Matching street credibility with natural flow and sharp pop instincts, Flame goes from strength to strength on his seventh album, Royal Flush. Flame’s lyrics stress personal redemption while maintaining a playful tone that makes the Word go down easy. This time out, he enlists an impressive lineup of guest stars as he runs through a consistently uplifting set. The opening track (“Break the Building,” a fiery declaration of faith) and the closing number (“Start Over,” a pop-influenced tune featuring NF's urgent vocals) bookend the album with a compassionate message that reaches out to nonbelievers. In between are club-beat sermons (“Sanctuary”), fervent electronica anthems (“Game Over”), Jamaican-slanted testimonies (“Baited”), and tormented prayers over hypnotic grooves (“Maranatha”). Especially incisive is “Stackin’,” a biting commentary on greed and spiritual blindness. Flame is helped immensely by such notables as singer V. Rose (who adds a yearning edge to “Read Em & Weep”) and rappers K-Drama and D-Maub (laying down rapid-fire wordplay on “Mixed Up”).