Quavo, Pharrell, NoCap, BLP Kosher, YN Jay

This is Friday to Friday, your weekly rap wrap-up going through our favorite releases in rap and hiphop from Friday, October 2nd to Friday, October 9th. My name is Jacob. I'm a mixing and mastering engineer from California and your host for today. And I have with me producer hailing from Detroit, Michigan, Gav aka Prod by Lunar.g. >> Yo yo yo. >> And producer and artist manager hailing from Montreal, Canada, Matt Kerier. Yo, what's good? Before we get into our picks for this week, [music] here's the full list of artists that dropped projects. This week we had BLP Kosher, Chrome Waves and Afro, Dboy Boy223, Dio the Outcast and Light It Up AV, Drake with a Deluxe, Fetty P, Franklin, and Bandplay with a Deluxe, Futuristic, Glock Boys, TJ, Joey Trap, Keep It Peasy, Lil 2K, Lil [ __ ] Mac Miller with the 10-year anniversary of the Divine Feminine, Mickey Diamond, and Big Ghost LTD released two tapes, Billy 1 and two, this Greek. We got No Cap, Quo, of course, Rocket Needs Space and Surf Gang. 7:30 at Morning, Soda, The Korea Town, Oddity, Y&J, and lastly, Victor, Victor Presents. >> I feel like I'm the only one that was like geeked about this week. I actually loved like most of the [ __ ] >> It sounds like you pretty much had like five, six, seven different picks. >> Yeah, I very easily could have covered most of the playlist. Well, let's kick it off with the biggest release, Quavo with Chrome Life, fully produced by Farel Williams. It was really great to hear Quo using such different production lately, stepping away from so much trap heavy stuff because he has that ability as a vocalist to go write unique melodies and hooks over all kinds of beats. So, I think for Fel as far as a vocalist to pair up with Quo was a perfect choice. >> Yeah, 100%. It was different and not just different for Quo, but different also I think for like this year and just in general >> like it was a really different mesh of sounds. It's very felt. So I'm glad that like he didn't, you know, sacrifice his sound to kind of match. Quo was really just both of them, you know, meeting halfway 50/50 kind of thing. >> Yeah, I agree. >> Yeah, I thought that [ __ ] was fire. I was watching an interview and Quo was saying like Fal had him out on [ __ ] yachts and like all around the world to record this project and I feel like that just kind of inspired him cuz like not that this to me sounds like anything like way way way out of the uh out of the ordinary for Quo like vocally or lyrically at least like it's all pretty on brand but it's just the production around it gives it such a different feel that it does feel like unique in that sense. >> Yeah, for sure. And like you said, it's it's still Quo. Like it's Quo's hooks. It's Quo's songwriting. Like it's you still get 100% Quo. If you're Quo fan, it's it's what you're getting. It's just if you're someone who maybe preferred like Quo over, you know, less of the dark kind of trap stuff. Like this is all upbeat. Like there's nothing depressing at all on this album. Like it's all very very lively and you know, happy music. >> Feels like a party the whole time. >> Yeah, totally. Yeah, even on like the songs that slowed down a little bit like Thick in the Mirror gets a way slower vibe than the rest of the project, but I feel like Quo accepted the challenge and wrote something perfect for the beat. >> Especially the hook, too. Like, I know that's kind of his specialty. I don't think there's ever been a Quo hook that's like bad, so to speak, you know? Like, they're all It's just like varying levels of catchy. >> I love the hook on Haven, too. >> Yeah. And then it had a beat switch between the dancy vibe and the trap beat for the hook and the verses. They like had two different beats. It was pretty cool. >> Yeah, there's I don't have really any complaints. And I do want to say that both Future and Lil Baby snapped on this. >> And I know we've talked a bit about like Lil Baby's stuff lately and it just not quite being the same. And this was definitely like one of his uh love songs, whatever you want to call it. like it wasn't like a a trap song or whatever for Lil Baby, but feels like they kind of dropped that distorted vocal sound that he had had going on for a while. I think just like sonically this is one of the best sounding Lil Baby verses I've heard in I think this year. >> Yeah, agreed 100%. >> And the name of that song is Ball My Love. >> Yeah, he holds down the hook and like I actually like that when he does stuff like this. It's more like club music or whatever. Sometimes it feels kind of played out and this one I was actually like I'm rocking with this. >> Yeah. And we had some other crazy features on here too with Baby Breath was pretty insane with Tyler Fel on vocals and Rocky as well. >> Say don't forget Rocky. >> I feel like it's the production like with Fel where it's like it feels like that's