Jae Skeese Puts in “40 Hours” to Start the New Year for Drumwork (EP Review)

Buffalo, New York emcee Jae Skeese is back for the 4th EP in his discography. Starting in 2010 off his debut mixtape W.A.C.K. (Women, Alcohol, Cash & Kicks), it wasn’t until a decade later where he & 7xvethegenius gained wide exposure as the first signees to Conway the Machine’s very own Drumwork Music Group. The Big Ghost Ltd.-produced 3rd EP Authenticity Check & the sophomore effort Abolished Uncertainties both elevated Skeese’s popularity in the last couple years. Coming off the Superior-produced Testament of the Times & elevating from Ground Level though, he’s starting 2025 right by putting 40 Hours in.

“Balance Inquiry” is this jazzy boom bap intro wanting to know what the holdup exactly is whereas “Rotary Phone” talking about the real ones always breaching through the walls at the end of the day. “Buffganistan” featuring Glueski dabbles with trap trading back-&-forth refusing to go broke while “FedEx” works the kicks & snares back up to talk about piecing it all together.

The song “Strike!” featuring K Pi$tol & Lil Jonezy reaches the backend of 40 Hours vibrantly boasting that this shit be larger than life itself leading into “Way Up” featuring Scoop Dolla fusing soul & jazz rap 1 time for ya mind. “Round & Round” concludes the EP hopping over a sample to read between the lines talking about finding once you set out to seek.

Looking to put on a handful of local artists & a couple producers, Skeese delivers vibes & bars for the Drumwork fanbase although I personally find myself gravitating towards the Ground Level mixtape that he delivered last summer. The production a lot like that previous body of work balances boom bap & trap except its predecessor contains stronger feature performances.

Score: 6/10