As someone who invited fame and courted infamy, first with inflammatory albums like *Wolf* and later with his flamboyant fashion sense via GOLF WANG, Tyler Okonma is less knowable than most stars in the music world. While most celebrities of his caliber and notoriety either curate their public lives to near-plasticized extremes or become defined by tabloid exploits, the erstwhile Odd Futurian chiefly shares what he cares to via his art and the occasional yet ever-quotable interview. As his Tyler, The Creator albums pivoted away from persona-building and toward personal narrative, as on the acclaimed *IGOR* and *CALL ME IF YOU GET LOST*, his mystique grew grandiose, with the undesirable side effect of greater speculation. The impact of fan fixation plays no small part on *CHROMAKOPIA*, his seventh studio album and first in more than three years. Reacting to the weirdness, opening track “St. Chroma” finds Tyler literally whispering the details of his upbringing, while lead single “Noid” more directly rages against outsiders who overstep both online and offline. As on his prior efforts, character work plays its part, particularly on “I Killed You” and the two-hander “Hey Jane.” Yet the veil between truth and fiction feels thinner than ever on family-oriented cuts like “Like Him” and “Tomorrow.” Lest things get too damn serious, Tyler provocatively leans into sexual proclivities on “Judge Judy” and “Rah Tah Tah,” both of which should satisfy those who’ve been around since the *Goblin* days. When monologue no longer suits, he calls upon others in the greater hip-hop pantheon. GloRilla, Lil Wayne, and Sexyy Red all bring their star power to “Sticky,” a bombastic number that evolves into a Young Buck interpolation. A kindred spirit, it seems, Doechii does the most on “Balloon,” amplifying Tyler’s energy with her boisterous and profane bars. Its title essentially distillable to “an abundance of color,” *CHROMAKOPIA* showcases several variants of Tyler’s artistry. Generally disinclined to cede the producer’s chair to anyone else, he and longtime studio cohort Vic Wainstein execute a musical vision that encompasses sounds as wide-ranging as jazz fusion and Zamrock. His influences worn on stylishly cuffed sleeves, Neptunes echoes ring loudly on the introspective “Darling, I” while retro R&B vibes swaddle the soapbox on “Take Your Mask Off.”
Denzel Curry’s *KING OF THE MISCHIEVOUS SOUTH* enterprise is the multipronged project that just won’t quit. The first edition of the mixtape arrived way back in 2012 and has since been lost to the ether, but Curry re-upped the project in 2024 with a 2.0 version. The second mixtape showcased his sterling stature while still paying homage to his roots, carrying on the *MISCHIEVOUS* torch and highlighted by features from Maxo Kream, Juicy J, and That Mexican OT. Before 2024 wrapped, though, Curry unveiled an album version of the project, which features a new tracklist and five additional songs. The updated collection is highlighted by “STILL IN THE PAINT,” which interpolates the legendary Waka Flocka Flame song and boasts verses from LAZER DIM 700 and Bktherula. It features the Carol City, Florida, MC at his charismatic best, revealing a world that looks and sounds familiar but is painted with that one-of-a-kind Denzel Curry style.
A mysterious trailer emerged the week before the release of Uzi’s fourth studio album, *Eternal Atake 2*. “On March 6, 2020, Lil Uzi Vert mysteriously vanished,” it narrated. “While it was never confirmed what happened that day, the faithful believed it to be the fulfillment of a long awaited prophecy… Eternal Atake.” Fans will recognize that fateful date in 2020 as the release of their mythic second album, *Eternal Atake*—a high-stakes concept album that not-so-subtly referenced the Web 1.0 aesthetics of Heaven’s Gate. (The religious group’s surviving members threatened the rapper with legal action over appropriation of their logo.) The project has taken on cult-classic status in the years since, representing Uzi’s peak as both a futuristic trendsetter and a shockingly great rapper. Nearly half a decade later, Uzi’s still light-years ahead: “My life amazing and I been that n\*\*\*a, but fuck all that, let’s fast-forward,” they chirp on “Black Hole.” The Philly rapper’s throwing curveballs on *Eternal Atake 2*, whether that’s casually dropping the best Drake song in years (the Chipmunks-sampling “Chill Bae”) or yelping “Bitch, I’m Big Time Rush!” on a song called “The Rush” which also features Big Time Rush. “I don’t think that they ready,” Uzi repeats like a mantra on “Light Year (Practice)” before spitting a verse like a machine gun just to remind you they can. Uzi hinted in 2023 at the prospect of retiring from music to make clothes, but for now there’s still new galaxies to be explored.