a whole different vibe, right? I just feel like it brought the best out of in everyone especially Tyler. >> Yeah, >> definitely Tyler with with verse of the year. >> Yeah, Tyler went so unhinged. It's pretty funny. and he trolled everyone with this post ahead of the album. He was saying it's the best verse he ever wrote and like you guys aren't going to believe what I did with the with the English language. And of course, I don't know why I believed it even for a second cuz he was just trolling. I should have known better. But his verse just starts with him just going bling bling bling bling bling bling like 12 times. [laughter] >> Bro, >> yeah, Tyler. This [ __ ] reminded me of flower boy. It's like all the ad liibs that he did on Flower Boy with the like skirts and brooms and [ __ ] like >> Yeah. >> I don't know. It was just >> And he knows Fel, right? Like he's worked with Fel so much and this must have just been like a let me just have fun with this, you know? >> Yeah. >> Not to mention every time he does anything with ASAP Rocky, he's just goofy as [ __ ] too. So, I'm like, I don't know if that had something to do with it or not. But, yeah, that one's definitely going to be talked about a lot. >> That [ __ ] is just so unhinged. >> Yeah. I've been liking like you said through the interviews the the press they've been doing because Fel is usually a very reserved guy and Quo not to say Quo is reserved but Quo is kind of more a bit more not shy but like a bit more quiet I find usually and so it's been nice to kind of see them like their world and a sneak peek into seeing how they they they made it together you know Quo's had a hard couple of years you know I feel like this this album really kind of like put some happiness back into the cuz like whenever I thought of Quo before I just kind of like felt bad for everything you know I was like I wanted to be back with offset. I want him, you know, like and also we've been seeing him and offset kind of like communicate and seem like they're doing well and everything. >> Offset feature. >> Yeah, Offset Feature on Away. And then also, we got the announcement of the final Migos album is going to come out 2027. >> I did not catch that. That's awesome. >> Yeah. And then Takeoff should be getting another solo album as well. >> Oh my god, man. He I got to be honest, Takeoff was my favorite Migo personally. I don't think even the other two Migos would argue on that. >> Yeah, like his music too. His solo stuff's so different than what like Migos does. Like I don't know. I still listen to The Last Rocket. That's 8 years old, almost 10 years old now. But yeah, >> that's exciting. That's exciting. >> Yeah. Last couple tracks I had mentioned is Trance. Loved how the beat pulls out then comes back in on the work trance. That was cool. Very kind of Forel move to do that. And then uh the bounce of the beat on how you do that also. That was really good. >> Yeah, I didn't expect to like that one as much as I did. Yeah, it's his his 808s on it. That's the other thing I wanted to say. Like there was this like fuzzy factor to the whole album. All the 808s had like this slight distortion on them that just made them feel >> so thick, dude. >> Mhm. >> And then like some also really cool kind of like melodies with the 808s and stuff. I think just the way they did this sounded really nice. >> It's nice to hear how Fel does it. >> Exactly. Yeah. P's got the special touch. Yeah, he's a master for sure. >> Why he's for real. >> Yeah. Well, that's Quo with Chrome Life. Next, let's talk about No Cap with Heaven on Mars. First thing that caught me was this is a super ill cover. I really like this cover. >> Yeah. >> And it didn't make me think of the Sonics that I got from the album. Cover feels more like something more abstract and underground, but then it's very like pop, R&B, and rap. So, that kind of threw me, but at the same time, it was cool. I liked it. >> The R&B vibes I kind of got from it. Like the blue kind of like >> it kind of fit a little bit of the vibe, but then you kind of get everything too on this project. Like it's not just that blue kind of R&B. Like you said too, like the the pop is not matching that kind of blue vibe if that makes sense. >> Mhm. >> Yeah. No, I really like No Cap. He's done some stuff with like Lil Uzi, Young Boy, all sorts of different people, but this one was, if I'm not mistaken, it was all him. Yeah. There weren't any features on this. >> No. And I I found like even though like there was so much differentness, there was always kind of a similar vibe. Like it it sounded so like his vocals are spacey in a kind of way. >> Yeah. >> Like it's just it was a vibe. >> No. And that's the thing I know um a lot of it's Alino for uh the beats and then I know that's something he's talked about too, Matt, like wanting to not be put in a box. He's like, I want to do like my own thing. I want to leave like a