Halfway Through 2020 Recap and Catch-Up Thread

[TheBigSleep]

Might seem silly to be reviewing the media we've consumed from this year when we've just now reached the midway point but it helps to break the math in half. This is not the thread for singles, we already have threads for those. This is for longer projects. What have you heard? What have you been meaning to check out? Here's some of what I've listened to already:

Instrumental Projects

Alcynoos & Parental – Shapes
Batsauce - Shelter Skelter
blnkspc_ – queens
Blockhead – Tiny Bubbles
Buckwild – Abandoned Beats
Buckwild – Essential Beats
Bugseed - Blind Spot
Bugseed – Couch Lock Beats
Bugseed – Hidden Gems
Bugseed – Pawn Shop
Clams Casino – Instrumental Relics
Coubo – Homewards
Count Bass D – Edibles 2
DJ Premier – Payday Instrumentals
Dakim – regos_SLAMMIN'
DemoTapez – Da World iz a Mad Place
EPMD – The Instrumentals
el. – Closer2U
Elijah Nang – Gaijin II LP: Tale of Rai
Es-K – Only So Much Time
Gas Lab – Blue Room
Gnome Beats – Las Formas en Flujo
Jansport J – NoLetUps.
Jaz93 – To Live
Jazzbois – Jazzbois Got Flipped
jinsang – Transitions
johto – solace.
Kazam – Shades of Blue
KLIM Beats – Snippets of Life
Knxwledge – Koko
Knxwledge – 1988
Knxwledge – 10,000 Proof
KUTMAH – Isolation Tapes v. 001
KUTMAH – New Appliance
Madlib – Bandana Beats
Martin $ky – In Real Time
Milano Constantine – Milano's Instrumentals
Mobsta Mane – Late Night Stress
NK Music – Aquila
NK Music – Delphinus
NK Music & Milkz – Mareel
Naked Gun – Back to Reality
97SPECIAL – Escape
Omari Jazz – Dream Child
Pete Rock – Don't Smoke Rock Instrumentals
Pete Rock – Statue of Limitations Instrumentals
Phoniks – Time Goes By
The Professionals – The Professionals (Instrumental)
Ras G & The Afrikan Space Program – Raw Fruit Vol. 5 & 6
Ray West & Giallo Point - Ray West and Giallo Point are Walter PPK
Roc Marciano – Pimpstrumentals
shrimpnose – Before It's Too Late
Small Professor – Can't Trap My Mind
Small Professor – A Jawn Supreme (Vol. 1)
Small Professor – Let's Go Inside My Astral Plane
Small Professor – Overwhelmed by My Telepathy
Small Professor – Selected Instro Works 17- 19 II
Spectacular Diagnostics –Thebeautifulmusic
Stretch and Bobbito & The M19s Band – No Requests
sugi.wa – Romantic
Sweatson Klank – Good Days
Sweatson Klank – Lucky Shores EP
Tall Black Guy – Look Into the Wisdom (A Tribute to Roy Ayers)
Utakemebackto99 – Commedía (2015-2020)
Vanilla - Into the Dream
Various Artists – Water For the Town v. 1
wave Groove – CONFLUX
Wax Moths – Wax Moths
Yppah – Sunset in the Deep End

EPs

Aesop Rock – Freedom Finger (Music From the Game)
BP – The Supreme Seven
Boldy James - Boldface EP
Buckwild - Fully Loaded
Chris Rivers – Self Inflicted Bubble Boy
Conway & The Alchemist – LuLu
Cormega – Mega
Curren$y – The Green Tape
Curren$y (as Spitta Andretti) – 3 Piece Set
Denzel Curry – 13lood 1n + 13lood Out Mixx
DirtyDiggs - The Last Ones to Three Peat 2
The Doppelgangaz – G Pack, Vol. 2
E-40 – The Curb Commentator Channel 1
ElCamino x 38 Spesh – Martyr's Prayer
Eto - Eto Brigante
Flee Lord – Alter Ego Fleeigo Delgado
Freddie Gibbs & Madlib – The Diamond Mine Sessions w/ El Michels Affair
Hus Kingpin – King of the Underworld
Jay Worthy – Two4one
Jay Worthy & Harry Fraud – Eat When You're Hungry Sleep When You're Tired
K.A.A.N. & FloFilz – Lost in Translation
Larry June & Cardo – Cruise USA
Lord Finesse – Motown State of Mind
Mathematik – H2O
Max B – Charly
Meyhem Lauren & Harry Fraud - Glass 2.0
MIKE and Jadasea – Old Earth
Milano Costantine – Winston Wolf
Myka Nyne - Stay Tuned
Planet Asia & DirtyDiggs – Arctic Plus Degrees (The Sun Don't Chill Allah)
Real Bad Man – On High Alert Vol. 2
Redman – 3 Joints
Sharp & Eto - 360
ShrapKnel - Flechette
Starlito – Paternity Leave
Superbad Solace - Sol Controller 2
Tall Black Guy – Restless As We Are
Wais P x Statik Selektah – Chinchilla
XP the Marxman & Roc Marciano – Continua a Sparare (Keep Firing)

