Cheese Week

I'm not really sure if cheese week is a real thing. Not in the slightest. But one of my friends treats it as such and now I've started. I mean, if I have a blog called Stack That Cheese, I probably should celebrate it. And by "celebrate," I mean make a lot of bad cheese-related puns.

The Grate:

Vic Mensa - Innanetape

Ahh! See what I did there? God, I'm clever.

But puns aside, this mixtape is legitimately great. Easily one of the best mixtapes I've heard all year. Actually, scratch that. Innanetape is one of the best albums of any genre released in 2013. Maybe in two months, when I'm compiling my top albums of the year list, I'll feel differently. But for now, I'm sticking to my statement.

Vic Mensa is a Chicago rapper who has gotten a lot of extra hype since Chance the Rapper (whose Acid Rap featured Mensa) has become the talk of the town. And honestly, Mensa might be just as good as Chance, which is saying so much considering Acid Rap has gotten a lot of early love for album of the year.

Like, I really miss this show

Just like Chance, Mensa is insanely creative. The Windy City rappers are like Walter White and Jesse Pinkman and their music is their blue meth (I'm sorry, I just really miss Breaking Bad).

Take the song "Lovely Day." First, this song is the closest thing to Outkast that I've heard since, well, Outkast left me. Seriously, if we can't have Big Boi and Andre 3000 work together anymore, "Lovely Day" is a pretty good compromise.

The song starts off with two beautiful verses with a catchy hook shoved in between before putting together the most amazing outro in a while. There are horns. There are some synths. There's even a sample of James Blake's "The Wilhelm Scream." On another James Blake note, I'm pretty sure the cover for Innanetape was influenced by Blake's self-titled album. Yet another reason to love Mensa.

Chance on the cover of
Complex

And speaking of Chance, he makes an appearance on the song "Tweakin." Starting with some electronic drum hits, the beat quickly gets covered with some disoriented sounds that on first listen can be confusing, but quickly grow on the listener.

And Chance makes this friendly rivalry competitive as he raps, "I think the Illuminati is real / And your body's the peel and your soul is the fruit / And their goal is to steal and control all the juice."

Mensa can certainly have some fun, but he also doesn't shy away from more down-to-earth songs, as shown on "Holy Holy," which is about the very producer of this song, Killa Cam's passing. Mensa asks some seriously introspective questions like, "What would my obituary be? / How would they color me in the media?" before remembering Cam.

Ab-Soul makes a heart shattering feature, too, as he reflects over his girlfriend Alori's suicide. "I kept my Metro PCS with all our text messages / As evidence that I was thinking holy matrimony," he raps.

Innanetape is yet another sign of how much creative talent is coming out of Chicago. The worst part about this tape being so goddamn good is that I'm going to have to put so much more thought into my top albums of the year come December. But that's a pretty good problem to have.

The Not So Gouda:

Meek Mill - Dreamchasers 3

That's right, I've made not one, but two brilliant puns. Stack Those Puns, am I right?

I really wanted to write a review on Innanetape like I did with King Remembered in Time back in April. But when a mixtape trends on Twitter, like Meek Mill's latest, I kind of have an obligation to cover it.

Next, I had to figure out just how I felt about Dreamchasers 3. I've never really liked Mill all that much. To be honest, I still don't. But he's one of the hottest rappers in the game and there's a reason for that.

Remember, the masses used to
like Soulja Boy. 

But, time and time again, we're reminded that the masses don't always know what's best. Meek Mill's another proof for that.

Now, here on Stack That Cheese, we've been able to have some fun. We've been able to recognize that good rap doesn't necessarily have to have meaningful lyrics or clever wordplay. There's also an art to hype beats that pump up a crowd.

But Meek Mill just doesn't do anything for me. For a rapper that's being talked about so much, Meek Mill is actually pretty generic.

Take the song "Dope Dealer." On paper it seems like it should be good. It features Ricky Ross the boss and Nicki Minaj, so this is a Top 40 type lineup. But it just fails to impress me. An artist of Mill's caliber should be able to afford greater production. But "Dope Dealer" just sounds like it could be on just about any "Bad" mixtape.

Ahh! Real Rick Ross!

And the lyrics do the same thing. At one point, Mill is just rhyming Chanel bag with Chanel swag and Chanel tag. Pretty complex stuff, clearly. And Rick Ross has a line in which he says, "Philly brothers, sometimes call me 'Ahh!'" What?

I mean there are some pretty decent songs on Dreamchasers 3. "Lil Nigga Snupe" reflects on the passing of Mill's friend Lil Snupe. The beat's pretty tame, with a drum kit and calming synth. And Mill even has some good lines, like "I'll give all this money to get lil cuz back / Before my nigga go starving like where my grub at."

And "Heaven or Hell" samples Luniz's "I Got 5 on It." I mostly just really love the hook sung by Guordan Banks. Banks has this Colin Munroe-like voice and it's pretty catchy.

