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Ice Spice “Y2K!” Album Review

July 31, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Ice Spice is a unique victim of social media, one whose rise almost felt like someone was playing an unfunny joke on hip-hop. Before her break into the mainstream, Ice had five songs to her name. She built buzz as a New York drill artist whose soft-spoken delivery contrasted with the rest of that scene. “No Clarity,” a November 2021 track sampling Zedd’s “Clarity,” went semi-viral, and the video briefly became a meme. A few months later, On The Radar invited her to freestyle on their show. After reaching stardom, the video became one of the most viewed on their YouTube channel.

Ice released her breakout song “Munch (Feelin’ U)” in August 2022. The track trended on TikTok for the rest of the year and introduced new slang into public usage. Since “Munch,” Ice has had the success of an entire career in less than two years. She received a co-sign from Drake after one popular song. In early 2023, Nicki Minaj endorsed her. Their collaboration “Barbie World” appeared on the Barbie soundtrack and received a Grammy nomination for Best Rap Song. The New York Times dubbed her “Rap’s New Princess” after an EP. She collaborated with PinkPantheress on “Boy’s A Liar, Pt. 2,” a track that became one of the biggest of the year. She even became friends with Taylor Swift.

Ice Spice Fails To Show Growth As An Artist On Y2K!

All of this happened because much of the public ignored her most fatal flaw: Ice Spice is not a very good rapper. She lacks any substance as a lyricist. The beats she raps on, produced almost exclusively by former college classmate and closest collaborator RiotUSA, are virtually indistinguishable from one another. Because social media can produce a new celebrity overnight, Ice went from uploading tracks to SoundCloud to attending the Super Bowl with pop culture royalty faster than you can say “grah.” But, because social media has also made music the most accessible it’s ever been, Ice had no time to develop her sound meaningfully. Her debut album makes this abundantly clear.

Y2K! is the culmination of the last three years for Ice Spice. It is the punchline to a joke that’s gone far too long. In her Rolling Stone cover story, she said that one of her goals was to prove that she can actually rap. Instead, her most glaring weaknesses take center stage, making for one of the most vapid, repetitive releases of 2024.

Y2K! Starts Strong, But Very Quickly Goes Left

Y2K! opens with “Phat Butt,” which is the most interesting performance Ice puts forth on this album. She tries out a new flow, clearly taking inspiration from Nicki Minaj. The beat is also one that a younger Minaj would’ve flexed over. Not everything on this song lands. “Jamaican plug named Batman, pack smellin’ like trash cans / Let him beat it from the back and he eat it up like Pac-Man,” is especially clumsy. Even with that, this song is one of the rare occasions where anything on the album approaches “good.”

“Oh Shhh…” is the next track, featuring Travis Scott. Scott sounds like he has no desire to be there. Ice raps about twerking on a rival’s baby daddy out of spite. She rhymes “clappers” with “slappers,” which is not the only time she uses that scheme on the album. “B*tch I’m Packin” is another dud. She ditches her naturally subdued vocals for a raspy not-quite-whisper that sounds like it strains her to do. It sounds equally strenuous when she gets loud on “Gimmie A Light,” another song about how much money she has, her physical features, and how she’ll steal someone’s man simply because she’s better than who they’re with now. Ice must’ve written this album with a checklist next to her to make sure that she hit the same few topics.

On the topic of stealing a man, “Did It First,” the result of Ice Spice’s and Central Cee’s months-long fake relationship stunt, is not bad. It’s less than two minutes long, much to the song’s benefit. Their verses are both about infidelity and neither of them diverts from the subject. Ice raps about cheating to get revenge on a man who did it to her. Cench is more concerned about not getting caught in the act. The beat has a Clams Casino-meets-New-York-drill feel, making it one of the more unique moments on Y2K!

One Step Forward, Several Steps Back

Unfortunately, for every moment on Y2K! that offers even a sliver of potential, there are even more moments that show there is no reason to ever expect anything more from her—the biggest example of this being the shocking amount of bars about poop on this album. Ice Spice is not the first to have lines about poop in her discography. However, she might be the worst offender.

On “BB Belt” and “Gimmie A Light,” (a track with a distracting sample of Sean Paul’s “Gimme the Light”) she calls herself “Miss Poopie.” On “Oh Shhh…” she says she’s “standin’ on sh*t like a floor mat.” “Think U The Sh*t (Fart),” the lead single and response to some shade from Latto, opens with “think you the sh*t, b*tch? You not even the fart.” Every rapper is entitled to one poop bar since rappers naturally feel like they’re “the sh*t.” But, after the fifth one, it’s time to find new material.

Overall, Y2K! is not an inspiring debut album. It does not prove that Ice Spice is a capable rapper, nor does it prove that she is here to stay, despite the accolades she’s already received. At only 23 minutes, it feels double that runtime, made worse because she just doesn’t have anything to say. Ice became famous before becoming a worthwhile artist, and she has yet to show any growth since becoming famous. Perhaps things would be different if she had time to incubate before being thrust into the spotlight, the way her predecessors did before the internet made music discovery instantaneous. Sadly, we’ll never know.

[Via]

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Childish Gambino “Bando Stone And The New World” Album Review

July 24, 2024 by newhiphopnews

In November 2011, co-star of NBC’s Community Donald Glover sat down to interview his alter ego, fledgling rapper Childish Gambino in a segment for Rolling Stone. Gambino was just over a week away from releasing his debut album, Camp. The interview goes well until Glover asks Gambino “why he raps like sh*t.” Gambino responds by saying that his voice is annoying, but also that he’s read comparisons of himself to Lil Wayne and Kanye West. On its face, it sounds like Gambino is poking fun at himself. To an extent, he is. But, those comparisons also lend themselves to a greater idea: Donald Glover thinks very highly of himself. More accurately, Donald Glover thinks very highly of his artistry.

It’s easy to look back on something from 2011 and say it didn’t age well through a 2024 lens. Much of Camp aged poorly as soon as it hit iTunes. The charm of his earlier work, namely 2010’s Culdesac, was gone, and in its place was “corny.” The punchlines were clunky. The bars about women became bars about Asian women that were misguided at best and racist at worst. The album went over even worse than a wet fart, a failure on all fronts. Even when Gambino released Because The Internet in 2013, a surprisingly introspective follow-up to his disastrous debut, he couldn’t shake two ways that people viewed him. One, that he was the guy from Community trying to start a serious music career. And, even more damning, that he was the guy who made that album.

