Over the course of several mixtapes, Memphis rapper
Key Glock quickly developed a style that incorporated elements of Memphis rap's historically effortless, drawling delivery but also delved deep into his own experiences for high-impact lyrics of struggle and come up. After an excellent collaborative mixtape with fellow Memphisonian
Young Dolph (2019's
Dum and Dummer),
Key Glock returns solo for
Yellow Tape, a collection of his sharpest and most personally derived songs yet. The mixtape is a truly solo excursion, with no other artists joining
Key Glock on any of the 16 tunes, and most of them referencing his long, lonely road to success and how few helped him on his way up. The album offers almost no moments of repose, just track after track of hungry, simmering rhymes and slow-burning production that drives the songs. It's an album of highlights, with excellent tracks like the anti-hater anthem "Look at They Face" and "Dough" (a song with a chorus that effectively reworks some of
Snoop Dogg's earliest trademark rhymes) just two of multiple tracks that merit repeat plays. The thick, menacing atmosphere of
Yellow Tape constantly threatens to boil over but stays at a low rumble throughout the track listing, offering the most high-definition reading of
Key Glock's talents and a clear window into his loner mindset. ~ Fred Thomas