lasting imprint on hip-hop. So, I always like people I mean that's a pretty bold statement to make, but I always like people that are aiming for something like that like that I'm just trying to figure out what's the trend like how do I hop on? But I really like the pacing of this album too. I will say the second half was a little slower in the sense that like there weren't as many tracks that grabbed my attention. >> The pacing for me was like kind of an issue cuz the first two songs made me think I wasn't going to like anything on the album. >> That's fair. Those first few songs I was like, "This is not going to be for me." And then it hits basic burner into Turks and Caos and then I was like, "Okay, I'm definitely interested again." Yeah. But then that happened like several times where I kind of like went up and down. >> That I can agree. I will say though for me personally, I loved the intro. Definitely not what I was anticipating, but I was like, "Yo, okay, I'm I'm here for this." Like I like his voice. I really like the piano melody being the second part, too. >> Yeah. And then it like has the switch. So it's like for me it definitely um made me think I was about to get a whole kind of like emo R&B like emo trap kind of feel. >> So it was almost like a pleasant surprise for me when Basic Burner hit. I was like oh wo there's more to this. And then like you said Turks and Caos goes crazy. And I got to say Agency I know we talked about it. The drums dude like incorporating [snorts] the live drums >> so good. >> They fit so well and it stood out. The mix stood out to me like as a as a non like engineer. To me it felt like the vibe was more the mix than the subject matter and and the beats if that made sense. Like everything was like the beats you kind of got, you know, a little bit of of everything but the mix specifically is what kind of set the tone like on on 6 a.m. where like it is kind of like viby but still kind of upbeat in a way. I don't know if you guys liked uh 241 glitching. That was the other one where it's like it's still like there's like random little synth notes hitting in the background and like I love where it's like there's a vibe that even though you can't pinpoint it, it's like it's there throughout, you know, you can feel it. >> Mhm. >> Interesting. So, I was just looking through some of the credits. Alino produced a lot of these, you'll hear like Gino on the track, but he's also the master and the mixer. So, on some of the songs that he didn't produce, he still did mix and master on it. >> Okay. >> Nice. >> Looks like fourish producers on each song. >> Okay. I just could I couldn't tell what it was. There was just like a sonicness that just the whole thing packaged it nicely. He's figured out his vocals. He's figured out how to balance them, how to make them even on like the down songs, you can still enjoy like it's it's viby. There's there's life to it. Even though if it's like, you know, down down tempmpo is not necessarily your thing. >> Mhm. >> But there's just a way that the vocals carry really really nice. >> Yeah, I agree. >> Do want to shout out, we got a no cap feature just to kind of tie it back together. He was on uh NDA with switches and fentanyl. Oh, >> okay. >> Right. Yeah, >> I'm I'm still NDA is something I'm still going through now. There was so much of it. I >> I still go through it every day. >> But yeah, ton of standouts on Heaven on Mars. I thought GPS was good. I really liked Basic Burner, Turks and Caos, uh Agency, 1B Shift. >> Mhm. Like that one, too. >> Even Pretty Tang, which I don't typically like that style of beats. That's not usually my thing. Did a did a great job with it. >> Regone type beat. >> Yeah, it's interesting. Yeah, I like He's got a Quo feature on his last album too before I disappear again. >> Yeah. >> And I will say like as as someone who's who's went through his albums before, like I don't find that this sounded like what I was expecting to hear. >> Yeah. >> It's definitely it's actually if ever I would say kind of a level like above. >> Each album seems to kind of be like a bit of a step forward, which I always really really like that. >> Yeah, it's important. Artists that don't do that, they get stale. >> Yeah, that's exactly what I was going to say. Opposite of complacency, right? And it's very easy to be complacent in music nowadays. I feel like just with Tik Tok and short attention spans, like you can just find a lane and like stick to that and never do anything outside of that lane and be relatively successful for a minute. So, >> right. >> Yeah. >> Well, that is No Cap with Heaven on Mars. Next, let's talk about BLP Kosher with Grip Thumb to Paper Cuts. I'm going to kick this off if you don't mind because I just kept going back through it this week and he did a interview with Channel 9. It's a skate podcast cuz he's actually got like a pretty heavy background in skateboarding and