If you are at least a somewhat avid fan of Hip Hop or pop culture in general, there is a good chance you have heard of Lyrical Lemonade. At this point, it is tough to say what Lyrical Lemonade does not do. They are a multi-faceted force in the Hip Hop world, affecting its artists and fans in various ways. Lyrical Lemonade was founded in 2013 by Cole Bennett in the Chicagoland area. It originally started as a blog but quickly evolved into much more than that. Not long after forming Lyrical Lemonade, Cole Bennett started directing music for local Chicago rising rappers(such as Vic Mensa and King Louie) and uploading them on the Lyrical Lemonade YouTube channel. As these rappers grew in popularity, so did Lyrical Lemonade. The multimedia company really took off in 2016 and 2017, when they started directing music videos for big Soundcloud rappers like Ski Mask The Slump God, and Lil Pump. In 2018, he directed the music video for ‘Lucid Dreams’ by Juice WRLD(RIP), which took Lyrical Lemonade’s popularity and influence in the Hip Hop industry to another level. Since then, Lyrical Lemonade has collaborated with some of the biggest artists in the business, such as J. Cole and Kanye West, for example. In 2023, Lyrical Lemonade decided to expand its horizon even further by producing music. This has culminated in the form of a collaborative album called All Is Yellow. As with most collaborative albums in this style(compare it to Internet Money’s B4 The Storm or Young A$AP Mob’s Cozy Tapes series), the results of this collaborative album are varied. There are a lot of very good tracks on this record with a lot of replay value, but there are also some duds, and the album does not flow together super well. It truly does feel like a compilation mixtape. I wanted to highlight some of my favorite tracks from All Is Yellow in a list below, as there is a good amount to like in this album. Please let me know in the comments what your favorite songs are from All Is Yellow, and also comment on how you feel about the record as a whole.

FLY AWAY WITH SHECK WES, SKI MASK THE SLUMP GOD, AND JID

‘Fly Away’ is a great opener for this record because of how epic of a sound it has. Everything about this track is huge. From the looming and dark melody provided by what sounds like an organ and a violin that is complemented by creepy sound effects to the intricate, hard-hitting beat, ‘Fly Away’ is a song that sounds extremely massive. Both of the rap performances from Ski Mask The Slump God and JID are excellent. They both rap with complex flows and interesting lyricism, matching the larger-than-life feeling of the instrumental. The only thing that holds ‘Fly Away’ back for me is how long its intro is. It takes about a minute for the beat to kick in, and although Sheck Wes’s delivery is very good during this section, this intro feels a bit drawn out to me and holds the track back. ‘Fly Away’ is a very enjoyable song but it could be truly great without that lengthy intro. 

FIRST NIGHT WITH TEEZO TOUCHDOWN, JUICY J, COCHISE, DENZEL CURRY, & LIL B

Whereas the drawn-out intro section of ‘Fly Away’ downgrades the song’s quality a bit, the long and weird intro for ‘First Night’ is one of the things that makes this one so appealing. This is a song with multiple instrumental switch-ups; even though each section of the track sounds so different from the others, it still flows together well and sounds very natural. I swear, the instrumental for this song is like the embodiment of a mental breakdown. It goes from sweet and pleasant in the beginning, to harsh and dark in the middle, to back to sweet in the end. It is a song that provides a variety of emotions through its sounds. Each artist on this track sounds great in their respective sections, with Teezo Touchdown and Juicy J truly standing out and matching the energy of their portion of the instrumental. ‘First Night’ is an extremely complicated song that somehow works despite how convoluted its sound is. 

SPECIAL WITH LATTO, SWAE LEE, AND AMINÉ

‘Special’ is a song that fits very well into the R&B Trap landscape that has become very popular over the last couple of years. Like so many Hip Hop songs that have been popular in the mainstream recently, this one revolves around a sweet and lovely vocal sample that is highly distorted and saturated; this melody is washed in various synths and sound effects and is put over a pretty laid-back Trap beat. The instrumental for this song is solid, but the thing that makes ‘Special’ pop is the vocal performances. All three artists in this track sound great in their distinct ways. I like how the deeper and more gruff delivery we get from Latto contrasts the lighter and more colorful tones we get from Swae Lee and Aminé. ‘Special’ may not be a very ambitious or riveting song, but it is very solid for what it is and is super enjoyable for fans of this kind of Trap music.  

