I Can't Call It - Reasonable Drought - Stove God Cooks

"Momma said I hope you done with all of that dancing on the stove shit..." - Stove God Cooks

A minute ago I was reading a Nas interview and they asked him how does he keep up with all of the music that drops nowadays and he said that if something's dope enough, it'll find it's way to him. And I thought that just might've been the illest thing he said since "outside right we" cause I was struggling big time trying to keep up with all of the music that drops. So after Nas schooled me to the science of finding new music, I've been relying for dope music to "find me." So about two week ago a couple of folk started telling me about some bul named Stove God Cook$ and my first reaction was "bul's name is STOVE GOD COOKS?!?!?!" Welp, that's just wack...nah I'm good and kept it moving. Then about a week ago, more folk were telling me about him but this time they sent me the album cover, which was really wack so I was like "yeah, I'm mos def not listening bul now. But then I reached out to my guy who's like MY GUY Rican Crack about some real life ish and when HE told me "bro you REALLY need to listen to this Reasonable Drought shit" then I was like "damn...if YOU'RE cosigning this album then I GOTTA listen to it." But here's the thing ya'll, can a rapper with a wack name AND a wack album cover make a dope album? We shall soon find out. 

I Can't Call It: Donald Glover Present aka 3.15.20 - Childish Gambino

I can't say I've ever been a fan of Childish Gambino. But I CAN say that I'm a fan of Donald Glover. Now I know some of ya'll are saying how is that even possible? Easy. I heard of Donald Glover before I heard of Childish Gambino...duh. My homegirl Mo used to ask me if I rocked with Childish Gambino and I told her I don't really rock with any of those off brand Wu groups like that. Yeah, I thought Childish Gambino was an off brand Wu group, that's how much of a fan I was. So how did I become a fan of Donald Glover? Easy. Atlanta. To be honest I don't know a living soul who doesn't love Atlanta. So, now you see what I meant by I was a fan of Glover and not Childish Gambino? Then one day I heard he was dropping an album and since I'd heard the urban legend that Glover can do it all, act, write, do stand up, sing, rap, etc. etc. I figured after giving us Atlanta, the least I could do is give his album a run. And boy oh boy did I give it a run. Sheeeeeeeeet I not only gave it a run, I ran it straight into the ground and gave it 4.5 mics while doing it. But between the next season of Atlanta getting pushed back cause Glover's been waaaaaaay too busy killing the game in Hollywood and winning a couple of Grammy's here and there for "This Is America"  I didn't know if or when we'd ever get another album but then two weeks ago I wake up to twitter going crazy saying Glover just dropped a new album but I won't hold ya'll, I gotta be in the right "mood" to listen to Glover. So I said I'd check it out the next day but then the next day, the album was taken down from his site! So for the past week I've been trying to find it any and everywhere to no avail. But guess what ya'll? God is good all the time and all the time, God is good cause I finally got my hands on the album so I guess the real question at hand is does Glover have another damn near classic album on his hands or will "Donald Glover Presents" end up like "Solo" did?

I Can't Call It: A Written Testimony - Jay Electronica

"Jay Elect-Ramadan, Muhammad as-salaam-alaikum RasoulAllah Subhanahu wa ta'ala through your monitor..."

