Tag Archives: alchemist

Apr 17 2025
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Larry June, 2 Chainz & Alchemist – Life Is Beautiful

After last year’s release Doing It For Me, Larry June and Alchemist follow up The Great Escape, linking up with the underrated wordsmith and Atlanta legend 2 Chainz.

Though familiar territory for Larry and Al, this 11 track album celebrates the victory of that great escape, however, the addition of 2 Chainz adds a whole new and unexpected level of depth and texture, cementing that success. Kicking off with Munyon Canyon, an interesting listen as audiences may be accustomed to the sound and feel, then 2 Chainz enters and we get to hear him on a tempo that real fans have longed for (since his work with Statik Selektah). This combination is further emphasised with the second track, Colossal, where Alchemist gets to draw for the darker and grittier sound more complimentary to 2 Chainz, allowing Larry June to now follow suit. This is the overall theme, with the three weaving through their essences that seems to effortlessly intertwine, evident with tracks like I Been and LLC. As someone that has wanted an Alchemist & 2 Chainz project, this is quite the audio treat, leading up to Bad Choices, with the album thus far feeling more in vein of the previous Alchemist & Larry June collaboration and the title track Life is Beautiful providing a solid bridge to the next half of the album, where it feels more in style for 2 Chainz, another example of Alchemist’s versatility and attention to detail beyond great production. Track 6, Generation ushers in that more concrete element and Chainz hits the ground running, with Larry June just as comfortable gliding through. The luxurious sounding Any Day finds the perfect blend for all parties, allowing them to accentuate their raw lyricism freely, followed by Epiphany, where by now the unorthodox pairing of Larry June and 2 Chainz feels natural, with Tru Organics like the title, a great mix of the their respective brands. Despite some expectancy (with two of the three having collaborated recently), Life Is Beautiful manages to dispel any predictability whilst maintaining the level of quality, ending with the cinematic Jean Prouvé, smoothly closing out the album as Larry June and 2 Chainz establish their presences once more like a post-credit scene.

I had some initial idea of how this project would sound and maybe was bias to wanting to hear just a 2 Chainz & Alchemist project (which still can happen), however I was pleasantly surprised with how this turned out, as there’s always been a level of opulence with Alchemist and Larry June, so who else better to rendezvous with, than the grandioso 2 Chainz Toni himself to remind us, Life Is Beautiful.

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Jul 10 2023
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The Alchemist – Flying High

Fresh off the momentum from The Great Escape, the production maestro continues to sour with the release of Flying High

With multiple more production credits and projects on the way, Al serves us up some treats in the form of four new tracks, a snack size offering full of flavour. Starting with (the Earl Sweatshirt featured) RIP Tracy, a harmonious number, Earl and Billy Woods over a classic Alchemist loop, it’s an appetiser for fans of the two, before the darker more sinister sounding Trouble Man, featuring T.F. and (another fan favourite) Boldy James. Sometimes tracks that may not have made the full length projects can work for an EP, but if this is the case here, it only emphasises the level of quality that Alchemist is working at. The mood is lightened with Bless ft. MIKE & Sideshow, the piano sample dominates the production, providing a soothing feel, leading into Midnight Oil, coinciding with that The Great Escape energy, featuring the man of the moment Larry June, Jay Worthy and another forthright verse from Al himself. At this point a full length rap album from the man who entered the game as a rapper may be on the cards, and definitely welcomed, as these rare gems sprinkled so far have been an appreciation seasoning to the music.

A bonus to the EP, is that you get to hear the instrumentals, which many listeners look for especially when it comes to The Alchemist, you can appreciate the compositions and let your mind wonder to the magic of the production alone.

