Since the South’s rise to hip-hop prominence, most other regions have struggled to climb into the crowded limelight. It’s been an especially rough ride for hip-hop’s birth mother, New York City. Even if there’s not much new coming out of the Big Apple, there’s still the desire to return the balance to the industry. Artists like Joell Ortiz and Skyzoo among others are making sure to keep the New York flag waving as the city looks to make its next move. Enter Skeezo, a potent mixture of fellow New Yorkers Prodigy of Mobb Deep and Joell Ortiz. After undergoing a name change and style overhaul, the artist formerly known as Magnetic returns with the street banger, Life & Loyalty.

Skeezo’s grimy style, pleasantly unpolished beats and even the album cover make Life & Loyalty a true underground album, only available out of a trunk near you. Tracks like ‘First and Foremost’ and ‘Sky High’ have Skeezo delivering the dirt that New York made famous in the early 90’s when Mobb Deep and Nas were shoveling it into your headphones. ‘Thin Line’ and ‘Things Change’ are heartfelt odes to a hard life and a positive outlook carefully laid over soulfully constructed beats. However, the anchor that weighs Life & Loyalty down is its faux club bangers like ‘Breath’ and ‘Give a What’, the latter of which sounds like it was written by Tony Yayo circa 2003.

Life & Loyalty is definitely one more step in the right direction for a struggling New York hip-hop scene. Skeezo stays true to his native roots with uncompromising flows and a little help from those who came before him.

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