In terms of new music, the hip-hop community has been watching the tumbleweed drift its way through 2025: we’ve seen far too many notable rappers come out with universally-panned projects this year, whether it be Playboi Carti’s ‘MUSIC’ or Lil Wayne’s ‘Tha Carter VI.’ All eyes have been on legendary duo Clipse to reinvigorate the community’s interest— as the first collaborative project between Pusha T and Malice in sixteen years, the expectations being placed on the album are staggeringly high. Thankfully, ‘Let God Sort Em Out’ does manage to rekindle just enough magic to meet demands: another ‘Hell Hath No Fury,’ though, this is not.

If God was sorting anything out for Clipse, it was the opening leg of their record: Pusha T and Malice are undoubtedly kicking things off on their strongest material here, pushing for ‘Let God Sort Em Out’ to be the landmark release that fans so desperately want it to be. ‘The Birds Don’t Sing’ opens the project on its most introspective and mellow note, allowing endearing piano lines to give way to a soaring John Legend-featuring chorus: the cut does little to prepare the listener for the aggressive deliveries and flamboyant samples that come to define much of ‘Let God Sort Em Out,’ but that hardly seems to matter when its tributes to the artists’ mother are so touching.

“Birds don't sing if the words don't sting

Your last few words in my ear still ring

You told me that you loved me, it was all in your tone

"I love my two sons" was the code to your phone

Now you're gone”

A much more effective tone-setter is the grimy beat and arrogant bars of ‘Chains & Whips’— it’s the first cut to feature the ever-present refrain of “this is culturally inappropriate,” and it certainly does its best to earn it. Pharrell Williams proves yet again why he is one of the most esteemed producers in the game, flexing his creative arm on the song’s gnarly industrial soundscapes, as well as on the pseudo- psychedelic offerings of single ‘So Be It:’ even if his choices behind the mixing desk vary in effectiveness throughout the project, the depth of character he brings to these opening cuts cannot be denied. ‘Chains & Whips’ also begins the running trend of excellent guest features across the album, with a tightly written (if oddly understated) lyrical showcase from Kendrick Lamar— Tyler, The Creator and Nas also deliver some show-stopping performances on ‘P.O.V.’ and the title track respectively, providing ‘Let God Sort Em Out’ one of its strongest attributes.

It’s after this striking first leg that the project’s quality begins to wane though, jumping the shark with lead single ‘Ace Trumpets’ and its definitive assertion that “yellow diamonds look like pee-pee.” Between its overbearing beat and disconcertingly awkward flows from both Pusha T and Malice, the track slams on the brakes, killing any and all momentum Clipse had been crafting thus far— even the wordplay feels oddly forced here, starkly contrasting the confidence that defined a track like ‘Chains & Whips.’

“White glove service with the brick, I am Luigi

Sold ecstasy and disappeared, I am Houdini

Look at them, him and him, still waiting on Yeezy

I hope you got your squeegees”

From here, a central tenant of ‘Let God Sort Em Out’ becomes its inconsistency— oddly enough, it tends to be the Pharrell-backed beats that do the most harm. In its strongest moments, Clipse capture the producer in his absolute element, delivering generational moments like the delectable beat switch on the title track, or the infectious pitch-corrected melodies on ‘All Things Considered.’ Every coin has two sides though: the stilted, repetitive chord voicings of ‘M.T.B.T.T.F.,’ abrasive sound choices of ‘Inglorious B*stards’ and bland synths of ‘So Far Ahead’ really let the side down. Of course, ‘Let God Sort Em Out’ has an impressive array of beats overall— without much in the way of connective tissue between the tracks though, these moments of inconsistency and musical hesitancy do a disservice to the project at large.

At the very least, the record always finds itself in the safe hands of Pusha T and Malice: the brothers are veterans of the genre, and though their performances here aren’t likely to win any awards for innovation or memorability, they both do an excellent job grounding the project. There’s an off-hand arrogance that settles into every bar across the album, like Clipse are looking down on their peers: that confident sneer always works in their favour, especially when Travis Scott is being dissed on ‘So Be It.’ Granted, moments like the aforementioned disappointing flows of ‘Ace Trumpets,’ as well as the fairly flat hook on ‘P.O.V.,’ do creep in a little too often: even still, there’s a well-roundedness to the deliveries across ‘Let God Sort Em Out’ that brings the album and its stories to life.

“When the crew breaks apart, who takes the charge?

You face the cards, I lace the squad

Went from mason jars to crepe tartare's

Escape the odds by the grace of God”

The hip-hop community at large seems to be taking to ‘Let God Sort Em Out’ with vigour, and it’s not all-too hard to see why: after so many disappointing releases this year, Malice and Pusha T have come out with a (mostly) dependable body of work. Outside of its obvious highlights though, the first new Clipse album in sixteen years is a little less sure on its feet than we were hoping for. Perhaps the brothers were a little overconfident, if anything: ‘Let God Sort Em Out’ is a solid return, but falls short of generational status by quite some distance.