

Hard to believe now, but there was a time not long ago when Southern rap was considered a niche regional concern. This love-letter-as-posse-record—courtesy of Denzel Curry, A$AP Ferg, TiaCorine, BKTHERULA, and Key Nyata—synthesizes the lurch of Memphis (“THE SCYTHE,” the Juicy J-featuring “PHONY”), the clubbiness of Miami (“HOOPTY,” “YOU AINT GOTTA LIE”), and the slow glide of Houston (“TAN”) into the kind of multipurpose big-scowl, gang-chorus hip-hop that has frightened parents since time immemorial. (Or at least Mystic Stylez.) Get some rest—you’ll need it when they show up.