Action Bronson, Blue Chips 7000

It’s been a two years since the last Action Bronson album (2015’s Mr. Wonderful), but he’s been busy in the meantime, running two Viceland shows (F*ck That’s Delicious and Action Bronson Watches Ancient Aliens) and writing a cookbook that’s due out later this year. Today, the Flushing, NY rapper returns with Blue Chips 7000, the third installment in his acclaimed Blue Chips mixtape series. Usual suspects Big Body Bes and Meyhem Lauren are present as always, alongside Jamaica’s Jah Tiger and Rick Ross (who takes Body’s place on the “19-24-7000”, part of a song series that’s been a part of every Blue Chips release). 7000 is everything we’ve come to expect from Bronson, filled with food metaphors, wicked punchlines, and references to obscure sports stars. If the third addition to the Blue Chips trilogy feels a little less interesting than its predecessors, however, there’s a reason for that: the first two installments were entirely produced by Party Supplies and, being mixtape, Party was fully able to explore his penchant for heavy, unlicensed sampling. The beats and style of 7000 are a little more in keeping with Mr. Wonderful, and while Party is involved, Alchemist, Knxwledge, Harry Fraud, and more also contributed to the album.

A$AP Mob, Cozy Tapes Vol. 2: Cozy Too

The New York rap crew has been busy lately, dropping their first Cozy Tapes collaborative album late last year, and dropping new projects from both A$AP Twelvyy and A$AP Ferg in the past three weeks. Cozy Tapes Vol. 2: Cozy Too is an extensive 17-track album, featuring posse cut after posse cut with a whole host of collaborators. Frank Ocean, Tyler, the Creator, ScHoolboy Q, Lil Uzi Vert, Lil Yachty, Chief Keef, Jaden Smith, Big Sean, Quavo, Gucci Mane, Playboi Carti, and many more showed up for the Mob’s third album, which also includes a track featuring only members from fellow NY crews Pro Era and Flatbush ZOMBiES. It’s a little busy, as is expected from massive collaborative albums like this, but A$AP Mob is getting a little better with every release.

Brockhampton, Saturation II

Brockhampton is the heir to Odd Future’s youthful, independent crown, a collective of immensely talented kids who abandoned their lives to pursue a music career. In June, Brockhampton dropped their first official album, Saturation, to massive acclaim. Kevin Abstract, Ameer Vann, Dom McLennon, Merlyn Wood, Matt Champion, Joba,Romil, and the rest of the 17+ collective each bring their own signature style to the group, trading hooks and verses back and forth and each proving more impressive than the last. Today, the self-dubbed ‘boy band’ has returned with Saturation II, the second in a trilogy that’s supposed to conclude towards the end of 2017. If you like the first one, then you’ll like this album too: it’s more of the same, and while some fans may have wanted some variation, the group manages to innovate while sticking to a specific style. Both Saturations contain some of the best music you’ll hear all year: don’t sleep on Brockhampton. Like Odd Future, they’re sure to prove themselves as not just a massively successful unit, but also as a host of solo artists each with their own particular strengths.

Buddy, Magnolia

Compton rapper Buddy has been going for years, after being discovered by Pharrell in high school and collaborating heavily with Chuck Inglish, but luckily, he’s finally started to receive the attention he deserves. Most of that is due to Ocean & Montana, a stellar collaborative EP he dropped in May with superproducer Kaytranada. Buddy’s new project, Magnolia, features soulful production from Mike & Keys, and includes appearances from West Coast artists Boogie, Wiz Khalifa, and Kent Jamz.

Daniel Caesar, Freudian

R&B singer Daniel Caesar blew up a couple of years ago with his exceptional Pilgrim’s Paradise EP (which featured a phenomenal rework of Kanye’s “Street Lights” titled “Streetcar”). Today, he’s returned with his long-awaited followup, titled Freudian, and it’s everything fans have been waiting for. Caesar is in top emotional form, and he brought with him four of modern R&B’s leading ladies: Kali Uchis, Syd, Charlotte Day Wilson, and H.E.R. are all featured on the quick 10-track project.

Joseph Chilliams, Henry Church

Pivot Gang is one of Chicago’s most underrated crews. De facto leader Saba has risen through the ranks, but his whole team is worth checking out. Today, Saba’s cousin Joseph Chilliams released his debut project, a 13-track album titled Henry Church. Chilliams has an unconventional sense of humor and a penchant for nerdy references, giving him a charming quirkiness that’s coupled with an impressive lyrical ability (the amount of ways he and MFN Melo prove they can weave the word “Buck” into a song is pretty excellent). For his debut project, Chilliams brought a score of Chicago’s best with him, including Noname, Jamila Woods, Saba, Add-2, MFN Melo, and the late DinnerWithJohn (Saba’s brother John Walt, who was tragically murdered late last year).

