When we last heard from KXNG Crooked, he led the charge against racial, political, and socioeconomic injustices on Good Vs. Evil, which dropped shortly after The Orange Muskrat was elected. We’re now a full year into his shenanigans and tensions have only heated up and Crooked’s blistering sequel album matches bigotry with a deafening call to action atop production a few clicks below his level of expertise.
“The Red Empire” signifies Trump’s tyrannical reign and permeates the album’s subject matter. Crooked raps about police brutality, privatized prisons, corruption and Black-on-Black violence like the fate of the world depends on his flow. He absolutely bodies “The MAGA Continues” with bars like, “Used to kill us in the dark, now they just kill us in the light/Guess they figure if they pull the trigger on niggas that Martin Luther King fought for, what’s a civil right?” His controlled tenacity and raw conviction give added meaning to these lyrics at a time when half-baked protest music is readily accessible.
As a member of the ultra-lyrical (albeit defunct) supergroup Slaughterhouse, speed rapping and outstanding multisyllabic rhymes are to be expected. However, KXNG raises the bars beyond technical brilliance and, much like on the first go-round, flexes his muscles as an impressive concept rapper. He adopts a flow and delivery akin to Slick Rick’s as he rhymes from the point of view of 45 on “Red Hood’s Plot”: “I do whatever it takes just to gather my riches/The empire’s killing all of you son of bitches.” Curveballs like these keep listeners on their toes and turn standard fare education into outright edutainment.
“Red Hood’s Plots,” while noteworthy, is small potatoes compared to “Shoot Back 2 (Dear Officer),” in which Crooked goes beyond a Slick Rick impersonation and rivals the legend in the art of storytelling. After voraciously tearing into crooked officers, he ties police’s unjustified killings with the KKK murders of the Jim Crow Era. Jay Wash’s beat transitions from a relentless thumper to a rhythmic underscore of KXNG’s tale of revenge against racial killings. Without this cut, Good vs. Evil II: The Red Empire would still be a solid protest album. It’s inclusion drives home a hard-hitting testimony of injustice that simply can’t be ignored.
While Jay Wash’s beat was an exercise in next-level production, there are multiple tracks on the album that suffer from lackluster sonics. Crooked told #DXLive that the producers on this album are “up-and-coming hungry guys,” and the music reflects that, for better and for worse. Audio Jones’ raw drums and foreboding bassline ideally complement Crooked’s in-your-face lyricism on “Brainwashed Ni666a,” but Aktive’s attempt at a haunting beat on “GiveUDatHammer” would be better suited for a “B” horror flick. C-Wash’s “Adderall Addicts” and IllEagle’s “Cowboy Bebop” similarly underwhelm, with the latter’s cluttered and mechanical beat change detracting from KXNG’s compelling presence.
KXNG Crooked’s uncompromising stance more often than not supersedes the album’s flaws. He holds everyone — black, white, rich, poor — accountable, proclaiming on “Stand” that “We gotta do better.” It’s a sentiment that pervades Good vs. Evil II: The Red Empire with relevancy and urgency. It just could have benefitted from better anarchist theme music.
5 star
How the fuck is this not a 5
The review said the beats were so so
Still the whole thing front to back is a lyrical masterpiece
Is it an a cappella album?
Fuck Trump!!! This album is the truth!!! Trump is the devil!!! Hahahahahaha!!!
Crooked I is one of the best rappers doing it right now.
I have to agree, some beats on the album aren’t up for the par Crooked sets. Solid 4/5, though. No major complaints.
Good lyricist.. Terrible song & album creator.
The beats are a major let down. Way too trappy. I swear those damn watersprinkler hi hats are the most annoying sounds ever. No originality whatsoever. Bring back real drums and maybe the beats will sound a little better. Crook is way too good for this!
“Water sprinkler high hats ” bwahahahahahha best description ever !!!!!
No lie my friend. The hi-hats sound like an out of control water sprinkler sprinkler wackness all over the track. Music in general, not just trap music, has gone downhill when those damn water sprinkler hi-hats replaced real drums. It’s everywhere. Peace man.
This album tackled many things that the 1st project went in on. I feel as if it just went into more detail this time around. Lyrics are still off the chain. 2 songs I was ehhh about but other than that, this was a solid album.
It was NICE!, I think using a Trump snippet was not a good idea haha no need to make him more famous! Album cover is sick but still lets get off the orange gorillaz nutz
ALBUM WAS A GREAT SEQUEL
way to remain bipartisan in your review Aaron, “the orange muskrat”…why don’t you just review an album and leave your editorial narrative for that section of hiphopdx which everyone already knows is a biased anti-trump/anti-america machine for liberal nonsense… I wish i could have listened to the album first before being hit with the same narrative non-hip-hop sites likes cnn and msnbc. If i want rachel madcow to review an album I will check out msnbc or her social media. Please put politics aside and review an album based on its musical merit.
Fuck You Racist!!! Why don’t you go to Iraq and protect the country you pretend to love so much you stupid Trump lover!!!
Greatest comment on this site.
Number one man, it’s privilege
Number two, while I enjoyed your reply, complaining about his review is redundant when the entire album is dedicayed to complaining about said “muskrat”
So, for you to complain about Aaron’s lack of critical rhetoric is not only appalling in hindsight it’s down right ludicrous
HHDX was dead wrong this one this CD is Pure Dope and is 5.0 Hands Down
Decent.. Would be cool if Crooked could actually evolve like his teammate Royce, but it’s still the same thing. Over and over again.. Put the music aside, the marketing aspect 8f the album was BS he used em’ fans, by putting false rumors out and then acting like he didn’t do anything wrong..
Worst part is that the album wasn’t that good
This album is hard and stands tall with a long line of good work from Crook
4th best album I heard this year
THIS IS HANDS DOWN A CLASSIC!!!!! CANT BELIEVE HHDX, POOR RATING SKILLZ ON THIS ONE SMH
a solid 4/5 album but i’m giving this a 5 to offset the trolls who rated it a 1. why the fuck are you rating a crooked i album solely based off beats? lol its crooked i ffs. ya’ll don’t even appreciate lyricism and technical rapping. go listen to mainstream rap if you want to hear overproduced pop beats.
Real rap real message no bull shit. Straight fire classic album. Album is a 5 keep it coming Crooked
5/5 ?????
By far one of the illest albums of all time… Crooks focus is ultra impressive I mean i always expect top noch lyrical dexterity and content from the Kxng but his dedication to the message and the timing of such a powerful black piece of artwork is to important to quantify… just fucking brilliant… Kxng Crooked= illest pure mc doing it right now
Damnit those question marks were supposed to be fire balls
All y’all complaining about the beats are fucking sleep on the whole point of this movement.. in the current state of this ignorant ass country we live in, music like this is vital and no one can or will do it better at this point than Crook… don’t get me wrong, I prefer more boom bap/golden era/east coast/primo type shit myself but in no one did the beats detract from the unadulterated rawness of this album and it’s revolutionary sound and vibe… get your fuckin mind right
This Shit was fire. The concept album theme works well for Crook, who usually delivers great bars but poor albums. Still bumping this shit, you can tell he really feels this way.
A breath of fresh air…someone else mentioned his lyrics and skills are there, but his albums aren’t. This is one of his best. Good follow up from GvE 1 #stopthemumblerap
This album is phenomenal. With strong fire on every track with dark heavy beats being rapped by light and fierce lyrics from Kxng Crooked