Personally I think 2012-2015 was a very very special time for rap music. You had all of these artists from different backgrounds gaining traction. TDE, Odd Future, Pro Era, RVIDXR KLVN, A$AP MOB, etc. One of the standouts from this era was definitely TDE’s ScHoolboy Q. Q has an unmatched energy with whatever mood he wants to be in. When Q is hyped up no one can even come close to being on the same level as him. See 5200 or Str8 Ballin. Q’s flow is fucking perfect. They was he effortlessly flows in between different tempos and cadences is remarkable for some one who didn’t start rapping seriously until they were 21. Q’s last project Blank Face was a great testament to how truly unique Q is musically. This project saw Q rapping over hard ass guitar riffs, house beats, jazz-lounge beats too. Q, of course demolishes everything he touches so going into CrasH Talk I had very high hopes, and I was not let down (that much).

Q had teased this album releasing a couple snippets of Numb Numb Juice & 5200. Two of the hardest songs on the album. Off these two snippets alone everyone knew Q was dropping some heat. And when I listened I was like “Oh okay that’s it?” This project saw Q rapping over more easy to take in beats. As opposed to his earlier releases CrasH Talk’s production seems a lot more calmer. Even the hype songs were like: “Oh okay, yeah this is fire” not “What in the fuck sound is this? I gotta run this shit back.” Sounds nit picky, but  I was really hoping for more weirder beats. Q is going to kill whatever you give him, but if the production is boring you might as well have just gave us acapellas.

That’s my only gripe though. Now let’s talk about the highlights! Holy shit, CrasH? So fucking good. This is about as weird as the beats get. It samples Royce Da 5’9”’s 1999 song Boom, but it slows it down and adds these hi-hats to give it a whole different energy to it. Q comes in so smooth rapping about how he has to keep going in the rap game because he has a lot riding on him. He recollects about his path that lead him to where he is now and how he deals with the stress that comes with it. Gang Gang is a fire ass intro. Those 808’s are so strong when you’re in a car. Q sounds like he’s just having fun over the beat and he really meshes with it and it turned out perfect. Floating is great too. Q and 21 sound like kingpins that have control over everything in sight. This song sees them just flexing on us for a good three minutes and seven seconds. Just fire.

Overall this project could’ve been better, but it’s still pretty solid how it is. Maybe I’m holding on to the past too much, but I’d still love to hear Q over weird ass production. Like, Q rapped over House and white people EDM sounding beats on Blank Face and the songs weren’t trash! I love Q so much.

Listen to Crash Talk

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