Isaiah Rashad – It's Been Awful (2xLP)

Isaiah Rashad's It's Been Awful arrives as his third studio album and his first in five years, a return that pushes his sound well beyond straightforward rap. The record expands Rashad's Chattanooga-rooted introspection into a hazy mix of Southern rap, neo-soul, cosmic jazz and psychedelic guitar textures, while keeping the emotional candour that has defined his catalogue from the start.

This is an album built around aftermath and self-examination. The supplied source material points to addiction, relapse, growth and redemption as its core themes, and that focus gives the music its weight rather than turning it into a concept-piece. Guest spots from SZA, Dominic Fike and Julian Sintonia add contrast without distracting from Rashad's perspective, while key songs such as "Same Sh!t," "Boy in Red," and "M.O.M." underline how comfortably he moves between melodic drift and sharp, personal writing.

It's Been Awful also lands with some real career context behind it. Rashad's The Sun's Tirade reached the Billboard 200 Top 20 and went Gold, while The House Is Burning was described in the source material as nearing one billion global streams. That history matters here: this feels less like a reset than a deepening of what Isaiah Rashad already does unusually well—turning vulnerable, complicated inner life into patient, immersive rap records.