Blunt music criticism with cultural fallout.
My $0.02 Podcast treats music criticism like a live argument with receipts, tangents, and a firm point of view. Album reviews sit beside sharp monologues on hip-hop legacy, backlash, race, fandom, and what artists owe their audience.
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My $0.02 Podcast is a hip-hop review show that treats every opinion like it has consequences. The center is music, but the episodes rarely stay inside simple track-by-track criticism for long. Reviews of projects by Chrome Jesus, Passport Rav and Bloo Azul, Jill Scott, and other artists become open-ended arguments about craft, loyalty, respect, and whether a record actually holds up after the first reaction. The tone is casual and direct. The structure is looser than a formal review column, with personal asides, restarts, self-corrections, and moments where the speaker stops to explain exactly why a line has to be drawn. That looseness is part of the point. The show sounds like a critic working through the take in real time while still having a clear sense of what matters. It can be generous, especially when an album feels soulful, well-produced, replayable, or emotionally rich. It can also be severe. Episodes about Afrika Bambaata, LaRussell, and Jack Harlow show a recurring concern with accountability, fan defensiveness, cultural borrowing, and the way public narratives get built around artists. The show is especially interested in the difference between honoring hip-hop history and excusing people because they occupy an important place in it. It also spends time on the critic’s own position: how artists respond to reviews, what counts as disrespect, and why disagreement does not have to become personal. The result is not a detached guide to new releases. It is closer to a standing conversation with a critic who brings his standards, grudges, praise, humor, and moral lines into the booth every week. Listeners who want concise consumer advice may find it sprawling. Listeners who enjoy heated music talk, rap context, and opinionated cultural framing will find the sprawl to be the show’s signature.
Made for: For hip-hop and R&B listeners who want strong, personality-driven reviews with room for tangents, disagreement, and cultural context. Best for people who like criticism that names its standards instead of smoothing them over.
What sets it apart: The show turns album reviews into broader arguments about legacy, fandom, accountability, and respect between artists and critics. Its edge comes from the combination of music familiarity, blunt moral sorting, and conversational looseness.
Album reviews and music talk from the most honest music reviewer. New episodes every Monday.
Based on 6 episodes we listened to · September 2026
Ernest turns album reviews into candid arguments about craft, artistic identity, cultural responsibility, and the standards listeners bring to a record.
My $0.02 Podcast gives Ernest room to think aloud, argue with consensus, and make album criticism personal. Reviews of Clipse, Passport Rav and Bloo Azul, Jill Scott, and Rome Streetz examine production, rapping, artistic continuity, and the expectations created by an artist's…
Ernest questions Clipse's production, then sends you off to make up your own mind.
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Short reviews from the PlayNext desk, based on the episodes we processed.
A blunt, reflective reckoning with hip-hop history, influence, harm, and a legacy that refuses easy tribute.
The episode takes a clear-eyed look at Afrika Bambaata's place in hip-hop after his death, refusing the easy shape of a reverent farewell. Its central argument is direct: influence matters, but it does not erase the harm tied to his name.
A former supporter challenges a rally he sees as cult-like and argues that past praise cannot put criticism off-limits.
LaRusso's rally turns into a pointed look at what happens when devoted fandom runs into criticism. The host frames the scene as cult-like, centering on LaRusso's loving mother organizing support for her son while also taking aim at what he sees as LaRusso's ego, refusal to admit…
Ernest uses Jack Harlow's backlash to question taste, accountability, and cultural boundaries.
Ernest frames Jack Harlow's backlash as a test of whether public disapproval is finally matching private listening habits. The discussion starts with the album's weak response, then opens into a broader look at Kanye, Miley Cyrus, and Post Malone, with Ernest pressing on how…
An 8/10 rap review shaped by a candid defense of criticism and respect.
Passport Rav and Blue Azul's 83rd Strike gets framed through a careful reset on criticism, disagreement, and respect. Before the review settles on the record itself, the host lays out why pushback from artists can land very differently depending on tone, separating disrespectful…
Ernest hears Jill Scott's album through old soul, house music, poetry, and an 8/10 first full-length verdict.
Ernest's review of Jill Scott's To Whom This May Concern plays as a first full-album encounter that lands in clear admiration. He hears Scott moving through neo-soul, old soul, house music, and poetry, and he connects that range to Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly,…
A plainspoken defense of Rome Streetz's rapping, framed by Derringer's gritty production.
Rome Streetz is treated here as a practical test case: can a rapper working in grimy, well-worn hip-hop territory still make the bars feel like the main event? The answer lands clearly on yes.
A focused review of Clipse, Pharrell's modernizing touch, and the street-gritty sound longtime fans value.
The review frames Clipse's "Let God Sort Them Out" as a question of renewal: can a familiar act move with the moment without sanding down the street-gritty production style that gave it weight for longtime fans?
Chicago critics DeRogatis and Kot pair new-album reviews with deep dives into records like Rumours.
Annual Songlines Music Awards ceremonies spotlighting global artists, from Afrobeat to sevda.
A high schooler's music diary — Grammys press pass stories to family concert interviews.
Stephen Hyden and Ian Cohen argue about indie rock, one Metacritic score at a time.
The host reviews Rome Streetz's album 'Hatton Garden Holdup', praising the rapper's flow and Derringer's gritty New York production.
Ernest reviews Clipse's album 'Let God Sort Em Out' on My $0.02 Podcast.
Ernest reviews Pink Siifu's album 'Black Antique' on the My Two Cents podcast, discussing his familiarity with the artist and previous projects like Leather Boulevard.
Ernest reviews the album 'Chrome Jezus 2' by the duo Chrome Jesus, discussing its members and their connection to the Unusual Suspects crew.
Ernest discusses mistakenly reviewing an old album from 2021 instead of a 2025 project and shares thoughts on Reason's recent interview.
Afrika Bambaataa’s death at 68 from prostate cancer is the starting point for a blunt refusal to offer him a “rest in peace” message.
The speaker criticizes LaRussell for having his mother organize a rally for him, comparing the behavior to cult-like actions and questioning the necessity of such a rally.
Ernest spends most of this My $0.02 Podcast episode on Jack Harlow's album Monica and says he is glad the project is not doing well.
The host shares his thoughts on LaRusell's recent controversy and then discusses artists Jack Harlow and a newbie.
Ernest reviews Chrome Jezus' EP 'Last Day', noting its short length and rating it below 10 due to some songs being too short.
"Rhyming still matters" frames Passport Rav, Blue Azul, and the beat-versus-bars argument.
He calls "To Whom This May Concern" a "black album" with house, jazz, funk, R&B, and hip-hop.
Ernest reviews the album 'Chrome Jezus 2' by the duo Chrome Jesus, discussing its members and their connection to the Unusual Suspects crew.
Ernest shares his quick thoughts on Will Smith's new album 'Based on a True Story', hinting at disappointment.