Donald Glover Fully Rebrands Himself

Donald Glover spent the rest of the 2010s trying to convince people that he was a capital-A Artist. It worked. He released “Awaken, My Love!” in 2016, shaking the stigma that came with being Childish Gambino. Glover also reworked his public persona. Gone were the eye-roll-inducing punchlines. In was a man who believed his own hype. He shrouded himself in mystery and released an honest-to-God commercial funk album in the 2010s. In 2018, he released “This Is America,” the controversial multi-platinum single. It became his first song to reach #1 on the Billboard Hot 100. Somehow, after years of ridicule, Glover had the last laugh.

“Awaken, My Love!” was a sharp turn from hip-hop that led to 3.15.20 nearly four years later. 3.15.20 was an ambitious surprise release. Gambino experimented greatly and pushed hip-hop to its limit. And now, on Bando Stone And The New World, Donald Glover’s last album as Childish Gambino and the soundtrack to his upcoming film of the same name, he nearly fully realizes his musical vision. It’s a sprawling work that often threatens to buckle under the weight of Gambino’s ego. The back half nearly does. The early quality gives way to tepid pop-punk and tepid pop-pop when he begins to make his exit. Despite that, the highs are undeniable. Pop, R&B, and trap sensibilities produced primarily by Glover himself, make up much of Bando Stone. It is an eclectic soundscape that results in some of the most dynamic music of his career.

Childish Gambino Is A Dynamic Artist On Bando Stone

The dynamism is apparent early. “Lithonia,” the second track on the album, is a pop-rock ballad that tells the story of Cody LaRae, Bando Stone’s main character, learning that the world “doesn’t give a f*ck” about him. The next two tracks, “Survive” and “Steps Beach,” lean more towards R&B. “Steps Beach” in particular sounds a lot like the type of atmospheric tracks that Frank Ocean specializes in. “In The Night,” with Jorja Smith and Amaarae, is a catchy, lustful track with Smith delivering an especially great vocal performance. She sounds like someone Gambino should have collaborated with a lot earlier.

The album’s mission statement arrives about halfway through, on the song “Yoshinoya.” Gambino raps in the triplet flow in the first half over a beat reminiscent of Migos’ “Deadz.” Appropriately, he pays tribute to the city that raised him, Atlanta, by rapping in the most popular to come from that scene. One that has often been falsely attributed to a certain Canadian child actor-turned-pop music dynasty. The same dynasty whom he may have sneak dissed later in the track. “This is a code red for old heads / who never liked my short shorts and Pro-KEDs,” he raps to open the second verse. After hip-hop rejected him early, he’s coming back around to show off a bit, mainly because he has a lot more to show off now. The Amaarae and Flo Milli-assisted “Talk My Sh*t” is a similarly flex-heavy song. Gambino raps over a bass-heavy trap beat, showing that he’s added new wrinkles to his game over the years.

Bando Stone Nearly Slips At The Finish Line

The album begins to lose steam by the end, but Gambino does stick the landing. “We Are God” is a level of self-indulgence on par with some of the worst that Yeezus has to offer. The pop-punk of “Running Around” (featuring Fousheé) evokes the same empty feeling one gets from listening to MGK’s attempts at the sound. The Khruangbin-featuring “Happy Survival” is an instrumental that, while pleasant, feels out of place after the preceding fifteen tracks. Luckily, “Dadvocate” is a sweet, albeit brief, meditation on fatherhood and the idea of being a man. The album closes with “A Place Where Love Goes,” a track co-produced by pop titan Max Martin, that deftly blends hip-hop and electronic music. It may even find its way into some DJ mixes in the near future.

Bando Stone And The New World is a good album. It’s hard to call it great, let alone one of the best albums of the year, considering its uneven ending. But, the scope of its ambition makes it a worthwhile listen and a very worthy farewell to the Childish Gambino moniker. Donald Glover’s musical growth has been painstakingly documented at every turn. Now, he’s actually good enough to earn the praise he believes he should’ve received all those years ago. Regardless of what’s next for Glover musically, he has earned enough cache for people to want to listen to what he has to say. Until then, listen to this one.

[Via]

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Eminem “The Death Of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce)” Album Review

July 16, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Like “Head Honcho” with Shady Records signee Ez Mil posits, “canceled” isn’t the word to describe Eminem. That concept drives The Death Of Slim Shady (Coup De Grâce) and is as painfully ancient and obvious as it is subversive. While Marshall Mathers has arguably tried to “kill” Slim Shady since 1999, this new project is unique in how explicitly he connects his biggest demons while showcasing his best long-form quality control in over a decade.

However, that quality control is still bizarre since Eminem throws stuff at the wall and doesn’t focus much thematically on most individual tracks, an odd trait for a “concept album.” It’s a missed opportunity for breakdowns of the rapper’s personas and beliefs. Still, the things that make this album great and irate are in Em’s whole discography to varying degrees… all that changes is the specific names, like Diddy and Megan Thee Stallion mentions on The Death Of Slim Shady. Slim Shady’s “death” here is more of an exorcism of his immortality and is generally an entrancing spell.

What Works On The Death Of Slim Shady?

As for Eminem, his own “immortality” in hip-hop has his technically gifted pen to thank, not his other half. Some Dr. Dre production all over The Death Of Slim Shady (plus Dem Jointz, Em himself, and more) certainly helps, too. But his colorful and zany artistry always stretches thin with vivid, albeit cartoonish approaches. Comically crude, wildly impressive, and deep moments emerge, such as the Amber Heard bar on “Lucifer,” the rhyme schemes on “Antichrist,” and recollections of Em’s daughter Hailie playing guitar on “Somebody Save Me.” Then, it’s stale shock value, eye-roll wordplay, and melodrama: animal cruelty on “Evil” that went nowhere, that terrible sock puppet bar on “Bad One,” and forcedly aggressive cadences on the otherwise soft “Temporary.”

Instrumentally, things are much more consistently enjoyable than past efforts like Revival or Kamikaze. The peppy and gritty beat on “Renaissance” and the percussive speed-up on “Habits” are particular highlights. There’s an orchestral sense of drama throughout these beats with fitting drum tones, and progressive embellishments make the instrumentals more dynamic. Alas, lyrically and musically, The Death Of Slim Shady‘s repetition is its kryptonite. Tracks like “Houdini,” “Brand New Dance,” and the family tribute tracks from the perspective of a dying or deceased Marshall are not-so-subtle retreads of “Without Me,” “Just Lose It,” and “When I’m Gone,” respectively.

