J.Lately is an artist from the Bay Area who has been releasing music for over a decade. He had a breakthrough in 2015, when he teamed up with Deuce Eclipse to release an EP called The Setup. He’s been working at a steady pace since then, with two albums coming last year, Winnebago and Bodega. Now he’s right back with a new album, Breakfast.

With production split between long-time collaborators West Coast Trey and Space Cadet, with an additional track produced by Okeefe, the sound of Breakfast feels like a natural extension of what J.Lately has been doing over the last couple of albums. By that, I mean that this album is chuck full of laid back West Coast R&B-flavored hip hop, the kind that matches perfectly with J.Lately’s melodic flow. He’s also bringing a lot of friends along for the ride, with Blimes, Loe Gino, Ian Kelly, Khyenci, Cam Meekins, Locksmith, Space Cadet, Roux Shankle, and Mark Battles all making appearances. They all get to add a little flavor to the mix, but it’s Blimes who really steals the show with her appearance on “All Ready.” While Lately has been known to drop some bangers in his career, the style of Breakfast is a bit more subdued and introspective. You know, like the type of music and conversation you might have over breakfast. This is the kind of hip hop to be listened to while sipping on a cup of coffee, when the rest of the day and beyond hasn’t hit you yet. You still have time to just sit and think for a minute and let you mind wander a little. That’s the kind of self-reflective, mature hip hop that J.Lately is dropping on Breakfast, and it’s most certainly a welcome continuation of his growth as an artist. It’s a very warm and welcoming album, the kind you can just immediately get lost in.

Breakfast is hip hop for the grown folks getting up early enough to grab a cup of coffee, maybe a breakfast taco or whatever strikes your mood, and some good conversation. J.Lately works at a steady enough pace that there aren’t huge jumps in style from album to album, but his continued growth over the last few years and projects have been impressive.