THIS WEEK IN THE VOICE

VARIOUS ARTISTS
Hyphy Hitz
TVT

It's easy to guess why TVT would start pushing Oakland's hyphy style after the label's success with Southern crunk—both styles share big synth lines, thudding stripper-friendly beats, and a general ig'nance. But where crunk gets over on raw, balls-out energy, hyphy rappers frequently sound enervated, exhaling at the end of each line like rhyming really takes it out of 'em. [Read the rest here.]