Nostalgia reigns supreme in New York City. On an average day, during an equally average walk down a crowded sidewalk, it’s likely a passerby will lament the “old” New York. The kids have no respect anymore, the newcomers are getting too comfortable, everything is watered down, and the rent on a studio in one of the outer boroughs could be a monthly payment on a whole house just about anywhere else. Realistically, out of tourist view, this is far from the truth, and there are still some things that have stuck to the gritty Gotham script.
Styles P albums are one of those tried and true vestiges.
The LOX vet has associated himself faithfully to a predictable subject matter and sound, which by all means isn’t a monotonous or generally bad thing. He does what he does, and does it rather well.
Fresh off the heels of March’s Nickel Bag EP, Styles’ first solo LP since 2015, G-Host, gives him a chance to bask in the spotlight. Though first glance at the track listing would allude to a feature-heavy soiree of lyrical bars, Styles really holds down the verses while his various friends only provide melodic hooks. This means there’s plenty of time left for the gun talk, the weed smoke, catching bodies and ducking the boys. The album starts off with “Bubble Up,” a sinister, piano-backed track with sharp hitting kicks which, with a couple summery sounding exceptions which don’t follow this tone (“Coolest O.G.,” “For This Occasion”), appropriately set the mood for the project. Though Dyce Payne holds down hook duties for most of the track, the Ghost himself takes back that responsibility to close out the opener, exuding the kind of emotion and intrigue that only comes from truly being about what he raps about.
Highlights include “Morning Mourning,” a slower-paced head nodder which boasts some of the more memorable production of the album. Where sometimes it gets stale to hear Styles have someone singing on a lot of the songs, here it just fits together a little more smoothly. On “Different Shit” the Ghost picks up the pace a bit with a consistent flow and high energy as he raps,“game is fact with some fiction in it, slang with some diction in it, peaceful but I hurt you, does that make me a hypocrite? Liquor, pour a fifth of it, weed, roll a spliff of it, always act the same but I’m always on some different shit.” Arguably the toughest line on the album shows up on “Ghost Wars.” It’s hard to believe that a vegan co-owner of a multi-location juice bar with a 4.5-star Yelp rating would ever say something along the lines of “Ever pray to God for some wrong shit?/Like the coke plug come with some strong shit?/Gunrunners come with some long shit?”
But alas, word for word, it really happened, and it goes to show that he may have changed his diet and business plan, but Styles P isn’t going to stop giving listeners a dose of the lifestyle that earned him his G-Stripes.
Though it could be a concern that there’s a lack of versatility, or a hesitation to try new things symbolic of growth as an artist when it comes to Styles P, sometimes it’s just better to not mess with a formula that works. Hip Hop heads will enjoy different approaches to recognizable samples (“Wait Your Turn B”), those who can relate to his criminal mischief or lust for weed will find common ground in his lyrics, and fans of a darker sounding breed of Hip Hop in contrast to the pop-leaning sounds of the top-charting tracks of today will appreciate a solid offering of just that.
After all, in the midst of the sanitization of a city once known for crime-ridden streets and neighborhoods visitors should stay out of, at least Styles P is doing his part to keep the “old” New York alive.
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Solid!!!
The album was indeed a 5/5. Not a classic but Styles P definitely stuck to the subject matter he’s knows best and executed it with precise precision as he details and paints a vivid picture of the street life. He spits with confidence, rides the beats effortlessly with strong “Fuck you” and “Don’t give a fuck” emotion. Nice that he didn’t have Kiss or Louch on the album to prove he can hold his own weight amongst the pioneer of mafioso rap/street/hardcore music (e.g Kool G Rap, Reakwon/Ghostface, Mobb Deep, Easy E, NAS, etc.). ???????
Goes in on this one.. Heavy rotation guarenteed
Legendary!!
Hard
Album is Sick. Some Hiphop Something 4 the late nights Stylps p Holiday the Ghost Pinero..thanks styles album was needed
Best mc alive. Never drops no weak sh*t. The Ghost!
It’s crazy how wack weirdo shit get’s higher ratings then this dope ass Styles P albums. smdh
That’s just your preference homey. No one is really make rap with bars anymore and there isn’t any extra points for keeping it real.
And that’s just your narrow preference and perception of music (rap w/no bars) and it also says something about your hip-hop attention span. 5 albums just dropped within the last 6 months that focus on BARS (Cole, Royce, STYLES P, Eminem, hell even CARDI is spittin’). The rap albums with BARS will continue to collect all the accolades. We ‘gon learn ya’ll youngsters one way or the other. TRUE ART shines and survives the test of time, not that bubble gum, candy bulls**t. You better ask Vanilla Ice and M.C. Hammer.
Word fam!!!
fact def more than 5 albums ha this years been good, you should check out Not Ya Manz they do reviews on facebook instagram and shit but they dont skip a beat on reviews they review everything, shit keeps me in the loop of real hip hop
fact def that wack shit gets too much love, you should check out Not Ya Manz they do reviews on facebook instagram and shit but they dont skip a beat on reviews they review everything, shit keeps me in the loop of real hip hop
That opening paragraph was very well written. Styles is a GOAT straight up.
Kinda feels incomplete not having Kiss or Sheek on a song or two, but it’s still a solid album.
Word I just said the same exact thing
Like I said as long as it aint Trent reviewing I approve the rating haha. The first paragraph does nothing for the album review. It gets a 3 from me, it didn’t under or over perform and that’s the problem right there. The seven EP with Talib showed growth, they should do a joint album together!
Fucking fire …point blank
I like the album overall. Not a classic but still dope. I wonder why Sheek or Kiss was not included on this project? At least for one song. I feel as a group that is still actively rocking together should always have 1 team joint. Especially these guys who are one of my favorite groups or all time. But it is a Styles project and they are not obligated to be on there. Other than that, I would say the review was fairly accurate.
I like the album, LOX FAM 4 LIFE…YES WE ALL WANTED KISS AND SHEEK ON IT BUT HE TRYNA TELL US HIS SH*T CAN STILL ROCK WITHOUT HIS OTHER HALVES…GOOD SH*T SP THE GHOST SOUNDS GOOD IN MY CADDY BRO
Styles just too real with it always drops solid albums hardest shit out still (salute to them Griselda Records boys – westside gunn, conway, benny tho) Curve The Lames and Goin Thru Hell are 2 crazy tracks.Jadakiss need to do a whole album with Alchemist cause when it comes down to solo albums hes lagging way behind The G-Host
real hip hop
Holy shit, this is fucking amazing! Not perfect, but… Nice!
Fire!
Slammin’!
I listened to this album and became a Niggidy Noggity
I SAID A HIPPUH TO THA HOPPUH MY NIGGIE!!!
Album was necessary, if anyone is tryna read real reviews minus all the fancy big words and for more real hip hop not just the shit they decide to let sprinkle in, check out facebook.com/notyamanz or instagram @notyamanz
The sound from this album didn’t match his voice, there was some fire on the album, but as a whole project it kinda flopped.
quality sound, this may not be for everybody as the climate of rap has changed and people gravitate to a lot of nonsense but as its popular they rate it highly.
i listen to this album everyday.