Kirko Bangz (feat. Paul Wall) - My Life (Warner Brothers., 2011)

I’m a bit late to the party, but I’ve seen quite a few people talking about Houston’s Kirko Bangz as of late. The young rapper has a penchant for singing, with a smooth Menthol-induced voice reminiscent of fellow Texan, Devin The Dude. Though Kirko doesn’t rap like him, instead focusing on slick playa tales with a confident monotone more akin to Atlanta’s T.I. Kirko still manages to own his personality though, despite obvious influences, and that allows for this slow-summer jam (over Devin The Dude’s Anything instrumental, which utilizes the same sample as one of the best songs ever, Three 6 Mafia’s Da Summa). Be on the lookout for his Progresssion 2: A Texas Playa dropping soon

Also, Paul Wall is skinny and rapping well again. Who is ghostwriting for him now?

Paul Wall - I’m On Patron (Swishahouse?, 2010)

This is more Zaytoven, and less Swishahouse than I was hoping for. I was a fan of Wall at one point - I think that Chick Magnet, Get Your Mind Correct, and The People’s Champion are all Southern classics, especially the latter two. When the Houston movement came full force in 2005, Wall dropped my favorite album of the bunch at the time. He was one of the few white rappers who seemed genuinely comfortable in his own skin, and I thought he’d continue to carry the syrup-sipping flag well into the future. He got off that, fast.

Creating Expensive Tastes with Travis Barker and releasing two sub-par (at best) albums since The People’s Champ, Paul Wall doesn’t look like he’s ever going to make a genuinely good album again. Maybe it was Chamillionaire’s ghost-writing that made Wall great, or maybe it’s the fact that Wall pretty much ditched the H-town sound in favor of chasing trends. Either way, while this isn’t horrible, it’s not that good either.

Andre Nickatina (feat. Paul Wall) - Pimp Hop (iTunes, 2010)