Eminem’s Artistic Addictions

There are also way too many Caitlyn Jenner, little people, and Gen Z jokes peppered all throughout the album’s first leg. Eminem — or Slim Shady, rather — tries so hard to offend that it comes off just as performative as how he characterizes the “cancelation” he rallies against. Regardless of how much anyone tries to reiterate that “that’s the point,” this causes even more whiplash between his typical toilet humor and linguistic creativity. Still, The Death Of Slim Shady‘s saving grace, “Guilty Conscience 2,” contextualizes these aspects compellingly and paints Slim Shady as an addict to controversy due to his upbringing. With his “death” at the end of the song, subsequent tracks suggest what Marshall actually has smoke for, whether Candace Owens’ hypocrisy or the state of hip-hop through tracks like “Tobey.”

That’s not to say that Slim Shady is the problem with The Death Of Slim Shady: “Fuel” is still the best song on this album thanks to two killer verses from Eminem and JID. But these songs present really strange vocal mixing choices ( i.e. “Road Rage”) that don’t clarify when one personality is talking and when the other retorts. To be fair, it’s arguably Em’s most ambitious full-length since The Eminem Show, but only one or two moments here really tackle killing Slim rather than parading him around just to suppress him later. Sadly, it doesn’t fully translate as growth or evolution.

Will Slim Shady Ever Truly Die?

Above all, The Death Of Slim Shady champions all of our assumptions about Eminem and his alter-ego as explicitly as possible. Very few new topics enter, but a heightened musical consistency makes these repetitions well-flowing and easier to appreciate. His addictions to substances and controversy have never been more intertwined, and neither have these struggles so directly explained his shortcomings as a family man. Yet Mr. Mathers is always passionately committed to his loved ones. In many ways, this “coup de grâce” (in other words, a merciful kill shot) feels like the album that he has tried to make for the past fifteen or so years.

Even with this album’s concept of beating a dead horse back to life, we doubt Eminem and Slim Shady are separate. While blasting “cancelations” of either Colin Kaepernick or Dave Chappelle, Em/Slim’s biggest issue seems to be how people always need to apologize and criticize rather than tolerate opposing views. That’s been a mission statement of his throughout his whole career, and it’s ironic that he seemingly can’t tolerate that it’s a nauseating one. Then again, isn’t this the most “Eminem” album perhaps ever, with all his best and worst feats and flaws delivered with a middle finger and a wink? Maybe Slim’s addictive controversies are what died in a blaze of glory. But that combative fire will always fuel Marshall Mathers.

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Normani’s ‘Dopamine’ Is A Showstopping Debut

June 20, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Normani 'Dopamine' RX album review image — RCA Records/Merle Cooper

The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow, and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is the music you need, right now.

Normani is a showstopping performer no matter the texture, tempo, and emotion at hand. Since her departure from Fifth Harmony, the singer proved time and time again that she can capture the attention and applause of her audience by doing just what a song calls her to do. It’s never too much, and it’s rarely underwhelming. “Waves” with 6lack, released back in 2018, is a climatic pop-leaning record that places Normani’s soaring vocals and sweet falsettos over grungy and moody production that also perfectly juxtaposes 6lack’s lower register. When given a roomy canvas, like on her 2021 song “Fair,” Normani makes sure her voice fills the room with runs that travel uninterrupted from stage to seat. On her long-awaited debut album Dopamine, she manages much of the same through performances that are not only impressive but liberating and boldly sensual in ways that add a new dimension to Normani’s artistry.

The road to Dopamine was a long one undoubtedly, but seemingly instrumental in developing the artist we hear on her 13-track debut. “Motivation,” released back in 2019, was the turning point for Normani – a prelude of sorts for Dopamine. With an upbeat spirit and triumphant production, Normani stepped out on her own to prove her readiness for the spotlight. A splashy video arrived with the song and presented Normani as a performer who could captivate at any given moment. The way we see Victoria Monét now is the journey Normani seemed ready to set out on. Dopamine is much darker and gloomier than “Motivation,” but it still grasps the attention of onlookers with the same elements: lyrics that dig deep into the emotions, production that caters rather than distracts, and a singer who sees all the tools at hand and knows just what to do with them.

Proof of this lives on “Candy Paint,” the grown-up version of “Motivation.” In an interview with Elle, Normani said the former “bridges the gap, I think, between ‘Motivation’ and where I am now.” Both aim to entice a lover with the golden gift of intimacy, but the latter plays it safe and colors inside the lines that separate discreet and compliant from defiant and bold. “Candy Paint” presents Normani on the other side of the border, where the freedom that comes with it is too good to hide. “If you let me take him, you might never get him back,” she sings with undeterred certainty. “I’m a baddie and I don’t know how to act.” This liberation is the foundation for Dopamine. It’s a flag that Normani proudly stakes into the ground in the world her debut lives in and she wastes no time exploring it.

“Big Boy” kicks off the album in dominant and assertive fashion. “Only ever see this type of sh*t in the movies,” Normani boasts over trunk-rattling production backed by New Orleans-influenced trumpets. Anchored by woozy synths and Houston’s trademark screwed-up production, Normani remains assertive on “Still” as she brags about her status and being “too busy livin’ my life.” Normani’s newfound liberation is the light at the end of the tunnel. She reached it only after a long journey that saw her work through the emotional whirlwind that included both her parents being diagnosed with cancer and the critiques of fans who were too impatient to offer her the grace to grieve and come back to music on her own terms. It should come as no surprise that Normani’s escape from the dark times has pushed her to live each day to the fullest.

Normani’s assertiveness doesn’t only take shape over grand productions that call for an epic performance. It’s just as present in more timid moments that swap the lively energy of a party for the burning passion of bedroom intimacy and the overwhelming emotions behind heartbreak. She sees no worrisome risk or penalty in being painfully honest in pain or brutally forward in her sexual desires. “Distance” begins as a timid and soft-spoken account of a partner’s failures in a relationship before erupting into an epic declaration of the end of a once-promising love story. On the flip side, Normani seduces her partner with the summoning “Lights On” as she whispers sultry requests that are sure to make the ear melt. “Don’t even address me unless you gon’ undress me,” she sings before promising to “make you come fast like a ’98 sports car.”

Dopamine delivers samples of all the lanes Normani can switch into and thrive in at any given moment. She finds comfort in the bounce and joyous trumpets of New Orleans and the woozy sounds of her Houston hometown as much as she does the vulnerable and emotional moments heartbreak can bring. With that being said, Normani’s debut is more than a display of versatility, it’s a statement of status and evidence of how she can sweep her suitors and competitors off their feet with ease. The question is never “Am I enough?” or “Can I compete?” or “Can I stand out?” for Nomani who instead, understands that she is the prize. Within the confinements of Dopamine and the mind of the artist who created the album, doubts about its quality are about as present as a skippable track on the album. Normani the person went through hell in the half-decade journey to Dopamine, but in the end, Normani the artist emerged from the fire to be the bright and free star we always knew she could be.