But even those tracks still are composed of some simplistic lines and beats that fail to really stand out. Hell, "Heaven or Hell" is basically just "I Got 5 on It." And that's probably the best beat on the whole tape.

Dreamchasers 3 is yet another mixtape from Meek Mill that really fails to grab my attention. But he's managed to get quite a following from this style of his, so I'm probably going to end up listening to most of what he releases.

The Limburger:

VP -  It Happens II

I'm a little ashamed of this. 1) I couldn't come up with a pun for re-dic-yu-lus. How can I call myself a pun expert when I can't even make one simple pun? 2) I just broke an ACRN blogging rule. If you haven't noticed, I usually link to my pictures. But I could do this for this mixtape cover. 

As you can see I've decided to cover a certain part of the girl with Lil B's face. There's a reason for that. And now that my mom has officially started reading my blog (I'm single, ladies), I need to at least make this stuff kind of decent.

Self-five again for STC's first gif!

But at least I found a really bad mixtape and made it even dumber with a little help from Lil B. High-five, me!

I actually liked It Happens II for about fifteen seconds. It was on the track "Back Bend (Bounce)," which has a pretty fun beat. I was like, "Hmm, this could be good if this VP guy delivers lyrically." But surprise, surprise, he didn't.

VP starts rapping in a storm of horribleness, shout/mumbling, "All the girls do it like this / Pop some pussy on some dicks." And actually, the more I hear this beat, I'm pretty sure this is from something else. Making this song completely useless.

But VP does manage to get some good beats. Whether or not these are his is hard to tell considering there's absolutely no information about him on datpiff. But at the very least, it shows he has some good taste in beats.

Like "Repeat." It has a piano-based beat with some soothing bass. But VP ruins it with his unique quality of being completely impossible to understand. In the second verse, I swear he says "shibuhdibuhding." Really.

But something tells me that it wouldn't make any difference even if I could understand him. He's far from a lyrical mastermind. Hell, Meek Mill runs circles around him. But, if he works on his flow and lyrics, he could manage to make a half-decent mixtape someday. Too bad those are huge ifs.

-X-Prime, dropping the mic for now

@XavierVeccia

Stack Those Views

Before I get into this week's Stack That Cheese, I just wanted to proudly announce that STC has reached five figures, now sporting over 10,000 views and counting. And in less than a year, too. It's a little sappy--something I try to stay away from while writing about hardcore gangsters--but I just want to thank everyone who's ever viewed my blog. Even those perverts who end up here due to an Alexis Texas search gone wrong.

The Good:

MeLo-X - GOD:WiFi

MeLo-X has just made history on Stack That Cheese! After last week's Better Off Dead from the Flatbush Zombies, MeLo-X's appearance in "The Good" column marks the first time (probably) that two residents from the same community appeared back-to-back on STC.

If that wasn't enough of a hint, MeLo-X is a rapper and producer out of Flatbush, Brooklyn, same as the Zombies. Unlike the Zombies, MeLo-X is a one-man act and manages to make some pretty complex sounds all by himself, with a little help from features and guest producers here and there.

WiFi is more like an EP than a full-length album, but that doesn't limit MeLo from showing off his range.

MeLo relies a lot on electronic sounds that sound like a mix between ASAP Rocky and Flying Lotus. 

"Rich Man" is an example of this. It starts off with a simple electronic bass line before adding some funky synths and a kick-ass drum kit.

Little Simz

MeLo doesn't just hide behind his production, either. He has a pretty great flow that fluctuates between freaky fast and just slow enough to add emphasis to his words. Plus, London-rapper Little Simz stops by to add an even more distinguishable verse. It's not too often you can find a hard-hitting British female emcee, but Little Simz is the exception and it's fantastic.

And "Finer Things" is a diverse track that goes from soothing electronic to ASAP-like hazy rap. Plus, a beautiful songstress by the name of Elle Pierre comes by for an enchanting hook.

There are some songs produced by others that keep up with the general theme of Wifi, such as "Customs," produced by  D. Bridge. The track has a quick hi-hat beat mixed with some spooky background noise that sounds like Timbaland tried his hand at producing the Luigi's Haunted Mansion music.

On "Customs," MeLo sings instead of rapping, and even though he's no Frank Ocean, he still manages to keep up and keep the song interesting.

WiFi's biggest fault is probably that it's just seven songs long, which leaves the listener aching for more. But in those seven songs, MeLo-X manages to add a large contribution to the reincarnation of the New York hip-hop scene.

The Bad:

Cash Out - Ya Feel Me?

I got lucky with this one, honestly. I was just about to head to Datpiff for a bad mixtape. It's been a pretty calm mixtape week thus far, but when I went back to Hot New Hip-Hop's home page, there was this beautifully corny mixtape cover and I knew I was saved.