That line for me is EASILY one of the dopest hip hop lines EVER off of one of the ILLEST songs of the past 20 years! I mean..."Exhibit C?!?!?!?" Come on ya'll...I don't know one soul living or dead who doesn't LOOOOOOOOOVE that song! But then just like that...poof...Jay Elect vanished into thin air just like Keyser Soze. Yeah we got some cameos here and there, with PRhyme's "To Me, To You", Chance's "How Great" and Ski Beatz's "Prowler 2" and my personal fave being Reflection Eternal's "Just Begun," "smile on my face tears of a sad clown, feeling out of place as I whistle a cab down/if I tip extra, can I huff a cig, blow my smoke out the window dropping ashes on the bridge/I'm in New York now, like Akeem and Semmi was trying to get the lobby door open from a semi-buzz." Maaaaaaaaaaaan listen. So yeah, we got some incredible verses but ummmm...where's the damn album? It got to the point that Jay Elect's debut album was sitting right there right next to Dre's "Detox" & D'Angelo's "James River" BUT at least Dre did drop "Compton" 14 years after "2001" & D' did drop "Black Messiah" 14 years after "Voodoo." So with both of those albums dropping and with the magical number 14 floating around both of 'em I personally was looking for Jay Elect to drop an album around 2023 which would be 14 years after "Exhibit C" dropped. But then last month word gets to ear that Jay Elect would be dropping sometime in March and my first thought was "I'll believe it when I see it." Then the next piece of info that pops up is this is going to be a colabo album with Jay Elect and Jay Z. Great. So this isn't REALLY a Jay Elect's debut album, it's a "Watch The Throne" type album...great. And THEN I hear that Young F&$KING Guru is producing this?!?!? Welp that's when all my expectation for this went right out the window. But at the end of the day, even if this is a Jay Elect/Jay Z collabo album produced by an engineer who doesn't even produce, ya'll do KNOW I'm still gonna tune in, right? 

Square Root Of A Kilo - RJ Payne

Who the F&$K is RJ Payne? Nah...seriously who is dude? Word had got to ear to me about this cat Benny signed to BSF but I had no idea who he was but I figured if Benny signed him, then he had to not only be nice but dude had to be a problem. Fast forward to Benny's "The Plugs I Met" album and I finally got to hear Payne set off "Dirty Harry." "More bananas than the zoo Gorilla and all my hammers got that panoramic view/you niggas gamble with life 'til that cannon blam at you, small minded blow out your brain and expand a nigga view/raw specimen pure medicine Benny said clean niggas up I'm George Jefferson/Black Sopranos we workin', three quarters Mexican, bars hit you like finding out your daughter a lesbian!" Maaaaaaaaan listen, that verse was I needed to hear to KNOW dude was a problem! And after hearing that verse I went diggin & got my hands on his "Leatherface" album which  stayed in my rotation til his newest album "Square Root of A Kilo" dropped. Now let's see if  "Square Root..." has that same street ish I LOVE enough to stay in my rotation cause 2019 has been a hell of a year for hip hop!

I Can't Call It: Jimmy Lee - Raphael Saadiq

"Even when I'm clean, I'm still a dope fiend..."

What can I say about Raphael Saadiq that hasn’t already been said? Well, to be honest I guess I can actually say a lot because I seldomly ever hear his name brought even though he’s been in the game 30+ years. Now some young folk may not truly understand his legendary status so let me play KRS & break it down like this. Tony Toni Tone’s “It Never Rains” was the soundtrack to my first REAL relationship in high school back in ’90 when I was 16 years old. Fast forward a couple of years and now Tony Toni Tone’s “Anniversary”, “Lay Your Head On My Pillow” & Saadiq’s first dolo song “Ask of You” was the soundtrack to my college relationship back in 1996. And once the new millennium was upon us songs like “Be Here”, "Still Ray", "Love That Girl" and "Good Man" became the soundtrack to my marriage. So this man in some way, shape or form has provided the soundtrack to my life since I was 16 years old and I’m now 45 years old! Take a minute and REALLY think about that. What other artist can say they’ve been making hits for over 30 years? And keep in mind, I said "making hits". Not just still making music. And trust me, there’s a BIG difference between the two. Because there are some artists in these streets who are on their 18th album but in all actuality, they fell off by their 8th album. But not Saadiq…nah…not at all. And after 30+ years in the game we've finally got Saadiq’s 5th dolo album "Jimmy Lee" on tap after taking an eight year Sadeish/Pharoahe Monchish hiatus which deals with his brother’s drug addictions. And after reading the last paragraph I shouldn’t have to tell ya’ll how hype I am for this jawn…right? 

