The production sounds pretty similar to the rest of TDE’s catalog, with very subdued, atmospheric beats. (Well, maybe not quite on the level of Kendrick or Ab-Soul when he’s on.) He trades bars with Schoolboy Q and Jay Rock (who raps: “Cocaine, cocaine, Rock rock kilos, fishscale cut well, you won’t find Nemo”) on the intense closer “Shot You Down.” And he pays homage to his southern roots on “Brad Jordan” and “RIP Kevin Miller,” where he raps: “I need diamond teeth, living like it’s 1998, like when Percy was the king, back when Juvie was the great.”

Lyrically he can hold his own among the crew as well. Stand out cuts like the opener “Heredity” and the Outkast homage “West Savannah” features Rashad singing during the entire track without rapping. The southern rapper’s vocal delivery is very similar to Kendrick Lamar’s, but Rashad has more of an ear for melody. Rashad, only 22 years old, inked a deal with TDE last September and has since been gaining credibility for his lyrical abilities with performances in TDE’s BET Cypher and singles like “RIP Kevin Miller,” “Brad Jordan” and “Shot You Down.” With his debut project with TDE, “Cilvia Demo,” Rashad displays a style that fits nicely in the crew, while also bringing something unique to the group of diversely talented rappers. And their stream of releases was headed off by the newest member of the crew, Tennessee rapper Isaiah Rashad. But in 2014, if any crew can pull off the No Limit circa 1998-style feat, it would be Top Dawg Ent. What was even bolder was his guarantee that TDE would release six projects in 2014. Towards the end of 2013, the always-boisterous Top Dawg, CEO of TDE, claimed that his crew ran hip hop during that year without releasing a single project – a bold, but not entirely inaccurate claim.

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