Collaborative album between rapper Bun B and producer Statik Selektah, who decides to record the process of creating the project and put it in free livestream. In less than twelve hours of live broadcast, the album is completed: guests are JaVonté, Method Man, Grafh, Fat Joe, Smoke DZA, Westside Gunn, Termanology, Fame, Wais P, Meechy Darko, CJ Fly, Haile Supreme, Uncle Murda, Propain, Killa Kyleon, Big KRIT and Talib Kweli.
Brilliant intro for "Moving Mountains"; Statik's triumphant boom bap smooth jazz, dry drum, JaVonté's soul hook, Bun B's flawless. It follows "Still Trill", banger with Grafh, Johnny Blaze and Bun B. The third track features Fat Joe and Smoke DZA on a good beat, before "Concrete": light jazzy dope boom bap by Statik Selektah, Westside Gunn at his best with a similar style to AZ, Bun B great too. When Termanology arrives, the rhythm has already been buried. Lil' Fame delivers bars alongside Port Arthur's rapper in "Money", while Wais P is limited to spoken outro. The sixth song is one of the weakest of the edition, precedes a joint with Uncle Murda on a lively rhythm. "TBA" on paper is one of the weakest cuts, but Statik continues to make no mistake and Killa Kyleon strives to match Bun B's performance.
In "Time Flies", Big KRIT effortlessly outdoes Talib Kweli on an underground boom bap, it closes Haile Supreme with a hook in the latest cut on another laid-back jazz production from Lawrence's producer. Four bonus tracks follow. Statik boom bap jazzy midtempo for "All Good", good Bun B, Tobe boasts a calm and clear flow. A brag track half-tribute to "Game of Thrones" with Paul Wall & Les follows. The last two pieces are two solos by Bun B, which has never been seen on the regular album, curiously: "Lemons" and "How the Game Go" have good jazzy rhythms with southern elements, Bun B performs well.
Released by Showoff, The Trill and Empire, the album gets no commercial feedback and is overlooked by most fans. Statik Selektah provides one of his best career productions, making East Coast jazzy boom bap beats that match the velvety flow of Bun B, while Texan MC shines alongside some of the best performers of the period, including Method Man, Westside Gunn, Lil' Fame and Big KRIT. It's the best solo album by Bun B, despite the high number of guests leads it not to be considered a "solo album", and it's among the best projects of the year.
Highlights: "Moving Mountains", "Still Trill", "Concrete", "Money", "Time Flies".
Rating: 8.5/10.
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