I Can't Call It: Bandana - Freddie Gibbs & Madlib

It's hard to believe that in 2019 that there was a time when I had no idea who Freddie Gibbs was. Sounds crazy right? The first time I heard Gangsta Gibbs was on Currensy & Al's "Covert Coup" on my fave song on the album "Scottie Pippens" and I KNEW dude was a problem with how he set his verse off with "reporting live from the devil's palace, for breakfast had two tities, two blunts and a turkey bacon sandwich." My bad...did this mofo just said he had "two titties, two blunts and a turkey bacon sandwich?" Welp, I'm a fan and been a fan ever since. Now even though I'm a Gangsta Gibbs fan and check for any and everything he drops, there's something REALLY special happens when he links up with the evil genius Madlib. And here's the CRAZY part...I'm not even the biggest Madlib fan like that. Now don't get it twisted, I KNOW dude is a beast but dude has so many personalities and side projects that I don't know what "Madlib" I'm getting half of the time. But I do know what Madlib I'm getting when these two colab so it should be no surprise to anyone that I was hype as hell for their sophomore album "Bandana" right? And without hearing one second of it I'm willing to bet a crate of my most hard to find records that there won't be any kinda sophomore slump over this way at all.

I Can't Call It: The Plugs I Met - Benny the Butcher

Anybody who knows ANYTHING about me knows that I LOOOOOOOOOOOOOOVE Griselda! I haven't rocked with a crew THIS much since the BCC back in the early 90's. And I'm not just talking music wise either. I'm at every Griselda show that's within a 100 mile radius of me and if you know me then you KNOW I don't rock anything except Polo...and GXFR gear. And not for nuthin, but last year Benny scooped up the 2018's dopest album of the year chip from me with his 5 mic classic "Tana Talk 3" so it would be an understatement to say I was hype as hell when word got to ear that Benny was actually making an album about the plugs he met. And then when I heard it was dropping this summer?!?!?! Maaaaaaaaaaaaaaan listen. But I won't hold you that I was salty as hell when I peeped the tracklisting & saw it was only gonna have 6 songs on it with a rack of features too. But at the end of the day we're still talking about one of my fave MC's walking the planet earth so if anybody can turn a 6 song EP featuring everybody from Buffalo and Philly to Virginia and the fifth corridor into another 5 mic classic, it's mos def the Butcher!

I Can't Call It: Expect The Unexpected - Tracey Lee

It's been 20+ years since the man I like to describe as the only MC beside Jay to go toe to toe with BIG and hold his own, Tray Lee dropped his classic banger "The Theme" off his highly slept on debut album "Many Facez." But then just like Keyser Soze is Usual Suspects...dude was gone. Word  eventually got to ear that dude went to law school and was a full time lawyer now which is dope but come on...one of the nicest cats Philly ever produced just didn't up and retire, did he? Nah...dude was too nice to just leave the game like that. So to set off 2019 right, we've got one of the nicest from the city of brotherly love on tap with his new album "Expect The Unexpected" on tap.

I Can't Call It: Tana Talk 3 - Benny the Butcher

"I heard they sick about me rapping about the drugs I stretched..." - Benny

Let's cut through the BS...I already know what half of ya'll are thinking, "another Griselda album? All they do is talk about drugs and shooting people." And you know what? You're 100% right. But guess what? They're dope as hell when it comes to doing what they do. Plus, let's not sit back and act like they don't have bars & quotable for days while selling all those drugs and shooting people either. And those bars and quotables are all that matters to me. Plus those Griselda dudes are official so don't act like these are just some random nut ass niggas rhyming about what their man's man did (like some of ya'll fave rappers have been doing for year) cause they're mos def rapping about what they know. So when word got to ear that Benny was dropping his debut album "Tana Talk 3" on Griselda produced by Daringer and Alchemist, anybody who knows me KNEW I was gonna be all ears for this jawn.