Compilations, LPs, & Mixtapes

A-Plus & The Architect – Free Dope
A-Wax - Allegedly
Armand Hammer – Shrines
BP & Tragedy Khadafi – Immortal Titans on HBO
BeatKing – Gangsta Stripper Music 4
Beeda Weeda & The Mekanix – Mob God
Berner & B-Real – Los Meros
Big Ghost Ltd. – Carpe Noctem
Bishop Nehru – Nehruvia: My Disregarded Thoughts
Boldy James & The Alchemist - The Price of Tea in China (Deluxe Edition)
CJ Fly – Rudebwoy
Casual – Big Head Science
Che Noir – Juno
Che Noir & Apollo Brown – As God Intended
Chris Crack - White People Love Algorithms
Clear Soul Forces – Forceswithyou
Conway & Big Ghost Ltd. – No One Mourns the Wicked
Crimeapple – Jaguar on Palisade
Curly Castro & Small Professor – BLUu Edwards
Curren$y & DJ Fresh – The Tonite Show With Curren$y
D Smoke - Black Habits
Denzel Curry x Kenny Beats – Unlocked
Dreamville Records – Revenge of the Dreamers III: Director's Cut
Duke Deuce – Memphis Massacre 2
Eminem – Music to Be Murdered By
Enemy Radio – Loud is Not Enough
Eto – The Beauty of It
Extra Prolific - Like It's Supposed to Be
Flee Lord – Hand Me My Flowers
FMB DZ - The Gift 3
Freddie Gibbs & The Alchemist – Alfredo
Him-Lo – Slapyagoddamnfaceoff
Hus Kingpin – Gunpowder
Jay Electronica – A Written Testimony
Joyner Lucas - ADHD
K. Sluggah – Aromatic Selections Vol. I
Ka – Descendants of Cain
Killarmy – Full Metal Jackets
Knowledge the Pirate – Family Jewels
The Koreatown Oddity - Little Dominique's Nosebleed
Larry June, Payroll Giovanni, HBK, & Cardo – Game Related
Long Island Rap Records – LongIslandRap.Comp Volume 4
MIKE – Weight of the World
Moneybagg Yo – Time Served
Montana of 300 – A Cold Day in Hell
Mozzy – Beyond Bulletproof
Navy Blue – Àdá Irin
OXP (Onra & Pomrad) – Swing Convention
The Opioid Era – The Throwaways
Planet Asia x 38 Spesh – Trust the Chain
Preservation – Eastern Medicine, Western Illness
Quelle Chris & Chris Keys – Innocent Country 2
R.A. the Rugged Man – All My Heroes Are Dead
R.A.P. Ferreira – Purple Moonlight Pages
RJ Payne – If Cocaine Could Talk Vol. 6
Ramirez & Rocci – Tha Playa$ Manual
Ray West & Zilla Rocca – Rowhouse Whispers
Raze the Ratchet – Regal
Richie Rich & The Mekanix – The Grow Room
Rigz & Mooch – The Only Way Out
Rome Streetz - Noise Kandy 4
Royce da 5'9" - The Allegory
Run the Jewels – RTJ4
Ruste Juxx – Sulfuric Acid
Sada Baby – Brolik
Sada Baby – Skuba Sada 2
Serengeti – AJAI
79rs Gang – Expect the Unexpected
SharpKnel - SharpKnel
ShooterGang Kony – Red Paint Reverend
Skanks the Rap Martyr – New Word Order
Smino - She Already Decided
Spittzwell – The Return of Fresh
Splat & Smoke the World - 20 Past Now
Stove God Cook$ & Roc Marciano – Reasonable Drought
Supreme Cerebral x D. Mar – Soul Trained
V Don – Black Mass
Various Artists – Culture Power 45 & Cocoon Movements Present Afro Picks Vol. 1
Westside Gunn - FlyGod is an Awesome God II
Westside Gunn – Pray for Paris
Yhung T.O. & DaBoii – Demon and Mufasa

