Sometimes, you stumble upon an artist’s work that you’re like “okay, this speaks to me.” Those, for me, are the projects that stick with me like glaze on a donut. There’s no glazing happening towards any project I hear, though. I’m almost 40, after all. But I will ride for a good project regardless of how it comes about (within reason of course. Gen Z and/or Alpha readers, did I use “glazing” right? Oh whatever, you’re not here to read me butchering young young people slang. You’re here for dope music and my thoughts on how said dope music makes me feel.

Enter Josh The Author’s Baja B*tches album.

On Baja B*tches, Josh creates something that stuck with me after first listen. Josh blends early 2010s pop, boombap, atmospheric rap, and even EDM and breakbeat. What we get is an album that’s very unorthodox in its approach but quite familiar and it drew me in. It takes the irreverence of Gen Z, mixes it with Millennial “respect the beat” mentalities and the bluntness of a Gen X rap album in the mid-90s. And then? Then, Josh takes all this and applies it to a concept album seemingly about growing up in the 2010s and 2020s. It’s a very interesting slice-of-life sort of album–that doesn’t just stick in the mundane. It’s kind of like an Earl Sweatshirt album in that regard. Things discussed here are “regular” and normal. Concepts such as perfecting raps, pursuing folks one’s attracted to, and a sense of youth and freedom permeate throughout the songs. However, the way it’s all discussed is distinct and seemingly only in a way Josh himself could achieve.

On cuts like “CARMICHAEL” or even the dance pop-leaning “AroundMe,” many sounds and energies are meshed to create music equally defiant and comforting, mundane but extraordinary, and honest but fun and funny. On tracks like “BlackBeans,” we get more BARS than other songs. However, that feeling of freedom and hope still exists. That’s what grabs me the most about BB: it’s not afraid to be positive even among downer moments. And it’s that very sense of freedom and hope for the future is what keeps this one from being either too serious or too quirky. Baja B*tches isn’t a short listen. In fact, it’s a 20-track project where most songs are at least three minutes (the album clocks in at one hour, eleven minutes). However, it is an incredibly rewarding listen. If you want bars with substance, Josh’s got those by the boatload. If you need vibes, they’re here. If you need something a bit more abstract sonically, you can also find that here. Overall, I have to recommend this one. While it’s a cliched statement, BB does have something for everyone–and probably every generation outside of Boomers (sorry Mama Young and your cohort).

Check out the project proper below and support dope music in all its forms.