Top 5 album releases - May 2022
By Philippe Martin 07/06/2022
What an incredible month for rap listeners as amazing albums keep getting released quickly by diverse artists from all sub genres. The month of May marked the return of Kendrick Lamar as he solidifies his discography and reminds everybody of his relevance in the music industry. Apart from Compton emcee coming out of his 5 year pause, fans also got new albums from smaller, but very talented artists like IDK and Elcamino.
With the days getting longer and summer just around the corner, here are the best albums of May 2022. This list contains many independent placements from artists that dropped great albums and some mainstream releases that fairly deserve the attention they have been getting. Let us know in the comments what you think about these and if any other albums deserved to make this list.
- Kendrick Lamar - Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers
- IDK - Simple.
- Loud - Aucune Promesse
- Jack Harlow - Come Home The Kids Miss You
- Elcamino - Let There Be Light
- Honorable Mentions
Kendrick Lamar - Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers
By Phil
Kendrick Lamar, one of the most prolific artists of the past 10 years, keeps on getting better with age as he releases his new project under a double LP format with 18 excellent songs. “Mr. Morale & The Big Steppers” marks a new level of introspection for the Compton emcee. He takes the listener on a wild ride of emotions with subjects ranging from depression, abuse, public perception, and self-love.
The first half begins with Kendrick setting the stage with the simple phrase: “I’ve been going through something”. It’s straight to the point and fitting for what is next to come. “United In Grief” is all over the place musically with quick drums and a soft melody, while the next track “N95” turns the energy up with an insane trap banger executed with deadly precision. “Father Time” sees Sampha coming out of his hiding spot to bless the track with an emotional hook as K Dot rhymes about difficult topics like childhood issues and generational trauma.
“We Cry Together” is a particularly difficult listen as Lamar and Taylour Paige blur the lines between excellent storytelling and direct social commentary. They depict a broken couple having a heavy argument while releasing all their respective frustrations. It’s violent, vivid, and simply disturbing. The Alchemist soundtracks the whole thing with a moody and dramatic beat filled with piano loops and cold drums. One of the best tracks on the record follows with the epic “Purple Hearts” featuring Summer Walker and Ghostface Killah. The latter is amazing as usual with an undeniable presence and powerful rhymes.
The second part of the project feels like the Grammy-winning artist is coming to terms with the issues he touched on previously, making this a more hopeful listening experience. “Count Me Out” is weirdly calming as you just want to sing along to the repetitive hook. Gratitude and bitterness get mixed on “Crown”, before “Silent Hill” slams a lighter trap beat featuring Kodak Black. The next two songs feature Baby Keem at his best, bringing his unique charisma and a different vocal range when compared to Kendrick’s flow.
The rest of the record is equally good with more introspective verses and a wide type of complex instrumentals that all feel natural with a performer and creator so versatile. It’s not an accessible listen as both records combined time in at 73 minutes, but it deserves a full attentive listen to fully appreciate Kendrick Lamar’s beautiful art and courage to put all his soul out on the line.
Released 13/05/2022
IDK - Simple.
By Phil
Following one of the best projects of 2021 with “USEE4YOURSELF”, the Maryland artist teams up with the very talented Montreal artist Kaytranada to follow up with a quick and efficient album that will get you ready to enjoy the summer to its fullest. At an 18-minute runtime, the album checks the “quality over quantity” box and delivers a mix of electronic beats with some rap verses that blend in to give a modern sound that feels very relevant in 2022. Kaytranada handles the production on every track of the record while IDK sings, raps and shines from start to finish.
The opener “Drugstore” is a good representation of what’s to come with a mid-tempo instrumental from the Grammy-winning producer and short, but well-executed verses from IDK. After a short skit, the amazing “Dog Food” featuring Miami’s own Denzel Curry sets the bar even higher with a complex beat filled with trumpets, bells and synth basses. IDK and Denzel complement each other’s attitudes with verses about the urgency of having fun and the need to watch out in the hood during summertime. The collaboration is natural and will fit well on any summer playlist out there.
The rest of the project is equally marvellous with the standout tracks “Zaza Tree” and “Breath” hitting the spot for anyone willing to get those hips moving on the dance floor. “Taco” was the first single released back in April and it marks the closest thing to a hip-hop song on the entire album. The energy winds down with the last complete song “The Code” with Mike Dimes and it’s unfortunately all over after another short skit.
Released 06/05/2022
Loud - Aucune Promesse
By Phil
After a 3 year pause from releasing an album, Loud is back with a full LP named “Aucune promesse”. The biggest rap artist of the French Canadian scene already hyped his return with 3 excellent singles since the beginning of the year with “Rien de moins”, “Uber Eats Freestyle”, and “Hold Up”. Rhyming in English and French gives Loud an advantage over his peers that choose to only flow in one language. He creates rhyme schemes and references that are relatable to Quebec’s culture while pulling from the American influence to create something quite unique.
