The album-of-the-year conversation will soon be upon us, and while plenty of prominent projects have landed in recent months, there are many who have been keeping Lloyd Banks’ The Course Of The Inevitable heavy on rotation — including a few prominent rap names like Travis Scott, J. Cole, Busta Rhymes, Raekwon, and many more.
In fact, Banks’ first studio album since 2010 served as a welcome breath of fresh air who still actively pine for the sound of the golden era, thanks largely in part to the project’s lineup of producers. For the occasion, Banks opted to stick largely to the underground, enlisting beatmakers like ENCORNELIOUS, Cartune Beatz, Rxnway, Nothing But M’s, The Olympicks, Dual Output, Chase N. Cashe, Fruition Beats, Mr. Authentic, Tha Jerm, and more.
Lisa Lake/Getty Images
While Banks handled the bars impeccably as expected, many were quick to praise the project’s production across the board. So much so that Banks took to Twitter to shake his head at those who dared doubt his musical instincts. “To think..some of y’all actually questioned my choice of production on COTI before the 1st listen..smh,” writes Banks, slyly reminding the masses how cohesive The Course Of The Inevitable truly is.
He’s certainly not the first lyrical beast to be plagued with criticism regarding production choices. Though it currently feels hard to believe given his creative chemistry with Hit-Boy, there was once a time when Nas was faced with a similar assessment in some circles. In any case, Banks clearly believed in his vision, and damned if it didn’t pay off. Do you think The Course Of The Inevitable is a contender for the album of the year in 2021?