Putting the lyrics aside for the moment I’m willing to say there’s something here. The production goes from spartan and airy to distorted and noisy in a way that makes it feel like industrial trap rap, and his accent plays with your expectations of what the flow should be like. ... Ultimately I must still give a “meh” to the overall presentation, because like many of his U.S. counterparts, Yung Lean’s music relies more on style than substance.

It manages to sound both isolating and uplifting at the same time, and really shows an artist who is honing their loneliness and boredom into creativity. It has helped me get through these long and strange months, and I highly recommend it.

“Lil Boat 3” finds Yachty syncopating and stretching beyond his naturally baritone voice. He sounds more self-aware than ever, channeling his beloved infectious energy as the main driver for the album, rather than his erratic lyrical ability.

Because of the themes it addresses, “RTJ4” is indeed a hip-hop album chaotically reflective of the modern times and much needed for the same reason.

It’s a complete package (pun intended). I’ll take the Jay-Z style “Song Cry” feel of “When to Say When” as an album song any day. The MexikoDro and Shebib “From Florida With Love” is the example of why I can handle Drake being Tuned up more than most of his contemporaries. He uses it without abusing it to ridiculous absurdity.

Mozzy’s greatest strength as a writer is clear intimacy. Every time he spits a verse, I feel like he’s talking to me one-on-one with a cigar in hand and his posse surrounding him. There’s wisdom attached to his words because he’s been through it all. ... Mozzy still carries demons, but there are indeed shimmers of happiness percolating throughout some of these passages.

It is the right combination of introspective and funky. It makes these long, endless days and weeks much more manageable. If you need something both banging and relaxing, Shabazz Palaces got you covered.

Rather than trying to please the club, the ladies, the hardcore 30+ crowd, the younger fans, and everyone in between, Jadakiss has released a cohesive, satisfying album that is easily one of his best efforts. More of this, please.

If you absolutely can not stand rappers who should be called singers then you need to take a hard pass on Vert, but if you occasionally (or more often than that) enjoy the crooning, Vert is at least someone who can put it together in a way that is surprisingly decent and occasionally quite good.

“Unlocked” is a blast. It is a highly-enjoyable snapshot of an otherworldly dimension traversed by the superbly-skilled rapper Denzel Curry and the fantastic Kenny Beats. This EP delivers loads of strong bars and beats alike and is most definitely worth the listen.

Throughout “Chixtape 5” though I keep finding songs that pay tribute to hits by other people, and in each case Tory Lanez is not the rapper on the track. ... He’s just straight up crooning. He almost raps on “If You Gotta” featuring Fabolous but can’t resist the urge to sing. Unfortunately this leads F-A-B to imitate him instead of vice versa. The album’s slicker than the tile floors behind the counter at Wendy’s though.

While handling all of the production himself is a valiant effort, it’s evident that Royce had a wobbly experience with it in that it isn’t fully consistent. Even so, “The Allegory” is another solid effort from the Detroit rhyme sayer.

As for meaningful depth to his bars, humorous “press rewind” punchlines or emotionally resonant stories, I regretfully must honestly say he didn’t grab me in any of these categories. As a lyricist he was “just there” — not terrible, not brilliant, just okay. Does he show future potential on “Meet the Woo Vol. 2“? Yes. Absolutely.

Both the length and the effort he put into it justify why it took over three years for it to come out and all the bases are covered here. ... It’s hard to find anything to complain about.

Wayne, much like in his mixtape days, is finally having fun again. And when he does that, the results are captivating.

I’m confident is his best work since his return in 2017. ... Roc Marciano isn’t likely to win over those who aren’t into this style of hip hop, but it certainly feels more accessible than the DJ Muggs record “KAOS” or even the “Rosebudd’s Revenge” albums.

Mac’s sixth studio album is a surreal experience that’s filled with opaque contemplation and tragic connotations. ... Loneliness may be our greatest fear other than death. Mac was able to explicitly re-establish this idea through reflective songwriting and gentle crooning. His genius and thoughtfulness will always be remembered. “Circles” is a stark reminder of that.

There’s a timeless quality to the way Keith Elam and Christopher Martin brought out the best in each other, and even posthumously on “One of the Best Yet” you can still hear that love of making hip-hop in every track.

It’s a good album. ... Emo rappers often tend to release short albums with even shorter tracks, and this one is suspiciously long and incredibly overloaded with talent.

The watery wave of “Payback”, the reverberating bass of “Traffic”, the head nodding flow of “Dead Presidents”, it all works. The lyrics? They sort of work. 03 sings his way through songs like the latter track, and while he’s mostly just flossing, he occasionally takes the time to call out peers who have let him down by not being as G as he.

Skepta is more than happy to satisfy his core fanbase. It’s something Dizzee Rascal struggled to find a formula for, so “Ignorance is Bliss” succeeds in that regard. Minus the terrible “Animal Instinct”, it’s easy to recommend.

Little Simz is at her best when she is coming out all guns blazing, but a little too often on this album her hyper lyricism is unnecessarily hampered by mellow beats that don’t match her fire. “Grey Area” deserves all of the accolades it has received. Little Simz is a talented rapper with a broad range. She is raps with fierceness, attitude, sensitivity, and intelligence.

Top Boy has elevated Kano to a bigger platform, and his music has managed to follow suit. His character in the Netflix series may play second fiddle to Dushane, but he can consider himself “Top Boy” as far as British rappers go.

“Everybody’s Everything” reflects Peep’s short but impactful catalogue by deviating little from the things that made him viral — his hazy wavy style, his emotional delivery, and his apparently complete lack of control over his demons.

Even if you struggle with the minimal production, “The Book of Traps and Lessons” is still an important album and one worth repeated listens. We are in an age of chaos and outrage, and Tempest offers clarity and compassion. She is one of the great voices of our age, and an essential artist.

I think there’s room for “alternative hip-hop” in the mix, not everything in rap needs to be swaggering cock grabbing male posturing, and the difference between a rapper who sings and a singer who raps has diminished greatly. That doesn’t mean “Pony” is going to take the place of all-time classics like Organized Konfusion in my rotation, but it does mean that I can see a more open-minded interpretation of rap music as not necessarily destroying hip-hop music and culture. Rex Orange County has his place too.

Even at its most mundane (like on the painfully repetitive title track), “uknowhatimsayin¿” represents an artist at his most polished and enthusiastic.

There are more nuanced (and enjoyable) approaches to records focused on depression. Elzhi’s “Lead Poison” is still the one I’d recommend first but NF impresses on “The Search”. ... By stripping that away, his barrage of words – married with the booming, cinematic production (credited as NF and Tommee Profitt) – is surprisingly digestible.