kitty, Miami Garden Club

This is a week where a lot of fans received albums they’ve been waiting forever for, but no one’s been waiting more than kitty fans. kitty arrived on the scene a number of years ago with a hit single in “OK Cupid” and cosigns from Riff Raff and Danny Brown, but while her fame dwindled over time, her artistry got better: in 2014, she released two EPs (impatiens and FROSTBITE) that contained her best work to date. In 2015, she hosted a kickstarter for her debut album (which reached its goal in record time), and backers and fans waited for an album that was supposed to drop in January, 2016. A series of events in kitty’s life (including a tumultuous breakup, issues with skeevy producers and artists, hard drive theft, and more) got in the way, but nearly two years later, Miami Garden Club is finally here. kitty’s style has changed a bit over the years: it’s mostly a singing album (although the moments of rap are always notable), undercut by a hazy, vaporwave-esque soundscape with nods to pop and R&B. Rapper and twitter personality DVS is the album’s only feature, and kitty produced the majority of the album herself. Many of the backers became (understandably) frustrated by the constant delays, but kitty’s long-awaited debut was definitely worth the wait.

Lil Uzi Vert, Luv Is Rage 2

2015’s Luv Is Rage was my introduction to Lil Uzi Vert, and while it’s mostly fallen under the radar after Lil Uzi vs. the World and The Perfect Luv Tape dropped last year, it contains some of Uzi’s best work to date (anyone who hasn’t heard “Paradise” yet really ought to). Uzi’s been teasing the sequel for a while now, even dropping a transitional EP last year (Luv Is Rage 1.5, home of his biggest single to date, “XO Tour Lif3”), but after linking up with Pharrell, he scrapped everything he was working on and apparently started over. While many fans were peeved at the pushbacks, all the delays were for the best: Luv Is Rage 2 is easily Uzi’s best project to date. Producers include Pharrell, Don Cannon, Maaly Raw, Wondagurl, Francis Got Heat, Pierre Bourne, Metro Boomin, and many more.

MadeinTYO, True’s World

XXL Freshman MadeinTYO arrived hit the charts a few years ago with “Uber Everywhere”, an addictive single that received further exposure from a Travis Scott remix. Since then, he’s failed to put out anything nearly as electric, but he’s maintained a steady fanbase nonetheless (and managed to become a Freshman a year later). True’s World is a quick 6-track EP in celebration of the birth of his child, True, with Anhia Santana (better known as popular hip hop artist Distortedd).

Wiki, No Mountains In Manhattan

NY rapper Wiki is one of his city’s most shining stars, a  rapper with a distinctly East Coast sound and a penchant for straightforward, no-holds-barred storytelling. He first grew to fame as part of Ratking (with producer Sporting Life and rapper Hak), but his solo career took off brilliantly with 2015’s Lil Me (which included collabs with Skepta, Madlib, DJ Lucas, and more). Today, Wiki’s returned with No Mountains in Manhattan, an album that Wiki tried to make more cohesive and personal than its predecessor. Ghostface Killah makes a notable appearance on “Made For This”, and Wiki linked up with fellow underground New Yorkers Your Old Droog, Lakutis, and more.

XXXtentacion, 17

XXXtentacion is one of hip hop’s most divisive new characters, and not just because of his brutal sound and punk/metal influences. X has been embroiled in controversy since allegations of him beating his pregnant girlfriend first hit the media (and landed him in jail for a time). Since then, he’s somehow received massive acclaim, a record deal, and a place on the XXL Freshman list (despite XXL refusing Famous Dex admission because of similar assault issues). X has continued to be despicable in the media (and particularly on twitter), but those willing to separate art and artist have been hailing X’s long-awaited debut album 17. Even Kendrick Lamar, in a move that’s already becoming a PR nightmare, has cosigned the Florida rapper. Trippie Redd provides the sole feature on 17, an album that deals intimately with X’s struggles with depression and mental instability.

Also released:

Berner & Young Dolph, Tracking Numbers: The Taylor Gang and 1017 rappers’ new collaborative project features Gucci Mane, Wiz Khalifa, Juicy J, and more.
Deem Spencer, we think we alone: Jamaica’s Deem Spencer returns with his much-anticipated followup to last year’s sunflower EP.
EMA, Exile in the Outer Ring: Electronic/pop artist EMA returns with her third album.
Kodie Shane, Back from the Future: Kodie Shane, a standout member of Lil Yachty’s Sailing Team collective, drops off her second album of the year, following January’s Big Trouble Little Jupiter.
Lil Yachty, Lil Boat’s Birthday Mix 2.0: For the second year in a row, Lil Yachty celebrates his birthday with a single-track mix of unreleased songs.
Queens of the Stone Age, Villains: The new album from the acclaimed rock group is being heralded as their best since 2002’s Songs for the Deaf.
Troy Ave, Album of the Summer: An ambitious album title from the guy Kirk Knight outsold.
The War on Drugs, A Deeper Understanding: Philadelphia rock band The War on Drugs return with their long-awaited followup to 2014’s acclaimed Lost in the Dream.