KXNG Crooked — Flag EP

Third EP of the year for KXNG Crooked, rapper from Long Beach. The singer Giselle and the MC's group Family Bvsiness are the only guests of the edition. The production is handled by Fong Sai U, Big Blizz, Lavish, Smoke, Gim Gittum and Eminem.

The first cut is probably the best of the edition: skit, jazzy boom bap by Fong Sai U, with fast, steady, pounding, and dry drum machine. Crooked lets the beat breathe, then delivers with a hardcore and flowing style. Subsequent cuts are less good from a musical and technical point of view. Big Blizz produces the title track and he offer a decent trap rhythm with dark samples and a wacky and messy snare drum: his rhythm is confused, the MC spits bars with an energetic rapping style, yet the forgettable production ruins the tune. "You Was Supposed To" is the first in a long line of mediocre songs: Lavish's weak trap rhythm, decent melodic female sample and a questionable drum. The beatmaker places a weak, tired and listless drum machine: she punches in, but instead of going to work, she goes shopping and takes a couple of shots at the golf club, leaving her underage sister to do the work for her. An uninspired sound comes out, the rapper performs undertone here. Track number four features a curious choice by Crooked who, on a weak Big Blizz trap rhythm, with a decent melodic sample, decides to deliver his lyrics entirely with autotune. Smoke's beat disappoints in the following track with a dull drum, KXNG Crooked delivers with quick but colorless rapping.

"Still Regulatin'" is produced by Gim Gittum, who provides a weak trap beat with weak drum, the rapper is uninspired and throws a rnb hook. Lavish achieves one of the worst rhythms in "COB Season": the original beat is decent, with an eclectic sample and an almost imperceptible drum, so, there's a sudden switch to an annoying boom bap, with a quick pounding drum machine and a bad sample. Crooked tries to extricate himself, but the beat is too bad to be able to save anything. "Hot Sauce" boasts an almost decent production: the rhythm is sluggish and weak, with a mediocre sample and a midtempo drum. It seems to have been done by an amateur, but behind the keyboard is Eminem: KXNG Crooked introduces Debo, Julius, Dice and Kenny, each with a short verse, and he feels compelled to put two lame hooks on, then delivers his stanza. They're all more or less dull and bland, no one stands out. Lavish returns to produce in the last song, finding one of the best rhythms of the review, and is simply mediocre.

Crooked spits bars with honest lyricism, forming a personal tape and making room for his group, which I was absolutely unaware of. The production is particularly weak and disappointing, it collapses the entire EP, consisting of nine cuts and 28 minutes of listening. Not recommended, 5/10.