Coffee & Kush, Vol. 2

Editors’ Notes Problem, an MC who made his name as a ghostwriter for and collaborator to some of the biggest names in West Coast hip-hop, made local news a few months ahead of the release of Coffee & Kush, Vol. 2 for spearheading an initiative to bring more extensive arts programs to his native Compton. The album, which betrays its stoner-lifestyle titling, arrived thereafter as an inspirational tome, Problem prioritizing the message that if he made it out of Compton doing something productive, his younger fans can too. Songs like “Keep Ya Head” and “Hold On” lay out, in great detail, how the MC came to embrace his status as elder statesman of his hood. “Life Lessons” likewise contains plenty of its namesake. Hard-earned truths abound in Coffee & Kush, Vol. 2, but lest we think the co-author of club-shaking hit songs aplenty has forgotten how to party, the album features the backyard-barbecue-ready “Don’t Be Mad at Me (Remix)” featuring Freddie Gibbs and Snoop Dogg.