The new songs are equally good as the singles with amazing rap production from frequent producers Ruffsound, Ajust and Jay Century. The second song is “I Sais What I Said”, a slow trap banger that sets the mood well before the sample-heavy “Hold Up” comes into play with its old-school hip-hop vibe. “#10” is a must-listen straight banger in homage to one of Quebec’s great hockey players; Guy Lafleur. The title track of the project is Loud’s best song since his 2019 amazing song “GG”. The beat is cold as a Canadian winter with a heavy 808 bass and great horn loops that create a dramatic trap song.
Released 20/05/2022
Jack Harlow - Come Home The Kids Miss You
By Phil
The young artist from Kentucky is rising to fame higher than ever before with the release of his second studio album “Come Home The Kids Miss You”. Already popular thanks to the hit single “First Class” released back in April, the album is quite diverse with trap bangers and slower ballads mixing well together during the 51-minute runtime. Jack Harlow is now lyrically sharper than on his 2020 debut “Thats What They All Say” with tracks like “Young Harleezy” and “Churchill Downs (feat. Drake)” both showcasing his methodic approach to simple instrumentals. The feature from the Canadian superstar feels like it was a bucket list goal for Jack Harlow and they make a solid collaboration that stands out musically from the rest of the project.
“Dua Lipa” is dumb, but fun enough to make a party go up and bring everybody onto the dance floor. For the same kind of energy, the Pharrell collaboration “Movie Star” is more complex and goes harder than any other tracks of the LP. It’s a great example of how Harlow is trying to connect with pillars of the hip-hop scene in order to obtain better production on his songs and gain legitimacy within the harsh horde of haters he has gained in his recent rise to fame. On “Parent Trap” and “Poison”, Lil Wayne and Justin Timberlake play the same roles as Drizzy and Pharrell by bringing in the nostalgic feels for older listeners while showing their respective talents to a new generation of fans.
Released 06/05/2022
Elcamino - Let There Be Light
By Phil
The rising star from Buffalo delivers one of his best projects to date with the introspective and vulnerable album “Let There Be Light”. Elcamino is able to shine from many different angles while staying true to his sound. For example, he raps his ass off with ghetto verses on the Griselda projects, he sings melodic hooks in his collaborations with 38 Spesh, and he can produce music that accurately paints a vivid picture of street life.
On this project, he leans more towards singing and creating these dramatic storytellings about his pain and life drama. It works very well, but don’t expect to turn up your energy levels with this one. Nonetheless, it feels fresh and authentic to hear a “cocaine rapper” put down the money machine bars to speak on real-life issues. For somebody who doesn’t understand street life, it makes him more accessible as a simple human being.
“Let There Be Light” is packed with incredible songs like the collaboration with Curren$y “Better Than Love” or the melancholic “Deep” where he raps about the loss of a close family member. Elcamino puts all his emotions on the line with very descriptive lines about his ability to cope and the way life can be a rollercoaster of events. On the production side, there is plenty of sample-based beats, like on “Blind Love” and smooth soul loops like on “Wont Show It”. Towards the end of the project, there is the trap banger “Rhude” that slaps with a heavy bass, but it feels out of place and a relatively calm tracklist. Overall, it’s a great starting point for anyone willing to discover one of Buffalo’s most consistent artists since Westside Gunn.
Released 13/05/2022
Honorable Mentions
Eminem – The Eminem Show ( Expanded Edition)
With the “Expanded Edition” of one of the best selling rap albums of all time, Slim Shady continues to re-release his classic albums with additional content like the instrumental versions, live freestyles and bonus songs that didn’t make the final cut back in 2002. Its worth a revisit for any Eminem fan and it represents a great entry point for people who missed out on the quality of the Dr. Dre produced record.
Released 27/05/2022
Flee Lord & Mephux – Pray for the Evil 3
The Lord Mobb boss is back with another great project with in-house producer Mephux. Once again, they create a cohesive album packed with well placed features and a song sequencing worth highlighting. With a 30 minute run time, they efficiently cover all hip-hop moods with bangers like “Impala” and “Final Four” and softer ballads like “Notions” and “Goodbye”.
Released 06/05/2022
Daniel Son – Bush Doctor
The Canadian rapper is back with a lengthy project full of classic hip-hop gems like “Cartel Wheels” and “Voodoo Lady”. These songs hit hard with Renaissance vibes that gives any rap fan the hope that good music is still being created everywhere around the world. Daniel Son’s voice is remarkable and distinctive, and it’s boosted by the gloomy instrumentals from start to finish.
Released 01/05/2022
Boldy James & Real Bad Man – Killing Nothing
It’s the second collaborative album between Griselda’s own Boldy James and the non-stoppable producer Real Bad Man after 2020’s “Real Bad Boldy”. The spiritual successor “Killing Nothing” succeeds in raising the bar for both artists while staying consistent to their roots of old school sounding hip-hop. Guest features like Stove God Cooks, Rome Streetz and Knowledge The Pirate add value with every bar they lay on their respective spots.
Released 20/05/2022
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