Westside Gunn’s *Still Praying* has long been a grail in Griselda Records lore. The label’s head honcho began teasing the project long before its 2024 arrival, and it came after threats of retirement, disgruntlement with the music industry, and drama within his family-first crew, which includes his brother Conway the Machine and his cousin Benny the Butcher. On *Still Praying*, all is well, with Westside setting the scene as a family reunion of sorts: Conway and Benny make appearances, as does close friend Boldy James. DJ Drama plays the role of host, and Westside does what he does best: talk shit and count all that money he’s got. The Buffalo native is one of the best one-line spitters in rap, and throughout *Still Praying* he delivers plenty of quotables that linger long past the project’s runtime. On “Speedy 40” he recalls a particularly romantic night in New York City, rapping: “I done fell asleep, woke up in the Waldorf/Top floor, spooning with her shirt off.” On “Underground King,” which features his daughter Westside Pootie and frequent collaborator Rome Streetz, Gunn sums up his role in rap in only the way he knows how: “I\'m MJ from the free throw in designer.”
Perfume connoisseurs will recognize the title of the shadowy singer-songwriter’s third album: the mythic word for the earthy scent that accompanies the first rain after a long dry spell. For 070 Shake, the smell reminds her of her childhood in New Jersey; her mother would point it out after a heavy rain. After breaking through in 2018 with a handful of deeply felt features on songs from Pusha T and Ye, Shake’s haunting blend of rap and R&B wallowed in romantic anguish. On *Petrichor*, the 27-year-old musician gets vulnerable, stripping down her sound and falling headfirst into love. With the help of two longtime collaborators, composer Johan Lenox and producer Dave Hamelin, the ultra-private musician departs from the foggy synths and heavy vocal processing of past work, embracing guitar, piano, and lovestruck lyrics that leave it all on the table. Still, moodiness and mystery abound, from the dark ’80s power-pop of “Elephant,” an ode to uneasy mornings after long nights, to “Vagabond,” which channels old spaghetti westerns for a song about giving up your wild ways for a more domestic life. The tight guest list is made up of iconoclastic divas only (like an inspired cover of Tim Buckley’s “Song to the Siren” with none other than Courtney Love), but the best cameo comes from Shake’s partner Lily-Rose Depp, who delivers a raw spoken-word poem touching on aliens, Joan Baez, and mutual masochism.
When Young Nudy and Pi’erre Bourne dropped *Sli’merre* back in 2019, they recruited superstars like 21 Savage, Megan Thee Stallion, DaBaby, and Lil Uzi Vert to help prop up their psychedelic, red-eyed collaborative project. On the 2024 sequel, though, the duo opt to mostly handle things themselves, with Nudy riding high off the success of his 2023 album *Gumbo* and Pi’erre in a similar boat following his decision to release some of his rarest snippets in an EP titled *Grails*. With a sole feature from BabyDrill, *Sli’merre 2* is entirely centered on Nudy’s flow and the way he wraps himself in the warm, synth- and bass-heavy beats from Pi’erre. The Atlanta-born rapper remains as defiantly playful as ever, dedicating an entire track entitled “Money” to “trying to break” his bank account, and another that finds him explaining how little he worries by invoking the age-old saying of “Hakuna Matata.” As is always the case when Young Nudy and Pi’erre Bourne link up, the duo cook up the cleverest, strangest, and most interesting ways to highlight just how colorful this world really is.
