The best new hip-hop this week includes albums, videos, and songs from Conway The Machine, Young Thug, and more.
Hip-hop got busy this week as more artists tuned up for the warmer months to come. Lakeyah plugged her newly released sophomore album with the “Poppin” video featuring Gucci Mane; DreamDoll joined the “Whoopty” freestyle bandwagon; Key Glock once again flexed his yellow Lambo truck in the video for “Move Around“; and Moneybagg Yo announced the impending release of his new album with “Go!” featuring Big 30.
Friday saw new releases from IDK (“Shoot My Shot” featuring Offset), DMX, French Montana, and Swizz Beatz (“Been To War“), and Saweetie (“Risky” featuring Drakeo from her Pretty Summer Playlist compilation) along with the releases listed below.
Here is the best of hip-hop this week ending April 16, 2021.
Albums/EPs/Mixtapes
AJ Tracey — Flu Game
A grime rapper from Ladbroke Grove, West London, Tracey has been building his reputation for nearly a decade through EPs, mixtapes, freestyles, and his self-titled, 2019 debut album. Now, he’s cashing in all that credit and comparing himself to one of the greatest ever to do it. Featuring appearances from Nav, Kehlani, T-Pain, and more, Flu Game finds AJ Tracey spreading his wings as he aims for cross-cultural dominance.
Conway The Machine — La Maquina
We’ve already established that the Griselda Machine never stops chugging along. With La Maquina, though, Conway looks to expand the range of the prolific label’s influence. Tapping hitmaking producers like Bangladesh and Don Cannon, Conway changes lanes from the usual gritty output he’s best known for, connecting with ATLien stars like JID, Ludacris, and 2 Chainz to show that his comfort zone covers much more ground than you might think.
Kenny Mason — Angelic Hoodrat: Supercut [Deluxe Edition]
Rock influenced Atlanta spitter Mason carved out an intriguing niche for himself with the original Angelic Hoodrat, garnering attention for incisive raps and left-of-center production that helped him stand out from an increasingly crowded field. Its deluxe edition brings a collection of new songs and collaborators that includes Denzel Curry, Freddie Gibbs, and more.
Van Buren Records — Bad For Press
Hailing from Brockton, Massachusetts — a “city with no music industry” — the Seinfeld-referencing collective (they’re named for a street gang that sticks up Kramer at a pizzeria) brings all the chaotic energy of forebears such as Odd Future and Brockhampton, but with more cohesion, a lower-key presentation, and a level of focus that suggests they may have staying power more akin to the original rap supergroup, Wu-Tang Clan.
Young Stoner Life — Slime Langage 2
In the years since the original Slime Language helped introduce the Young Thug’s YSL collective to a wider audience, fans have clamored for a follow-up. With 23 tracks, fans got everything they asked for and more, with support coming from quarters including Big Sean, Coi Leray, Drake, Future, Lil Baby, Lil Uzi Vert, Nav, and Rowdy Rebel.
Zaytoven — Zaytoven Presents: Fo15
The Bay Area producer returns home to throw his support behind local acts with a new compilation, the brainchild of Empire CEO, Ghazi Shami. Corraling some of San Francisco’s most buzzing burgeoning artists, Ghazi curates a project custom-designed to put the more overlooked part of the Bay Area back on the map.
Singles/Videos
22Gz — “Casa”
Flatbush rapper 22Gz sings the praises of the surefire tequila brand over a looming drill beat
Big Jade — “Bonnet Freestyle”
The Texas native keeps her takeover campaign moving with a slick-tongued take on a warped version of Missy Elliott’s “Hot Boyz” beat.
Dave — “Titanium”
After a bit of a hiatus, Santan Dave came blazing back this week with a pair of moody singles, “Mercury” and “Titanium.” The latter is harder, while “Mercury” leans more introspective.
Lil Poppa — “A.M. Flights” feat. Toosii
An upbeat, melodic rumination on the relationship hiccups that come with the jet-setting rap life, Jacksonville rapper links up with the increasingly popular Toosii for a song that has lots of hit potential.
Mike — “Evil Eye”
All raps, no brakes on the latest single from Mike, who’s promoting his new album Disco!, coming out in June.
Paris Texas — “Force Of Habit”
A genre-bending duo from Compton, Paris Texas popped up seemingly overnight with their debut single “Heavy Metal” in February, garnering a ton of blog recognition thanks to its churning sounds and their mysterious allure. They’re due to drop their debut album Boy Anonymous on May 14, so here’s your chance to get familiar with a group that everyone’s talking about.
Some artists covered here are Warner Music artists. .