Cash Out is an Atlanta rapper that clearly likes being known by an action. You might know Cash (also written as Ca$h) from his hit single "Cashin' Out," a song with a repetitive beat and dumbed down lyrics.

Unsurprisingly, Ya Feel Me?  is just more of that, except maybe a little less catchy.

Pull-Up, don't turn up

"Pull Up" is an example of that poor formula. The beat is boring, mostly consisting of Inception-like horns and heavy bass. And the lyrics are just ridiculously stupid, even in the hook. "If a nigga pay you know we bout to pull up / I've been in money since I was in Pull-Ups," raps Cash Out. Although, he deserves at least some credit for being the first rapper of all time to mention Pull-Ups.

"Movie" might be one of the better produced tracks on Ya Feel Me? With a predominately piano-based beat and a little bit of strings, "Movie" just feels more legitimate. It's still repetitive except for a bass breakdown, but by Cash Out standards, it's not bad.

That doesn't mean the lyrics are any better, though. By "Movie," Cash Out means sex tape and he mostly just sings (poorly, I might add) about threesomes and other sexual acts.

The most surprising thing about Ya Feel Me? is that it's mostly just Cash Out. There are only two features on the whole mixtape, and neither of them are important enough to mention. For someone who's worked with Wale before, you would think Cash Out could get some bigger names for his mixtape.

Ya Feel Me? is far from a good debut. For someone new on the scene, you would hope Cash Out would make better use of his 15 minutes of fame. But based on this release, it seems his 15 minutes are up.

The Re-dic-yu-lus:

Soulja Boy - 23

YES! Stack That Cheese is only a few episodes into its second season, but I still thought Soulja Boy and/or Lil B would have made an appearance by now. But I guess it's better late than never.

I probably shouldn't be admitting this, but as soon as I saw Soulja's new mixtape, I automatically penciled it in as re-dic-yu-lus. I mean, it of course turned out to be. But that says something about Soulja Boy that his mixtape being bad is as certain as death and taxes.

"Jackie Chan" has to be one of my favorite bad songs on 23. The beat is made up of some weird piano-y synths and some heavy bass. The hook is just Soulja Boy saying "Kill shit like Jackie Chan" in a way that it sounds like "kishit like Jackie Chan." And Soulja Boy even disses 2 Chainz! "Three chains on my neck, but not in my name," he says, calling out one of the most prolific rappers at the moment.

"But Xavier," you might say, "I love Jackie Chan and all, but I really hate that new Karate Kid with him in it. Is there anything on 23 that might appeal to the original Karate Kid fanboy in my heart?'

Crank this / Crank that

Well, that's a really specific question, voice inside my head. Luckily for you, there totally is. Thanks to Soulja Boy, you can now wax on and wax off in style to his song "Mr. Miyagi." Every Karate Kid fan will love hearing Soulja Boy rapping, "Tattoos on my neck / Tattoos on my chest / Riding through the hood and I feel like I'm the best" right before he goes into a hook repeating "Mr. Miyagi" and "wax on / wax off."

And just because Soulja Boy is an Oriental god, he decided to do a song called "Japanese," too. I don't even get the logic behind this song. He seems to think that enough lean can lead to "niggas talking Japanese." Is this like an epiphany thing? Like, the Holy Spirit comes to him in his lean and encourages speaking tongues? Like, what?

Honestly, "Japanese" barely even has lyrics. I don't know how to quote Soulja Boy off this track because he mostly just says "lean," "g's," "Japanese" and "jeans" a lot. With the occasional "konichiwa," of course, so you know he can indeed speak Japanese.

I truly missed Soulja Boy. Outside of Lil B, he's basically my favorite to cover. And if anyone deserves thanks for STC getting to the big 10k, it's Soulja Boy. So thanks, Soulja Boy. I'll crank that in your honor.

-X-Prime, dropping the mic for now

@XavierVeccia

The Walking Rad

The Good:

Flatbush Zombies - Better Off Dead

I've been over my fascination with mixtape covers in the selection process plenty of times. And if you know that, you understand why I selected this album.

Flatbush Zombies' mixtape cover seems like a scene straight out of a horror movie, fitting with their name and fitting with the sound they don.

As soon as you start the album with the track "Amerikkkan Pie," you know this trio is unique. A creepy beat is quickly interrupted by a mini drum solo that makes way for some angelic singing before Zombie member Meechy Darko releases an intense verse. 

He ends his verse in such a chilling fashion with the line "Ever since I blew up niggas think I got bread / So they got their hands out, they gon' get their palms read / Red from all the bloodshed." That just sets the bar high for the other two Zombies, Erick Ark Elliot and Zombie Juice, who don't fail to deliver. The song comes to an epic finale with some guitar shredding and more drums. And that's just the first track.

The Flatbush Zombies are a rap trio straight out of Flatbush, Brooklyn. The mastermind behind the spooky sound is Ark Elliot, who raps and produces, doing both insanely well.