I Can't Call It : Oscillator Oasis - Watts Club

Techno, electro, trance, house or whatever you wanna call it has been a part of hip hop since day one. From the first time I heard Bam's "Planet Rock" to me seeing the Rock Steady Crew breaking to "Digital Boogie" there's always been a soft place in my heart for techno. So when word got to ear that DJ Jay Bishop dropped a new album dedicated to a lil bit of everything from Detroit techno to electric funk I was all ears. 

I Can't Call It: Nasir - Nas

I haven't enjoyed a complete Nas album since "Stillmatic" back in '01. So when word got to ear that Nas had a new album dropping produced by Kanye West I had zero expectations. Why? Well, if the last time I enjoyed a Nas album was 17 years ago and since it's been  over 15 year since I heard a legit Ye produced BANGER ask yourself why would I be excited by what Nas & Ye had on tap? Oh ya'll thought cause Ye laced Pusha T with those "Daytona" I'd be hype? Nah. See here's the thing with Push, dude could literally rhyme over Impeach the Pres 7 times in a row and it would be crazy! See, Push is one of those rare MCs who doesn't need the beat, the beat needs him. Where as with Nas...well let's just say dude literally could go down in history as the worst beat picker EVER. So where as Nas' cockiness probably leads him to believe that he's in Push's lane, when in reality nothing could be further from the truth. Nas NEEDS dope beats. Now the question is, after doing Pusha's album, his album, Cudi's album and Teyanna Taylor, does he have any dope beats left for Nas?

I Can't Call It: Ye - Kanye West

Sooooo there's a new Kanye album on tap and it seems like I'm the only one hype for it huh? Trust and believe, I KNOW I'm one of the very few people on the planet Earth who liked Ye's last outing with "Pablo." Not to mention I rocked with Ye's "808" so I get that I'm in the minority when it comes to Mr.  West. But here's the thing, if you know me then you know I don't mind being in the minority. I know, I know...dude's slavery comments and trump support rubbed a lot of folk the wrong way (myself included) but let's not forget that this dude is bipolar & dealing with mental issues and I KNOW ya'll didn't forget that he's married to a Kardashian right? And look what those chicks did to Lamar and Bruce! Ya'll already heard him say "you ain't never seen nothing crazier than, this niga when he off his lexapro" (well...I guess since none of ya'll heard Pablo, ya'll didn't hear him say it) but let's not forget this is the same dude who did the most gangsta thing in hip hop when he said that George Bush don't care about black people on live TV. But I get it. It's 2018 and if you're not "woke" and if you don't agree with everything the black lives matter crew & black twitter says, then you're not invited to the BBQ. And trust, I already know that Ye ain't invited to the BBQ. But since I already rocked with "Pablo" and absolutely LOVED Pusha' "Daytona" it's only right that Ye gets a spin in my rotation right before the BBQ starts, right?

I Can't Call It:Streams of Thought Vol. 1 - Black Thought

There are very few things that I have been waiting 20+ years for but one of the things at the top of that list is a Black  Thought solo album. I almost thought we were gonna get it with "Masterpiece Theater" back in '01 but the album ended up being scrapped & a lot of those songs ended up making The Root's "Phrenology" album. And at the time I wasn't even mad it got scrapped since I didn't fuck with "Phrenology" like that. And even though the Roots have released 7 more studio albums since "Phrenology" I've always wanted to hear Thought over some straight up and down boom bap and I don't get that from the Roots anymore. In fact, I said on an ep of my podcast Apt. 5B that I didn't want anybody even close to the studio who knew how to read music or play an instrument. I only wanted cats who know how to program MP's, SP's and Maschines. So when word got to ear that we were FINALLY gonna get the dolo Thought album I was hype as hell! That is, til I found out it was being produced by 9th Wonder. Now, one of the biggest misconceptions about me is that I don't  like 9th's production and nothing could be further from the truth. I think 9th is dope. Just not dope enough to be on folk's Mt. Rushmore of producers & on shirts that say things like "Primo, Pete,  Dilla & 9th." Now, that's not 9th fault and again, I got nothing against the brother but ummm....I would've mos def preferred a  Jake One, Alchemist, Nottz...hell, even a Dilla produced Thought album! (I personally have over 120 Dilla beats no one ever heard so I KNOW Quest gotta have 1,000's more) But at the end of the day it is what it is and I guess I can't  look a gift horse in the mouth right? So let's see what this "Streams of  Thought Vol. 1" is hittin' foe.

