Chesstown King's Reviews and Thoughts

Opening Opinion 98/100 Disc 29 29 Intro-An old timey like song plays about going to Carolina. It kinda sets the tone for the theme of the album. This album is a love letter to J.Cole’s hometown. Gunshots end the track which is wild.  6/10 Two Six-The lead single. I love Cole’s flows on this track. The beat is fire too. It sounds laid back and menacing.   9/10 SAFETY-J.Cole’s raps from the perspective of his friends from his hometown telling him about what’s been going on. It’s really creative and well produced. When he talks about the gay guy he almost calls him the f word but he stops himself lol. 9.5/10 Run A Train-This is a pretty interesting song. J.Cole is joined by Future who sounds pretty invigorated on the chorus. “Fuck do you know about my passion, fuck do you know about my pain, fuck do you know about my struggle, fuck do you know about Jermaine?”. It’s a decent song. It’s pretty laid back. 8/10 Poor Thang-This is a more intense song. I love Cole’s break down when he...

Jada’s 2009 offering is really good, even if there were a couple songs he could have left off. He shows great lyrical ability on the songs, and his delivery demands your attention. The beats are good too, and I felt the album had pretty good replayability. This one has a little something for everybody. I felt the collabo with Ne-yo wasn’t as good as it could have been. What If is a great song even if it is somewhat like his “Why” song from 2004’s Kiss of Death. “Letter to B.I.G.” is incredibly thoughtful and features Faith Evans. “Stress Ya” produced by the Neptunes might be the best song. There some other gems too like “Smoking Gun” featuring Jazmine Sullivan. “I Tried” and “Come and Get Me” are pretty mid tho. Overall it’s a good album. Lyrics 23 Beats 20 Depth 22 Tilt 20 Verdict 85

This is actually my favorite DMX album. I grew up with it. DMX sounds pretty fierce on this album…but lyrically yeah, he’s just good. The 3 song run of “Where the Hood At”, “Dogs Out”, and “Get it on the Floor” is amazing. “Shot Down” with 50 Cent and Styles P is another banger. The production on this album is pretty solid. I love most of the grimy beats. “Ayo Kato” is a nice song dedicated to a friend of his that passed away. “Don’t Gotta Go Home” featuring Monica is the lone love record. The song “F*** Y’all” is a bit much imo. There’s a lot of quality tracks here… Overall we have a pretty solid album from DMX. It’s not his best nor is it his worst. Lyrics 22 Beats 22 Depth 21 Tilt 21 Verdict 86

 This is a very highly anticipated album and man does it live up to the hype. It's a double album while the first disc has Cole returning to his hometown the Ville after dropping 2014 Forest Hills Drive. The 2nd disc is him 10 years after that and his newer viewpoints. The album starts with "Two Six" which is a banger. Cole displays a lot of clever flows here. "Safety" is rapped from the perspective of one of J. Cole's friend's from the Ville. It might be somewhat controversial as Cole describes someone who is obviously gay and he almost calls him the f word. I will get into more songs ....but honestly this album is so dope I'm thinking of doing a track by track review of this album. I haven't done a T-b-T review in a long time! "Run a Train" features an interesting Future feature on the hook.....it grew on me. Basically this album is very experimental as Cole sings in different ways on some tracks and for the most part it works....Rapp...

 I haven't reviewed a DMX album in a minute. This is a really dope album too. late 90s DMX was unstoppable commercially and its easy to see why. The singles here are amazing. "Party Up" is an all time favorite of mine. On "What's My Name" you really feel DMX's rough nature. I like how he slows it down for the ladies with Sisqo on "What These Bitches Want". "One More Road To Cross" is a good opener. This is a very well produced album. I liked most every song too. I haven't reviewed DMX's first 2 albums yet but this one might be the best one. Lyrics 22 Beats 23 Depth 24 Tilt 23 Verdict 92