It's hard to pinpoint their sound exactly. It seems like a combination of The Coup, Danny Brown and rock--three things I never thought I'd see together. But oh, does it work.

Any drug parade must include
Danny Brown. Fact.

Speaking of Danny Brown, the Detroit artist makes an appearance on the appropriately-titled "Drug Parade." The song features a trippy, yet spooky repetition of "Shrooms, shrooms, LSD, mescaline, a lotta weed." So, you know Danny Brown belongs on this song.

Danny Brown even manages to deliver a unique flow for the Zombies, rapping lines like "Hickeys on her titties now she want to lick shit," in a sing-song manner. It might be seen as annoying to those who aren't Danny Brown fans, but as a XXX fanatic, it hits me in all the right places.

There's also the song "Club Soda," which combines a bit of an old-school feel with the Flatbush sound. The song features six verses and just one bridge, done by Action Bronson in typical ex-chef fashion.

"Unique" is an overused term and I won't deny that I contribute to that. But in Flatbush Zombies' case, it fits. I think it's safe to say that there are not too many people out there doing what the Zombies do, and I love it.

The Bad:

Gucci Mane - Diary of a Trap God

I was doing everything I could to avoid this release. I've been over my disdain for Gucci before, so I was hoping to at least find a new artist to criticize this time around.

But every semi-major artist who released a mixtape this week just wasn't bad enough. Jae Millz had a hard-knock life vibe to R.O.T.S. Black Dave was average, but not bad on Black Bart. L.A. the Darkman had some nice lines on Paid in Full. So now I'm here. Reviewing Diary of a Trap God. Trap Goddammit.

Let's just get to this.

Lucifer, thy name is Young Thug

"Virgin" sucks. Like, a lot. You know how I said Danny Brown was borderline annoying on Better Off Dead? Well, on "Virgin," Gucci Mane has an artist by the name of Young Thug perform on a way too long bridge and a horrible last verse. He crosses the annoying line and just keeps going.

I imagine lying on my death bed, thinking about all the bad things that I've done in my life before closing my eyes for one last time. And then I see Young Thug surrounded by flames just shouting, "Baby girl ain't no virgin" at me. I'm in hell. This song is hell.

Oh, you need more? Remember Akon? Of course you do! Remember how much you loved "Smack That?" Hold on to that memory for a few more seconds. Cherish it. Breathe it in. Now let go. And listen to "Recognize."

On "Recognize," Akon sings an overly gross chorus including the line "Cause now you're all in my face, while I'm splashing all in your face / Cumming." Then Gucci Mane starts his verse, which has the quality of a radio rip rather than, oh, I don't know, the result of work in a recording studio. 

Akon should've just stayed with Andy Samberg

Then comes Young Scooter, who I'm assuming stole his name from an after-school special about rappers. He gets the privilege to end this song, which I am so grateful for. But even "Recognize" doesn't deserve to end with the line, "Now I'm shitting on these hoes like a toilet bowl."

And I haven't even gotten to the best part. I know Blogs Editor/'90s fanatic Sam will especially love this. Over all of the Waka Flockas and OJ Da Juicemans, there's one featured artist who stands above them all on Trap God. Ladies and gentlemen, Marilyn Manson.

Even Manson is shocked by this.

That's right, the Antichrist Superstar himself makes an appearance on the song "Pussy Wet." He mostly just says, "Getting pussies wet." But he also sprinkles in the occasional "panties to the side, bitch, I want to see your camel toe" and "bitch, your pussy's solid gold." I know Marilyn Manson is all about the shock, but even he should draw the line at being on a Gucci Mane song.

So, if you're keeping track at home, Gucci Mane has created a personal hell for me, destroyed Akon more than Akon could even destroy himself and become the most shocking thing Marilyn Manson has ever done.

You know what, screw it.

The Re-dic-yu-lus:

Gucci Mane - Diary of Being a Trap God

You did this to yourself, Gucci Mane! You have no one to blame but yourself!

-X-Prime, dropping the mic for now

@XavierVeccia

Season 2

Last season on Stack That Cheese: Our main character Xavier Alan Solomon Veccia was busy judging the heroes and demons of hip-hop with his mighty keyboard (which is mightier than the pen, which is mightier than the sword. So, his keyboard is pretty freaking mighty). And then Walt and Jesse got in a fight (in which Jesse dropped the word "bitch" multiple times). Oh wait, wrong show. Anyway, Stack That Cheese is back and it feels so good. Speaking of good...

The Good:

Audio Push - Come as You Are

Audio Push opens up the second season well with a great release in Come as You Are.

Audio Push is a Cali duo credited with the invention of twerking. As an expert jerker, I owe all of my life to these two.

Audio Push brings some great lyricism to Come as You Are. Take the song “Tis the Season,” which features a bass-heavy beat, but the stringed kind, not the boom-boom-bat kind. It gives it an old-school flare, made stronger with the new-school old-school mastermind Joey Bada$$'s feature on the track. Joey is a lyrical mastermind himself--one of the best in the game.