Unreleased / Rereleased

A.D.O.R. – The Concrete (25th Anniversary Edition)
Adagio! – New York to Philly
Apathy & Celph Titled - Tour Lords
Born-God – Who's That On the Track?
Camp Lo - Another Heist
cLOUDDEAD – The Peel Sessions: 2002-07-17
Concrete Click – Authentic Left Overs
Concrete Click – Lyrical Terrorism
Cookin' Soul – 4 Dilla Vol. 1-5
Cookin' Soul – Whateva Vol. 3
DJ Spinna – 1998 Beat Tape
Da Buze Bruvaz - Adebisi Hat Recut
Dooley-O – Dooley-O Presents The Meccanizm
Emskee – The Complex Engineer
Finsta Bundy – 101: The High
Gee Rock & Tha CND Coalition – Tha Untouchable
Homeliss Derilex – Fraudulent 2
Insane Cirkle – 360: The Unreleased Demos
Kinship – Black-N-Mild
The Last Emperor – Gotta Have Love EP
Mac G – Where It's At: The '90s Demos
Max B – Wave Pack
Mobb Deep - The Infamous (25th Anniversary Edition)
Mutha Goose Militia – The Golden Egg EP
Nick Wiz – Cellar Extras Part Two 1992-1999
Ol' Dirty Bastard – Return to the 36 Chambers: The Dirty Version (25th Anniversary Deluxe Edition)
Organized Konfusion – The Demos
Page the Hand Grenade – A Day in the Life: The '90s Demos
Phatheadz (p.k.a. Real II Reel) – Flip Off the Vibes EP
Pudgee Tha Phat Bastard – Unreleased '92 - '98
Rascalz – Really Livin'
Russ Prez – The Producer Project
38 Spesh x Benny the Butcher – Cocaine Cowboys
38 Spesh x Benny the Butcher – Cocaine Cowboys 2
Tuff Crew – DJ Too Tuff's Lost Archives EP
Westside Gunn – Flyest Nigga in Charge, Vol. 1
Yaggu Front – The Secret Tapes

Feel free to list 2020 biopics, documentaries, books, podcasts (like Take It Personal), or whatever other rap related material from this year as well.

[Philaflava]

Take It Personal - 2020 Recap (Halftime)

Take It Personal (Ep 57: A Homage to Collabos) with Spice 1
Take It Personal (Ep 58: A Homage to Collabos Pt. 2) with Ras Kass
Take It Personal (Ep 59: Til My Tape Popped)
Take It Personal (Ep 60: Indie Hip-Hop Tribute Pt. 2) with Shawn J. Period
Take It Personal (Ep 61: Quarantine In Quality) with Meyhem Lauren
Take It Personal (Ep 62: Doomsday)
Take It Personal (Ep 63: MF DOOM Tribute) with MC Serch, Pete Nice, Kurious, Bobbito, Lord Sear, Jake One & Slug
Take It Personal (Ep 64: Life of the Party) with R.A. The Rugged Man
Take It Personal (Ep 65: The Remix Show)
Take It Personal (Ep 66: Justice for George)
Take It Personal (Ep 67: A Tribute to Street Level) with Al' Tariq & Psycho Les
Take It Personal (Ep 68: G.O.A.T.) with Black Thought 

[the dead poet]

I'm loving the Koreatown Oddity's new album.

[Career Over Like Mike(NJJ)]

DJ Quik episode of Unsung:



Gotta mention Duke Deuce's Memphis Massacre 2 mixtape. Only has a handful of good tracks but the highlights rule.

Duke Deuce - Bad News

[Kool Max Power]

with raze (the ratchet)'s "regal", dontourage dropped one of the hottest albums this year. raze is still one of the best emcees in the game, he perfected his slow flow, plus he's nice with the wordplay.

https://dontourage.bandcamp.com/album/regal

splat's "20 past now" is another album you shouldn't ignore:

https://splat.hearnow.com/

[TheBigSleep]

2020 Recap (Halftime)

The real wrap-up comes at halftime.

I'm loving the Koreatown Oddity's new album.

That was on my "to check out" list but I bumped it up the queue thanks to the recommendation. Great idea for and execution of a concept record. I'll have to give it a few more spins to fully sink in but it was a fun first listen.

DJ Quik episode of Unsung.

Gotta mention Duke Deuce's Memphis Massacre 2 mixtape. Only has a handful of good tracks but the highlights rule.

Still need to check this episode of Unsung. Knew I should've watched it when you first posted it. Instead I bookmarked it and by the time you posted it in this thread or right after, the uploader pulled it (probably after getting a violation warning threat). Which seems to happen a lot with that show, they don't stay up on bootleg stream for long.

