Released on Mello Music Group, Somebody Up There Loves Me does everything but spark the blunt. It’s a laidback, soulful cruise full of hard-earned wisdom and street gospel. A testament to meticulous craftsmanship that balances tradition with a sense of timelessness. As the bearded and wavy one describes himself: “I’m somewhere between Gilbert Arenas and Gil-Scott.” A poet with a penchant for revolution, a fearless pacifist always ready for war, but hopeful the conscription will never come.

Somebody Up There Loves Me is a spiritual journey but never self-righteous. The result of blood, sweat, tears, and introspection that have allowed for Stalley to become a fully realized artist. At one point on “Bear Trap,” Stalley evokes a car ride bumping the Gorillaz and the Bobby Womack, and his latest feels like a perfect hip-hop middle ground between the two. He has refined a natural musical fluidity and developed a sense of comfort in who he is, where he’s traveled, and where he wants his passport to be stamped next. This an opus that crackles with love, warmth, and unremitting humanity. Over these past years, he’s been working on himself, and now, the droptop is open, the windows are rolled down, and the golden light is shining through.