there was like a lot of skate references. There's a lot of like skateboarding influence into this album. You even hear it in the background like him doing tricks and [ __ ] He's actually like working on a skate video right now to come out like not long after the album dropped. But this is like one of my favorite projects this week and it's speaking of steps forward. It was totally different compared to what he normally does. He's normally always on the like South Florida kind of like Glock N feel like Detroit Flint kind of feel. Like I mean he's done a ton of stuff with Baby Tron and like I've definitely liked him with every album that's come out but this one I was like no way. like I was able to listen to it top to bottom and genuinely had a hard time picking out songs that I was like, "Yeah, I don't think I'll playlist that one." >> Yeah. >> What they did with this one too is he opened up the vocals a lot more and like moved away from like a strict trap sound cuz normally his stuff sounds really really busy and he's got like a rapid fire flow >> and it's like kind of tough. His his vocals are like fighting for space. Dude, they did cloud rap. They did like emo. They did Memphis rap and [music] they just let his vocals carry the [ __ ] There was a lot of like 808 glides and stuff like that and just like a lot of spiness to the album. I mean, there were even a couple songs where he's like kind of singing a little bit, but I thought this was [ __ ] sweet and like he put together a lot of cool features, too. Like he put bones on there. >> Yeah. >> Cemetery, who I actually just heard about not long ago. I didn't really know anything about him. Not my personal favorite music. It's like um I don't know. I think it's all over Tik Tok and [ __ ] right now. He call him call calls himself like a graveyard man or something. It reminds me of like Shadow Wizard Gang. So that was interesting. But like even that one sounded good. And then he brought back Baby Tron and Riff Raff was on it too. >> Riff. Yeah. >> But there was substance to this album where it wasn't just about like the oneliners and like the puns and stuff. It just kind of like opened up a little more emotionally like gave a little bit of sense into his life and stuff. You start and end the album with those vibes. So, it's kind of puts like a framing around what's going on with it. So, >> I thought this was really, really good. I thought it was sweet to see him like stepping out of his comfort zone a bit cuz he's definitely a lot more talented, I think, than I realized and like most people would know just based on like what his popular stuff is. >> Mhm. >> To me, this basically sounded like he got a a budget. a certain zero was added somewhere and they're like, "All right, let's let's sit and write stuff a little bit more than usual, you know, which in a way is kind of like I guess what we talked about with Ye, right? >> I I enjoyed it. I I don't know if I enjoy as much as you. I enjoyed it in a way where like it was really fun. Now I wonder like if his fan base if they're happy with like the kind of like elevated more polished sound or if they wanted like that original sound or whatever. But no, you're right. I I was able to listen through the whole thing A to Z and I find that he's one of those guys usually where like not to take away anything now that it's like satire rap but usually it's like it's kind of like I'm I'm not trying hard rap, you know, like you said the vocals like these vocals are so much more polished than what I'm used to with him where like you turn on something and it's like it's shock value. It's in your face. This was like music. >> Well, that's the thing too. So I mean he uh you're kind of right in a sense about the budget. He actually like has his own studio now. He's working with mainly the same producers that he has for a while. Like Danny G. >> Jedju is one of the names that he kept bringing up in his interview, too. He's like, "It's this kid that I really [ __ ] with that's like actually a musician, like plays instruments and stuff and like looks to create sounds before like it's just like, let me put together a beat." So, I was like, that's kind of interesting cuz I find myself doing the same thing where I'm like, I want to establish like a cool sound design to whatever the like main element's going to be first. I think the focus was definitely is way more polished. The blend of cuz he was a skater before he was a rapper. He was like really trying to make it in skateboarding. He was like sponsored and stuff and skating with some like relatively big names that I won't get into. But one of his homeboys was like, "Bro, you need to rap. Like what are you doing?" Cuz he had one song. And the dude was like, "No, like do both. You know, like incorporate both, but like you need to rap. Like you need to chase this [ __ ] Like trust me." So, I think Matt, that's kind of why it feels