Seen the few music videos from that mixtape but I hadn't listened 'til now. Found a couple more gems. But yeah, seems like these new guys all feel the need to sing, croon, and auto-tune right out the gate, when in most cases they should just focus on continuing to hone their skills at being solid, consistent rappers first. Or that's my old man take anyway.

With Raze (the Ratchet)'s Regal, Dontourage dropped one of the hottest albums this year. Raze is still one of the best MCs in the game, he perfected his slow flow, plus he's nice with the wordplay.

Splat's 20 Past Now is another album you shouldn't ignore.

I lost a couple of my usual methods for keepin' tabs on what's dropped so far for the year (sites have gone down - temporarily or permanently, search functions haven't been working, etc.) so I gotta be honest, these two weren't even on my radar. Nice to see Milano as a feature on the Raze joint though. I got a long list of projects I need to go through still but anything suggested here won't be ignored by me unless it's clearly posted as a joke or somethin'. Almost halfway through Regal right now.

Gonna keep editing the first post as I listen to more from my "to listen to" list and people's suggestions, in order to keep track for the second half of the year. So anybody can feel free to mention newer releases from this year going forward as well.

[Career Over Like Mike(NJJ)]

Quik episode is back up:

[Yohan]

I don't really believe in full length projects (albums or mixtapes) within hip-hop anymore, but songs from these projects have gotten the most plays from me so far:

Max B - Charly EP
E-40 - The Curb Commentator Channel 1 EP
FMB DZ - The Gift 3
Duke Deuce - Memphis Massacre 2
Max B - Wave Pack
Moneybagg Yo - Time Served
Mozzy - Beyond Bulletproof
Sada Baby - Brolik
Sada Baby - Skuba Sada 2
ShooterGang Kony - Red Paint Reverend
79rs Gang - Expect The Unexpected

Year's a bit meh so far, though Sada Baby and Max B are having a good year so far. Also really like what I've heard from 79rs Gang so far, really hits my sweet spot.

Bit disappointed in DaBaby and Polo G so far. Both had a good 2019 with some stellar songs, but their 2020 work has been boring so far. Had also hoped for more from Yhung T.O. and DaBoii, but here we are. There's still a few thing I need to check out, like that new A-Wax, BeatKing, Ka, Drakeo The Ruler and Boosie.

[Rhyme 4 Rhyme]

TBS - amount of music you get through is insanely impressive.

Nothing much different from what everyone else posted.

Boldy, Jay Elect, RA, GXFR, Stove God, Knx, AH, Freddie, & Ka is what I've gotten through. Elect's leads the pack.

The Preservation album you mentioned is insanely dope though. Hasn't gotten much notice anywhere unfortunately.

[Kool Max Power]

da buze bruvaz' "adebisi hat recut" represents one of the finest moments this year:



shrapknel's delf-titled debut album is dope too, same goes for curly castro's latest project "bluu edwards":

https://shrapknel.bandcamp.com/album/shrapknel

https://wreckingcrew.bandcamp.com/album/bluu-edwards

[aeokq]

Good thread, gives me some stuff to check out. I've been sleeping a bit this year, the slow death of hip hop forums has killed my source of knowledge regarding new releases.

Alfredo was disappointing. Alchemist is my favorite producer ever, but that was a bit uneven with the beats. Hus Kingpin had a decent release. The Ka album was cool, but I don't like his beats for the most part, need to be in the right mood. Big Ghost Ltd had two good releases, one with Conway (No One Mourns the Wicked) and the other a producer album (Carpe Noctum). My two favorite albums from this year.

[TheBigSleep]

IDAL, thanks for the quick relink to the Quik episode of Unsung, ended up watchin' it before Dre Day 2020 fully took off for me yesterday (in case the same kinda removal happened again.) Unsung always seems to do a decent job with these things. Some things get left out or glossed over but nobody else is covering these artists, getting them to tell their story, and treating the music with respect. I always end up checking for the artists I enjoy when they put out new ones. In this one I like radio personality Big Boy saying that Quik made him proud to be from Compton and then after a beat pausing to clarify that he ain't even from Compton. Another highlight was Quik pretending to find and inhale the residue of decades old yola supposedly left on the studio boards by previous legends in the game. He's still quite the showman and entertainer.

I don't really believe in full length projects (albums or mixtapes) within hip hop anymore...

Year's a bit meh so far, though Sada Baby and Max B are having a good year so far.

Had also hoped for more from Yhung T.O. and DaBoii, but here we are. There's still a few thing I need to check out, like that new A-Wax, BeatKing, Ka, Drakeo The Ruler and Boosie.