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Jun 28 2023
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Nines – Crop Circle 2

The UK rap scene has always attempted to draw parallels to it’s USA counterparts, but few have been able to deliver such a feeling and transition that message as authentically as Nines, though the love and success has come with it’s downfalls, the Church Road legend overcomes adversity once again with the release of Crop Circle 2

From the jump, the Intro offers insight on the recent jail stint, a purposeful intensity with a deeper introspective displayed through his storytelling, the constant one foot in, one foot out conundrum as his career flourishes into the mainstream. Nines has successfully crafted his own lane, a style that transcends sound as this project allows him to safely experiment, a sequel to the popular Crop Circle, the project follows the theme, with something for the ladies in the form of Calendar. Considering it’s accompanying short film, a lot of the songs serve as a soundtrack, but it maintains something for everyone, as it’s single Tony Soprano 2 has dominated amongst fans. A feature-heavy project, tracks like Different League help accustom Nina back into position amongst peers (since his last project was three years ago). Whilst featuring an array of house hold names and can’t forget the team, personally it’s the interlude-esque tracks like the Intro, Letter To Hydro and the Outro that i’ve found myself playing the most, it helps contain another consistent body of work.

With the label assisted promo run, reconnecting with the fans, the prominent mascot Crop Cat alongside the rightful launch of his own strain, it’s another step in the right direction for Nines, as anticipation for the next official album rises, rumours of production from legendary producer The Alchemist help heighten the excitement, as one of our own continues to elevate and set pace on his own time.

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Jun 20 2023
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Larry June & The Alchemist – The Great Escape

Larry June has been on the steady ascent with a consistent catalogue, a multitude of projects serving as seeds to which we’re now seeing him reap the oranges of that labour in the past couple years. An underground fan favourite blurring the lines between the mainstream, he cements that independent run uniting with the legendary producer The Alchemist.

A natural progression for the California rapper, many were curious of what to expect of this collaboration with The Alchemist, who himself has comfortably created his own cult of composition connoisseurs. With the rapper’s laid back flow and melodic spin, and Al’s recent run of stout production (for the likes of Roc Marciano & Boldy James), this link up had both sets of enthusiasts intrigued. Off the rip, Turkish Cotton sets the texture, with Larry in his element over the soft intro, which leads perfectly into 89 Earthquake, one of the first releases from the project, any confusion of their contrasting styles is put to rest, and Larry appears comfortable over the sample-driven production, his ability to weave words is already meshing with Alchemist’s movie score feeling, further confirmed with Solid Plan, meeting in the middle, featuring Al’s longtime collaborator and friend, Action Bronson. Before you can judge, Palisades starts, and as Alchemist kicks it up a gear, Larry June is right beside him, flowing easy over the hypnotic production with the motivational raps, the two almost merge, allowing for Big Sean to debut over an Alchemist beat with a stand out feature.

By the fifth track, it’s evident that these two are the match we never knew we needed, on the Ty Dolla $ign featured Summer Reign, it’s nothing short of picturesque, allowing the music to speak for itself, down to the outro switch, allowing Larry to talk that talk. Orange Village sounds like classic Alchemist, but once again, Larry comfy as ever, even bringing his smooth crooning hook to the forefront, assisted by the notable Slum Village. The quality of the project is undeniable, Porsches in Spanish helps the continuity of this luxurious audio, and sets the scene for Art Talk, aligning Larry with Griselda’s Boldy James. The chemistry between two is present on tracks like Ocean Sounds, where it feels more like the perfect backdrop for what we have come to love from Larry, as he gives us his classic style of aspirational rhymes and harmonies back and forth like the ocean waves. By now there is no denying The Great Escape to be more than we imagined, two worlds perfectly colliding, from the Evidence featured Left No Evidence, to it’s contrasting What Happened To The World? ft. Wiz Khalifa, the two trade their styles back and forth through the sequencing of the project, bringing us to my personal favourite Éxito (I couldn’t tell you how many times I listened to this on repeat), it’s a further testament to the ability of both parties, bringing the wavy Jay Worthy along for the ride. Usually with collaborations, it’s one in the other’s world, but 60 Days is another example of their unison, as that Larry June inspiration is present over The Alchemist’s cinematic sound, treating fans further with the aptly titled Barragán Lighting, featuring Joey Bada$$ and the New Orleans legend Spitta (who himself has a classic project with Alc). The curtains are drawn on this tape with the soulful Margie’s Candy House, a downtempo canvas with it’s soft sample that concludes Larry’s recurring theme.

At this point you’ve gone back to the start to hear it all over again. The Great Escape exceeds expectations and whether some songs garner more replay than others, fans are already excited at the prospect of a sequel, as what started out as a cool collab is now a sure contender for Album of the Year.

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