"You're a jerk / I know, girls tell me all the time"

But where Come as You Are really flourishes is in the beats accompanying Audio Push's lyrics. The self-titled first track of the album is the perfect example. The Key-Wane-produced track combines the turntable scratches and vinyl-textured aspects of old with the A$AP-like trippiness and synths of new. Not to mention some nice lines, such as, “I guess we're just outcasts / Can you smell the stank on ya.”

Alice, take a hit of this. We're listening
to Audio Push

And “Rowdy A” has an Alice in Wonderland, Dumbo-like trippy-ass Disney flare with an insanely heavy bass. The Hit-Boy-produced track is an incredibly creative song that stands out in current hip-hop.

But Audio Push can also do bangers, as shown on “Theme Song.” Once again produced by Hit Boy, “Theme Song,” has a slightly creepy piano line mixed with some great bass before breaking down (or breaking up, if you prefer) to a heavy string line. The song also features a catchy verse from TI.

Just about every song on Just as You Are has a creative beat that's perfect for both headphone and riding music. With help from artists like Wale, Lil Wayne, K. Roosevelt and James Faulteroy, Audio Push puts together a great release.

The Bad:

Project Pat - Cheez N Dope 2

If Audio Push rises with the creativity surrounding its beats, Project Pat falters with the lack of it.

When I saw Project Pat's name, I knew I had to get Cheez N Dope 2. I knew I had to check it out. For one, who the hell uses the term “cheese” anymore, let alone this horrible misspelling of it? But more importantly, the only song by Pat I had in my iTunes library was from my days before I became such a hip-hop connoisseur (flips hair). It's a ridiculously bad song called “Don't Call Me No More” featuring Three 6 Mafia.

And Project Pat doesn't disappoint in the slightest.

Most of the beats are pretty basic. With slight bass and ghetto synths, these beats could be just about any other generic rapper's mixtape.

This is shown with some of his features. The song “Gettin Cash” features Juicy J, who doesn't waste any time before promoting his album Stay Trippy. I mean, I guess a shameful promo on another rapper's track is better than his stripper-themed game on his own website. (I lied. The Stay Strippy game is absolutely

perfect.)

But "Gettin Cash" is bad enough that promoting his own album on it might not even be good for Juicy. The beat is tired and the lyrics are way too plain. I mean, with a chorus featuring the line, "I fuck bitches / I bust guns / I sip lean / I smoke down my lungs / But getting cash is what I do best," can you really expect much else?

And that bitch-fucking, lean-sipping smoker theme is found all throughout the album. From the mixtape-opening "Real Killas Don't Talk" to the Wiz Khalifa-featuring "Chiefin." Plus, Project Pat can't seem to spell a word correctly for the life of him, so that doesn't help either.

Pat even squanders a perfectly good opportunity with the song "Weed Smoke" featuring Mac Miller. Mac Miller's one of the most creative rappers in the game right now, but he's forced to rap over another same-old-same-old beat. While the track is admittedly pretty catchy, it still just wastes the talents of Mac.

I think it's safe to say that Project Pat's new mixtape is more Cheez than Dope. *drops the mic* 

The Re-dic-yu-lus:

Pyes - Pyes & Pounds

When I saw Pyes' name, the first thing I though of was pies. But then I decided that no rapper would be so stupid to name himself after pies. And then I saw the album cover with a pie on it. Now my whole world has fallen apart and I don't know what to believe anymore.

Based on my first impression, though, pecan Pyes seems pretty ridiculous. And I LOVE that.

Blackberry Pyes keeps the spelling errors going with the track "Get Enuff." Only when you listen to sweet potato Pyes, it's not surprising he can't spell. According to apple Pyes, "Bitches hate me / Police hate me," but don't worry because it's "coooo." And this is "all cuz a nigga tried so hard / ever since a nigga dropped out of school."

Dr. Seuss ain't got nothing on Pyes

Then comes the song "Wreckless," which features a ghetto-ass beat that goes on way too long (a.k.a. thirty seconds) before cherry Pyes starts rapping. And when blueberry Pyes does start rapping, he becomes a sketchy Dr. Seuss: "Got plenty racks in my safe / Got plenty racks and I pounce / Got plenty racks in my house." And his "nigga" is wreckless because he'll "eat you like wreckless". Ladies and gentleman, Theodor Pyesel.

French silk Pyes continues his horribleness throughout the album, and it's so bad it's honestly great. In fact, I want to thank sweet potato Pyes for starting off the year with a truly re-dic-yu-lus mixtape. He's the reason why I do this.