 People had a lot of hype for this album. For the most part it delivers ....It was interesting to see what Nas would talk about after 6 Albums in 3 years with Hit-Boy.  Nas has some pretty good concepts for this record that very much embraces the past. There's "Nasty Esco Nasir" where he raps from different perspectives of his career (Young, Middle, and Current). I like "My Story Your Story" where Nas and AZ spit some hot fire. "Boquet (To The Ladies)"is just that as Nas shouts out like every female MC there is. Some songs aren't so great like "NY State of Mind Pt. 3". It sounded like the new beat was just so inferior to the classic one.....That brings me to the fact these beats DJ Premier cooked up were good but not incredible. It's a shame really cause Nas was really spitting well on this. Overall tho it's a good album but I think it falls short of much of what Nas did with Hit-Boy. But yeah Nas shows no signs of slowing down......

 I don’t listen to much Freddie Gibbs. But this album was so good I want to hear more from him. The Alchemist production was really smooth and fit Freddie’s flows well. Freddie is a gangster rapper and the bars were hardcore throughout the album. I really enjoyed "Mar-a-Lago" and "Lemon Pepper Steppers". Most of the features were pretty good too; like JID and Anderson .Paak. The last song "A Thousand Mountains" is really fire as Alchemist blesses us with a Japanese sounding beat. This album was really well balanced. But yeah this was certainly one of the better rap albums of 2025. I've got to hear the first Alfredo now.  Lyrics 23 Beats 23 Depth 23 Tilt 22 Verdict 91

  4) Till the Casket Drops (88 )-A lot of people don’t like this album but it’s honestly pretty good. The production is pretty damn good, and the bars are good too. Clipse have seemed better on the mic tho lyrically. “Popular Demand” with Cam’ron is fire. I think “Kinda Like a Big Deal” with a prime Kanye West is the best song however. I like the feel of the club track “Eyes on Me” featuring Keri Hilson. Keri sounds kinda odd on this song tho. The album closer “Life Change” is great too. There are a few songs that are kinda average tho here. Favorite Song: Kind of Like a Big Deal. 3) Lord WIllin’(93) - I kinda grew up with this album. The 2 Virginia brothers did the state proud with this album. The album gets off to a great start with songs like “Young Boy”, “Virginia”, “Cot Damn” and the anthemic “Grindin’”. “Ma I Don’t Love Her” featuring Faith Evans is the song for the ladies. The production outshines the lyrics by a little bit. However this is a pretty well balanced album. A...

 This is my list. All these albums are relatively 98-100 rated. I do have some personal bias here. If you don't see an album you think should have made the list just comment. Honorable Mentions Nas-Stillmatic Jay Z- Reasonable Doubt The Notorious B.I.G.- Life After Death Raekwon-Only Built 4 Cuban Linx Ice Cube- Amerikka’s Most Wanted Kendrick Lamar- To Pimp A Butterfly  Eminem- The Marshall Mathers LP 2 10) Outkast-Stankonia- This was the album really propelled Outkast to superstardom. Sure it’s a little weird at points but it really is an impressive album from Big Boi and Andre 3000. The production is really solid. I love the first song “Gasoline Dreams”. “Ms. Jackson” is one of those all-time great rap songs. You also have “So Fresh, So Clean” and the super hype “B.O.B.” There some other good songs too like “We Luv Deez Hoez” and “I’ll Call Before I Come”. It feels good to have a dirty south album on this list. Underrated Track Pick: Gasoline Dreams. 9) 2Pac- Me Against the...

  You gotta admit 7 years is a long time, but Cardi B did well on her sophomore album. The album gets off to a good start with "Dead" which features Summer Walker, who does her best SZA impression. "Hello" and "Magnet" are great songs too. Things slow down with songs like "Pick It Up" which features Selena Gomez, and "Safe" with Kehlani. "Bodega Baddie" is really good yet short latin song. "Man of Your Word" is obviously about ex-husband Offset...and its really thoughtful. The first 2 singles "Imaginary Player" and "Outside" aren't bad but perhaps not the best singles for this album. Lyrically Cardi has her signature charisma here. The beats are good too but not quite as good as the ones on Invasion of Privacy. "Pretty & Petty" is the diss track to rapper Bia....and I like Bia...but theres no coming back from that one lol. "ErrTime" was good too. That one really reminde...

