This is a brand new collaborative compilation between New York independent hip hop labels Black Soprano Family Records & T.C.F. Music Group. One operates as an E1 Music imprint owned by Benny the Butcher & the latter being founded by 38 Spesh. The pair have been working together for a long time now (case in point: Stabbed & Shot), so it only makes sense for them to bring their crews together for Trust the Sopranos.
The opener “Immunity” by Benny & Elcamino kicks off with a succulent instrumental from Rick Hyde as the 2 go on about having their block under control, but then the Camino solo cut “Corner” is a horrendously sung R&B ballad despite the luscious 38 Spesh production. We later have Che Noir, Klass Murda & Ransom detailing their lifestyles on the angelic “Price of Fame” before the latter teams up with Benny to talk about fake people on the piano-laced “Spineless”. Ampichino & Spesh come together to talk about their lives being like a movie for the victorious “Tokyo Drift” whereas the Heem solo cut “Long Story Short” is him jumping on alluring boom bap beat saying that he’s about to take shit over.
Ricky accompanies Heem on the cinematic “Load Up” to talk about their homies mobbin’ while the song “Love Left” by Benny, Che Noir & Klass Murda is a smooth heartbreak anthem. The penultimate track “Blue Money” by Benny, Elcamino & 38 Spesh finds the trio talking about getting it out the mud over an organ-laced instrumental from the late DJ Shay whereas the closer “Silent Death” by Chase Fetti & Rick Hyde is an airy ode to murder.
It was only a matter of time both labels would come together given their intertwining history & the end result is pretty decent. Benny & Spesh always bounced off each other well on projects like Stabbed & Shot and the Cocaine Cowboys duology, but the TCF artists (i.e. Ransom & Che Noir) outperform the BSF signees throughout the half-hour.
Rochester is not a city regularly associated with Hip-Hop. This Upstate New York burg is the home of DJ Green Lantern, who, along with Emilio Rojas, is one of the few artists from the area to make an impact on the game in the last two decades. But that is all changing with MCs like Eto, Pounds, Rigz, and especially 38 Spesh shaking up the scene in the last couple of years.
For those not familiar with Spesh, he actually entered the game almost 15 years ago, and became well known for anchoring Green Lantern mixtapes with street-struck demonstrations. However, he stepped away from rapping when Trap’s popularity rose. 38 reestablished himself in the streets, but around 2016 he started to see his homies like Benny The Butcher start to buzz. B.E.N.N.Y. had been signed to Special’s TCF Music Group before he moved over to Griselda Records.
This Flour City lyricist made a big splash last year by dropping no less than three collaboration albums. He teamed up with Buffalo badman Benny (Stabbed & Shot), Oakland mainstay Joe Blow (In The Mob We Trust), and most notably, he dropped a project with the legendary Kool G. Rap (Son Of G Rap), which impressed many fans of both.
In 2019, Spesh is out to make it readily apparent that he is one of the nicest on the mic and the MPC alike. He’s doing so by dropping a grip of projects. He has already released the 5 Shots EP, which he produced all of, and more importantly his highly anticipated 38 Strategies Of Raw, a follow up to his other Robert Greene-inspired full-length, 38 Laws Of Powder. That’s just the tip of the iceberg, as he also has a compilation on the way from him and his TCF roster, the debut album from his female artist Che Noir, and he recently announced that a joint offering with D.I.T.C production is on the way.
The Trust Comes First CEO just hit Heads with the video for “Dark Nights,” and it perfectly illustrates his premier penmanship and laid back beats. The visuals highlight Rochester at the dead of night, while Spesh stunts in a hooded fur coat. From under the opulent cowl he raps, “See, I motivate black folks / To eat natural, stay away from meat and lactose / If it’s heat, we a clap toast / Keep that close / 150 shots at most / And I shoot for your afro / I learned the game from ni**as that’s on top, but they act broke / You get smoked for a pair of Nikes / ‘Cause you a parasite / You die easy, like Eric Wright / We read books when we wearing stripes / When you cherish life, you turn prison cells to a paradise / I came up from a pair of dice / Now I find myself preparing for flights, going anywhere I like / I’ma 1000 degrees Fahrenheit / But you compare us…like ni**as ain’t broke wearing generic ice.”
After years of paying dues, 38 Spesh is locked and loaded.
Rochester is not a city regularly associated with Hip-Hop. This Upstate New York burg is the home of DJ Green Lantern, who, along with Emilio Rojas, is one of the few artists from the area to make an impact on the game in the last two decades. But that is all changing with MCs like Eto, Pounds, Rigz, and especially 38 Spesh shaking up the scene in the last couple of years.
For those not familiar with Spesh, he actually entered the game almost 15 years ago, and became well known for anchoring Green Lantern mixtapes with street-struck demonstrations. However, he stepped away from rapping when Trap’s popularity rose. 38 reestablished himself in the streets, but around 2016 he started to see his homies like Benny The Butcher start to buzz. B.E.N.N.Y. had been signed to Special’s TCF Music Group before he moved over to Griselda Records.
This Flour City lyricist made a big splash last year by dropping no less than three collaboration albums. He teamed up with Buffalo badman Benny (Stabbed & Shot), Oakland mainstay Joe Blow (In The Mob We Trust), and most notably, he dropped a project with the legendary Kool G. Rap (Son Of G Rap), which impressed many fans of both.
In 2019, Spesh is out to make it readily apparent that he is one of the nicest on the mic and the MPC alike. He’s doing so by dropping a grip of projects. He has already released the 5 Shots EP, which he produced all of, and more importantly his highly anticipated 38 Strategies Of Raw, a follow up to his other Robert Greene-inspired full-length, 38 Laws Of Powder. That’s just the tip of the iceberg, as he also has a compilation on the way from him and his TCF roster, the debut album from his female artist Che Noir, and he recently announced that a joint offering with D.I.T.C production is on the way.
The Trust Comes First CEO just hit Heads with the video for “Dark Nights,” and it perfectly illustrates his premier penmanship and laid back beats. The visuals highlight Rochester at the dead of night, while Spesh stunts in a hooded fur coat. From under the opulent cowl he raps, “See, I motivate black folks / To eat natural, stay away from meat and lactose / If it’s heat, we a clap toast / Keep that close / 150 shots at most / And I shoot for your afro / I learned the game from ni**as that’s on top, but they act broke / You get smoked for a pair of Nikes / ‘Cause you a parasite / You die easy, like Eric Wright / We read books when we wearing stripes / When you cherish life, you turn prison cells to a paradise / I came up from a pair of dice / Now I find myself preparing for flights, going anywhere I like / I’ma 1000 degrees Fahrenheit / But you compare us…like ni**as ain’t broke wearing generic ice.”
After years of paying dues, 38 Spesh is locked and loaded.