I think I know what you mean. To be fair, I'd go so far to say that most artists and certainly the distribution systems haven't believed in full length projects at large within hip hop any longer for a while. There are exceptions for some groups and artists though. And try not to think of it as coming up with a project where you can skip no tracks necessarily but ones with the fewest skips, if that helps.

Glad to see the Max B EP gettin' some more love. Heard most of the 40 EP already but gonna give it a proper listen. The others I've heard songs from and are on my list to go through.

Nice to see Sada continue his buzz from last year. Actually had streamed that Yhung T.O. & DaBoii project when it dropped if only 'cause they're local.

I still gotta hear all those other ones as well.

TBS - amount of music you get through is insanely impressive.

The Preservation album you mentioned is insanely dope though. Hasn't gotten much notice anywhere unfortunately.

Yo, thanks man. This is probably sub-par for me for this point in the year actually. Plus it always feels like there's so much more to get to no matter what. And if I was smart I'd have a better system since I never start tracking what I've heard at the start of January, ya know, when I should.

Glad you mentioned the Preservation album. Who knew a producer concept album could go so well? I want to give a lot of credit to Ka for this project, though I don't know how much that is earned and how much is coincidence. The Eastern samples and idea of a through-line or theme for one, after the work as Dr. Yen Lo. Plus the tracklist reads like a list of Ka's favorite artists. Grande Marshall Ka has mentioned in his RBMA interview as well as on Twitter, same with Tree, pretty sure he's shouted Quelle on Twitter before too but that one I'm not sure about, Ka was one of the first artists I heard shoutout Mach Hommy in an interview. Nickelus F, Ka has praised on Twitter. Navy Blue Ka just worked with on his new album and had spoken highly of his earlier work. Him and billy woods are friends and are planning on releasing at least a song or two together at some point. Obviously Roc Marci. And A.G. got brought up by Ka as part of the “New New York” scene that he and Marc' were a part of, so to me Ka's fingerprints are all over the tracklist.

Da Buze Bruvaz's Adebisi Hat Recut represents one of the finest moments this year:

This one I did check. Originally thought it was from late last year, not early this one. Nice rework by Giallo Point, glad to see his name grow. The others I took note of when they were released but haven't made time for yet.

Good thread, gives me some stuff to check out. I've been sleeping a bit this year, the slow death of hip hop forums has killed my source of knowledge regarding new releases.

Alfredo was disappointing. Alchemist is my favorite producer ever, but that was a bit uneven with the beats. Hus Kingpin had a decent release. The Ka album was cool, but I don't like his beats for the most part, need to be in the right mood. Big Ghost Ltd had two good releases, one with Conway (No One Mourns the Wicked) and the other a producer album (Carpe Noctum). My two favorite albums from this year.

How did you feel about the other Alchemist produced joints from this year? The EP for Conway and the LP for Boldy James?

Which Wavo project do you mean? He's done a couple EPs (Wave Riddler and King of the Underworld, the second labeled as a mixtape, but nonetheless), End of a Decade LP, and then the Gunpowder LP.

Still need to get around to the Carpe Noctum album.

[Yohan]

I don't really believe in full length projects (albums or mixtapes) within hip hop anymore...

Year's a bit meh so far, though Sada Baby and Max B are having a good year so far.

Had also hoped for more from Yhung T.O. and DaBoii, but here we are. There's still a few thing I need to check out, like that new A-Wax, BeatKing, Ka, Drakeo The Ruler and Boosie.

I think I know what you mean. To be fair, I'd go so far to say that most artists and certainly the distribution systems haven't believed in full length projects at large within hip hop any longer for a while. There are exceptions for some groups and artists though. And try not to think of it as coming up with a project where you can skip no tracks necessarily but ones with the fewest skips, if that helps.

Glad to see the Max B EP gettin' some more love. Heard most of the 40 EP already but gonna give it a proper listen. The others I've heard songs from and are on my list to go through.

Nice to see Sada continue his buzz from last year. Actually had streamed that Yhung T.O. & DaBoii project when it dropped if only 'cause they're local.

I still gotta hear all those other ones as well.

There are still many artists cranking out mixtape after mixtape of shit-to-average quality songs, with sometimes 1 or 2 highlights per project. I'm starting to become a believer in the multipe-times-a-year EP format. Just keep it short and sweet, don't have it be bogged down with filler and continue to release music every so often. Looking at full lengths since 2010, I think there have only been around 10 projects which deserved to be full length, and even those often still have multiple duds on them. I'm currently firmly in the rap-as-a-singles-genre camp myself.

