#Z Money

[dustedmagazine]

Lost in the (Billy) Woods: Ray Garraty’s Year in Hip Hop

Some years, you want to check more new music. Other years, you don’t.  2022 was one of the latter.  As always, music journalists race to name the Next Big Thing, but when you go check it and it turns out Not a Big Thing at all. And the next big thing, you just walk past it.

In the rush to discover something else, people don’t properly follow an artist they discovered a month ago. Yet, often, the artists they gave up mature, get better or even reinvent themselves. Nobody pays enough attention to those artists. We have fewer and fewer listeners and more and more streaming platform passengers. Thus, this year it seemed that nobody properly listened to Louie Ray, Bandgang Lonnie Bands, Chief Keef, even though they created their best music right NOW. For most listeners, they belong to past years.

That is why I was dreading the 2022 end of the year lists. I was sure that we’d get two types of lists. The first would be hype lists, full of Hot New Artists nobody will remember after January 1. The other would be those created by and for a highbrow, white, middle-class public who wants its rap to be “smart.” Thus, we get thousands of lists full of billy woods and the like, which is only good to show your college professor how brainy your music tastes are.

Anyway, 2022 had plenty of good hip hop music. Probably the best music this year was the one we didn’t get to listen to. Boyz Ent, a label holding Rio Da Yung Og catalogue, had some managerial trouble, and despite the promises from the CEO we got only two new songs by Rio (not counting his EPs with Boog and Wayne616). Which is a shame. On to the next one!

Best releases of the year

Louie Ray — My Signature (Still Grinding)

Kookei — Mr. Incredible (H$G)

Bandgang Lonnie Bands x ShredGang Mone — Shottas (TF Distribution)

Wayne616 — Grease Files (Still Grinding)

Z Money — Back 2 The Blender (4EverPaidRecords)

Best tracks

Roc Marciano — Bubble Bath

Kookei  — Chris Brown

Z Money  —  Bounce Back

BandGang Lonnie Bands & ShredGang Mone — 3 Kids

Cashclick Boog x Rio Da Yung OG  —  Sneak the Balls in

Rio Da Yung OG — Professional Shit Talker

Louie Ray —  Back Home

Chief Keef — Bitch Where

Best production

Sav: Kookei  — Chris Brown

???: BandGang Lonnie Bands & ShredGang Mone—Greatest Bome Back

???: BandGang Lonnie Bands & ShredGang Mone —3 Kids

Fre$co: Cashclick Boog x Rio Da Yung OG — Sneak the Balls in

???: Louie Ray — Crazy 22

Best produced albums

Louie Ray — My Signature

Wayne616 – Grease Files

Non rap releases

Apogeion — Astrolatria I: Initiatio

Blood Chalice — The Blasphemous Psalms Of Cannibalism

Ignorance of the year

Bizarre — He Got a Gun 

ShredGang Mone’s verse on “3 Kids”

Bizarre, of D12 fame, was long ago discarded as a washed up Eminem sidekick by ‘serious’ rap fans. But he steadily releases new music, of the weirdest and goofiest type. Imagine the worst B-movie, and Bizarre will surpass it with over-the-top amount of ignorance.

Mone on his verse claims he robs rappers, and ironically, his partner Lonnie Bands got his chain took this year. One has to wonder if it was Mone’s job.

Ray Garraty

[zarla-s]

I saw this post about how Engie was probably born into generational wealth and I can't stop thinking about it.

[patreon]

[softerhaze]

oh yeah, it's go time 🚲🏃‍♀️

someone save her.......PLEASE

[dollya-robinprotector]

Done with my first batch of color sketch commissions!! (CLOSED)

I'll sleep a bit before starting to do the second batch. Anyone who hasn't sent me the refs and notes for order, please do so before I wake up! (This is a threat)

Target: 150/300$ (Yay! Halfway through! I hope this amount is enough!)

[theactualsunshinechild]

Aventurine really is the Tragedy to Sampo's classic Comedy and that's why I'm so obsessed with both of them

Please I want my faves to meet and bankrupt a casino together. It would be such a great bonding activity

[doodleimprovement]

Emmet but he's in the next Legends game and he teaches you various game mechanics including a first for the series: Melee Combat

He gets a sword because I said so

[blogalahezy]

[azelmaandeponine]

I can't wait to get lost in Lumiose City again, the hardest dungeon in any Pokémon game.

[gen-z-culture-is]

gen z culture is memeing about mental issues you know you have while refusing to see a therapist because therapy cost money but memes are free

[zylphiacrowley]

Don't actually spoil anything for me, because I do intend to play it at some point... but how is Veilguard? Like I kept hearing your old choices don't matter, is that putting a damper on the whole thing? Does it feel fine without that? Like don't tell me anything about the story, I just want to know if people feel like they're getting their money's worth out of it.

[forevermorgue]

First cameo I bought for myself...

and it's fucking PRINCESS TRUNKS BABYYYY.

Thank you Scott, you're amazing, I love your work, and I will die a happy man.

(And as soon as I am no longer broke, I will give you a fucking tip because atjskydkfkydjy I asked for so little, and you gave EVERYTHING. 🥺😭🙏💕 I got a triple whammy of 1-the line I asked you to say to Dragon Ball Super Broly. 2-nostalgia for when you guys were making DBZ abridged and I'd get so hyped for the new episode. 3-my new favorite Trunks, flustered awkward accidental flirting Trunks. Thank you, and may you find a random $20 bill on the ground every week for the rest of your life. 💗)

[zeb-z]

see ok I don’t think it’s bad who stole the furniture because he didn’t go to f5 and zoom in on himself a billion times

[zarla-s]

TF2 is free-to-play, but f2p players can't use voice commands or the chat, meaning they can't call for Medic. During a round of MvM a while back, I saw a Scout calling a Medic for an f2p player! It was just a weirdly sweet moment. Little things like that are my favorite part of playing TF2, haha.

[patreon]

[oifaaa]

Everyone sending you their Alfred hate, my take is I like Alfred maybe 70% of the time as a character in the DC world where literally everyone is a weird as hell, mild-moderately offensive stereotype. If he existed irl though I would hate his guts just like I would hate pretty much every single member of the extended Batfamily. Maybe some of the pets get a pass, Batcow is on thin ice

I do seem to be the hub for alfred hate this week I should really tone it down this level of negativity isn't really good - but yeah I get where your coming from I think like I said just for me personally it's bc I dont see alfred as a character as much as he's a easy don't think about it explainer for writers to not have to worry about the little things like Alfreds been dead since 2018 and I know alot of people joke that they keep forgetting about that bc you know he's still showing up in comics and dc will bring him back eventually but I also put it to you it's bc he had so little character presents like it doesn't feel like anything has changed since he died

[massiveladycat]

i think we should care more about how the parents of gen alpha are giving them technology addiction to the point they throw tantrums when its taken away than how annoying skibidi toilet is

[zhongrin]

I FINALLY MOVED OUT TO A NEW PLACE!!!

i'm absolutely exhausted and i still need to unpack so many things and i still need to buy a proper desk and restock my groceries & supplies and a do a whole lot of other things BUT i'm hoping to get settled in soon so i can get back to the creative endeavors™️✨

love yall, stay safe, take care, and good vibes 🫶🏻