Westside Gunn – 12 (Album Review)

Westside Gunn turns Valentine’s Day upside down with “12.”

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TOP 5

5. 055 (Ft. Stove God Cooks)

On some real s**t, I’m addicted to listening to Stove God Cooks going rogue on a track.

I wonder how a track like “055” would have been received in the 1970s. The song’s soulful sound would have been right at home on a record player of that era. However, the extra grungy raps by Stove God Cooks and Westside Gunn might have had Grandma reaching for the nearest stair railing. Let me borrow someone’s time machine real quick. I just want to see something.

4. BOSWELL (Ft. Estee Nack & Stove God Cooks)

Stove God Cooks is a sick-ass n***a.

We all recognize the Bat Signal, right? For these three aspiring criminals—Estee Nack, Westside Gunn, and Stove God Cooks—you might envision a stove and a pot shining as their signal. Why? Because “BOSWELL” features a beat that sounds straight out of some comic book scene. Though none of the rappers sound like superheroes your kids should admire, they deliver grungy bars that speak to their Super Saiyan, violent, unapologetic ways. Estee shines with his relentless flow and top-notch punchlines and wordplay, Westside Gunn impresses with his animation, and Stove God Cooks stands out by sounding like a dude with stage IV rabies.

3. ADAM PAGE (Ft. Stove God Cooks)

If I were to guess, Adam Page is a sick-ass wrestler (Westside Gunn loves them).

It doesn’t get much grittier than “ADAM PAGE.” Over a dark, ashy beat that feels straight out of an old-school Black movie like Juice, Westside Gunn lays down a verse where he flexes his luxury items just as much as he dismisses wack rappers and talks that trigger talk. Stove God Cooks, on the other hand, comes through with a wild, unfiltered verse—mixing in some singing and rapping like a dude with stage IV rabies. Man, this s**t goes hard.

2. DUMP WORLD (Ft. Stove God Cooks & Elijah Hooks)

Heathens rapping over church beats will never not sound wild to me.

I can honestly say I’ve never heard a track like “DUMP WORLD” before. It’s clearly structured like a church song, with an instrumental that feels like something you’d hear on the way to communion and heavenly vocals from Elijah Hooks—yet somehow, it’s laced with drug-dealing-inspired lyrics from Stove God Cooks and a gritty, raw verse from Westside Gunn about drive-bys and smashing chicks. The contrast is wild, but that’s what makes it so astonishing to listen to.

1. GUMBO YAYA (Ft. Brother Tom Sos)

Heathens rapping over church beats will never not sound wild to me.

You might not have heard of him, but Brother Tom Sos can rap his ass off. In GUMBO YAYA, he gets his well-deserved coming-out party. Over an epic, old-school hip-hop beat that I absolutely love, BTS drops confident verses about his trust in his pen and the paradise he’s destined to reach. As for Westside Gunn, he comes through with a solid verse where he reps his city, sprinkles in some threats, and gives himself props for staying real after getting out of jail. All in all, this collab is on point.

SONG-BY-SONG RATING

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RGM RATING

(79%)

Going from listening to $ome $exy $ongs 4 U to listening to this album was a shock to my ears.

When it comes to putting together cohesive bodies of work, Westside Gunn is near the top of the list, and this album does nothing to change that. 12 features some of the grittiest, purest hip-hop beats you will hear in your life, coupled with gritty interludes and outros. As for the rapping, it’s outstanding; however, I do believe you have to really appreciate unadulterated spitters, such as Stove God Cooks and Estee Nack. All in all, Gunn did it again with another street masterpiece.