Moments in Timelessness

Man Up Album ∙ Hip-Hop/Rap ∙ 2025 Ice Cube Ice Cube’s  Man Up  is a sequel of sorts, a companion piece to his 2024 album,  Man Down . Whereas  Man Down  was buoyed by braggadocious rap cuts like “It’s My Ego” and the vicious gangsta rap throwback “So Sensitive,”  Man Up  leans into Cube’s more philosophical side. He plays the activist and leader on his 2025 effort: On “Before Hip Hop,” he examines the ways in which rap music is blamed for many societal ills that existed long before the genre came to fruition. “Act My Age,” which features Scarface, is an homage to and encouragement toward all the MCs who are rapping into middle age and bringing valuable perspectives to a genre led by younger artists. It’s uplifting, and though it’s one of many tracks imbued with a positive social message, Cube still leaves plenty of time to mess around and talk shit over classic gangsta rap beats. “Forget Me If You Ain’t Wit Me” is crafted for top-down cruises on the 91...

Man Down Album ∙ West Coast Rap ∙ 2024 Ice Cube Even after successfully transitioning to movie star stature, Ice Cube never gave up on rap. From his N.W.A days on, the Los Angeles native’s discography stayed on course well into the 2010s. In more recent years, he’s seemed to embrace his status as a hip-hop elder statesman, forming the California supergroup MOUNT WESTMORE with fellow vets Snoop Dogg, E-40, and Too $hort as a vehicle for new music. Apart from that quartet’s 2022 album,   Man Down   marks Cube’s first full-length outing in some six years. Thankfully, he has lost none of his fury or his tenacity, making his voice heard and opinions known without reservations or apology. While nothing here matches the viciousness of, say, “No Vaseline,” he’s similarly righteous and emboldened on cuts like “It’s My Ego” and “I’mma Burn Rubber.” On the blunt “Ghetto Story,” he reminds listeners that he can still weave a mean narrative like he did back in the day. His choice of beats ...

Snoop Cube 40 $Hort (feat. E-40 & Too $hort) ALBUM ∙ HIP-HOP/RAP ∙ 2022 MOUNT WESTMORE, Snoop Dogg & Ice Cube Four West Coast rap legends take it back to the old school.