40 Dollar Lapdance featuring Suga Free is the obvious highlight from that E-40 EP. Sada's Bully Ball and Slide in particular are this year's highlights from his Skuba Sada 2 tape.

[okkid]

Wais P x Statik Selektah- Chinchilla EP (featuring Nems & Paul Wall)

[Career Over Like Mike(NJJ)]

Speaking of Rap's as a single-genre, here's some of my fave 2020 loosie singles (Ie. they don't currently belong to any album, mixtape or EP):

Nef The Pharaoh - ABC
Flo Milli - Not Friendly
YG - FTP
Heavy Steppers - Whateva
Dee-1 - Corona Clap
Eatem - Spent It All
NHale - Dealin ' Wit A Hoe
Ether Da Connect ft. Mr. Swipey & Waka Flocka Flame - WAKA remix
Rustee Juxx - Still Paper Thin
Nefew - Blockaholic

[TheBigSleep]

There are still many artists cranking out mixtape after mixtape of shit-to-average quality songs, with sometimes one or two highlights per project. I'm starting to become a believer in the multiple-times-a-year EP format. Just keep it short and sweet, don't have it be bogged down with filler and continue to release music every so often. Looking at full lengths since 2010, I think there have only been around 10 projects which deserved to be full length, and even those often still have multiple duds on them. I'm currently firmly in the rap-as-a-singles-genre camp myself.

Obviously there's the case of quality control, it's easier than ever before (and more advantageous in a lot of ways) to rush it than it is to make a finished project. I guess I was having a problem with the concept of believing in a format or not. I mean I'd prefer if more artists built fully realized works devoid of filler and then let them breathe for a while too.

The multiple EPs style has long been a favorite of mine but it gets diminished and undervalued in all these attempts of having the "album of the year". Journalists, critics, and fans feed into this. So the EP had started to be phased out as a popular option but is making a return it seems. A lot of albums these days would've been considered EPs even ten years ago, so I think the consolidation of your best material into its leanest, tightest set is starting to become a priority, depending on what the artist is trying for in the long term, of course.

Because if the goal is streaming numbers, then bloated projects get rewarded by nature of the sheer volume. But if you're going for consistency and legacy, you might have to space it out a bit.

[Rhyme 4 Rhyme]

Good thread, gives me some stuff to check out. I've been sleeping a bit this year, the slow death of hip hop forums has killed my source of knowledge regarding new releases.

Alfredo was disappointing. Alchemist is my favorite producer ever, but that was a bit uneven with the beats. Hus Kingpin had a decent release. The Ka album was cool, but I don't like his beats for the most part, need to be in the right mood. Big Ghost Ltd had two good releases, one with Conway (No One Mourns the Wicked) and the other a producer album (Carpe Noctum). My two favorite albums from this year.

How did you feel about the other Alchemist produced joints from this year? The EP for Conway and the LP for Boldy James?

The Boldy project was the best of the 3 in my opinion. As aeokq stated, beats on Alfredo were kind of weak. Probably partially due to the fact that Al let Freddie pick them from what I read. The Conway EP was whatever. He's too inconsistent for me to get overly invested in. Boldy's definitely the one I've bumped the most since their releases.

[gusty wingers]

The def needed this

[aeokq]

How did you feel about the other Alchemist produced joints from this year? The EP for Conway and the LP for Boldy James?

Which Wavo project do you mean? He's done a couple EPs (Wave Riddler and King of the Underworld, the second labeled as a mixtape, but nonetheless), End of a Decade LP, and then the Gunpowder LP.

Still need to get around to the Carpe Noctum album.

I didn't like that Conway EP much. The Boldy James one was a bit better, I wasn't that enthused by it though. Boldy doesn't do much for me with the raps either. I'll have to give that another spin. Alchemist hasn't been churning out heat like I am used to hearing from him. I'd like to see him get back with Oh No and make some Gangrene fire.

I was referring to the Gunpowder album. King of the Underworld was decent too.

I need to listen to the Preservation album that you all are talking about. He has been making beats for a while. I first heard him on Wu-Tang Meets the Indie Culture album back in 2005 (amazing album).

[TheBigSleep]

Wais P x Statik Selektah- Chinchilla EP

This has been on the ever growing list.

...some of my fave 2020 loosie singles (i.e. they don't currently belong to any album, mixtape, or EP)

Hm, I'll allow loosies for the time being, but still more interested in using this thread for listing and discussing long plays. I'll bite though. Is A-Wax's Unapologetic tied to anything right now? 'cause he shot a video for it but the track isn't on Allegedly. So I don't know if it's gonna be on the next album or what.

