It wasn’t long after his debut mixtape, 2020’s No Love Lost, that Blxst was being heralded as the preeminent voice of Los Angeles R&B. His style—a seamless mix of croaky harmonizing and nimble flows—made him the perfect counterpart for collaborators both local (Mozzy, Drakeo the Ruler, 1Take Jay, Bino Rideaux) and global (Nas, Rick Ross, Fireboy DML). Before You Go picks up right where No Love Lost left off, striking a balance between pledges of unending allegiance to his life partner (“Never Was Wrong,” “Pick Your Poison,” “Sometimes”) and professions of gratitude for every moment of his journey (“Couldn’t Wait for It,” “Still Omw,” “Talk to Me Nicely”). The tape contains a handful of songs that seem like direct continuations of ideas he debuted on No Love Lost—“About You” refurbishes a vintage R&B melody in the vein of “Be Alone,” “Every Good Girl” has a strong “Wrong or Right” energy, and “Be Forreal” features cadences that recall “Gang Slide”—all of which serve as reminders of how great his debut was and affirmations of how committed the singer is to establishing the Blxst sound.