Amtrak 3:20

Big K.R.I.T., 'Return Of 4Eva'

Song: Amtrak

Is Big K.R.I.T. the nicest man in show business? He's humble and grandma-pleasing polite in interviews. He writes songs about getting up early and swears "the latest [he] could be was on time." Is he the hardest-working man in show business? He produces his own beats, he alternates flows every other track (once he calls it out before he drops in — "old school flow: they used to say") and he's not afraid of double time. "I came from nothing," he says, "and I want more." He's from Mississippi, but on Return of 4Eva he's a regional rapper, even printing the words "3rd Coast" on his album cover. As such, he drops references (both lyrical and in production) to everybody he should — Goodie Mob, OutKast, UGK — and head-nods to current regional heroes and rap blog champions like Lil Boosie and Yelawolf. He's warm and logical, constructing "Amtrak" around a beat that stays funky as it motors and sampling keys shifting in somebody's hands in "My Sub," an ode to bumping songs out of his car — not coincidentally the best venue for hearing the songs of a hardworking southerner with a portfolio and promise. (Frannie Kelley)

This album is available for free download from returnof4eva.com.