Atlanta rapper BunnaB is more than just “Bunna Summa,” the perfect summer anthem for carefree girls having fun in the sun. It’s also the entire album of the same name, especially in its Deluxe edition: a playful, exuberant celebration of female pleasure, sexual freedom, and independence that’s as funny as it is empowering, while making brilliant use of trap music’s oldest tricks.
MexikoDro, the producer who, together with his Beat Plugz colleagues, created plugg, returns to his roots. Stepping up to the mic, he successfully revisits the motivational trap music of its early days. Except that after all these years, that same motivation has changed in nature: the veteran’s aspiration now is to live a sober, ordinary life, harboring no illusions about anything.
This occasional model that is John Glacier has all the hallmarks of a Londoner. Her wide-ranging circle, her music infused with post-punk and electronic influences, her monotone, low-key poetry, and her doubts and uncertainties ultimately have very little to do with rap. Nevertheless, on this compilation album, her formula often proves as haunting as it is seemingly disembodied.
This is Tyler, the Creator’s dance album. His return to basics, as signaled by a cover that evokes 1980s hip-hop. But as this grotesque, parodic image also suggests, everything very quickly takes on a particular tone – acidic, acrimonious, and atrabilious – with a rapper like him. The sound is funky, but the sharp-tongued provocateur from Odd Future is still very much present.
Following the success that was “Glockoma 2”, Key Glock once again demonstrates, with his first album released through a major label, that he is capable of stepping into Young Dolph’s big shoes. With releases like “Glockaveli”, he and his crew are securing for their label, Paper Route Empire, another decade at the forefront of the rap game – and the top spot within Memphis’s vibrant scene.
Like him, hailing from Birmingham, Alabama, Big Yavo is Luh Soldier’s brother-in-arms. If “Dingers” is not quite what its title claims – a perfect hit, a home run – it is nonetheless his best album to date. It is a funny, full-blooded release, delivered with gusto by a bona fide showman, in a style that may be well-worn but remains effective: that of rough, unruly Southern rap tradition.
Payroll Giovanni is one of the greatest, period. Since his days with Doughboyz Cashout, he has built a remarkable and hard-hitting discography. With this album, he adds yet another solid brick to an already towering body of work. It’s titled “If Not Me Then Who”, and this is a fair question. If this man isn’t the greatest rapper to come out of Detroit, then who else could truly claim that title?
Some come out of prison worn down, but others emerge in top form. In 2025, Rio Da Yung O.G. clearly belongs to the latter category. Dedicated to his city, his second album since his release is a success. Whether solo or alongside RMC Mike, YN Jay, and a few others, its leading figure does justice to Flint rap with a project packed to the brim with his flavorful, off-the-wall antics.
Clipping still loves its concepts. This time, the trio leaves horrorcore behind to explore the cyberpunk universe and the threats looming over our hyperconnected world. True to its taste for experimentation, the Los Angeles band ventures into the realm of 1990s electronic music. All of this brings to mind the science-fiction-infused indie rap of that same era. And for that very reason, we like it.
Freshly inducted as a “Freshman,” Lazer Dim 700 solidifies his position with “Sins Aloud”, his second album. Across eighteen short tracks, his thoughts are scattered chaotically over disorderly productions, where the wobbly sounds of plugg seamlessly blend with various other influences. All of it ultimately reflects the strangeness and fragmentation of rap in the 2020s.
Saba and No ID come from different generations, but they share their hometown of Chicago and a polished, refined approach to rap. Their collaboration results in a blend of jazz, soul, and introspective hip-hop. Enriched by numerous guest appearances and meticulous production, it is an eclectic work, where each track explores a different facet of the rapper, often brilliantly.
Mac Critter, the Memphis rapper, has been signed to the New 1017. However, he has since left the label, and he doesn’t really resemble a disciple of Gucci Mane. His trap music is more serious and more haunted than the master’s. His dragging, pained rap is more threatening than humorous. He is modern, and very much in tune with the times. And sometimes, too, he is striking.