Atlanta rapper hasn’t missed yet, and it’s safe to assume Beethoven is smiling down on this respectful interpolation. May his legacy forever live on with “K Toven.” – AS
JSWISS And Michael Leonheart – “The Chase (Strings Attached)”
New York-bred spitter JSWISS and Michael Leonhart collide with Keyon Harrold on “The Chase (Strings Attached),” a revamped take on the original that dropped as part of their debut album Bona Fide. The track, which features a Brooklyn-based string quartet with additional production and scratching from DJ Logic, finds JSWISS fully pocket, as he drops sly lines like “Sallie Mae flow, you don’t get schooled until I say so” atop the riveting backdrop. If “The Chase (Strings Attached)” is indicative of what JSWISS and Leonhart have in for store for the future, we’re all ears and suggest you should be, too. – PB
Cash Cobain – “Slizzy Talk”
Another Friday, another sexy drill offering from Cash Cobain. The autotune crooner’s “Slizzy Talk” leans a bit more into violence than admiration of women. The synths and drums create a fun mid-tempo canvas for him to deliver shapeshifting flows about “being with the killers.” Okay, he doesn’t stay away from discussing women for too long: “My b**ch sh*t is fat/ My wrist take your bi**h/ Not getting her back.” The Bronx rapper continues to deliver, and we should all want to talk the “Slizzy Talk.” – AS
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