Fort Wayne emcee Sankofa has been at this hip hop thing for a minute, and despite all of the time he’s put in over the years, he is as inspired and prolific as ever. In 2022 alone, he’s already given us The Dubs I Met, Legacy Materials, and KofaSoCalfragilistic. With no signs of slowing down, he’s now reaching back to 2021 to give us BLKTCHP 2.

BLKTCHP (pronounced “Black Ketchup”) was a project that came about when Sankofa paired up with producer phdbeats to deliver one of his darkest projects in a while. Now that volume 2 is here, don’t expect to get some sunshine and lollipops. These beats are even darker and grimier, if that’s possible, with just a touch of menace, channeling that Wu Tang/Mobb Deep mid-90s rawness. This in turn allows Sankofa to hop on the mic and work out all of his frustrations, to vent about all the stupid B.S. that is going on in this world right now, which just sounds heavier with Sankofa’s low, resonant voice. This is the hip hop equivalent of punching a wall, without the part where you hurt your hand in the process. Along for the ride, we get guest appearances from longtime collaborator JOHN?DOE, as well as Chuck Brown, G.One, and Walter Liveharder, who all join in the venting session as they rhyme about society’s ills. When you put it all together, this makes for a great album to listen to when you just sick of all the stupid shit around you. Go for a run, listen to this album, and clear your head so that you can recharge and live to fight another day.

BLKTCHP 2 is exactly what you would expect from the album, in all the best ways. The first volume was a great turn in a different direction from a lot of Sankofa’s recent material, and volume 2 gives you even more of that dark, menacing side. This is the perfect soundtrack for when the world around has stopped making sense and you just need to sit with your anger and frustration for a minute.