There is no secret that everyone in the music industry has some sort of story to be told, but it’s up to the artist to decide if it’s a past that they want to delve into or keep private. Even the emcees who pretty much only rap about drugs, money, and women have a story, but it just seems like they keep their cards closer to their chests for one reason or another. I have gone on record saying that talents who share their past, their thoughts, and their inner monologue always have my utmost respect and attention because I barely like talking about those things with my closest friends, let alone the rest of the world. 8matiklogan is an emcee from Chicago who has been through a long journey, and while he has switched up styles throughout the years, I think the sound he landed on most recently is one that he should stick with, as it seems to be his bread and butter. His brand-new album 1636: The Second Chapter is the long-awaited follow-up to his 2015 project 1636, and throughout this time, it is clear that he has matured and overcome some dark moments. What I greatly …

For most upcoming artists, the best piece of advice I can give is to release frequently and to release quality. When you’re first starting out and solidifying a spot in this industry, you want to constantly remind listeners of your abilities, and you never want to give them a reason to forget about you for even a second, so this is the best strategy I can suggest. This isn’t even close to the same advice I’d give seasoned veterans, though, but they don’t need any pointers from me in order to get the recognition and following that they deserve. I feel like when someone like Steve Lacy, for instance, releases music every few years, it just makes these releases feel like much more of a spectacle, and while I think the frequency of his drops doesn’t necessarily have a say in how crazy fans are going to get, it just gets me more excited when he does finally rollout an album. Luckily, the 24-year-old just announced a brand-new album entitled Gemini Rights that is set to release on July 15th, and after his first single in years entitled “Mercury”, he is back and once again at the top of his …

I try to avoid writing about anything that isn’t a newly released song, video, or album, just because I feel like that’s where I excel and that is what makes up the majority of our content here on the Lyrical Lemonade blog. Some artists just have this star power, though, where no matter what they do, whether it’s an interview, cameo, performance, or anything else, I just have to tune in. Denzel Curry is one of those people because even though I admittedly might not listen to him all day every day as I do with some other emcees, there are more than enough records of his that I thoroughly enjoy and listen to pretty regularly. Aside from this, I have written about performances on NPR’s Tiny Desk Concert series just because they seem to get everyone in the office to perform no matter what the genre is, and even though some genres can work a little better than others, it’s always so interesting to me when I get to see some emcees in an element that might not be very native to them. He is someone who is known for not only his incredible lyricism and wild bars, but …

There are a few givens in the rap world, and these can include anything from lyrics about drugs, money, and women to the diamond-studded jewelry that it seems like everyone has around their necks and wrists nowadays. Well, these givens get even more specific, and one that isn’t a surprise to anyone is the fact that Future has a taste for the finer things in life. Obviously, he can afford really whatever he wants after more than a decade of work, but he is never one to let his latest purchases go by the wayside, and I don’t think I would be either if I was in the same situation as the Atlanta hitmaker. Just a couple of months ago, he dropped off his album I NEVER LIKED YOU, an effort that featured 16 songs that came up just short of the 50-minute mark, and with features like Kanye West, Gunna, Young Thug, Drake, Kodak Black, EST Gee, and more, there was no way this project was going to be a miss on anyone’s radar. With all of these guests, it is shocking that I haven’t heard more buzz about it, but when I found out that he was going …

I won’t keep beating the fact that Chicago has the most diverse, talented pool of musicians in the entire world because I know that’s a fact that I have typed time and time again, so you’ve probably clued into this fact by now. Out of everyone here, though, NNAMDï is one of the most underrated, over-talented individuals I can think of, and while his cult following is always cheering him on, I love when he drops something new so I can join in on the fun and talk about something that is always going to be unique and unforgettable. After announcing a new album set to release on October 7th called Please Have a Seat and his signing to a label called Secretly Canadian, he surprised us with an insanely addicting new self-produced record called “I Don’t Wanna Be Famous”, and this is one that I can’t relate to, but I somehow understand at the same time in this strange way. Obviously, I’m not famous, but NNAMDï talks about not wanting all the attention while still wanting the money and listens, and this is something that so many artists probably agree with, but they just don’t talk about it. While …

There are some emcees in the rap world that are simply certified hitmakers, and their levels of fame far exceed anything that I could even fathom in my own life. Bonafide superstars are what I consider these people, and there aren’t too many more beyond the likes of Drake, Kanye, and Jay-Z. Well, although it’s hard to imagine that he is quite there yet because his career is still so young, one rapper who I think is well on his way to a legacy that won’t be forgotten about is Atlanta’s Lil Baby. He just has this star power that translates into any song he jumps on turning to gold, both intangibly and physically. Somehow I was late to his Antt Beatz-produced song “U-Digg”, and while I can’t sit here and claim to tap in with every single release he puts out, I am a massive Detroit rap fan, so considering he recruited 42 Dugg and Veeze to join him, I was shocked that I didn’t know sooner. Dugg isn’t someone who surprises me because this duo has worked together in the past, but Veeze is still so underground and underappreciated, so I was most excited to see what he …