Reviewed by Lins Honeyman

I Am Justified is a hip-hop artist from Houston, Texas and this four-track EP finds him in a festive mood with the opening track "The Holidays" thanking God for the Christmas break and the time to kick back with family set to a sample snatched from Brenda Lee's "Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree". Unfortunately, laying a rapped delivery over one of the most recognisable Christmas tunes ever makes for a somewhat unsuccessful combination on this occasion thanks to a general jarring of genres and isn't helped by the fact that the superimposed bass line seems to be in a completely different key. In fact, the whole thing sounds like the studio technician left the radio on in the background whilst IAJ was doing his thing. Second up, "Feliz Navidad" - nothing to do with the Jose Feliciano tune of the same name - finds the rapper asking Santa for money and a record deal before the title track continues in sample-heavy fashion with a call out to his family to stick together whilst he reminisces about Christmases in the past. Looking towards the new year with cautious optimism, "2020 Vision" - featuring a cameo from fellow rapper Samuel The Great - dispenses with the festive gimmicks and is perhaps the most accomplished and polished piece in this mixed bag of a release.

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