like I'm not trying that hard because like he was talking about his writing process, too. Like he'll just write [ __ ] [music] you know? Like he'll just put it in his notes app. He's like, "I put together like a couple bars every night like so I have subject matter and like content to talk about in the songs." But this one felt a lot more purposeful. And it just sounds like at least from that interview that I was watching, it seems like that's kind of where he's at in his career where like everything is relatively purposeful. Like he's trying to finish the skate vid. he's put together this album that talks about like mental health and his personal life and like he put a bigger focus on like skating in this album which is like a big part of his personality and like backstory and so it did in a way feel like a debut album but it's like his third studio album I think. >> Mhm. >> Yeah. I don't know. It was kind of cool. >> Showing more of who he is. >> Yeah. Definitely still what he is but I feel like this snuck in quite a few different sounds and like kind of like pushed him out of his comfort zone a bit. So >> Mhm. This was definitely my favorite album of the week, though. And I did not expect it to be like at all. I was just like, I'll check it out. I was like, god damn it. I like every [ __ ] song on here. >> Sweet. That's awesome. Well, that is BLP Kosher with Grip Thumb Two Paper Cuts. Let's uh move on to some honorable mentions. First honorable mention I want to mention is Dio the Outcast and Light It Up AV with their album After Sundown. It's a sequel to their project Before Sunrise from 2025. Super cool blend of rap and rock. There's a lot of ways to make that corny, but this is far from corny. It's cool as [ __ ] Shout out to Dio the Outcast. >> Yeah, it's super chill. It's super unique. Yeah, I was excited that we found this. So, I think one of my honorable mentions, which again, this one I ran back Diamond and Big Ghost Limited with Billy. I was just sitting there like, "God damn, this is good." I didn't realize Mickey Diamond's from Detroit, too. They've actually done quite a few albums together. They've got like the Billy series, Blood of the Lamb, Black Sheep, Wolf Tickets. So, they've been working together for a minute. But yeah, I thought this whole project was so [ __ ] good, though. Had quite a few standouts on here. I really liked Higher Stakes, Diamond, Dare, and it had that Griselda feel to it big time cuz like Big Ghost collabs with them a lot, but he's definitely someone I'm going to dig more into. >> Nice. >> Yeah. So, my uh honorable mention would be Y&J. So, the Coochie Man, it it's not that it was like a a great project by any means. It's just that it was different. Like, every beat is named the vibe of the beat. >> Yeah. I love that. >> And Yeah. And like the beats are not they're not great at all, but the songs are kind of perfect with what the beat is. >> Yeah. >> It was a very weird experience. Like I found really myself sitting here going like if I would have gotten that beat in an email, how would I have, you know, reacted to this? But I didn't hate the song. >> Right. Very weird experience. >> Yeah, those first five songs were nuts. I love those first five songs I've had just stuck in my head. Sneaky beat. We got funky beat, Brazy Beat, Creepy Beat, Sneaky Beat, Happy Beat, Smooth Beat, Soulful Beat, >> dude. We got Rio on three of these songs, too. My personal favorite was Brazy Beat. I thought Baby Face E [ __ ] killed that, dude. Like kind of stole the show. And then emo beat and rock beat. I did not expect Rockbeat at all, but that guitar I was like, "Yo, this is hard." And that's an energy beat, too, which is like that's not energy style. So, for him to sample the Bad to the Bone, I was like, that's crazy. No, I thought this whole thing was fun. >> Yeah. >> But like you said, Matt, it wasn't anything like standout or like, oh my god, this is the best YJ album we've ever got. No, it was just it felt like a [ __ ] random collection of like almost throwaway songs, >> but in a way where the packaging made me interested the entire time. >> Packaging was >> like I got completely fooled as a consumer. I'm like, it wasn't great, but I relisted to a couple of songs a few times, too. Like, he got spins out of me. >> Yeah. Like just titled it Moody Beats. I was like, this felt like the like laziest put together project that I've seen from him. >> And it was not at the same time. >> Yeah. >> Yeah. He he can craft a song cuz again, like some of these beats I was like I I'm like these are not they don't sound good, but the song like the the crafting everything around it just made it work and it made it a decent song. It worked out, man. Whatever. It was a weird formula. I don't know how his team or whoever felt putting this together, but I'll go back and listen to it more. Like, I'm not done with it. >> Yeah, same. I don't think