Dopamine is out now via RCA Records. Find out more information here.

Don Toliver “HARDSTONE PSYCHO” Album Review

June 18, 2024 by newhiphopnews

An artist who gets to play a show the day that their album comes out might feel like a superstar athlete entering their first game of the season. There’s been a lot of build-up beforehand, there’s a lot of pressure to deliver, and you get to give fans a taste of what’s to come in the following weeks and months. When Don Toliver joined the rest of Cactus Jack for their Summer Smash set this past weekend, it became immediately clear that his new album, HARDSTONE PSYCHO, is a picture-perfect crowd-pleaser in the live setting. Bolstered by fiery singles like “BANDIT” and more vibe-inclined teasers, the project made impact as his most comprehensive, versatile, and well-rounded artistic picture up to this point. The live guitar for the Chicago festival represents just one of the various elements that make this record a pretty gratifying experience.

Whether you’re a longtime Don Toliver fan or a skeptical newcomer, HARDSTONE PSYCHO is well aware of the expectation to engage, captivate, and entrance on a sonic level. The production is almost always layered and balanced, the Houston native’s performances are as sticky as ever, and it’s all brought together by an aesthetic consistency that’s never appeared on a Don album to this level. It feels like a true sequel to the regal grittiness 2021’s LIFE OF A DON following the more sweet, soothing, and sluggish Love Sick in 2023. However, some empty spaces in the songwriting, plus slightly hollow lyrical and melodic retreads, threaten to take away from H.P.‘s cohesion. Luckily, no bump in the road fully stops this roaring Harley from throttling forward.

HARDSTONE PSYCHO Roars Behind The Board

From the very first track “KRYPTONITE,” motors rev and a whistling synth lingers wistfully before the trap beat comes in with airy but distorted electric guitar chords. This, plus a longing plea for love and weakness in the face of chaotic and high-speed vices, set the stage for what Don Toliver does most successfully and consistently on HARDSTONE PSYCHO. The production is consistently layered, and main producers like 206Derek plus big names like BNYX make sure to give these instrumentals a lot of detail and make them atmospheric yet vivid enough to feel like a motorcycle ride. “TORE UP” is a hard-rocking adrenaline rush of boisterous riffs and chants, the lush strings breathe unexpected life into the drill chiller “GLOCK,” and “HARDSTONE NATIONAL ANTHEM,” with its stadium-inspired drums and rising synthesizers make for a dramatic closing response to the album’s opener. Overall, it’s always some potent ear candy.

Nevertheless, the comparison game between some of Don Toliver’s similar ideas does drag down the tracklist flow on repeat listens. Despite the creative drill flip of Pharrell’s hook on Snoop Dogg’s “Beautiful” and earworms on “ATTITUDE,” short appearances from Cash Cobain and Charlie Wilson aren’t enough to flesh out the minimal soundscape into something more wholly present rather than a mood-setter. Meanwhile, “LAST LAUGH” loses its soul-sampling luster by the midway point.

As far as the presentation from a beat-making standpoint, there are very few lowlights here that will disengage you from the push-and-pull of the 30-year-old’s contrasting talents, regardless of a few missteps. Still, there are more compromised and melancholy moments here than scorching ones, and the tracklist could’ve benefitted from a more energetic cut toward the end.

Don Toliver Shines Bright

What keeps the energy up all the way through is Don Toliver himself, whose mastery of his idiosyncratic vocal tone, infectious flow switches, and catchy hooks pushes his ceiling further up. “4X4” is a standout performance here thanks to his dynamic delivery and being the last true-blue banger moment on HARDSTONE PSYCHO. He and Kodak Black flow like volatile but relentless gas leaks on “BROTHER STONE,” and his control of both clubby choruses and chopped-and-screwed-adjacent Southern rap on “NEW DROP” offers inescapable refrains. There’s also some great vocal chemistry with Future on the Metro-produced and psych-driven “PURPLE RAIN,” and even “DEEP IN THE WATER” has some addictive tones despite it being the most measured and tranquil performance on the album. Toliver’s most important growth here, as far as what this represents in his career, is his vocal experimentation and evolution of different “voices.”

Yet the lyrical content can be summed up with just two lines: “Lifestyle full of sin, but you heaven-sent,” and “Turn those tears into wine.” Don Toliver keeps the emphasis on the dreaminess and enjoyability of the listening experience, but there’s not much expansive food for thought when it comes to light themes of lust, hedonism, trust, and adventure. There’s a similar repetitiveness to some of the melodies here, such as a “Cardigan”-resembling “5 TO 10” hook, that empty spaces in verses, bridges, and songwriting certainly don’t help. Some more unexpected sounds and invitees could’ve mitigated this, such as an expansion of the charismatic and personality-filled Teezo Touchdown feature on “BACKSTREETS” and leaving Travis Scott’s “INSIDE” croons alone in place of doubling down with a more meager “ICE AGE” guest slot.

What’s Left On The Highway

Despite moments when HARDSTONE PSYCHO spins its wheels in the mud, it definitely triumphs in taking you on this sonic ride alongside Don Toliver and boasts plenty of highlights for the rest of your 2024 journey. While he built this new era with few new elements, his rock focus and vocal innovations pave a path forward for his artistry and hint at what’s to come. For the kind of album that the “Flocky Flocky” creative tends to make, this is likely his most skillful LP to date and the best display of his toolbox, even with its shortcomings. Fans found that the tendency to box artists into a specific niche became an easy challenge when it came to Don. Fortunately, this album left wiggle room to sustain himself and capitalize on the changes in his life and career.

Furthermore, the new father perhaps chose to split HARDSTONE PSYCHO into four evenly distributed discs for that very reason. It doesn’t work out to its fullest potential, since the album falls ever-so-slightly short of providing a seamless flow to distract from these sections’ overlap. But the strategy does lend itself to an explicit and, for the most part, fully realized vision to mark a distinct change from his earlier sounds and leanings. After all, one of the cuts on here features a vocal outro reportedly from Don Toliver’s late uncle Carl, who supported him heavily and inspired the motorcycle homages on this project. Don’s influences fall more clearly into place here, developing a unique identity despite years of opportunities for complacency. While there’s still a long road ahead in this regard, he’s keeping his foot on the gas to get there.

