Big K.R.I.T.

On the considerable strengths of 2010’s K.R.I.T. Wuz Here, 25-year-old MC Justin Scott gained online notoriety and a deal with Def Jam in less time than it takes most rapper-producers to come up with a memorable hook. Given the interminable production cycle for most major-label hip-hop albums these days, one could excuse the man otherwise known as Big K.R.I.T. (“King Remembered In Time”) for taking some time to reflect on a stunning run of mix-tapes and EPs, on which he drawls smoothly about striving to reach the heights of past Southern monarchs like UGK and Scarface. Instead, he continues his furious pace with a new full-length debut, Live From The Underground, which doesn’t drift too far from the luminous, Outkast-indebted funk of its predecessors.

Updated 07/04/2012