Review: Jarren Benton - Freebasing With Kevin Bacon

Recently, I came across the newest member of Hopsin's Funk Volume family, Jarren Benton. Well, soon after his signing with FV, he threw out his first mixtape with them called Freebasing With Kevin Bacon. The mixtape artwork is pretty comical with a cartooned very high Benton with a crack pipe sitting with Kevin Bacon.

For those who don't know about Benton, he is another rapper out of Atlanta. He has been rapping since he was six years old, and at 10 his friends say is when he started to perfect his craft of being a "beast on the mic".

The mixtape starts out with the intro entitled "Freebasing". It starts out with a Kevin Bacon voice talking about his favorite Kevin Bacon movie being "...all of them". As the song starts, you begin to understand that Jarren Benton is a humorous rapper as the first words are "OH MY GOD. MOOOOOM. MOOOOOM!" As he starts to rap and his flow starts to show, its hard to not be instantly hooked.

Benton has a streak of banging songs with "Billion Bucks" which features Rittz and Jon Connor. Rittz throws in a UFC reference and name drops Josh Koscheck. Then the song that put him on the map "Skitzo". If you Click Here you can here the song "Skitzo". It seems scary at first, but soon his fast rap and flow take over.

Next up on the tape is a quick skit done with "Kevin Bacon" which leads right in to the very heartfelt "F*ck You Too" featuring non other than 2 Chainz and Planet VI. This is where I start to notice how great the features are on this project. THe features that I didn't know made me look in to some of their solo stuff.

The next few songs "Lean" and "Shut Up Bitch" are pretty hot. "Shut Up Bitch" is basically an anthem to everyone who just wants someone to shut the hell up.

Next up we have "Half Ounce, Quarter Pound" which is the expect weed smoking, stoner song. The song features fellow Funk Volume superstar Dizzy Wright who is slowly, and quietly, taking over the game. Also on the track is Aleon Craft whom I have not heard before this track, but damn he goes in. So far we are half way through the tape on track 8 of 16 and I still have yet to find something I do not like.

"Lord Knows" featuring Freeway and Planet VI is a slower song for him so far off this tape, but it really puts out what is on his mind. Basically in this song Benton is saying that he just is doing whatever he can possibly do to make it in this business. The next song "GED" which features 4-Ize & Laws is the first song that I find something wrong with. The hook of the song "I just got my GED/ so there aint shit you can say to me" is pretty annoying. Although, Benton's verse is fire, but it could definitely go without 4-ize and Laws. The down song sets up another skit "No Homo Phone Call" which actually got a laugh out of me. That never happens with mixtape skits.

"Move Back" feat Gangsta Boo is pretty sick. The feature of GB is perfect! Her voice is so sexy along with the beat. Going in to "Turbo Ozone", this song is pretty sick also. Poodie The Byz puts out a feature verse of a lifetime....

The mixtape ends with "Problem" "Nothing Remains" and "Sick". All three songs are hard af! The three area all anthems of what he is sick of and what's wrong with the world today. These three songs show off the most his comical lyrical skills.

Man after listening to this tape I'm pumped as hell! Its everything I like in an artist. When I look back and think, I realize that Jarren Benton is a mixture of Yelawolf's speed and flow with Hopsin like lyrical abilities. Its so good i can't help but give it an overall grade of 9.3/10. Damn. I cannot wait for new stuff from this man. Expect Funk Volume to completely take over the rap game in the coming years.

Hopsin, SwizZz, Dizzy Wright, and Jarren Benton with DJ Hoppa are hands down the best group of artists in the hip hop world today. They are the only rappers I know that can kill any beat with or without big name features. I basically have a boner just talking about them. I just hope my friends remember that I was the one that found all of these guys years ago.

Anyway, here's a link from www.livemixtapes.com to download this tape. Tell your friends, tell your family, just don't let your mom hear it.

Jarren Benton - Freebasing With Kevin Bacon

I'm Stumpy, and this is what I have to say.

Stumpy