Who the fuck is Kyle Smith?  He’s probably the hardest working musician out there today!  The guy is constantly touring, working social media, getting his name out there, getting his music out there…..the guy goes non-stop.  And it doesn’t affect his music in a negative way, in fact it probably helps being so involved. His second full-length album Bad for Business brings everything together for his fans, his fans is what keeps him going and keeps him motivated.  This album is flat-out DOPE!  I will be 100% honest here, I first heard of Kyle Smith at Cali Vibes in 2022, I liked what I saw and heard, but didn’t really listen much after that.  I’ve always been a reggae fan, but most my reggae love is that Jamaican roots reggae.  While I do like some American reggae groups, I tend to not dive into much unless it really catches my ear and mind.  So, I do miss out on some solid reggae music and usually end up regretting it. And this is another one of those situations.  My buddy Matt told me to check it out, and wow it is freakin’ dope.

It's hard to pin-point his style, it’s reggae but so much more, you get ska, punk, rock, hip-hop; just a whole lot of styles going on.  The album starts off with “Shady” featuring hip-hop artist and well-known activist Equipto.  I always feel that first song of an album just completely sets up the entire album, if it’s a dope track, with great lyrics and meaning, you know the album will hit!  Well, I can say “Shady” let me know this album was going to be dope. That guitar to start the song off gets you going, the beat and rhythm gets you flowing and then the lyrics and rap flow hit. A sweet chorus and then when Equipto comes in, DAMN….so good! “Can’t Remember” brings us this beautiful Cali reggae vibe. You get that Sublime groove; Kyle sounds great on this track. My head just doesn’t stop bobbin’ up and down while listening to this. We get a “Line Check (Skit)” to bring us into an awesome song featuring G. Love & Special Sauce, “Soundcheck.” Kyle and G. Love work so well together, would be cool hearing the two of them do some more songs together in the future.  They really have this similar vibe going on which makes their styles work so well together.  The harmonica and guitar pour over each other for an amazing sound.

The title track, “Bad For Business” is next with such an awesome flow from Kyle! Great beat in this, got to keep the head bobbin’ again! Kyle giving the middle finger to the business; “Think you run this shit but you just profit from the game/We just do it for the love, give a fuck about the pay/You see my peoples as numbers, these are my brothers and sisters/Keep on protecting the scene from all you fucking A-Listers/I thought this was rebel music baby/But damn it’s feelin pretty corporate lately/Keep on portraying’ the love but you’re forgettin’ the roots/All you care about is money man fuck them suits.” A really cool chill vibe is next with “Standin’ By Your Side.” Top down driving the Cali coast groove with this, hair blowing in the wind without a care in the world. You get a nice feel for how great Kyle’s voice is. What I am loving so far is how different each song sounds, they each have their own style and flow, but they all come together perfectly. “Forgive Me” gives us this changing tempo and great guitar work (the solo is sweet). The mixing up of vocals, both singing and a little rap flow works perfectly.  This may be my favorite track on the album. Another dope track is next, “Show No Signs” featuring the nu metal band Hed PE. LOVE that Kyle worked with them, this track is so good, when Jared Gomes comes in with his flow it takes this to another level!  BOOM!

“Wither” with Joey Harkum is up next up with this up-tempo groove.  Kyle and Joey complement each so much, just makes this song hit so well.  Chorus just plays through your head! “The ball and chain I carry never withers/ The ball and chain I carry never withers.” Kyle keeps flowing with “On My Way,” another sweet chill rhythm, the guitar once again just hits and pulls you in.  Another one of my favorites, can’t stop grooving and bobbin’ my head to this one. “By Myself” is coming in next, a fun ska-ish song. Good fun vibe flowing through, makes you wanna get up and dance, even if you are all by yourself. The album is finished off with “Still Got Tonight” another one that really showcases Kyle’s voice, a fresh slower vibe.  The song is perfect for bringing this journey to an end. “Cause girl it was nice having you down for a while/I wish we could go another two thousand miles/I wish we stay without a care in the world/And I think we just might, no matter what we decide/We still got tonight/We still got tonight/We still got tonight.”

This album is just plain old DOPE! The mixing of styles and genres is done so well, it has that constant reggae vibe throughout, but you feel so much more. Ska, hip-hop, rock, you name it, it all comes together perfectly. The album just flows from song to song, it’s so easy to listen to, to fall into and let you mind go free. I love how Kyle shares so much of himself with his fans and you get so much of that in his music and his lyrics. I may not have been a big Kyle Smith fan before, but I am a huge fan now. The future is so bright for Kyle and by this point we all should know who the fuck Kyle Smith is!

One Love – Todd Judd