LATE NIGHT. REVIEWS. FILM. MUSIC. TV.
There’s a telling skit on Eminem’s new album Kamikaze. It’s his manager, Paul Rosenberg, warning him not to go through with an LP basically full of scathing disses. You can hear it in Rosenberg’s voice – he’s dead serious about it being a bad idea. And he’s right. The aggro-rap Kamikaze proves two things we already knew about late-career Eminem. One: he can rap. Two: he cannot write an actual rap song. This is an exhausting, borderline-embarrassing album. Should’ve listened to Paul, Em.
— 16 Aug 2018 —
Written by Mia Rodriguez
Despite feeling like she is fucking everywhere, it’s been four years since we’ve received an actual album from Nicki Minaj. It’s crazy to write this… but in that time she’s sat and watched former reality star/stripper Cardi B become the biggest female rapper in the world. In response, she brings all the artillery on Queen. It’s a monster of an album, showcasing Minaj’s well-known versatility as a rapper and singer. And that’s largely a good thing, because most of what she tries on this project comes naturally to her. But will it take the throne back from fellow New Yorkian Cardi B? Probably not.
YG has flown the gangsta-rap flag high since his out-of-nowhere breakthrough album My Krazy Life. On that LP, he burst into the mainstream with a huge help from the chunky, house-y synths of DJ Mustard. He ditched his right-hand man after a feud and came up with Still Brazy, a more ambitious effort steeped in all-eyes-on-me paranoia. It’s hard to not feel like Stay Dangerous is a step back. It’s not weird enough to feel exciting, but more importantly, it’s sorely lacking the urgency that put YG on the map in the first place.
THE MIDNIGHT SPECIAL 