Long Live Young Dolph

by Paper Route Empire

Overview

Following the tragic loss of iconic Memphis rapper Young Dolph in November 2021, Long Live Young Dolph sees many of his collaborators and friends come together for an eight-track collection of musical tributes. The material here is sourced from Dolph's own label, Paper Route Empire -- staple PRE artists like Jay Fizzle, Big Moochie Grape, and Kenny Muney make their presence known on tracks like "LLD," "Role Model," and "In Dolph We Trust," while the titular rapper makes a posthumous, slick-flowing appearance on the breezy "Love for Me." As might be expected, the project's most potent moment comes at the hands of Dolph's protege and second-in-command, Key Glock, who writes with rain-drenched motivation on the tribute-heavy "Proud." His raw, pick-up-the-pieces mindset is fleshed out by jarring descriptions of daily life: "I'm f***** up, no cap, just the other day, caught myself cryin'/Then I wiped my face, shook that s*** off and got back on my grind." Yet while the project's opening trio is comprised of steely homages to Dolph's legacy -- Jay Fizzle's "LLD," Kenny Muney's "Role Model," and the aforementioned "Proud" -- its second half feels outright disrespectful. While Big Moochie Grape gets a pass for the vague "In Dolph We Trust," the rest of Paper Route pulls up in poor taste: Snupe Bandz delivers a self-indulgent barrage of boasting on "I Know Why" before teaming up with Joddy Badass for a garish thirst anthem on "I Like." PaperRoute Woo's "Fully Equipt" -- a track as underbaked as it is out-of-place -- is a gleeful glorification of the violent cycles that led directly to Dolph's passing. It's hard to understate how jarring, disrespectful, and outright uncomfortable listening to this material feels, especially given Glock and Fizzle's family ties to the late rapper. Considering how much Dolph did for Memphis, it's frustrating to see him celebrated with such a poor homage: while LLYD's first half unites his inner circle in tribute, it swiftly goes up in smoke with a closing run of tasteless brag-rap. Dolph deserves better. ~ David Crone

Product Details

Release Date:	07/29/2022
Label:	Empire / Paper Route Empire
UPC:	0194690745737
Rank:	36544

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Paper Route Empire   Primary Artist
Chitana   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Joddy Badass   Primary Artist
Paperroute Woo   Primary Artist
Snupe Bandz   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Kenny Muney   Primary Artist
Big Moochie Grape   Primary Artist
Jay Fizzle   Primary Artist
Key Glock   Primary Artist
Young Dolph   Featured Artist
Ricco Barrino   Featured Artist

Technical Credits

Young Dolph   Composer
Key Glock   Composer
Paperroute Woo   Composer
Jay Fizzle   Composer
Big Moochie Grape   Composer
Snupe Bandz   Composer
Joddy Badass   Composer
Kenny Muney   Composer