Though Westside Gunn considered turning off his microphone for good in 2023, it was only a year later that he returned to form with *11*, a five-track effort that served as a prelude to his long-teased full-length album *Still Praying*. Though only five tracks long, *11* is a tribute to the Griselda leader’s roots, honoring two of his friends: Sly Green, who is serving a 100-year prison sentence, and Big Dump, who died in 2018. Because of this, Westside has referred to the project as his most personal to date, a statement that’s reflected in the heartfelt rhymes and diaristic storytelling. Take the soul-sample-infused “BIG DUMP BALLAD,” which finds Gunn reflecting on his brother, Conway the Machine, and his dearly departed cousin, MachineGun Black, who was also the brother of Griselda partner Benny the Butcher. He raps: “My heart got scars, my brother face crooked/Allah took us from \'ChineGun, I was devastated.” Later, he adds: “If I had three wishes, I\'d want to get Sly out of prison/Make sure my babies live life with no ceilin\'.” Westside Gunn may not be able to free his incarcerated friends or bring back those who have lost their lives, but thanks to his ability as a rapper, his kids will certainly live life knowing that the sky’s the limit.
Since Maxo Kream first broke through with 2015’s *#Maxo187*, he’s established himself as one of the most creative songwriters and storytellers in rap. On his 2024 album *Personification*, he ups the ante, imbuing the project with a heady concept organized around the various ways he has presented himself on record. There’s Trigga Maxo, hardened by the streets and inspired by the swampy Southern goodness of Houston’s rap tradition. Then there’s Punken, the character named after his childhood nickname, fond of nostalgia and simpler times. Kream also introduces Emekwanem, after his given name, representative of his responsibilities as a man and father. *Personification* finds Maxo diving into all of the themes presented by these different characters, a style exemplified on “Bibles and Rifles.” On the skittering, dance-inspired track, Maxo asks: “Is it heaven for a gangsta/Is it heaven for a G/The ones who rob, shoot, or shank you but still take care of families?” It’s a question Maxo Kream ponders again and again on *Personification*: Is it too late to be good? Can hustlers find redemption too?
Though SahBabii has been a staple of the rap scene for over a decade, his 2024 album *Saaheem* is only his second full-length LP. SahBabii sounds so confident, though, that it’s clear he spent his off-seasons practicing. The Chicago-born rapper moved to Atlanta as a young teen, and the blend of trap and drill that he brings to his albums is an effortless combination of the two subgenres. On *Saaheem*, which is also his birth name, SahBabii doesn’t force-feed these different aspects of his musical style. Rather, they subtly shape his sonic worldview, creating an album that’s fascinating in its understated variety. Take “Viking,” a booming, rumbling track that features the canonlike bass of Windy City street rap with the triplet hi-hat rhythms and syrupy flow of ATL mainstays like Young Thug and Migos. On “Kodak,” he plays with the plugg style prevalent on the East Coast, crooning over pillowy synths so warm they practically wrap him in a hug. No matter what city he touches down in, SahBabii sounds at home.
Looking at the stats, you’d think Megan Thee Stallion was on top of the world: “HISS,” the second single from her third studio album, was her first solo chart-topper. But as the silver-tongued Houston native has risen from cult-favorite Instagram freestyler to full-fledged cultural force after breaking through with 2019’s “Hot Girl Summer,” the rapper’s been weighed down by grief and betrayal, all highly public and intensely scrutinized. On 2022’s *Traumazine*, Megan began to let down her guard and open up about her pain. She teased its follow-up in late 2023 with a statement: “Just as a snake sheds its skin, we must shed our past, over and over again.” On *MEGAN*, she’s still going through it, but she’s not going down without a fight. The motif of the snake, coiled and waiting to strike, winds its way through *MEGAN*’s 18 tracks with cool, collected menace. “Still going hard with the odds against me,” she spits on “HISS” over an eerie beat from go-to producer LilJuMadeDaBeat. She’s got devastating burns for everybody within earshot on “Rattle,” snapping at an unnamed peer, “Your life must be boring as fuck if you still reminiscing ’bout shit that we did.” (Her claim to be “a motherfuckin’ brat, not a Barbie” on “Figueroa” might clarify its intended target.) There are moments of levity: “Otaku Hot Girl” flexes her arcane anime knowledge, while “Accent” recruits Hot Girl Summer tourmate GloRilla for a country-girl ode to being “thicker than a Popeye’s biscuit.” But you get the sense that for Megan, it’s awfully lonely at the top: On “Moody Girl,” she switches her trademark tagline to “real motherfuckin’ sad girl shit.” And over the metalcore guitar chug driving “COBRA,” she tells you how it feels to break down while the world is watching.
