A debut mixtape that strips away the excess

No one would accuse PlaqueBoyMax of lacking creativity. The internet celebrity turned hip-hop curator made his first two EPs, 2025’s LONDON and ATLANTA, by travelling to those cities, recruiting local stars and recording the entire projects during livestream events. Five Forever, his debut mixtape, strips away all the excess and attention-grabbing approaches to making an album. Without any features, Max takes centre stage for the very first time, retiring his role as master of ceremonies and approaching the mic with the confidence of someone who’s been co-signed by many of the biggest names in the game.

It’s clear that PlaqueBoy is heavily influenced by boundary-pushing rappers like Playboi Carti and Yeat, even embracing their use of clever one-liners and bass-heavy beats accented by glimmering, blown-out synths. On “Layflat”, he raps, “I only fly if it’s first class/I only fly if it’s lay-flat/Vivienne Westwood keychains/I do what I want and they hate that.” This may be Max’s first mixtape, but he is already deeply familiar with living the life of a superstar.