It's been a couple of slow years for the Oakland rap scene, unless you're counting the now-defunct Main Attrakionz or G-Eazy (and please, don't count him). Kamaiyah — the 24-year-old self-described first lady of the Big Money Gang — just demolished that trend via her incredible debut, A Good Night In The Ghetto.
It makes perfect sense that YG's the only major feature on the 16-track, 45-minute tape. In many ways, the Compton rapper's 2013 My Krazy Life provided the shot in the arm that the then-stale g-funk genre needed, paving the way for A Good Night, which channels that same careful balance of reverence to the OGs and ownership of a slightly updated sound. And like YG, Kamaiyah more than makes up for a lack of variety in delivery and intricate wordplay, with intense Missy Elliott-level confidence on the mic, pairing perfectly with bass-heavy and synth-saturated beats built specifically for blaring from a car on the way to chill with friends at the beach (five of the excellently produced tracks come courtesy of NYC-based CT Beats).
There's not a single song worth skipping on A Good Night, although the three short interludes (all titled "Hoochie Hotline Interlude") don't add much. The only track that doesn't exude an overwhelming carefree attitude is "For My Dawg," the poignant and devastating finale to the album that pays homage to her best friend who died from cancer. It's still a few months 'til summer, but A Good Night's already positioned itself as the album that could very well define it for rap fans.
(Big Money Gang)It makes perfect sense that YG's the only major feature on the 16-track, 45-minute tape. In many ways, the Compton rapper's 2013 My Krazy Life provided the shot in the arm that the then-stale g-funk genre needed, paving the way for A Good Night, which channels that same careful balance of reverence to the OGs and ownership of a slightly updated sound. And like YG, Kamaiyah more than makes up for a lack of variety in delivery and intricate wordplay, with intense Missy Elliott-level confidence on the mic, pairing perfectly with bass-heavy and synth-saturated beats built specifically for blaring from a car on the way to chill with friends at the beach (five of the excellently produced tracks come courtesy of NYC-based CT Beats).
There's not a single song worth skipping on A Good Night, although the three short interludes (all titled "Hoochie Hotline Interlude") don't add much. The only track that doesn't exude an overwhelming carefree attitude is "For My Dawg," the poignant and devastating finale to the album that pays homage to her best friend who died from cancer. It's still a few months 'til summer, but A Good Night's already positioned itself as the album that could very well define it for rap fans.