-X-Prime, dropping the mic for now

@xprime_time

Season Finale

It feels like just yesterday when I emailed my blogs editor about a mixtape review-based blog. Not long after, I followed through with it. It was rough at first. Hell, it still is rough sometimes. But I slowly started building a blog-writing formula that I have stuck with week after week (for the most part). And I've honestly really enjoyed it. But with the school year coming to an end, so must this blog. But come August, Stack That Cheese will be back and better than ever.

The Good:

King Los - Becoming King

Los was a Baltimore rapper who gained a pretty decent following due to his quick delivery and wordplay. But Los is no more. He goes from Los to King Los in a matter of minutes on the title track of Becoming King.

He begins with just talking about his goals, saying, "If I can do one thing in the world, it would be to inspire just one person" as the beat filled with cymbals and electric guitar builds and builds. As he reaches the conclusion, he begins his rap. And right away, the listener just knows he witnessed a transformation from a rapper to a king.

From there on out, King Los just rides that momentum to put together a fantastic mixtape.

While the king could certainly do that on his own, he brings along company to prove just how royal he truly is. With features from some of the biggest names in rap, from Diddy to Wiz Khalifa to Ludacris, it's clear this king has quite the court.

"Disappointed" is the song that features both Diddy and Ludacris. While Diddy's just there for the chorus, Ludacris is there to spit a great verse. One of his best lines is, "I can get a little cocky / Pulling off in my Kawasaki / Thousand dollar bottles of Saki / Taking shots to the head like Rocky." But, just like a true king, Los doesn't get outdone by his guests. His flow is crisp and his lines are empowering, making him stand out the most. "I move different and breathe different / Niggas cut me, I fuck around and bleed different," he says.

Another quality song is "Dope," featuring Pusha T and Yo Gotti. Yet again, the featured artists go all out, showing just how much respect they have for Los. Pusha delivers one of the best verses of any featured artist on Becoming King, saying, "King Los with the king pin / King Push about to king him / King's ransom for a kilo / Took mine and built a kingdom."

But King Los can also put together a great song by himself. "Hard Life" is one of those songs. He does the chorus himself, thanks to a little help from Auto-Tune. But it doesn't seem overdone when Los does it. And his second verse is so ridiculously good it's unbelievable. He comes in hard and quick and continues this pace throughout the verse. It's no wonder he's wearing the crown.

And the production on Becoming King is good, too. But the great thing about it is that it just seems to compliment Los. The listener can't be drawn into the production because he's so busy being drawn into Los.

Becoming King is quite ambitious, actually. Not only has Los taken on a new persona, but he's changed his being. He really is a king now. Los wasn't getting noticed enough, but thanks to Becoming King, it's all but certain King Los will be.

The Bad:

Future & FreeBand Gang - Black Woodstock

I'm not going to lie. I've gone pretty hard to some songs featuring Future. Everytime "Bugatti" by Ace Hood or "Love Me" by Lil Wayne comes on at a house party, I can't control myself. I may start shouting, "I woke up in a new Bugatti." And once I start, I can't stop.

"Hello my baby, hello my
honey, hello my ragtime bitch."

But every time I find myself in this situation, as I'm going HAM as hell, I can't help thinking, "How the hell is this dude famous?" Like, seriously, how is this dude famous? I don't get it. Maybe if he was a rapper and purely a rapper, I could get it. But he's not. That's not his call to fame. He's a singer. But in order to be a singer, don't you need to have a good voice? Apparently not, because Future sounds like a drunk frog and he still manages to do it.

I wish I could say that's harsh, but it's really not. It's the truth. Take the song "Keys" for example. He sings the chorus and he sounds horrible. Like if there was a ghetto karaoke bar, he would be performing there. But that doesn't stop Future. He just shouts out, "I know keeeeys" like it's nothing.

And then he raps the verses, but he's incomprehensible in those. I try to understand him, but I can't. I saw a comment on the album from some random Hot New Hip-Hop member saying that Future sounds like he stole Mike Jones' flow. And I can't help but notice how true that is. But why would you do that? Mike Jones' biggest song is "Who is Mike Jones?" Even Mike Jones thinks he's irrelevant.

This theme continues throughout the whole mixtape. "Take This 4 Granted" is another good example. Once again, Future sings the chorus, but this time, it's even less clear than before. He continues his singing into the verse, but it's still not clear. If you're going to release music, shouldn't it at least be possible to understand you?

But this mixtape also belongs to his crew, who apparently goes by the name "FreeBand Gang." And it's just a collection of people who are even worse than Future. The song "Blow Them Bands" is a song by Stuey Rock featuring Future. I was hoping for this to be good because most songs featuring Future manage to at least get the listener pumped up. But the beat here is just cheesy and Stuey Rock is intolerable. He sounds like a mix between a bad hair band singer and a 14-year-old who just discovered how to use Auto-Tune.

There's also a rapper on Black Woodstock that goes by the name of Casino. He might be one of the better members of the FreeBand Gang, but his flow is basically just him shouting into the microphone. Try listening to three minutes of that.