I Can't Call It: Daytona - Pusha T

In 2018 there aren't too many artists that I really ever get hype for. And I'm not talking about just listening to something cause it just dropped but I'm talking about REALLY being hype for an album. But the one artist that I can ALWAYS count on to get me hype is no other then the snow god Pusha T. I know, I know...all he talks about is selling coke and that's true but ummmm...can anybody REALLY talk about coke doper then Pusha? I mean, I've been waiting for this dude to run outta ways to talk about coke for the past 18 years and it just ain't gonna happen. In facts this dude's coke references just keep getting doper and doper and doper. So it shouldn't be a surprise to anyone that Pusha's "Daytona" is probably the most anticipated album of the year for me right? (yup...I know Nas is dropping this year too) Now, ever since word got to ear that Kanye was producing the album dolo that's where things started ti get a 'lil iffy for me cause ya'll do realize that it's been more then a decade since we've heard a legit dolo Ye produced banger right? But let's keep it funky, Push could rhyme over Impeach the President for 7 songs and I'd be good money so not even a Kardashian cursed black man could ruin a Push album...right?

I Can't Call It: Good Thing - Leon Bridges

One of the dopest things about social media is that I have not only been blessed to become friends with SOOOOOO many dope people but I've literally met folk that I consider to family! And while for most folk I can't remember how or when we connected, the one person who I know the exact moment we got cool is my bro JR. See, Leon Bridges had just dropped his debut album "Coming Home" and JR did a video about it around the same time I was writing a review on it and we both saw each other's tweets about it, which started a convo and now three years later, dude is fam. It's literally to the point that I can't even think of Leon Bridges without thinking of JR. It's like the two are synonymous which one another. And when it comes to Mr. Bridges I can't even begin to tell ya'll how much of a fan I am of this dude. I LOVED "Coming  Home" and PLEASE don't even get me started on Mick's CLASSIC remix album "Coming Home to Texas." But the only question I had when it came to dude's music was what's he gonna do when this whole "old school sounding like Sam Cooke vibe" gets that was dope back in the day gets played out? Welp, with his new album "Good Thing" on tap I guess we're about to find out.

I Can't Call It: The Book of Ryan - Royce Da 5'9"

I don't think there's ever been a MC that I root for more then Royce. Why? Cause from the second I first heard the Preem produced "Boom" I KNEW this dude was a problem. Now, the only problem that the problem had was that he could never make an entire album that was a dope as those Preem produced bangers he would always have on tap. (Boom, 2nd Round, Hip Hop, Shake This, etc.) Which is one of the reasons I was hype as hell when they linked up for their PRhyme projects which ended up being the 1st entire Royce album I thoroughly enjoyed from beginning to end. It also didn't hurt that Preemo produced the entire thing and used all Adrian Young samples cause it's kinda hard to go wrong with those two. Then he drops "Trust the Shooter" which was also dope so I'm thinking bet...Royce finally got the formula down pat right? Wrong. Cause with his next album "Layers" I felt like we were right back to where we first started with Royce albums. Now the next thing you know "PRhyme 2" drops which is another Roycebanger and then word gets to ear that he's dropping his "most personal album to date" with "The Book of Ryan." But ya'll know me, I ain't falling for the banana in the tailpipe for like the 4th time cause this will end up just being another dope lyrical album with sub par beats right? 