The Boldy project was the best of the three in my opinion. Boldy's definitely the one I've bumped the most since their releases.

Agreed. That one has stayed or come back into rotation when a lot of projects don't these days. I wish Al had cut down on that devil in the pale moonlight dialogue because that is a dragging point but overall it's up there for me, as far as records I've gave the most spins this year so far.

The def needed this

It's what I do.

I didn't like that Conway EP much. The Boldy James one was a bit better, I wasn't that enthused by it though. Boldy doesn't do much for me with the raps either. I'll have to give that another spin. Alchemist hasn't been churning out heat like I am used to hearing from him. I'd like to see him get back with Oh No and make some Gangrene fire.

I need to listen to the Preservation album that you all are talking about. He has been making beats for a while. I first heard him on Wu-Tang Meets the Indie Culture album back in 2005 (amazing album).

I can see Boldy being an acquired taste. I tend to like guys that seem to talk straight to you, no bullshit. And the guests meshed well I thought, for the most part. Think it's worth giving another listen if you're considering it.

Preservation is a less often thought of producer for sure. This feels like an offshoot of the Dr. Yen Lo work mixed with a producer album done in the same sorta way that Roc Marci' might put one together.

[fatboybrandon]

Thanks for the list of suggestions. I will try to check out all of these throughout the rest of this year. Nowadays, my preferred way to consume new Hip Hop is either listening to a select few shows or my own search. As a blogger, I enjoy seeing what else I can find and present that isn't trendy even on an underground level.

RJ Payne, 38 Spesh, Tall Black Guy, AZ, Planet Asia, D.I.T.C., El Da Sensei, Marco Polo, Sean Price, Rustee Juxx, Emskee, Pharoahe Monch, R.A. The Rugged Man, Fatt Father, Slum Village, Rome Streetz, Little Brother, K9, D Smoke, Skanks The Rap Martyr, Da Buze Brovaz and others have all been putting in work to keep new Hip Hop alive.

In some ways, I feel the sound of Hip Hop has gone to a depressing place as many artists follow the Griselda wave with the drumless, moody beats. I feel like part of the underground needs some sort of an injection of energy to it.

One of my favorite re-release labels is Diggers With Gratitude who put out a number of quality reissues this year, including the Baritone Tiplove catalog.

[Career Over Like Mike(NJJ)]

Sleep - I think that A-Wax song is supposed to be on the Pullin' Strings sequel, but he pushed that album back and released Allegedly instead.

[TheBigSleep]

That's what I would've guessed. Pullin' More Stringz just says "Comin' Soon" on his site so who knows when that's actually droppin'.

Thanks for the list of suggestions. I will try to check out all of these throughout the rest of this year. Nowadays, my preferred way to consume new Hip Hop is either listening to a select few shows or my own search. As a blogger, I enjoy seeing what else I can find and present that isn't trendy even on an underground level.

RJ Payne, 38 Spesh, Tall Black Guy, AZ, Planet Asia, D.I.T.C., El Da Sensei, Marco Polo, Sean Price, Rustee Juxx, Emskee, Pharoahe Monch, R.A. The Rugged Man, Fatt Father, Slum Village, Rome Streetz, Little Brother, K9, D Smoke, Skanks The Rap Martyr, Da Buze Brovaz and others have all been putting in work to keep new Hip Hop alive.

In some ways, I feel the sound of Hip Hop has gone to a depressing place as many artists follow the Griselda wave with the drumless, moody beats. I feel like part of the underground needs some sort of an injection of energy to it.

One of my favorite re-release labels is Diggers With Gratitude who put out a number of quality reissues this year, including the Baritone Tiplove catalog.

Mine (in the first post) aren't all necessarily suggestions, merely a record of the records I've heard. I have so many artists I've discovered over the years that one just leads to the next. And yeah, there are a few devoted bloggers who aren't fully swayed by the changing tides. We got a couple of those guys in this thread, all at the forefront of their own mini-movements.

I have to catch up on some 38 Spesh, Tall Black Guy, A.G., Ruste Juxx, Fatt Father, T3 of Slum Village, D Smoke, and Skanks the Rap Martyr from this year. The rest from your list I've either heard or to my knowledge haven't released anything more than singles in 2020. Hopin' AZ finally puts out Doe or Die 2 this year.

It's a mirror of the culture. These are depressing times. And it coincides with the nostalgia for Wu and Mobb Deep. But any formula that works is gonna get overworked. It'll rebalance. I wouldn't wish for energy, but continued innovation. Energy rarely stays underground. Innovation can be done and redone without a lot of light shown. That's how the below-the-radar rap stays fresh.

