By ORION BAKER/Multimedia Editor Assistant
2026 has become a year for comebacks. Artists have returned from multi-year breaks, with A$AP Rocky coming back from an eight-year hiatus, Harry Styles, Bruno Mars, BTS, and more are coming back for new album drops.
Five years since “The Melodic Blue,” rapper and producer Baby Keem is back with “CA$INO.”
Baby Keem and The Past Five Years
Baby Keem, real name Hykeem Jamaal Carter Jr., was born on Oct. 22, 2000, in Carson, California. He never followed the typical new‑rapper trajectory.
He broke through with “Die for My B—-” in 2019, the project that had “Orange Soda,” which put his unique style on the map. “Orange Soda” and Keem would go on to debut on the Billboards following its release in 2019.
Keem was already working behind the scenes, stacking production and writing credits on major releases like the “Black Panther” soundtrack and Jay Rock’s “Redemption”.
His creative partnership with his cousin Kendrick Lamar pushed him even further. Together they delivered “family ties,” “range brothers,” and eventually “The Hillbillies,” a loose, playful single that kept Keem’s name floating around while he wasn’t dropping a full project.
After “The Melodic Blue” dropped in 2021, Keem mostly stepped back from the spotlight, with a few singles, a few features, some production work and a lot of quiet noise. It wasn’t inactivity, but it was incubation.
“Ca$ino” feels like the result of that stretch: a sharper, stranger, more self‑assured version of the artist he’s been hinting at becoming.
Does “Ca$ino” Hit The Jackpot?
For the most part, yes. It’s not the grand sweep that I and others were hoping for.
This album is by no means bad, but it could’ve been so much more. Waiting for five years just for 11 tracks and 37 minutes is disappointing. I wish Keem delivered more of this new, profound confidence he oozes from this project into more tracks.
Keem delivers vocally, with a range that sounds like Chance the Rapper, on tracks like “I am not a lyricist” or “Circus Circus Free$tyle.” He changes it drastically, experimenting on tracks like “Dramatic Girl (feat. Che Eru)” and “Highway 95 pt.2,” which features Keem shifting his pitch up, which strangely work very well. It reminds me of Playboi Carti, and how sometimes he can make his voice very high pitched, which his fans have dubbed his “baby” voice.
The production is also a standout, with great beats and the repeating slot machine jackpot sound carrying throughout the tracks, reiterating the main theme of this album. Keem flexes his production skills, and it definitely shows in the best way possible.
I also like how personal Keem gets on this album. He mentioned in the rollout of this album that he went through a lot of hardships in the past five years, which he talks about in the album.
In the title track, “Ca$ino,” he talks about his grandmother, the house he bought for her and her passing.
“I watched my grandma die in the house I bought, I’m livin’ my truth / I hit rock-bottom when I was gone and now I got nothin’ to lose / I keep both scars, I feel new pain and I don’t even do tattoos.”
I like this direction. It adds a lot of meaning & value to this album. It showcases how these past five years have been hard on him. Despite this, he’s able to push past and give us a more realized and confident vibe to his sound/artistry.
The features are alright as well. We got primarily new features for Keem, and with constants like his cousin Lamar. The new features include Too $hort, Momo Boyd, Che Ecru, and, surprisingly, Denzel Curry. All of them are welcome additions and elevate the tracks they are on.
Scoring & Conclusion
Score: 8/10
Favorite Tracks: $ex Appeal (feat. Too $hort), Circus Circus Free$tyle, Ca$ino
Least Favorite Tracks: No Blame, Good Flirts (feat. Kendrick Lamar & Momo Boyd)
Overall, I enjoyed this album.
I went in with low expectations and came out satisfied with this project.
Thanks for reading! The TV show review should be coming soon, as well as something more proper for a one year anniversary of this column. As always, the link for recommendations is here. Stay tuned!
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