“Gettin' money, money, money on the block.” are the first words you'll hear of St. Louis's own, Cocaine Black, on his latest, sixteen-track opus, “Bless the Money”. No more than twenty seconds after pressing play, you're already ensnared in a world of wealth, drugs, and ambition; elements that have earned STL its fitting, street moniker, HuSTLe City. Through his drug-dealing chronicles, powered by a collection of ominous, trap beats, Cocaine Black shows that he undoubtedly deserves that city's key. After all, he knows exactly what to do with every other key he lays his hands on. Such is the core subject of “Bless the Money”: Black's attitude of amassing favor and fortune, by any means necessary. He conveys this message through a display of talent and artistry certainly equivalent to any skillset he's gained from his life in the streets. From the jump, the Detroit-based rapper shows us he has a prodigious pen for hooks; laying some of the most infectious choruses (“Gettin Money”, “D'usse”, “Leanin In The Whip”), I have heard on a “street rap” album in quite some time. He knows almost expertly how to bend his cadence to create a particular rhythm for his choruses, and lyrically glide through that rhythm effortlessly. On the opposite side of the spectrum, there are joints (“Trappin [feat. P.Hustle 314]”, “9Block”, “Cocaine Australia”) wherein Cocaine Black focuses more on going on a rap rampage than being catchy. These are the spots on the album that all of that gutter, HuSTLe City energy is at its pinnacle; and Black allows himself to freely unleash it in a dark, Midwestern drawl. Are there moments where his two worlds collide? Certainly. Tracks such as “Rat Pack” and the album's outro, “My Momma Told Me”, are perfect examples of Black blending his talent for bars and hooks. The same way he has merged his love for music and the streets to create one of 2018's most impeccable gangster-trap parables.
“BLESS THE MONEY”
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