Big fan of DWG, haven't gotten around to revisiting the Baritone Tiplove stuff, I still need to check out the new PMC album.

[fatboybrandon]

It's a mirror of the culture. These are depressing times. And it coincides with the nostalgia for Wu and Mobb Deep.

Yes I agree, and I've watched interviews where they show much love to Mobb Deep and express how the duo influenced their sound. I'm glad they found their lane and brought something new to the culture. Someone' gotta rep that grime and dark emotion that exists in the streets.

I hope the current depression inspires the culture to tap back into it's original concept of making people have fun through the energy of the music. Not that I want people to carbon copy the past, but make sure the energy is there. One thing I always admire about the origins of Hip Hop is how the energy of the music helped people here in NYC escape from a socio-economic depression in the 70's. What would the culture be without the adrenaline rush of block party classics like Apache's Bongo Rock, James Brown, Chic's Good Times, etc. I hope that even the darkest of MCs find a way to maintain that element of the culture in 2020 and beyond. R.A. The Rugged Man is one of them imo: dark, but brings a significant amount of energy at the same time.

The oversaturation of Hip Hop music in general has been hard to deal with as a fan. The job of sorting and compiling gems has become harder due to the volume of music. And when I find some projects that seem worth a listen, I find one too many songs that are only 2 minutes long.

I enjoyed this project by Supreme Cerebral, an MC who I discovered on DJ Eclipse's show ==> https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=St5t-2DbUCg Generally, anything that has Planet Asia, El Da Sensei or Marco Polo featured on it made me want to click a link and listen in 2020. I've used those names in various searches to track down new Hip Hop.

[TheBigSleep]

The nice thing is everything is still out there style-wise, Griselda is just one of the prevailing themes right now. The amount of, and quality of, and aesthetics of, music is going to get more and more stretched and fractured and nuanced as it becomes increasingly unmanageable to keep up with. That's the way entropy and exponential growth work. Look at TV. Everybody used to watch the same shows, now you could read a best-of list by somebody and never have heard of any of the shit. I don't even really try to sort and compile any longer, just get through what I can and let it wash over me. Whatever sticks does. Certainly hurts when trying to recall anything in this sea of sounds though.

So I'm up on current P.A right now. Haven't heard all the respective albums but know that El Da Sensei has had like half a dozen guest verses on as many projects already. What has Polo done this year?

Checkin' this Soul Trained LP.

[TheTed]

Top 10 so far in alphabetical order

Armand Hammer - Shrines
Clams Casino - Instrumental Relics
Dean Blunt - Roaches 2012-2019
KA - Descendants of Cain
MIKE - Weight of the World
Quelle Chris - Innocent Country 2
R.A.P. Ferreira - Purple Moonlight Pages
Run The Jewels - RTJ4
Serengeti - AJAI
070 Shake - Modus Vivendi

[Career Over Like Mike(NJJ)]

The TREE, Marciano, and Ka songs from this DJ Preservation album are nice.

[fatboybrandon]

What has Polo done this year?

He produced a song on Eto's latest https://www.discogs.com/Eto-The-Beauty- ... e/15339264 my favorite track is Metal Lords. Nice lineup of guests on the album. Eto is on that dark Griselda-type vibe too.

Discogs is good for a quick look at what your favorite artists have been on lately. I just search their name and see what pops up. The platform makes good use of tracklistings, in a time where tracklistings for albums seem to have been forgotten.

I listened to Milano Constatine's latest last night and was happy. To me he's been consistently sharp on the mic over the years. https://milanoconstantine.bandcamp.com/

I still check to see what Tragedy has featured on or put out himself, I like his consistency and choices of collaboration. Here's a Juice Crew style of song he did for 2020: https://youtu.be/a1rcqTHeU3c

[TheBigSleep]

Good list Ted, I'll peep the couple I haven't.

IDAL, thought you'd dig at least a few tracks from that.

Brandon, obviously I've known about Discogs for years. You just made it seem like it was more than one guest produced track from Polo. Heard Eto's output from this year, he's been fun to watch progress. Milano is on the listened-to-already list as well. Solid EP. Dig that Trag feature, haven't checked his Immortal Titans on HBO project yet.

[fatboybrandon]

Here's a throwback re-release for ya: the 2009 comedy classic "Turn Up The Fuckin' Bass" A Tribute To The Comedy Of WKCR parts 1 and 2, now reissued on Audiomack. 10 hours of absolute foolishness.

https://audiomack.com/search?q=Turn%20U ... %27%20Bass