The 27-year-old Offset digs deep into his Atlanta Hip Hop lineage, crafting an album that’s equal parts rare in this climate (seeing it follows an unfolding narrative) and refreshing, given its telling content.

Other than polished vocals and drastically better mixing, Lil Pump sounds the exact same as he did when he dropped Lil Pump; zooted on Xans, lean, and without a care in the world. The rapping is simple, the concepts are easy to grasp as he pretty much gets straight to the point on all 16 tracks (said point being the drugs and money he bathes in excessively).

The full-length fully introduces the world into a troubled young man with a brilliant mind whose musings are starkly engaging.

On The WZRD, he spends most his time refining his formula or simply being lazy. Either way, it’s clear that Future is way too comfortable.

As a debut album, X 100PRE succeeds at establishing Bunny’s ambition. With its bangers and sonic diversity, this release suggests that the Latin trap artist possesses the potential to shape mainstream music for years to come.

At 15 songs and 51 minutes long, it’s an enjoyable listen with good pacing, filled with the right amount of vulnerability, heartache, menace, and savagery.

The beats Metro cooked up for this one were top notch throughout, adding some refreshing sounds to the current trap landscape. With retirement in the rearview mirror and a 21 Savage album on the horizon, Not All Heroes Wear Capes solidifies the return of one of this era’s most trusted producers.

Even with all the underwhelming guest performances and filler, Evil Genius demonstrates that Gucci Mane hasn’t completely lost it. That being said, it’s definitely time for him to disrupt the formula.

Overall, the 16-track project is mostly cohesive aside from the few disposable tracks that clutter its message and, at times, elementary lyrics.

The 14-track album keeps all the commended technical framework of The Never Story but elevates the delivery and songwriting to a point where he sounds completely like his own man with his own plan.

Some Rap Songs is reminiscent to Earl’s late friend Mac Miller’s final album Swimming. Both bring the listener through the process of overcoming trauma and healing but ultimately, choose to leave the story unfinished.

Although songs like “BEBE” kindly pay tribute to 6ix9ine’s Puerto Rican roots, his rapping quickly proves to be tolerable in tiny, almost microscopic doses, while the album closer “DUMMY” is like a carbon copy of the homogenized sound currently infiltrating mainstream rap.

Each of the tracks contain replay value, but the standouts besides the aforementioned are the blues-tinged “New Thangs,” “No Window Tints,” and the punchy funk-heavy snares and easy listening jazz keyboards on “Buddy & Sincere.”

On Eden, a follow up to this year’s Ephorize, CupcakKe refines her lyricism, diversifies her subject matter, and proves why she shouldn’t be dismissed.

While Come Over When You’re Sober Pt. 2 puts the cap on Peep’s short-lived career, it leaves behind clear evidence of his once-limitless potential.

It may not be as beautifully consistent as Malibu, but during those glorious pinnacles when Oxnard is firing on all cylinders, it’s undeniably some of the best music of 2018.

Ultimately, Staples has added another colorful chapter to his chameleon-like catalog and reinforced his intention to keep evolving no matter what trends are dictating the current wave.

With its brevity and risk-taking, The Last Rocket succeeds at illustrating Takeoff’s talents. Though there’s no outright banger and some filler, this solo album serves as a glimmer of hope for the longevity of Hip Hop’s current favorite trio.

The subtle wave of acoustics, sparse pianism and occasional bass bump work as an apt complement to Ella’s oration. The production also displays the underappreciated diversity of Mustard’s bottomless bag of beats.

With Pieces of a Man, Jenkins is surely having his own Frank Ocean-esque moment--he’s expressing himself on his own terms with poignant lyricism and nuance.

By Quality Control’s standards, Nuthin’ 2 Prove is a brisk listen-through as it clocks in at just over 45 minutes, but it certainly feels as bloated as recent projects from Migos and Quavo’s solo album.

Suncity (named after his former El Paso stomping grounds) goes the distance in capturing slow-moving society, accented with inviting sunbeams, especially on the first-person acoustic number “Saturday Nights.”

Quavo shows consistency on this album through trap-a-long choruses and fresh sounds but there are definitely some misses that will likely never be streamed again.

Tip’s latest sets an example for matured vets who still like to get their hands dirty. Dime Trap is dually nostalgic and relevant, and cements T.I. amongst rap’s all-time elite.

Overall, Bobby has bars for days--and days--and as a consistent top to bottom play, YSIV has vibrant energy.

While she’s making a valiant effort to mimic a lot of the mainstream rap currently infiltrating the airwaves, it’s going to be challenging for people to not immediately dismiss her as an unwelcome gimmick. That’s not to say the 15-year-old doesn’t have an arsenal of slick jabs ready to go. Much like her fiery personality, Bhad Bhabie’s song lyrics exude healthy doses of attitude toward anyone who tries to stand in her way.

It’s clear that DROGAS Wave has enough value to be memorable but is less than the sum of its parts.

Noname overwhelmingly succeeds in telling her coming-of-age story where she removes all emotional layers to explore everything from comical socio-political ideology to sexuality minus self-serving preachiness.