I Can't Call It: Sex & Cigarettes - Toni Braxton

Toni Braxton is my favorite singer from the 90's. Yup you read that right, no need to read it again. And whenever I say that it always shocks folk because they probably assume cause of my love for hip hop that it would be Mary J. but nah...it's Ms. Braxton. For some reason, I've ALWAYS loved Toni's voice. Probably because my fave singer of the 80's was Anita Baker and Toni was like my generation's Anita with that deep singing voice those two got on lock. Plus I loved the fact that Toni and Face were like the Pete and CL of R&B and that shorty wasn't just making songs...she was making anthems! Seven Whole Days, Love Should've Brought You Home, Breath Again, You Mean The World To Me...these jawns were flat out incredible! The songwriting, the production, the singing were about as perfect as you could get. But throughout the years Toni has never been able to match the magic of that debut album. Now don't get it twisted, she's made a lot of dope songs here and there but being able to have a complete album that's even close to 5 mics...nah. So when word got to ear that Toni had a new album coming out I didn't even pay it any mind. Especially now that she's with Birdman cause I didn't know what the hell to expect. But shorty is my fave singer so I gotta at least give this new album "Sex & Cigarettes" a spin right?

I Can't Call It: My Name Is Earl - Earl St. Clair

I'm not a big reality TV watcher like that, in fact I don't watch any of 'em anymore. And I say anymore because I used to partake in my guilty pleasure was VH1's Love & Hip Hop. Now the only problem was that show was by the time I got tired of all of the dumb ish going on I had wifey hooked! So from time to time if I walk in the bedroom & she's watching it, I'll backslide just a 'lil and catch an ep. So last week while we were peeping the new ep of Love & Hip Hop Atlanta this ILL song "Pain" came on and after a quick pandora hit I found out it was some dude named Earl St. Clair. Now the only problem with checking out his new EP "My Name Is Earl" was that Roc Marciano's "Rosebudd's Revenge 2" currently had my rotation on lock but somehow from the grace of God, Earl crept his was into my rotation and I an't gonna hold ya'll... this EP ain't left since!

I Can't Call It: Rosebudd's Revenge 2 - Roc Marciano

Roc Marciano is a hip hop enigma. I can't remember the last time there's been a MC that folk either love or hate cause there's literally no in between that I've seen when it comes to Roc. I mean I've literally heard some folk say that Roc is one of the dopest MCs in the game who helped to father the Conway/Westside Gunn steez. And then on the flipside I know a RACK of dudes who think Roc is straight up and down wack and boring as hell. Now for the simple fact that I'm checking for Rosebudd's Revenge 2" you should already know what side of the fence I'm on. But the real question is will "Rosebudd..." win over those folk on the other side of that fence?

I Can't Call It: No News Is Good News - Phonte

Whenever folk ask me what's missing from hip hop nowadays, I always tell them that we need more adult contemporary hip hop. And what I mean by that is we need more hip hop that speaks to the adults who still live & love this culture and speaks to the situations that some of us are going through. See back in the mid to late 80's/early 90's in Philly, all of the young folk had Power 99 that was playing all of the hip hop and any new school R&B like Jodeci, Boyz 2 Men and Mary J. while our parents had WDAS that played the adult contemporary R&B with Anita Baker, Luther Vandross, Freddie Jackson, etc. And you would NEVER catch WDAS playing anything that my crew were listening to and vice versa for Power 99. See both stations stayed in their lane and played to their particular audience. And with the bulk of the hip hop heads who were shortys in the 80's who are now 40+,  this mumble rap isn't speaking to us. Or at least it's not speaking to us old heads who aren't in our 2nd childhood, trying to still be young, rocking tight jeans with 'Lil whoever at the top of their playlists. So with all of that said, who is a 43 year old who's been married 18 years, who raising a daughter in the middle school and trying to keep the bills paid and who has fibromaylgia supposed to listen to that speaks to his situation? Welp, that's an easy answer whenever you've got some new Tigallo on tap!