Steven Ellison, who has performed under the Flying Lotus moniker for nearly 20 years, emerged from a *Twin Peaks* binge inspired to explore the outer reaches of his imagination, returning to the studio to work as a solo recording artist for the first time in a half decade. Letting David Lynch\'s murky netherworld spill out his subconscious, Ellison conjured “Garmonbozia,” a single that creeps forward on waves of chilly synths and tense bass—a sound that threatens to veer into darkness yet never quite does. Flying Lotus chooses the light throughout *Spirit Box*, populating the EP with playful excursions into house and neo-R&B, teaming with Dawn Richard on the shimmering “Let Me Cook” and Indian singer Sid Sriram on “The Lost Girls.” The bustling nocturnal vibe of the latter teams nicely with the subdued crawl of “Ajhussi” and the insistent pulse of “Ingo Swann,” each lending *Spirit Box* a sweep that feels vivid and cinematic.
Since his emergence in the early 2010s, Kodak Black has been one of the most consistently successful figures in rap. Yet for all his celebratory flexes, he spends plenty of time haunted by his past, the things he’s seen, the lives that have been lost. On *Dieuson Octave*, which takes its title from his birth name, he attempts to reckon with the grief while living as a father and support system for so many. On opener “Catch Fire,” he highlights the circular hell that the carceral system can be: “I made a lot of money, spent most of it making a bail/Doing whatever, feel ain\'t getting nowhere, like a pit bull tryna chase its tail.” Later, he seems to repent for the things that locked him up in the first place, adding, “I\'ll murder Satan when I go deliver my soul to Haiti,” referencing the country where his mom was born. Album closer “Inside I Suffer” is one of Kodak’s most personal songs to date, a gut-wrenching look at his hardened spirit and a peace that can’t be acquired, no matter how many records he sells. “This time around I’m guarding my heart so when I step out I leave my feelings on the shelf,” he laments.
With a few collaborations on Dave East’s 2019 debut album, *Survival*, and 2023’s *Fortune Favors the Bold*, the rapper and producer araabMUZIK displayed a near-telepathic shared vision. The duo decided to expand on that spirit in 2024, linking up for an entire project together, titled *Living Proof*. With East on the mic and the Dipset affiliate handling the beats, *Living Proof* is a psychedelic tour de force equal parts grounded in the streets and drifting off into alternate realities. On opener “Percocet,” East shouts out his producer and highlights his own entrepreneurial spirit. He raps, “Araab in my top five/They microwave, we cookin’ strong,” before adding, “They never seen a gangsta look this good, come take a pic of this.” The vibes remain immaculate on “Roll Up,” a weed anthem backed by a soulful vocal chop from araabMUZIK. East declares, “Every time I hop out, the baddest bitches pop out.”
You could use a calendar to mark when spooky season will arrive each year, or you can check BabyTron’s discography to see when a new Halloween-themed project arrives. Though the Detroit rapper and ShittyBoyz member is one of the most prolific MCs in the game, he turns things up a notch when it’s time to pick out a costume and get the candy supply stocked. In 2024, he emerged with *Tronicles*, a sprawling opus that features nearly 30 tracks and references to figures like Hawk Tuah, Neymar, and Clark Kent. On *Tronicles*, though, BabyTron saves plenty of time to rap about his favorite holiday, like on “Nightmare on Yo Street,” where he spits over sparse piano notes that allude to the movie theme he riffs on in the title. On “Haunted House,” he keeps the horror alive, spitting over string swells and piano chords that practically shriek in terror. “Take a step into this haunted house,” he teases, before warning: “Once you enter it, it ain’t no walking out.”