I don't think I'll ever get the hype behind Future, especially after Black Woodstock.

The Re-dic-yu-lus:

Soulja Boy - Foreign 2

What better way to end Stack That Cheese's year than with Soulja Boy? Answer: probably a lot of things. But Soulja will do.

Soulja Boy's been on Stack That Cheese before, but I spent most of the time talking about his olden days of "Crank That." Now I actually have to listen to it and just make fun of current Soulja Boy. Ugh. 

Soulja Boy's kind of like the human version of Lil B. He shouts out random sylables ("Wah!"), he makes horrible metaphors and he's just laughable. The only difference is that there is no suspicion that he's just joking around. He's completely serious. Which might make him even funnier.

Cake and a pussy. It's Soulja Boy's dream.

Take the song "Yea Yea." I don't even understand where he's trying to go with it. Over a repetitive beat, he just shouts out lines like "SBZ, I should be on the Lakers." At one point he just says, "Cake cake cake / I want that cake, cake, cake." Wait, what?

"Soulja Walk" is another fun song. The beat is better now, with some nice bass and synths that actually make it somewhat tolerable. Until Soulja starts rapping, that is. The chorus just consists of "Walk, walk, walk / Soulja walk, walk, walk" and it goes about 30 seconds too long. And his lines are just plain stupid, like "Shawty right here / All on my pants / Shawty right here / Go and do your dance." And this is all while shouting every one else's catchphrases, like "swerve," "swag" and "turn up."

There is a song featuring Sean Kingston, so that's cool, I guess? If you weren't excited for the "Crank That" nostalgia, then you should be about that "Beautiful Girls" swag. And this song, entitled "Everybody Hoe," is just up there with the sweet songs of Kingston's past, as he sings "That's not your girlfriend / That's everybody hoe." Aww, how sweet, Sean. The best part about Kingston being involved is that it gives the listener a break from Soulja Boy.

This Soulja Boy mixtape was a lot less fun than the last one. I think the further I get in years from "Crank That," the more I hate it. I can't believe I used to like, nay, love that song. I guess we all have regrets. For some, it's that embarrassing bowl cut. For me, it's Soulja Boy. Yah, trick, yah.

-X-Prime, dropping the mic for now

@xprime_time

Post 11Fest Edition

I've mentioned Kendrick Lamar's newest album multiple times on Stack That Cheese. I love the thing. So when I found out Lamar was coming for 11Fest, I just about cried. So, to celebrate his recent appearance at 11Fest, I decided to dedicate a blog to him.

The Good:

Rich Kidd - In My Opinion

When I saw the title of In My Opinion, I was expecting to hear a weak album. The name just screams cockiness and a lack of creativity. And it was by some dude named Rich Kidd, I was even more put off. But then I heard it.

Rich Kidd doesn't have the most meaningful lyrics all the time, but his flow is ridiculous. With a deep voice and a quick delivery, he manages to make every song better.

And that's another thing about Rich Kidd--he self-produced all of In My Opinion. And it's very well produced, taking in multiple different influences to create a clearly unique mixtape.

Take "On My Face" for instance. It has African drums turning to an electronic breakdown before combining both of them. This makes for a crazy beat. It's really just a journey, never knowing exactly what comes next.

This also happens to be one his most meaningful songs, admitting just how hard he's been having it while trying to pursue his career. Really makes me think about his name.

Rich Kidd must've called in the Dream Girls.

Even his interludes are extremely interesting. The interlude "Can't Buy You Love" is probably one of the most intriguing, having a lengthy chorus to begin it with a Supremes-mixed-with-Aretha-Franklin group repeating, "Money can't buy you love." That made me think twice about his name.

Before I listened to In My Opinion, I didn't think I would like his mixtape. How stupid do I feel? Not only was he a pretty creative rapper, but an even more creative producer. And he had great flow and pretty good rhymes, too. Just teaches you never to judge a book by its cover, kids!

The Bad:

Kendrick Lamar - Hub City Threat: Minor of the Year

That's right, Kendick Lamar came out with a mixtape just days after 11Fest. But in non-Kendrick fashion, it's absolutely horrible. It sounds like he digressed to his 16-year-old self again. One of the cans thrown on stage must have hit him in the head and made him a bad rapper.

Psych! While Hub City Threat is a new release from the Compton artist, it's not a new mixtape. This was actually 16-year-old Kendrick Lamar's mixtape that was just discovered and released to the general public. And let me tell you, age has been very good to Kendrick.

You know the song "Backseat Freestyle?" You know, the one where Kendrick pretends to be 17 again and freestyles? And you know how it would be really bad if he was being serious, due to the fact that the premise is that of him being able to "fuck the world for 72 hours?" Well, imagine a whole mixtape of that--a serious 16-year-old being ratchet as hell.