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KAYTRANADA “TIMELESS” Album Review

June 11, 2024 by newhiphopnews

It’s impossible to divorce music from the social, cultural, and physical spaces that it was born out of and exists in, and when it comes to musicians perfectly evoking a particular location, KAYTRANADA is one of the industry’s most accomplished magicians. His production, songwriting, and groove-driven sensibilities allow him to turn any set of headphones or festival crowd into a 5AM nightclub propelled by killer house beats and even better melodies. It’s a staple of his career that brought vivid and lively projects in 99.9%, BUBBA, and the collab album KAYTRAMINÉ. But the question is, does TIMELESS allow us to immerse into that party or are we back to checking our phones?

If you’re at all a fan of the Haitian-Canadian creative, it’s no surprise that the latter option, albeit a big risk on this new hour-long album, is practically impossible. Compared to previous work, KAYTRANADA built something a little more consistent groove-wise, a little less exploratory in its genre fusions, but even more focused on crisp production, engaging songwriting, and keeping your mellowed attention with few breaks in mood or rhythm. It doesn’t always result in a winning formula, but it’s very compelling to hear these inspirations from so many genres coalesce into some of his best pop-adjacent material yet. If nothing else, it’s proof that the “#RICHAXXHAITIAN” musician can still have tricks up his sleeve even if the goal this time around is constance.

TIMELESS Sounds… You Know

“Pressure” is a perfect preview of this, as the rubbery kicks, chopped Lupe and Hov sample, and staccato keys let listeners know that this will go down as one of the funkiest albums of 2024. TIMELESS is a very fitting title, as the album’s main strengths are the cleanliness of the production and the cohesion and catchiness that the songwriting offers, aspects that KAYTRANADA owes most deeply to classic house and disco production plus its soul and funk roots. Other instrumental moments like “Dance Dance Dance Dance,” “Seemingly,” and “Please Babe” are impressive isolations of the beat-making’s prowess, whereas cuts like “Witchy” with Childish Gambino, “More Than A Little Bit” with Tinashe, and “Video” with Ravyn Lenae showcase bubbly, buttery, and satisfying interplay between verse melodies, instrumental embellishments, soaring choruses, and tension-building bridges.

Furthermore, as far as the production quality itself, there’s a consistent sheen to TIMELESS‘ tracks that puts it somewhere in between the brightness of 99.9% and the submerged feel of much of BUBBA. It doesn’t craft a wholly unique sonic identity, but it definitely switches things up here and there to entice and excite skeptics. There’s the melancholy “Feel A Way” with Don Toliver, the frantic and buzzy “Drip Sweat” with Channel Tres, and tender Latin percussion on cuts like “Lover/Friend” with Rochelle Jordan and “Hold On” with Dawn Richard. As for classic KAYTRANADA funk and groove, look no further than the infectious guitars on “Weird” with Durand Bernarr.

KAYTRANADA’s Curation

TIMELESS is perhaps KAYTRANADA’s most stacked and well-performing guest list to date. He himself grabs the mic on “Stepped On,” which is one of the more frustrated points in the album’s constant “highs and lows” narrative about falling in love, having fun, letting go, living in the moment, and all the things that the album doesn’t have to say for you to feel through the jams. In terms of chemistry, The collaborative highlight is easily “Do 2 Me” with Anderson .Paak and SiR, with the most progressive instrumental on the record. PinkPantheress also emerges as a no-brainer recipe for collaborative greatness on “Snap My Finger,” and we hope there’s more on the way.

However, despite the fitting but imperfect transitions and the generally cohesive aesthetics and guests, there are still some bare and stretched-out elements to TIMELESS that both casual listeners and longtime fans might dismiss. While the vocal melodies are always tight, the short runtimes on “Spit It Out” with Rochelle Jordan, “Call U Up” with Lou Phelps, and “Stuntin” with Channel Tres can’t save them from feeling disengaged loops towards the end. Still, Thundercat’s comical roasting sounds gorgeous on “Wasted Words,” and Charlotte Day Wilson’s performance is heavenly on “Still,” so it’s overall not a massive blemish.

Read More: KAYTRANADA’s Essential Tracks

What’s Next For KAYTRA?

With that in mind, the 31-year-old crafts music that is as lush, fun, catchy, intoxicating, and above all loving as it’s ever been on TIMELESS. It feels like the most amorphous, watery, and meticulous genre fusion that he’s done up to this point, even if it does sacrifice the vibrance and unpredictability of previous LPs for the consistency and wide appeal of what many might call a “pop era.” But KAYTRANADA worked too hard on this tracklist flow, the production, and the quality of the songwriting to say that as a dismissive comment. It’s just another step in his evolution, one that seems to target artistic growth in the studio over a sonic change in these sessions’ results.

Frankly, TIMELESS further defines the classic KAYTRANADA bounce as a single idea rather than the multi-faceted amalgamation of shifting focuses and appeals that albums like 99.9% are so beloved for. By the time we hit the jittery and wavy “Out Of Luck” with Mariah The Scientist, some aspects of this project might feel redundant to some listeners. But it’s primarily a house, funk, and disco record, and one that tactfully succeeds in keeping the groove alive, creating sweetly addictive songs, and immersing you in the party. Here’s hoping that KAYTRA’s next moves, no matter what direction they go in, continue to champion this timeless dedication and heartfelt passion for the joy of “Think (About It)” drum breaks and the warmth of melody.

Read More: Who Is KAYTRANADA?

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Tems “Born In The Wild” Review

June 10, 2024 by newhiphopnews

After a long wait, Tems finally delivered in style with her debut album. The songstress initially gained recognition in 2019 when her song “Try Me” became a hit, and she became a ubiquitous force across the global music scene. The release of For Broken Ears in September 2020 and If Orange Was A Place in 2021 helped set the stage while her appearance on Wizkid’s “Essence” took her to new heights, earning her a Grammy nomination and a platinum plaque.

That undoubtedly jumpstarted a fruitful run, leading to her credited appearance on Future and Drake’s “Wait For U” and her first Grammy win. Then, her contributions to Black Panther: Wakanda Forever soundtrack — a cover of Bob Marley’s “No Woman, No Cry” and co-writing Rihanna’s “Lift Me Up” — earned Golden Globe Award and Oscar nominations for Best Original Song — Motion Picture. Despite these and many more achievements, some considered Tems’s success a fluke due to her collaboration with WizKid. On her debut album, Born In The Wild, she proved her critics and doubters wrong and sealed her status as a global superstar.

