HEELS HAVE EYES 3

Westside Gunn fans ought to have known that the Griselda rapper’s HEELS HAVE EYES franchise would end up as a trilogy. The Buffalo-bred artist’s well-documented kayfabe tendencies assuredly drove him to execute a dramatic finishing move, which this project most certainly is. After all, his ongoing side quest to build the world’s best new pro wrestling league hasn’t kept him far from the mic this year, dropping installments in this series to correspond with concurrent live 4th Rope events that mix matches with bars. With producers like Daringer and Denny Laflare in his corner, songs like “R Truth” and the Rome Streetz tag-team demonstration “Tito Santana” play to his love for the sport. Others more overtly call back to his dope-dealer lore, deftly navigating the street politics of “Tiffany Blue” and whipping up that work on “Free Roleys” alongside Benny the Butcher. Notably, the presence of departed wrestler Virgil on the album’s cover blends in Gunn’s mind with the late Virgil Abloh, evidenced best on the cavernous “Babas”.