FREDRO STARR – JAZZMATIC

Fredro Starr gives us a super quick new album that is entirely produced by himself. As far as the bars, he is at least decent and consistent the whole way through. He’s got some decent bars, but nothing mind blowing. Featured artists include Jonny Vulgar, Mac Mason, Harrd Luck, and more. Fredro produced every track on here and used jazz samples on every song. It’s a more simple and laid back vibe to it as opposed to the hard-hitting Onyx albums. All in all, not a bad album. Nothing really rewind-worthy on here, but at the same time, not whack at all.

OVERALL RATING: 3 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#fredrostarr #fredro_starr #onyx #onyx_hq #queens #jazzmatic

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SMOOVTH & FREDRO STARR – PROJECT NEAR YOU

A new album from SmooVth finds him teaming up with Fredro Starr for the production part of the project. On the mic, SmooVth is just as his name depicts, smooth. His bars are decent and he a good flow as always. He has 2 features from Hus Kingpin and JD Era. The beats on this album are pretty strong overall and I think that is probably the more powerful half of this project. Fredro gives us some slamming beats that are no doubt influenced by Onyx’s gritty sound. It was an interesting match up and it definitely worked. This is a good listen for the hip hop fans out there.

OVERALL RATING: 3.5 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#smoovth #smoovthcalhoun #fredrostarr #fredro_starr #onyx #onyx_hq #queens #projectnearyou

ONYX – WORLD TAKE OVER

Onyx drops a brand new album that has more of a worldly feel than previous albums. On this one, not only do they give you their hardcore, gritty, street lyrics from their members, but they also employ foreign MCs from around the world to assist them. The rhymes are just as hard as you would expect with Sticky Fingaz sticking out the most as usual. The features they have on here aren’t really listed in the track listing which is odd, but at the same time, not many Americans may be familiar with these international MCs. The beats on here knock, but they also have a worldly vibe to them as well. This might not be your most New York sounding Onyx album, but fans should appreciate Onyx’s efforts to reach out, differentiate their sound, and try to appeal to the masses while still staying true to their core fanbase.

OVERALL RATING: 3.5 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#onyx #onyx_hq #fredrostarr #stickyfingaz #sonsee #queens #worldtakeover #wto

ONYX – ONYX VS EVERYBODY

Onyx drops a brand new album that is definitely 100% in their signature lane. The sound is grimy but also updated to sound current. It has a great sound but the length of the album is too short. By chopping songs down so short, it really takes away from the joy of listening to it. These songs that are under 3 minutes has got to go. If a beat is dope and you have great MCs like the members of Onyx on it, let that song run a bit longer. Anyway, Onyx sounds great on here. They have energy and go hard on every track. The bars are great and very appropriate for the sound. They keep the beats hardcore and grimy. There is a lot of boom bap for fans to revel in. This is the soundtrack for robbing someone right here. A great job done by Onyx but it could have been longer. It was almost over before it started.

OVERALL RATING: 3.5 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#onyx #onyx_hq #fredrostarr #stickyfingaz #sonsee #queens #onyxvseverybody #ove

ONYX – 1993

Onyx drops a slamming new project that sounds like it came straight outta the title of the album. 1993 is a dope album that takes it back to the glory days of Onyx. The production is slamming and definitely sounds dated like it came right out of the early 90s. It’s dope to hear that style again. There was a part of me that thought, “We can’t go back there though. That time happened and it’s over.” Nevertheless, Onyx sounds fresh as ever on this new one. Sticky Fingaz spits crazy, scary rhymes in his usual style. Fredro definitely keeps his flow strong as well. They even slightly rework some of their classic songs on here. Even though this was an older style album, it sounded fresh and projects like this are definitely needed from time to time. All hail the mad face invasion that is Onyx.

OVERALL RATING: 4 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#onyx #onyx_hq #fredrostarr #stickyfingaz #sonsee #queens #1993

FREDRO STARR & 6AMBU STARR – 6LUNT 6ROTHERS

Fredro Starr teams up with his younger brother 6ambu Starr to release this slamming new EP 6lunt 6rothers. The two of them definitely complement each other and you can tell talent runs in the family. There are only 6 songs on this new project but they definitely make the most of each track. They are both spitting those hard and gritty Onyx-type bars to feed the streets. The beats on here are slamming and full of forceful, boom bap beats to keep your head bobbing. If you miss the old Onyx sound, this is the project for you.

OVERALL RATING: 3.5 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#fredrostarr #fredro_starr #onyx #onyx_hq #queens #6ambustarr #6lunt6rothers #bluntbrothers

FREDRO STARR – STASH BOX

Fredro Starr releases a brand new album and this one almost has more of an older feel to it as far as the production is concerned. The beats are pretty decent overall and have more of an old school vibe. Fredro even raps over an old Nas beat to pay homage to a legend. His bars are satisfactory as well. He is definitely hitting for par when it comes to the lyrics. One of the most notable tracks would be “So Called Beef” in which he addresses 50 Cent. I didn’t even really realize there was any kind of friction there, but apparently there is or was. I don’t think a lot of people really care, but oh well. All in all, not a bad project from the Onyx member.