  The last great Ja Rule album. Its solid. The lyrics are good, the beats are hot, and theres plenty of depth. It even holds up well to repeated listens. Ja should have sticked to this formula and not worried about 50 Cents, and made a dollar. Theres only a couple of average songs and they’re near the end. This album is really catchy with high replayability. The best songs were "Murder Reigns", "The Pledge Remix", and "Thug Lovin". "Pop N*ggas" was also good with the Neptunes production. Lyrics 19 Beats 22 Depth 23 Tilt 23 Verdict 87

 This review is pretty late but hey I've finally got to it. I've got to admit this is one of Logic's best album's to date. It's technically a sequel to The Incredible True Story ; which was a great album in its own right. The album follows the space adventures of Thomas and Kai. I love the skits here just like on the predecessor. From the skits tho, the narrative tells a story before the events of TITS. Logic is just in top form on this album lyrically. The album opens with "Paul Rodriguez" which is a long lyrical assault. "Mission Control" is where Logic flips the beat on Gucci Mane's "Lemonade". In fact this album is just full of call backs to TITS. The production is pretty damn good too. I liked every song but some more than others obviously. Overall yeah Logic imo has nothing left to prove after this incredible 3 album run of  Vinyl Days, College Park, and now Ultra 85.  Lyrics 24 Beats 23 Depth 25 Tilt 25 Verdict 97

 I gotta admit this album really grew on me. It's an official sequel to her first album, Pink Friday. That can be a little confusing as I thought her 2nd album Pink Friday Roman Reloaded was a sequel to Pink Friday. Anyways this album has a lot of different sounds to it. She raps on that Biggie Smalls beat on "Barbie Dangerous". "FTCU" is another highlight with a dope sample. "Let Me Calm Down" Featuring J. Cole is really smooth too. I didn't care too much for the Lil Wayne assisted "RNB". I like the vibe of the song "Needle" which features Drake. I really like "Everybody" which features Lil Uzi Vert. One thing that works for this album is the sample baiting. Say what you want; it's used really effectively on this album. I really enjoyed the lead single "Super Freaky Girl" too. Overall Nicki spits well but you can't help but feel she could of done a little better. The production is really good tho. Th...

 The latest album from Logic is really good. There's a narrative throughout as Logic and his homies get ready for a show in DC as they drive from Maryland. One thing I like here is Logic gives his homies more chance to shine on this album whether that be through actual album cuts like "Gaithersburg Freestyle" or the skits. Logic spits really well on this album and honestly I would expect nothing less from a Logic album at this point. "Shimmy" featuring Joey Bada$$ is really good too. Production wise its pretty good too. I liked most songs alot. Overall tho there's not much here that blew me away so its a slight step below the Vinyl Days album. Still another solid project tho. Lyrics 24 Beats 23 Depth 24 Tilt 22 Verdict 93

 Nas returns in late 2022 with KD3 and man is this a great album. One thing to note there's really almost no features. Nas spits fire on tracks with lush production from Hit-Boy. The song "Thun" is a highlight as Nas jokes that the beef with Jay-z still ain't over. With most of these songs Nas just glides over the beats as he sounds as comfortable as ever. He personifies beef on "Beef" which is pretty interesting. "First Time" is good but the subject matter sounds kinda repetitive as I feel like I've heard Nas rap about that a few times before. Overall tho there's just so many great songs. This is arguably the best Nas/Hit-Boy album but I dont really think its better than KD2. For Nas to be rapping this well this late in his career is legendary. Lyrics 24 Beats 24 Depth 23 Tilt 23 Verdict 94

