With guest appearances by Freeway, Saigon, Fashawn, and production by Oddisee and Snowgoons,[3] lyrically the album addresses diverse themes and incorporates a number of hip hop subgenres.
[5] After developing an interest in music, his cousin X-Gov was one of his first inspirations to go into rap, exposing him to artists such as DJ Premier and Gang Starr.
[5] While with Mountain Climbaz he became associated with Iron Fist Records, run by Proof,[4] and made guest appearances on tracks by other artists.
[3] His 2003 track "Broken Again" featuring Mu, Proof, and Marvwon, received an award for best hip-hop group song of the year in 2004.
After the disbanding of Mountain Climbaz, Journalist 103 co-founded the hip hop group The Left with Detroit producer Apollo Brown.
[3] According to the Michigan Citizen, "the concept of the album’s title was to warn audiences that hip hop music is being used against the people like poison.
[2] Stated HipHopDX, Gas Mask "captured a nostalgic prestige with Journalist playing an integral part as the mouthpiece of the group's movement.
Reporting Live had guest appearances by Freeway, Saigon and Fashawn, and production from The Audible Doctor, Oddisee, Apollo Brown, and Snowgoons.
[9] Refined Hype criticized the short length of several of tracks, but stated that "When you have an artist whose name is 'Journalist' and his project is called Reporting Live, you’re expecting music that serves as a form of journalism, and the Detroit rapper definitely makes it a priority to paint a picture of the environment around him in vivid detail.