Wednesday 5/19: ALLBLACK—"War Stories"
Today, we share our thoughts on a new song by the Oakland rapper, ALLBLACK.
Welcome to Endless Scroll, the brainchild of Eli Enis (he/him), Eric Bennett (they/them), Michael Brooks (he/him) and Miranda Reinert (she/her). Since Feb. 2019, we’ve been a weekly podcast about music, the internet, and where those two things intersect. On Substack, we’re also a M-F newsletter about songs. Our format is simple: a link to a song and a short take from each of us about what we think of it. Each day of the week has a corresponding genre: Monday is indie, Tuesday is punk, Wednesday is hip-hop, Thursday is pop, and Friday is misc. Three days of the week are free but you can get access to all five weekly posts by subscribing for $5/month via Substack or $2/month via our Patreon.
Today, we share our thoughts on a new song by the Oakland rapper, ALLBLACK.
ALLBLACK—"War Stories"
Michael Brooks:
“War Stories'' is a classic west coast cut through and through. Although ALLBLACK isn’t quite a household name, at least not yet, his newest album TY4FWM (Thank You 4 Fucking With Me) feels like a victory lap. Posse cut “War Stories,” which features verses from Mozzy and Peezy, finds the rappers looking back on their lives and for three minutes trying to one up each other with their tales of street life. ALLBLACK kicks things off by talking about kidnapping his cousin and dumping his body somewhere, culminating with him wishing that he could just shoot up a barbecue or put a bomb inside his birthday cake. But ALLBLACK knows that people are watching his every move and praying for his downfall, so whenever he feels like giving up or going back to his old ways, he knows deep down that he can’t give up. In that sense, “War Stories” is a perfect mission statement for TY4FWM, a middle finger to everyone that’s ever doubted you and a celebration of the ones that stuck by your side.
Eli Enis:
I definitely dig this track that fits squarely in the YG and Schoolboy Q universe, but I oddly like the guest features better than ALLBLACK’s own verse. I think his gruesome lines that Michael quoted above are the best lyrics on the track, but Mozzy’s closing bars, “I'ma pull up with that grr, this squad will never need me / Had a homie point you out, grop a grr on ya' beanie,” definitely come close. Though, I’m perhaps most intrigued by Peezy’s verse on here given that he adds a strong splash of Michigan rap to this particular crew. I typically think that Michigan rappers sound best when they’re rapping with fellow statesman (mostly because their flows are so singular that they can sound awkward in other contexts), but I actually think Peezy makes it work here and his delivery might be the smoothest and most compelling of the three. This is a fun one.