Mary J. Blige’s 15th studio album arrived at a moment when the R&B diva was embracing her legacy as a new Rock & Roll Hall of Fame inductee. Thirty years after she released her 1994 masterpiece *My Life*—when it felt as if she were singing for her life—she had survived all the drama and made it to her place in the sunshine as a certified legend with nothing left to prove. And Blige is in a state of appreciation on *Gratitude*, which feels like a much-deserved victory lap. The celebratory vibe is set on “Breathing,” on which she’s inhaling “fresh air, good news.” It’s a throwback bop featuring Fabolous, part of a guest-rapper roster including Jadakiss (“Need You More”), Fat Joe (“God’s Child”), and A$AP Ferg (“I Got Plans”). While the nostalgic feels are real, the Queen of Hip-Hop Soul isn’t resting on her crown. At 53, Mary is still here to rock the party—and keep it raw about relationships (see “Don’t Fuck Up”)—in her thigh-high boots.
From the outside, Cordae has a good life: He’s earned a handful of gold plaques and collaborated with the likes of Lil Wayne and Stevie Wonder. But with his third album *The Crossroads*, he’s attempting to find balance between enjoying the spoils of his success and staying grounded. He’s boastful and braggadocious on “Mad as F\*ck” and “Back on the Road” (which includes one of the album’s two Lil Wayne features), but he never lets his success lead him too far from what’s important to him. He admits to buying a house in Boca Raton, Florida, since Miami homes were too expensive, and recalls memories of working at a TGI Friday’s restaurant and growing up around violence. But he’s arguably at his best when he’s waxing poetic about his family: “06 dreamin” honors his mom’s musical pursuits on shows like *American Idol* and *Making the Band*, “Shai Afeni” is a heartfelt ode to his newborn daughter, and “Now You Know” mourns the loss of his grandmother.
Quando Rondo has been a consistent figure in rap since 2017, so it’s easy to overlook that at the time of his 2024 LP, *Here for a Reason*, the Savannah, Georgia, rapper was still only 25 years old. On the project, he shares the perspective of a young man far removed from his teenage years, yet still growing into the shoes of adulthood. He’s at times confident, other times confused, figuring out his place in the world as both a role model and student. His curiosity is inspiring, a willingness to learn that suggests fame at a young age didn’t corrupt him. On the album’s second track, “Gotta Do Better & Pray,” Rondo cues up a smoked-out soul beat and croons about the problems that plague him, neatly narrating from the perspective of his girl who knows something is wrong. “She know that I ain’t been the same since I lost my lil’ n\*\*\*a/On top of that I caught a case, they got me lost in the system/Been through so many heartbreaks, I got so much on my mental.” On “Grow Up,” though, he proudly flexes his wins over a glimmering piano line that gives the song some serious pep. Win, lose, or draw, Quando Rondo isn’t gonna shy away from his feelings.
The scrappy Memphis rapper has been on a two-year victory lap since her 2022 breakthrough hit “F.N.F. (Let’s Go)” established her as one of rap’s most promising new voices. Since then, GloRilla’s dropped an EP (2022’s *Anyways, Life’s Great...*) and her first studio mixtape (2024’s *Ehhthang Ehhthang*), scored a Grammy nomination, and sold out arenas alongside Megan Thee Stallion for the Hot Girl Summer Tour. The glow-up is real on *GLORIOUS*, her official debut album, but let it be known that the reigning queen of crunk is still hanging out the window with her ratchet-ass friends when the opportunity arises. “It’s 7 pm Friday/It’s 95 degrees/I ain’t got no n\*\*\*a and no n\*\*\*a ain’t got me,” she declares in the opening bars of “TGIF,” a worthy “F.N.F.” follow-up made for blasting at max volume. There’s plenty of the rowdy girl-power anthems fans have come to expect from Big Glo, among them the bad-bitch motivational “PROCEDURE” with Latto and “WHATCHU KNO ABOUT ME,” a Sexyy Red collab that riffs on the Trill Entertainment classic “Wipe Me Down.” Less expected is “RAIN DOWN ON ME,” a gospel number with a blessing from Kirk Franklin, though it’s really only fitting for a rapper born Gloria Hallelujah Woods.