Tems’ Debut Album Theme

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One thing to note in Tem’s debut album is that she did it on her terms. The 18-track album tells the story of personal growth and rise to stardom through impressive and emotionally driven songwriting. In the titular track, “Born In The Wild,” Tems sings, “I grew up in the wilderness/I didn’t know much about openness.” Then, on “Wickedest,” she reflects on her success in singing, “Yeah, I’m the one got the scene banging/And I go hard that’s why they keep talking/Three years and I’m only just getting started.“

Tems’ quest for true and long-lasting love is seen in the previously released “Me & U” and “Love Me Jeje.” Although she admits to longing for that kind of love, she draws a line regarding toxic relationships. We see this in “Boy O Boy,” a potential heartbreak anthem, where Tems calmly sings of her desire to hurt the man who broke her heart. Some of the lyrics include “Sometimes I want to strangle you,” “You are a pain in my brain,” and “I wonder how I love a thing like you.” Meanwhile, in “Unfortunate,” Tems belts out about detaching from a lover she can no longer trust. Born In The Wild is thus themed around mental and self-growth, love, and heartbreak. Through her vulnerability, her debut album resulted in a perfect victory in her career.

Features

Versatility was a theme throughout the 54-minute album. Tems surprised people with her collaboration with Asake on “Get It Right.” It wasn’t a collaboration many saw coming, but both artists showed they could handle any musical challenge. Tems’ vocals excelled in the Fuji-infused Amapiano sound, while Asake’s lyrics blended excellently with the song’s cool vibe.

Tems features J. Cole on “Free Fall.” The Fayetteville rapper has been maligned lately amid the Kendrick Lamar-Drake beef, but he showed he remains one of the best rappers alive with his superb wordplay on the track. Backed by Tems’ majestic vocals and a gentle beat, J. Cole belted out lyrics about the topsy-turvy nature of relationships. Born In The Wild has just two features, but they are so perfect that you could wish for more.

However, the depth of her musicality extends beyond her direct collaborators. Throughout the project, she samples classic songs; complementing the groundwork created by the artists before while innovating these sounds for a modern era. We already saw her majestic creativity when she sampled Seyi Sodimu’s “Love Me Jeje,” but there was more to come in Born In The Wild. The 28-year-old took the sampling game a notch higher on “Wickedest,” which began with Ivorian band Magic System’s “1er Gaou.” You won’t also miss Tems’ expert sampling of Diana King’s “L-L-Lies” in “Gangsta.”

Wrapping It All Up

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Tems’ Born In The Wild is not an album where she introduces herself. Instead, she climbed to new heights and solidified her status as a global superstar who is here to stay. Tems won more people to her corner with her incredulous show of versatility. The GuiltyBeatz-produced “Burning” is a soothing song that has all the powers to brighten your day. “Turn Me Up” has the makings of a summer jam. Tems outdid herself on the up-tempo banger produced by London. She infused reggae adlibs that ensure you are vibed up from the beginning to the end.

The singer showed her greatness as an R&B artist but wasn’t scared to explore, as she ventured into dancehall, amapiano, afro-pop, and some reggae. She even tested her rap skills on “T-Unit,” where she nodded to 50 Cent’s “Candy Shop.” She stayed true to her sound and never left people questioning her intentions. The album’s production is top-notch. Most of the songs were produced by Tems and her longtime collaborator, GuiltyBeatz. Sarz produced “Get It Right,” P2J produced “Free Fall,” and London produced “Turn Me Up.” Other producers who contributed to the album include Nsikak David, DameDame, and Spax.

Tems’ Born In The Wild album is a project for those who strive to win. It is for those who go against all odds to find their true selves and enjoy the success that comes with victory. Like she sings in “Hold On,” just hold on, and that which you seek will find you. Tems has found herself and showed us what more she can do, but that is not where it stops — there is so much more to come.

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Sexyy Red “In Sexyy We Trust” Review

May 29, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Sexyy Red’s incredible musical journey, from the underground to the spotlight, has been nothing short of captivating. From “Pound Town” to “SkeeYee,” she has been heavy on rotation in the past year. Her new mixtape, In Sexyy We Trust, is a bold, provocative, and unapologetic project. It’s another club-ready project, picking up from 2023’s Hood Hottest Princess. This time, however, she attempts to raise the stakes.

Released on May 24, 2024, Sexyy Red’s latest project is a 14-track invitation into a hedonistic, energetic world, where playful vulgarity meets rhythmic beats. She explores themes of self-empowerment, sexuality, and independence, creating a mixtape that celebrates femininity, freedom of expression, and breaking societal norms. Sexxy has always been known for her explicit lyrics, and the mixtape showcases a fusion of sexuality, confidence, and humorous storytelling. In summary, it’s pretty much what you would expect from her.

Production And Collaborations

The beats on In Sexyy We Trust definitely push a few boundaries. Tay Keith and Drumatized, the executive producers, create a sonic experience that oscillates between trap and Memphis rap. Tay Keith, in particular, would praise Sexyy Red’s authenticity in his April 2024 interview with Billboard. He spoke about how much their genuine sibling-like relationship fuels the creative process for their collabs, saying, “She is just raw. It’s just authentic.” This is best exemplified in “Sport,” a track that stands out with its minimalist production, allowing Sexyy Red’s vocals to shine. These beats are the mixtape’s backbone, even when they venture into uncharted territory.

In Sexyy We Trust is chock full of features. Sexyy Redd’s collaborations with artists like VonOff1700, Drake, and Lil Baby add depth and diversity to the album. Moreover, they amplify the album’s musicality and appeal including Southern influences, like Project Pat, Juicy J, and Gucci Mane. But this doesn’t always work out as planned.

Drake’s appearance on “U My Everything” raises eyebrows. His verse is a complete antithesis to Sexxy Red’s mild attempts. To top it off, the abrupt switch from the captivating beat to his “BBL Drizzy” portion disrupts the song’s cohesion. In this one instance, Sexyy Red’s allure as an upcoming solo act has no need for a superstar featured hit bait. Nonetheless, they have evidently accepted their roles as Hip Hop’s latest pairing.

Sexyy Red Is At Her Most Lethal

The mixtape starts with three distinct songs. There’s “Tim Talking,” a bold energetic intro, which leads into “She’s Back,” a track that vibrates with inexplicable intensity, and “Boss Me Up,” where Tay Keith’s piano melodies amp up Sexyy Redd’s assertive verses. Sexuality is a prominent theme throughout the album, with tracks like “Lick Me” and “Boss Me Up” embracing provocative and explicit language. These songs also challenge traditional gender roles and stereotypes, portraying a sense of sexual liberation and agency.