I'm done with this one. >> I was surprised, >> right? >> Yeah. >> It's a sneaky beat. No, dude. This is a This is a concept album. This is a high concept. [laughter] >> I was going to say that's crazy. You still, bro, I was going to say this is one way to put together a concept album on [laughter] >> Oh my god. >> That's YJ with Moody Beats. Uh, my next honorable mention is Chrome Waves and Afro with Chrome Sweet Chrome. Just quick shout out for this one. Had some dope dark '9s style hip-hop tracks. Some really cool like dark boom bap type stuff. So, good lyricism, good production. Pretty damn solid project for sure. >> Hell yeah. I could go with either Soda or Lil [ __ ] I think I'll shout out Lil [ __ ] though cuz I didn't anticipate this from Lil [ __ ] I've been listening to him for a while. not like super super closely anymore. I think the last album I for real got into was Swamp and that was like 6 years ago now, but he totally changed up his style and he was referencing the fact that like he's like people don't like what this is cuz it ain't my old [ __ ] or something like that. Like he referenced the fact that it's like that's not who he is when he popped and it was just like these crazy distorted 808s and like him screaming over stuff. And so like this dropped uh red and I urge you to go listen to it if you even know who Lil [ __ ] is cuz this was like a well polished introspective like emotional boom bap album that I was not anticipating at all. >> Very different. >> Yeah. Very very different. And like there's a song on there. The one song I really want to highlight is I Love You. And it's addressing all sorts of different family members talking about like his mom, talking about like his upbringing and stuff. And so it was just like not at all what I was expecting when I saw that Lil Dark he was dropping. I just kind of like put it on cuz I was like I haven't checked him out in a while. Dude, I was very very pleasantly surprised with this one. Yeah, the production was [ __ ] awesome on it. The lyricism was very thoughtful. So [music] yeah, Red by Lil [ __ ] was one of my honorable mentions. >> Interesting. Cool. Well, that's all our honorable mentions for this week and that will wrap us up here. But before we get into releases coming out next week, let's do plugs. You can always follow me at frequency overflow everywhere and check out our beats at frequencyoverflow.com. We always got new stuff coming out. Uh this week we have the beat tape series, a monster made these beats volume 2 dropping some Halloween themed boom bat beats for October based around the theme of the headless horsemen. Check those out on our Spotify. >> Hell yeah. What do you want to plug, Gav? >> I have been reworking some old beats. Just got a new interface that I'm excited about. Um, trying to put together some beat tapes and stuff. So, planning on doing some more rollouts with some beats and putting out some new teasers and stuff. So, definitely follow me pretty much everywhere. Proud by lunar.g. Yeah, that's pretty much all I got this week. >> Cool. What do you want to plug, Matt? >> You can follow me at SVR on Instagram. Check out my artist Lucious B Thundercat. We had a song dropped last month called Hard Times and we're we're dropping another song in uh 2 weeks. Uh pretty much, yeah, just working on dropping a song a month, trying to stay active. Uh other than that, this week beefing with with the distributors, you know, working on music issues and stuff like that. Other than that, just grinding. And >> you don't want to name names? >> Nah, n I'm not going to No public beefing yet, >> man. I've heard that they take down music for stuff like that. So you know you know we are >> we don't want to Yeah. You know who you are. >> You know [laughter] >> bastards. Cool. >> Got my on you. >> Well that's plugs releases coming up next week that we know about so far it would be chasing status Toby Nigui and then lastly Overcast uh recently in some controversy over outcasts people suing him for his name being too similar. So, let's support his uh his album this week and make sure he gets some love on that cuz that's some [ __ ] Yeah, >> there's I'm about to start on a rant. I can feel it. >> Well, we can definitely get into this more next week >> because [laughter] we'll we'll probably cover that project. >> But yes, we support Overcast >> for sure. >> Yeah, [music] big time. >> Well, that's our show. You can save the official Spotify playlist to hear the releases from each week, updated weekly with all the newest projects. That link is in the description. And you can see all our content on our website, f2fpod.com. That's the number two. Our intro and outro music byprod by lunar g. And thank you for listening to Friday to Friday, the show about Fridays that comes out on a Monday. Join us every Monday to stay in tune with hiphop releases from Friday to Friday. Peace. Peace. Peace.