March Madness Day 19: Kemba, Gucci Mane, DJ Drama & Z-Ro

**KEMBA - NEGUS** - I want everyone reading this to go listen to this album. I think it's one of the best projects that has been released this year so far. I love the way Kemba is able to tie an entire narrative in a concise 12 track project while STILL making the music sound great. I love the strings and harmony that Kemba's producer Frank Drake provided for him on this album. I made a [discussion thread](https://www.reddit.com/r/hiphopheads/comments/4umj4i/discussion_kemba_negus/) where the man himself (Kemba) commented on the thread, which I thought was awesome. I hope he does an AMA on this sub one day for this album.  I really think it's sad that so much dope music gets slept on this sub, but that's another story. I really want this project to get more exposure cause I think it's a very relevant in it's subject matter as well being pleasant to listen to. If you haven't heard this album, I seriously think you're missing out on some quality shit and I think you are doing yourself a disservice by skipping over this album which I don't think is a good thing, I think it's sad really.


*TL;DR I want you to listen to this album right now. Listen to it for free on[ soundcloud here](https://soundcloud.com/kembaland/sets/negus-album) and if you like it I think you should buy it [here](https://kembaland.bandcamp.com/album/negus).*


**Gucci Mane - Everybody looking** - I was pleasantly surprised by this project. I didn't think Gucci had lyrics, I thought he just slurred/mumbled his words to hot trap beats like a lot of other rappers today. But nope, I thought Gucci came with some pretty decent lyricism and I was surprised at how catchy his fucking hooks are, like I think the hooks are simple which I think is a good thing but Gucci's charisma takes them to the next level for me, like Gucci is like "Yeah, I'm gonna repeat this hook until you fuckin' sing along" like at first I didn't like the song "Out Do Ya" but then I found myself singing that hook in head, like it just randomly popped up in my head and I was like "FUCK, Gucci got me!" which I think is a good thing, cause it proves that your music has staying power with me. I won't listen and just move on, I'll remember the songs and hooks which is a good thing. I liked all the features on here especially Drake and Kanye West who I thought really added, in a good way, to both of their respective tracks. I like this project cause even at 15 tracks there isn't a single track I hate, only tracks I didn't like as much as others, which is a really great thing to me, usually I absolutely hate at least one track on a project, but nope, not here. Good shit, Gucci.


*TL;DR I think Gucci's comeback project is pretty fucking good, for what I was expecting, which was absolute shit, I was pleasantly surprised.*


**DJ Drama - Quality Street Music 2** - I think this project is one big downward slope. Meaning, I think it starts off extremely well with Lil Wayne's insane intro about all sorts of shit, but the part that most stood out to me was when Wayne talked about "Molesters and Rapers Confessin' Prayers" which I thought was one of the coldest, most vivid Wayne lines I've ever heard. After Wayne's fire intro, I thought every other track was either boring or forgettable. I don't think that's a good thing, your music shouldn't be boring or forgettable to me, I should be excited and be remembering your music. I didn't even care that the album was called "Quality Street Music" I didn't have any expectations going into this and I left disappointed, especially with such an interesting track list, I was like "Oh, I wonder how Drama is gonna handle all these guys on this one track" and I didn't like what I heard. Besides the "Intro" I don't like this.


*TL;DR Listen to Lil Wayne's [Intro on this album](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=BoyQLo4ghrY) and save yourself the time and skip everything else.*


**Z-Ro - Drankin' & Drivin'** - Wow, I thought this shit was fucking nice as hell. Like, I love the way Z-Ro utilizes his singing voice for a great, melodical hook and verse. It reminds me of southern Drake who can sing with soul and passion in his voice, but not on no R&B shit but on some just harmony shit like the way Kendrick sometimes sings a little bit in his songs to make a good hook or to put some great melodies in his songs. I really liked how I could tell that Z-Ro was talking about shit that mattered to him which I liked. Also, I think a lot of these songs can be played on the radio, I think they are *that* catchy but I think Z-Ro wasn't aiming for radio play, but I think it's so cool how Z-Ro manages to be himself on this album while still being catchy, and musically melodical in the best way. I also liked the way Z-Ro approached done to death topics in rap like haters, women, drugs etc but in a way that is personal to him. I really liked the rap sing song shit throughout the entire album as well as the layered laidback production. Good shit, Z-Ro.


*TL;DR I think this is also one of the best projects released this year, I've never heard a Z-Ro project before this one and now I want to see what else he has to offer, which Z-Ro projects should I listen to after this one?*