 I'd like to rank one of the best female MCs discographies. Missy is one of my favorite rappers lets get to it....There are no wack albums in her discography but some are definitely better than others. 6) The Cookbook -Coming in last is The Cookbook. It's certainly not a bad album but I think there's too many songs that are kinda....skippable. However there's some serious heat on this album tho. The album is well produced like all her albums. The production does seem very varied compared to the sound of previous albums. "Loose Control" with Ciara and Fatman Scoop is one of her best songs honestly. The Neptunes produced "On & On" is no joke also. Notable Tracks: Loose Control, Click Clack, On & On, We Run This. 5) Da Real World- This album could have been 4th but I haven't heard it that much unfortunately. It's got a darker sound than her debut album. I remember the two singles, "Hot Boyz" and "All N My Grill" were ...

  Logic returns with his first official album after retirement and man it's really exceptional. The album is 30 tracks but quite a few of those are skits and most of the songs aren't very long at all. The album has an old school feel to it...more than any other Logic project I've heard. I gotta talk about those skits....they are kind of redundant with only a couple like Michael Rapport's being good. Most I could do without. The features here are all for the most part really good like Royce da 5'9, AZ, Wiz Khalifa, Action Bronson, The Game, etc..Lyrically Logic spits really well. He sounds so much more focuses than he did on Bobby Tarentino III.  Beat wise the album is good but nothing amazing....but the album did have the sound I think Logic wanted. The album is deep with good replayability (Tilt) which might be surprising for an album with this many tracks.  Lyrics 24 Beats 22 Depth 25 Tilt 24 Verdict 95

 I gotta admit that with this album King Push solidifies himself as a top 20 rapper ever. Yes he's that damn good. So how's this album tho? Well the first half is the better half but honestly this album has grown on me. It gets off to a good start with "Brambleton" where he takes a subliminal shot at Drake. "Neck & Wrist" featuring Jay-Z is a really good track. Jay never disappoints. Pusha's Lyrics are really good here on this album. One song I thought could be better was the Kid cudi and Kanye assisted "Rock N Roll". "Diet Coke" and "Call My Bluff" are also dope af. One song that kinda grew on me is "Scrape it Off" featuring Lil Uzi Vert...yeah odd feature choice. The last song featuring his brother is really good too.  Lyrics 24 Beats 23 Depth 23 Tilt 23 Verdict 93

 This review may be considered late but I hope you enjoy. Nas returns with what I thought was a better album than his 2020 album King's Disease. On the surface tho there's not a whole lot different with the albums. It's got the same producer Hit-Boy. The production is still good but not really better. Theres more tracks and for the most part they're all good. "Death Row East" is a really interesting story....and to think Nas and Pac almost squashed their beef. "Rare" features a great flow from Nas. I really like "EPMD 2" which features EPMD and Eminem. Eminem spits with fury but doesn't really steal the show. "Nobody" features Lauryn Hill and she does a great job. Hit-Boy spits himself on "Composure" with Nas. I really liked "Moments" too. At this point Nas is a top 5 MC of all time and its kind of being set in stone. You're gonna have to take someone off if you didn't think he was there already! Ly...

This is DMX's posthumous album and for the most part I really like it. Sure there's a lot of guests, but most songs are pretty good. The first track "That's My Dog" features The Lox, Sheek Louch, and Swizz Beatz. The next track "Bath Salts" features strong verses from Jay and Nas, as well as DMX. The production of the album is pretty good but I feel it could have been a little better. "Money Money Money" with Moneybag Yo sounds really out of place. I'm not a big fan of Moneybag lol.  I actually liked the songs with Alicia Keys and Bono respectively. "Hood Blues" was another highlight. "Take Control" with Snoop Dogg was ok. The final song "Letter to My Son" which features Usher, is really sentimental. Overall I feel this is a decent album from DMX. Maybe not as great as a final album should of been but I'll take it. RIP DMX. Lyrics: 23 Beats: 21 Depth: 22 Tilt: 22 Verdict: 88