A standout from the entire EP is “Outside,” which features a melodic fusion of vibraphones and hi-hats, courtesy of Mike WiLL Made-It. A boundary-pushing track, “Outside,” distinguishes itself with its innovative vocal edits. These are undoubtedly reminiscent of M.I.A’s dynamic style. The song is further enhanced by unexpected vocal interjections that surprisingly yet brilliantly set the stage for an electrifying beat drop. This sensual narrative also continues with “Sport,” a defiant anthem that precedes the swagger-filled “TTG (Go).”

It’s Not Always Easy To Trust Sexyy

Normally, Sexyy Red’s unique inflections usually set her apart. However, on this mixtape, they occasionally falter. Her disjointed delivery in certain tracks disrupts the flow altogether. While this could be a stylistic choice, it doesn’t always stick to the landing. For example, In Sexyy We Trust seems to suffer from repetition sickness. Some tracks blend into one another, leaving listeners yearning for more variety. The mixtape sometimes feels half-baked, like a rushed creation. With more time and focus, Sexyy Red could have elevated it beyond its current sporadic state. However, capitalizing on her increasing popularity is a notable accomplishment, especially since the EP undoubtedly has its high moments.

An Undeniable, Infectious Energy

When it’s all said and done, In Sexxy We Trust is inarguably a bold and unapologetic album that pushes boundaries, challenges norms, and celebrates individuality. The album’s overarching themes of confidence, sexuality, and resilience make it a standout piece in the contemporary rap scene. This in turn solidifies Sexyy Red as a rising gem in the music industry. Nobody can deny the infectious nature of her work, which will find its way to the depths of most clubs in the country. Her brash delivery and boastful lyrics echo the crunk era, evoking memories of sweaty club nights and bass-heavy speakers.

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Vince Staples “Dark Times” Album Review

May 28, 2024 by newhiphopnews

“It’s not that deep” might be one of Vince Staples’ favorite sentiments, whether in his recent Apple Music interview or when responding to overzealous fans online. The West Coast native has a beloved reputation for his upfront, earnest, and unfiltered perspective on hip-hop, commercialization, and the Black experience that is often perceived more comically than it should. What he says is not for shock value or nihilistic validation, but just a clear-cut explanation of why he views the world more cynically and skeptically than most. Vince always crystallizes reasons for this approach into his music, especially on his new album Dark Times.

This LP also serves as a bit of a sonic, emotive, and structural continuation of the ideas he championed in his last two solo studio albums. Vince Staples’ self-titled record was a moody deconstruction of his personal woes, beliefs, and demeanor whereas Ramona Park Broke My Heart nostalgically reflected on how the blessings and stresses of his upbringing in Long Beach shaped him. With Dark Times, he combines those two narratives to craft a more holistic, complete, and broad statement on history, temptation, and struggle as stormy clouds that are hard to strike light through in his life. Despite the sheer weight of this approach, the 30-year-old engages with it calmly and compellingly across a gorgeous sonic pallet that says much more in 35 minutes than most rap projects do in 70.

Dark Times‘ Production Lives Up To Its Title

Brevity and tightness are a staple of Vince’s recent catalog, and while Dark Times is not the most extreme example of this, it’s the most fully realized. Thanks to seamless song transitions, consistently watery and soulful instrumentals with wondrous sample selection, and a very consistent emotional temperature, this album feels carefully constructed and assembled in a no-frills, minimal way that makes it clear that this deliberation is the result of a focused mindset at the moment, not meticulous and over-explanatory planning. As far as the sound, even the “Liars” interlude holds some dreamy woodwinds and tender piano, a beauty which other moments like the subtle bass on “Shame On The Devil” reinforce. Even if the album can sound ominous, the guitar licks and peppy percussion on cuts like “Children’s Song” embody the blue skies in Ramona Park.

There are guest vocalists on here like Baby Rose, María Real, Maddy Davis, and Kilo Kish that add more color, harmony, and ethereal vibes to already pristine productions. As far as the personnel behind the board, LeKen Taylor and Tyler Page take over most of the beats, with Cardo, Jay Versace, Michael Uzowuru, and more also being big players. Yet the extensive production roster doesn’t dampen the cohesive flow of Dark Times, nor does it render its warm, cavernous sound redundant. Songs such as “Étouffée” give the album a welcome bounce to keep the energies afloat, while the pots-and-pans drums and wintery keys on “Nothing Matters” bring us back to concrete. In fact, even sparse, staccato notes on “Black&Blue” combine with organs to really make bare elements sound all the more lush, and the dreary but lyrically triumphant “Freeman” solidifies this “less is more” belief.

Vince Staples’ Lyricism

Over these beats, Vince Staples delivers sharp, relatable, blunt, and sometimes brutal bars on all the topics his catalog tackles. The lyrical matter (in this case, not directly from his pen) comments on systemic paradoxes and conflicting experiences, such as the short intro’s breezy wind chimes leading into lynching imagery: “To live is to be, like the n***a in the tree.” But it also invokes vast pop culture knowledge and boasts cheeky lines like, “I don’t need your flowers, I’m living / First time I seen a million dollars, I squinted.” Vince also flexes some storytelling muscles through the disillusionment of cheating on “Justin” and a conversation with an incarcerated friend on “Government Cheese.” The ode to music’s apologetic power on “‘Radio’” and the more positive and hopeful “Little Homies” flesh out the overall character portrait through specific periods of growth.

All in all, Vince Staples talks a lot about duality and misleading behaviors in Dark Times. Whether it’s his commentary on how disposable people treat romantic partnerships, or his thoughts on the cyclical violence and combative frame of mind that white institutions exploit, his skepticism is overt. Most interestingly, though, the “SAMO” spitter seems to flip the idea of “making it out” on its head. Whereas this would be a grateful escape for someone of his background, he actually can’t fathom how his fame wouldn’t make him more sensitive and hyper-aware of his hardships. But it’s also not as hopeless of a conclusion as you might expect. Rather than use the light to forget the dark times, this album appreciates and savors those sunny days while acknowledging there is always something murky and much more real and urgent underneath.

A Stellar Career In Sum

Empathy is a dangerous quality in Dark Times. It can falsely equate rich people’s problems to prison time, blind one to insincere romantic advances, and serve as a crutch for guilt, separation, and evolution. Vince Staples faces these contradictions with his head held high and an unflinching gaze. Still, through deepening that empathy and understanding of the less green grass he came from, someone of his stature and lived experience can characterize it. Much like the grounded selflessness and removal of ego that this comes from, the lyricism and sonic pallet here are easy to comprehend, but difficult to fully reckon with if you don’t share that 20/20 hindsight. Most importantly, they portray a man who “longs for loving and affection,” but chooses to value simplicity and familiarity in the face of once again placing misguided trust in justice, love, or safety.