It has exactly what you would expect from a 16-year-old, too. It has a couple songs with the beats from other, more popular songs of the time, such as "Go DJ" and "Drop It Like It's Hot." The latter is actually pretty entertaing, like a more rap-based version of Snoop Dogg's version. But when it features a chorus of "For my niggas that know right, K-Dot is hot," then it's hard to actually take him seriously. 

And his songs are very clearly written by a 16-year-old. They're sex-fueled, alcohol-fueled and drug-fueled, just like any teenager's thoughts.

It's an interesting listen, though. Knowing what Kendrick is now--a poetic master of storytelling--it's astonishing to think that he was once not awesome. And also, with good kid, m.A.A.d city being Kendrick's anti-drug epiphany when he was 17, it gives the listener a look into Lamar's life before it all.

He's actually not horrible, though. As far as teenagers go, he's pretty good. His voice sounds more like a young Juelz Santana and his flow is pretty interesting. It's just unsettling knowing how little of his potential he was living up to at the time. Thank Based God he's living up to him.

The Re-dic-yu-lus:

Young g da beast - The Competition

Names like Young g da beast are exactly why I write Stack That Cheese. It's so beautifully bad that it's perfect. I honestly wouldn't be surprised if there's another Young g da beast out there, which makes it even better.

And it makes me even happier when the rapper is just as bad as his name. And Young g makes me very happy.

Speaking of "Backseat Freestyle," Young g has a cover of it entitled "Backseat Gstyle." What's even crazier than the title is that Kendrick purposefully sucking is better than Young g actually trying. For one, Young g is almost incomprehensible. He also copies a lot of Kendrick's transitions, but just follows those transitions with much worse lines. Such as his line, "I got 25 lighters on my dresser, yes sir / That old-school mix got a nigga feeling player." And that was actually supposed to rhyme.

He also covers Tyga's "Rack City." And once again, Young g is incomprehensible and worse than the original.

But Young g also has some original songs. Such as "mind state og." The beat is alright, but a little too bubbly for Young g's style. Young g's flow doesn't even match up with the song. I wish I could quote a bad line by him, but I don't think you understand how hard it is to hear him. He's that bad.

I didn't really expect anything better from a guy named Young g da beast. Okay, I at least thought he would know how to work recording equipment and wouldn't rap while playing chubby bunny. But no, Young g couldn't even do that.

King Remembered In Time

I'm going to do something a little different this week. Normally, I go over three mixtapes varying in quality in mini-review form. I do this because, while I have respect for mixtapes, I do realize they shouldn't be treated the same as albums. There are exceptions to this rule, though. Joey Bada$$'s 1999 was a major one last year. And this week, another exception has arisen, so I feel it's only fair to give it the full ACRN treatment. I'm going to review it just like any other album, because that's what it deserves.

Big K.R.I.T.: K.R.I.T. (King Remembered in Time)

Rating: 8.5/10

Community used to be something important--it was what people identified with. They were proud of their community and they would do anything for it. At least, that's what our parents tell us. With the rise of the Internet age, community became less about who we lived by and more about who we associated with online.

The same can be said about rap. Community used to be something. It was an influence on rappers, as they based their sound on their community. It was so important to some that they were willing to literally die for it. Now, not so much. Sure, rappers still “rep” where they're from, but it's no longer such a strong identifier. A Bronx rapper could sound the exact same as someone from Compton and no one would think twice about it.

But there are exceptions to the new Internet age. Big K.R.I.T. is one of those exceptions. K.R.I.T. is as Southern as Southern gets and he stays true to his roots, constantly mentioning artists like UGK and Outkast in his songs.

Songs like “Banana Clip Theory” are so Southern that they feature smooth jazz influences. As the saxophones lull the listener into a chill mindset, K.R.I.T. lightly raps over the beat in a hushed voice and lyrics that are as good as anything he's written. As K.R.I.T. raps the words, “Cause if you draw down first you'll be the man / Then you'll pop the trunk and demand / That respect, if they neglect,” the Southern rapper takes an introspective look at how closely assimilated guns and power have become.

Other songs, like “Good 2Getha,” sound very much like Outkast in their glory days, as K.R.I.T. channels his inner Andre 3000 to put together a fun, danceable song that could get anyone in their groove.

What makes King Remembered in Time so good is that K.R.I.T. combines the territorial style of his with that of the new-fangled Internet age.

The song “REM” is one of the most beautifully produced tracks that K.R.I.T.'s ever come out with, as the rapper shows his production chops off (just like he does on all but one song on the mixtape). The beat combines a surprisingly good piano riff, a quick drum beat and a James Blake sample to stand out as one of the best songs on the album. The fact that K.R.I.T. is more than willing to sample James Blake shows just how modern he is.

Big K.R.I.T. proves that he is one of the best up-and-coming rappers in the game. With his complex rhymes, deep lyrics and masterful production, K.R.I.T. manages to blend his Southern hospitality with modern concepts. This helps him become more than just a mixtape rapper-- he's a bona fide MC.