Welcome to the February review! We are well into 2026 now and the underground scene is really starting to ramp up. As we leave the winter months, lets take a look back at all the great projects released, dive into why Bandcamp Fridays could be right for you, and check out an album review of Ca$ino by Baby Keem!

Thank you and we hope you enjoy!

We are cooking so far this year! Sean Oakley dropped his latest album that comes with some soulful yearning, and if you want to reminisce on a lost love this is for you. theKD released his latest single Grieve as he gears up for some project(s?) on the way. And to really bring in the warmer weather craftedbytyler hopped on a verse and chorus with A.Ramirez for an ode to punchlines!

For those that haven’t yet checked out The Fall Off yet, gotta give it a listen or two. I promise it’s worth the nearly 2 hour length. If you want something a bit quicker to sit through, spin Baby Keem’s latest offering Ca$ino, more on that album below for spoilers!

Let us know which project here is your favorite and if there is anyone we should look out for in March!

Have you heard of it? If you are an independent artist trying to make some money from the art you put your heart and soul into, then I highly recommend taking advantage of what BandCamp has to offer.

If you host your music on Bandcamp as a digital download, you also have the option to add merch to each release. For every CD, Vinyl, or piece of clothing or other creative merch you sell, normally Bandcamp will require a small portion of revenue share to help keep their business going. This means less music into your pockets.

HOWEVER, on certain Fridays throughout the year, Bandcamp waives their revenue share portion so you as the artist receive more of the hard money you earn from every purchase! I know it’s not a blockbuster deal or anything insane, but this is something not every business would do, nor would they continue doing it year after year knowing they are missing out on some money.

So I encourage anyone that is looking to host their physicals and merch sales through Bandcamp, make sure you push on these following Fridays and bank a bit of money up to purchase your next mic, your next beat, or your next sample pack!

Ca$ino Review

I’ve only been to Vegas once, it was in 2023 for wifey’s bday. The whole time we were there it felt surreal. In Booman II, Keem’s second bts video documentary, his childhood friend said it best; he looked at Vegas like everyone else did, like I did, nice and sweet. You go to Vegas for the glitz, the glamour and the great American pastime, praying to be a millionaire.
But that fatal attraction of gambling leaves most people in Vegas either “jumpin off a building cause you’re broke or…fucking.” This mingled with family trauma, and potential abuse is the background that this album draws its inspiration from.
Like the above-quote from the track, I am not a lyricist - Ca$ino is full of highs that scream I just made a band kind of energy. But the reality of Vegas; underpaid citizens, unhoused people and those chasing lust day and night - reflects a lonely, hellish low that continues to haunt Keem despite all of the successes.

Baby Keem said he almost named the album after his mother, but it’s as just as much an ode to his maternal figures as it is an unpacking of the city that raised him.
Through that lens, Ca$ino feels like a ride through Keem’s Sin City, chasing women - while trying to dodge the pitfalls that befall so many. Not as a tourist but as an underpaid long-time citizen of the “dirty desert” who’s finally made it to the promised oasis that his family had dreamed of.
Ca$ino is not without its faults. The flow of the album feels disjointed sometimes; sandwiching deep, introspective cuts with upbeat grooves that makes me wish it was separated sometimes. Now that might have been intentional, but it feels too much of a swing sometimes. For example in the penultimate track, Dramatic Girl, Baby Keem delivers a sunny, infectious alt pop-rock tune that transitions to No Blame, a deep cut about the forgiveness of his mother and the loss of his grandmother. The closer is amazing, heartfelt and relatable but it does feel a little blunted due to this transition. It’s also shorter than about 90% of the album - a disappointment given the topic of the song.
There’s also the influences in Keem’s delivery, writing and production that seems to borrow from his legendary cousin, Kendrick Lamar, Dreamville’s JID, and other contemporaries. Again, this is not necessarily a knock on the tracks that wear those influences on their sleeve, but it does take me out at times. Lastly, there is something to be desired by some of Keem’s writings. While he’s already declared that he’s not a lyricist and that him and his music is not for everyone, at times the lyrics feel like a freestyle devoid of wit, ingenuity or wordplay.
That said, when Keem does keep his pen simple and truthful it hits heavy. One of my personal favorites, No Blame samples a 2011 James Blake era song, that serves as the melody and chant for Keem’s forgiveness of his mother’s shortcomings, which includes but not limited to abandonment. Even though the song is about forgiveness it is clear Keem is also speaking truth to the pain he felt from the actions of his mother as a young child.
Keem can also turn downright playful in a way that is not corny and rarely seen in mainstream rap nowadays - as evidenced by his cheeky declaration that he’s “a fucking caveman” with the way he raps in his bouncy track Circus Circus Free$tyle. His short but sweet verse in Sweet Flirts is also an softer, sultrier version of this playful side.

Overall, Baby Keem’s second studio album Ca$ino is a project best viewed whole. The catchy bangers, the introspective bars, the groovy off-the-wall cuts, the infectious flirty melodies; Keem does it all. He does all of this while focusing on a few important subjects; women, love, lust, family and the pressures of being the winner. Good or bad, this is the story of a “runaway” hitting the ultimate jackpot.

SCORE: On Repeat 4/5

Thank you for checking out our latest edition of Mic Check Monthly! If you have any questions or would like to be featured in the next edition for an interview, feel free to reply to this email and I will personally respond as soon as it comes through! We will see you on the Twitch stream Sunday!

— JTA