Dark Times as an album is fulfilling despite its short runtime, and the somber but occasionally bright production and well-paced, measured writing go a long way to impress and evoke. But it’s also somewhat of a summary and acknowledgment of everything Vince Staples has waxed poetically about since his Def Jam debut over a decade ago. The “Blue Suede” synth returns here, and the closing bird chirps and background noise on the Santigold-assisted outro, “Why Won’t The Sun Come Out?,” bleeds perfectly back into the project’s opener, “Close Your Eyes And Swing.” This thematic distinction and journey is not a loop that Vince feels stuck in: it’s one that he’s just been patient with unpacking. It resulted in an amazing artistic run that, while “not that deep,” speaks volumes to the need to understand our world for ourselves, and ourselves alone.

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Rapsody “Please Don’t Cry” Album Review

May 24, 2024 by newhiphopnews

Amid the slew of clever, seamless, and versatile pop culture references on Rapsody’s new album Please Don’t Cry, one name gets a lot of particular love: Lauryn Hill. The buckets of ink spilled on the Fugees member’s ambivalence to the spotlight become moot when compared to the musings of a fellow femcee. Rather than equate this absence to some sort of contrived deficiency, the North Carolina native chose to question what are the forces that drive artists to that space in the first place. Her answer affirms that she will not choose that path, but find another one that can provide similar catharsis, self-love, and clarity in the hurricane of fame and acclaim.

Furthermore, the five-year studio album wait for Please Don’t Cry definitely feels justified due in large part to the personal weight and scope of its themes. Sonically and lyrically, Rapsody is as soulful, sharp, and wise as she’s ever been, bolstered by a more tranquil albeit unshifting sonic pallet. But the difference is that the approach to themes including identity, grief, Black plight, sexuality, familial bonds, romance, mental health, and many more is much more blunt, personal, and direct than the grander concepts and stories behind LPs like Laila’s Wisdom. While not every piece connects across this sprawling and dense project, its greatest achievement is not only the consistency of its quality, but also the compassion with which she translates her lived experience of growth into an equivalent body of work.

Please Don’t Cry‘s Beats Keep It Cool

Please Don’t Cry best characterizes this therapeutic approach through the calm cohesion of its production, which was mostly masterminded by BLK ODYSSEY, Major Seven, S1, Eric G, Hit-Boy, and more. The bread and butter is simple: warm bass, crisp percussion, heavenly background vocals, and light chords are all over this album. Not only does this create a lot of space, but it also highlights more subtle instrumentation in ways that more complicated beats would overshadow. Key examples are the fluttering guitar on “Look What You’ve Done,” the gentle woodwinds on “That One Time,” the watery synths on the cheeky self-love anthem “Lonely Woman,” and the wandering keys on the titular interlude. However, some deviations don’t hit as hard, such as the trite trap drum sequencing on “Black Popstar” with DIXSON or the boisterous “Back In My Bag.”

That’s not to say that this tracklist doesn’t switch up in compelling ways, though, as the reggae chiller “Never Enough” with Keznamdi and Nicole Bus proves. The important part is the stasis that Please Don’t Cry maintains when it returns to its boom-bap roots, and that ties Rapsody’s themes together with ease and gives them the atmosphere to really breathe and develop in. Any addition to that pallet feels earned and welcome, like Erykah Badu’s ethereal chorus on “3:AM,” a charismatic (yet terribly mixed) Lil Wayne verse on “Raw” with Niko Brim, and a killer g-funk Monica flip from Bee-B on “DND (It’s Not Personal).” Every piece lends a purpose to the overall thesis of self-betterment and self-consciousness, themes heavy enough to warrant calmer production curation. Of course, classically meditative sample worship on cuts like “God’s Light” and “Stand Tall” keeps the old-school hip-hop heads happy.

Rapsody Wipes Off Her Tears

If there’s any one thing that any rap listener should hone in on when it comes to Please Don’t Cry, it’s unmistakably Rapsody’s pen. Whereas the production keeps things level, she begins the album with songs like “Marlanna” and “Asteroids” that set up her identity, her perception of self, and the totality of her aspirations, fears, skills, and passions. Little by little, the album opens itself up with more specific details, like a rumination on police brutality on “He Shot Me” or a reckoning with a family member’s dementia (and also Alzheimer’s later on in the tracklist) on “Loose Rocks” with wonderful contributions from Alex Isley. While the lyricism is very impressive throughout (such as the standout “Clinging to society who always label me, but can’t define me quite entirely“), its graceful honesty and humility stands out here, not over-acrobatic wordplay or rhyme schemes.

Still, Please Don’t Cry sometimes spins its own wheels in place thematically or takes too jarring and sharp of a turn off-road. One example of the latter is the dramatic “Diary Of A Mad B***h” with Bibi Bourelly, though there’s also plenty of topical focus on other tracks to warrant these swerves from one theme to the next. There’s Baby Tate’s dreamy verse on “A Ballad For Homegirls,” which is all about cutting an unfaithful and toxic relationship out of your life, plus a Mantragold-assisted ode to… well, “Faith.” Family, God, self-worth, knowledge, and connection are the emotional pillars on this record, and Rapsody expertly links them across her life both in their totality and in their specificity. It’s also worth mentioning how much she praises many of her female industry peers, and rallies against double standards separating them.

“The Only Way Out Is In”

Maybe that conflict is one of the things that Lauryn Hill wanted to avoid, something that neither we nor Rapsody may never find the answer to. But at least we know that the 41-year-old is finding her answers with her head held high, a note that Please Don’t Cry beautifully summarizes. The album opened with “She’s Expecting You” with actress Phylicia Rashad, who presumably plays a hair stylist or, perhaps in practice, informal therapist of Marlanna Evans’. The closing track “Forget Me Not” with Amber Navran sees her return to Rashad despite her previous state of distress, confusion, and guilt. It’s a testament to perseverance, facing challenges head-on, and knowing oneself before pretending to know anything about the people around them.

There are plenty of obstacles in Rapsody’s way that only time could move away, such as illness, grief, fame, or systemic discrimination. But that doesn’t mean that she can’t act on those problems from a personal standpoint, or that she can’t put in the work to be at peace with the constant fight for brighter days the next morning. Please Don’t Cry is a very healing-centric and tender album in that sense, giving listeners the assurance that Rapsody sought in herself. It’s definitely not for the impatient, and some bloat can be cut out here and there, but it’s the earnest result of a lot of reflection and consideration on the connective tissue across her life. As Rapsody found, and as you might find too, illusions of self-loathing can eventually lead out of that darkness to our deepest truths.

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