OVERALL RATING: 3.5 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#fredrostarr #fredro_starr #onyx #onyx_hq #queens #stashbox

ONYX – ONYX 4 LIFE

Onyx comes back hard as ever with their brand new project Onyx 4 Life. They sound as hardcore as they ever have on here. This album is chock full of boom bap, gritty street beats for you to blast in your jeep. Drums come across very hard as they keep trying to recreate more street anthems. The vocals sound pretty dope as well. You can tell they have aged a bit, but I think the intensity is still very much alive and well. Sticky Fingaz is still always trying to go for the shock value with his rhymes, but to be clear, I believe him when he says he is going to do something. All in all, this was a pretty dope album that should play through very well for Onyx fans.

OVERALL RATING: 4 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#onyx #onyx_hq #fredrostarr #stickyfingaz #sonsee #onyx4life

FREDRO STARR & JONNY VULGAR – RAPPERS AND BALLERS EP

Fredro Starr teams up with a rapper I had never heard of before for a super quick EP. With only 5 tracks on here, there wasn’t any time to waste and both rappers definitely got busy on the mic. Right from the get-go, they both release a barrage of lyrics and Fredro Starr was especially shining on “Oakley Vs. Barkley.” Not having heard Jonny Vulgar before, I was definitely impressed with his lyricism as well. The production on this album was very tight as well. There are some slamming boom bap style tracks that are assured to get your neck snapping. All in all, they did a great job with this project. I just wish it would have been longer.

OVERALL RATING: 4 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#fredrostarr #fredro_starr #onyx #onyx_hq #queens #jonnyvulgar #rappersandballersep #rappersandballers

DJ ILLEGAL – 100 MAD MIXTAPE

DJ Illegal from the Snowgoons releases a mixtape featuring mainly Onyx with a few special guests sprinkled in. This was a pretty dope mixtape from front to back. Onyx handles the majority of the bars and they sound just as good as they ever did. You get that famous gritty and grimy New York sound from all of them. With members of the Snowgoons on production, they definitely match that sound and intensity of Onyx. They keep it raw the whole way through. There are a couple good guest features from the likes of Planet Asia, Termanology, Sean Price, and more. Another good observation about this project is that it is very cohesive. A lot of the tracks sound like they need to go together. They definitely create a good vibe both on the lyrical side and on the production side. This is one that true grimy hip hop heads will definitely want to comb through.

OVERALL RATING: 4 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#djillegal #snowgoons #thesnowgoons #germany #100madmixtape #100mad #onyx #onyx_hq #fredrostarr #stickyfingaz #sonsee

FREDRO STARR – A FEW JOINTS

Fredro Starr drops off 4 new songs that are really dope. He goes hard and sounds fresh as ever on the mic. He has that same energetic delivery that we always come to expect from Onyx members. That energy is really what drives these songs. You couple that with some really hard beats, and you have a decent project here. I just wish it would have been longer than 4 songs. The highlight was “Seven Days” with it’s insanely hard beat that Fredro kills. Another good one was the joint “Punk MCs” in which he uses a prior Masta Ace beat. This one turned out really good as well. This is a really solid release from Fredro. Just give us a full length project next time.

 

OVERALL RATING: 4 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

 

#fredrostarr #fredro_starr #onyx #onyx_hq #queens #afewjoints

 

FREDRO STARR – FIRESTARR 2

Fredro Starr drops off a project Firestarr 2 which was pretty disappointing overall. I was ready to hear some of that harder Onyx type music but got left with a pretty soft project. There were songs on here I was just baffled to be hearing like “100,000 Miles” and “Hate 2 Lose.” These songs sound more like something you would hear on an easy listening radio station than on an Onyx member’s album. Lyrically, I don’t think he did a great job on here. I was used to hearing better bars and he gives us some lighter bars that just don’t cut it. The Track “Do U Know” with Vado isn’t too bad. This might be the highlight. But that aside, there isn’t too much else to look for. There are 3 super short skits that just take up room and make the project appear bigger than it really is. The beats on here are super soft. I had no idea that Michael Bolton and Yanni both collaborated on here to make the music. (This is a joke obviously). It might as well be this way though. I’d really do a hard pass on this project and the only reason I give it any credit at all is strictly based on Onyx catalog and the potential to do better.

OVERALL RATING: 1.5 out of 5 Cheesesteaks

#fredrostarr #fredro_starr #firestarr2 #firestarrii #firestarr #onyx #onyx_hq