WITH THE FISH WITH $NOT & 6 DOGS

There are a few songs on this record that have sounds that are reminiscent of the Cloud Rap that was big on Soundcloud back when Lyrical Lemonade was first emerging in the late 2010s, and ‘With The Fish’ is the best example of this kind of music in my opinion. This song is driven by a trippy and atmospheric synth-driven melody with a celestial feeling; this melody is so tranquil and light, and it will make anyone feel good when they hear it. The vocal performances from 6 Dogs(RIP) and $not are not especially special, but they do fit the feeling of the instrumental and drive along the overall comforting feeling of the track. I like how the slightly lower and more grating vocals we get from 6 Dogs contrasts the breathier tone of $not, as it makes the track sound full. ‘With The Fish’ is a cool Cloud Trap track with a nostalgic quality that fans of late-2010s Hip Hop will appreciate.

DOOMSDAY WITH CORDAE AND JUICE WRLD

‘Doomsday’ was the lead single from All is Yellow; it made me pretty excited about the potential of the project when it came out. This is a track I almost included in my year-end best songs list for 2023, and listening to it again now, I honestly wish I would have included it. This track is unique among the tracks on the record for how old-school it sounds. It is the only song on the record with a truly retro Hip Hop sound. ‘Doomsday’ has the kind of simple, sparse, and cold instrumental that reminds me of Hardcore Hip Hop from the early 2000s. When I hear this track, I think of artists like Mobb Deep and Gang Starr. Both of the rap performances on ‘Doomsday’ are excellent. Both Cordae and Juice WRLD rap with poignant and rugged flows, and they both deliver awesome bars that are perfect for this kind of icy instrumental. ‘Doomsday’ is a very cool track with an old-school sound, and it makes me excited to see what Cordae does this year with his solo music(and it makes me wish we could have gotten more of this kind of music from Juice WRLD).    

EQUILIBRIUM WITH BABYTRON & G HERBO

‘Equilibrium’ is a song with a sound that feels current and retro at the same time. The melody for this track reminds me of underground Hip Hop from the early 2000s, but the beat has a relaxing modern Pop-Trap feeling. When I hear this melody, I think of the simple and pleasant kinds of instrumentals that artists like Atmosphere and Aesop Rock are known for. When paired with this trap beat, it makes the song feel sentimental and newfangled at the same time. As cool as this instrumental is, the thing I enjoy about ‘Equilibrium’ the most are the rap performances. Both Babytron and G Herbo are more known for their eccentric and quirky flows and rap styles, but both artists rap in a smooth and calm nature that not only fits the song super well but shows off their versatility. ‘Equilibrium’ is a breath of fresh air in its instrumental style and rap performances, and it is a very cool moment on this record. 

HUMMINGBIRD WITH UMI, SAHBABII & TEEZO TOUCHDOWN

There are a few songs on this project that go against the grain of modern Trap music. Whether they are inspired by old-school Hip Hop like ‘Doomsday’ or 2000s Emo music like ‘Hello There,’ these songs really stick out because of how different they are from the rest of the tracks on the record. Out of the tracks with a very distinctive sound, ‘Hummingbird’ is the one I enjoy the most. To be honest, the type of music that ‘Hummingbird’ reminds me of is late 2000s Country Pop music. When I hear this instrumental, I think of Sheryl Crow or early Taylor Swift songs. The artist that makes this one so enjoyable is UMI. Both SahBabii and Teezo Touchdown have nice contributions to the song and provide a nice buffer from the delicate nature of UMI’s vocals, but UMI’s soft delivery sounds so soothing on this laid-back instrumental. ‘Hummingbird’ has a sound that I have not listened to in a long time, and its nostalgic and sweet nature makes it so appealing.