A$AP Rocky Is Doing Something Soon, And It's Not LORD$

Earlier this year, A$AP Mob announced that they would be releasing a compilation album, entitled LORD$ Following the success of A$AP Rocky and A$AP Ferg's debut albums, it makes sense for the entire group to drop a new album. LORD$ is a follow-up to the Mob's mixtape Lord$ Never Worry, and the single "Hella Hoes". But unfortunately, the album isn't happening. A$AP Mob member A$AP Yams announced on his personal Tumblr that the compilation album was scrapped. But worry not, we'll still be getting plenty of music from the Harlem natives. Yams also announced that member A$AP Nast will be releasing a project this October. Nast is a relatively quiet member of the group, but with a distinct East Coast sound and heavy influences from Nas. It will be interesting to hear the "Trillmatic" spitter on his own project. Additionally, Yams said that A$AP Rocky will be releasing his sophomore album, along with a link to flockojodyseason.com. The link leads to a black screen with a countdown currently 3 days away from something. This could be a new Rocky single, announcement, or possibly an entire album. But for now, it's a mystery. Check back here after 3 days to find out what the countdown is all about (or look on your own, but I'd prefer to get the page views. Tell all your friends about this awesome blog).

Everything You Need to Know About Logic's New Album

Logic has been on the rise, and is about to blow. The Maryland-native has released four mixtapes since 2010, through the independent label Visionary Music Group. Last year, he was named a XXL Freshman, and signed to Def Jam Records in April. The rapper is one of the most gifted rappers of our time, and in my opinion, is lyrically on par with, or better than Kendrick Lamar. And he is about to make is official debut. For months, Logic has been teasing his fans with singles, tours, and stating that he had finished his album, but was sitting on it for awhile. He let the hype build for a while, and has now released a lot of information on the album. Set for release on October 21, Logic's new album is titled Under Pressure.  The album supposedly has no features, and the production is handled mostly by Logic himself, and Visionary Music Group's in-house producer 6ix, along with Dj Dahi, Tae Beast, and Cocaine 80's. About a week ago,  Logic sat down with  Complex to talk more in depth about Under Pressure. The album is much darker than his previous mixtapes, and he personally helped engineer the album. Logic raps from a variety of perspectives, and apparently Andre 3000 himself cleared an OutKast sample used on the album. Yesterday, Logic revealed the standard tracklisting:

1. Intro
2. Soul Food
3. I'm Gone
4. Gang Related
5. Buried Alive
6. Bounce
7. Growing Pains III
8. Never Enough
9. Metropolis
10. Nikki
11. Under Pressure
12. Til the End

Preorder Under Pressure is available on September 30, but until the album drops, enjoy the lead single "Under Pressure" now (the full song on the album is apparently six minutes longer).

Listen to Kendrick Lamar's new single "i"

The King has returned.This morning, the Compton native released his new song entitled "i". This song is one of the most upbeat and strange songs that Lamar has created. His tone is similar to what Lamar sounded like prior to Section.80, and it features none of the fast-paced, aggressive verses that he has spit recently, nor the story-telling that populated good kid, m.A.A.d city. Lamar spouts positive messages in this new track, altering between different flows over a sample of the Isley Brother's track "Who's That Lady". As for K.Dot's album, no release date or title has been confirmed yet. Both Jay Rock and Lamar are supposed to put out TDE-backed albums this year, but no word has been released for either. Until then, enjoy the new track.

How Music This Fall Should Redeem the Lousy Summer

Yesterday marked the official end of the summer of 2014, and for music, it was one of the worst. Last summer, Mac Miller, J Cole, and Kanye West released astounding albums, up-and-coming rappers Vic Mensa and Chance the Rapper released mixtapes that catapulted their careers, and Kendrick Lamar dropped his infamous "Control" verse.

This summer was unmemorable, to say the least. Few projects dropped, and few rap songs (other than "Fancy", which sucks) were heard on the radio waves. The only notable releases I can think of were from Common, PARTYNEXTDOOR, Travi$ Scott, and Jhene Aiko. Usually, summer releases dominate over winter/spring drops, but earlier in the year we saw impressive projects from Pharrell, Schoolboy Q, Isaiah Rashad, Vince Staples, SZA, Mac Miller, Rick Ross, Sam Smith, and YG. For music, this summer was a failure.

But, this fall may redeem the summer's releases. A huge amount of debuts, sophomore albums, and anticipated projects are slanted to drop before the year's end. Joey Bada$$'s B4.Da.$$, Action Bronson's Mr. Wonderful, Vince Staples's Hell Can Wait EP, and Logic's Under Pressure are all supposed to be released this fall. While most of these debuts don't have official release dates yet (Under Pressure is being released on October 21st), they all have already released singles for their projects; Bada$$'s "Big Dusty", Bronson's "Easy Rider", and Staples's "Blue Suede". For sophomore releases, A$AP Rocky posted an Instagram post earlier this year saying he was nearly finished with his album, Jay Rock and Big K.R.I.T are supposedly releasing projects by the years end, and Killer Mike + El P's joint effort Run The Jewels 2 is being released on October 28th.

Many other albums are also rumored to be released this year. While Frank Ocean has been near mute for the last two years, his new album should be released soon. Nas rapped on his "Studio" remix that he has finished an album, and should be dropping it soon. Kanye West may be releasing a follow-up to Yeeus, as well as a second joint album with Jay-Z. A$AP Mob's compilation album and Pusha T's album were both supposed to be released earlier this year, but no release date has been mentioned yet. And hopefully, we'll see the return of Boosie Bad Azz. If all of these releases are true, 2014 may be a great year for music after all.

Ab-Soul Explains Why "These Days" Was Pretty Bad

A few days ago, Ab-Soul sat down with journalist Elliot Wilson in part of the CRWN series to talk about his new album, along with other things. During the interview, he explains the similarities between his most recent album, These Days, to his previous album Control System. Control System was one of the best albums TDE has ever released, and focused on the vices of the music industry, the government, and society in general. These Days, on the other hand, was a hodgepodge of half- assed lyricism, sporadic messages, questionable production, and boasts of wealth and bitches. The transition from one album to the next is unsettling for many Soulo fans, but worry not; Ab-Soul somewhat explains why his newest album. During the interview, Ab-Soul stated, “I think These Days... represents me following the control system. It’s an example of how the control system works. So you’re either gonna understand that or you might get upset with me because I souled out.” It appears that the Black Lip Pastor sacrificed the quality of These Days to show the effect of the "control system" on him. This makes sense, since Soulo has been delivering outstanding featured verses for the past year, including probably the best featured verse so far this year.
 Hopefully, Ab-Soul's next album will be on par, or better than Control System.