Kevin Gates - Islah

Kevin Gates
Islah
2016
Spotify

Some rappers are known for their lyrical skill, others for their ability to create catchy tunes but there is a third group who's aggression is their greatest asset. It is the debate that has gone on forever 2Pac vs. Biggie. Biggie may have been the better lyricist but it was 2Pac's brute force that made him a legend. It is in that third party that Kevin Gates finds himself. His music is not about catchy hooks, or flossing instead it is about just how hard he can push, and on this new record Islah he pushes quite hard. "Really Really" the first single off the album is just a constant stream of words most of which are Kevin proving to you just who He is, whether you like it or not. The next rack however "2 Phones" has a very real yet appealing quality. The melody is well done in it's own right, but the real greatness is Kevin's voice. This theme continues throughout the record with Gates having technically only one song, "Jam", with real big name features. This record is a wall of Kevin Gates and it is better for it. Islah is perhaps one of the best gangster rap albums we have heard in awhile  but sheer force is not the only thing this album has going for it.

What is really interesting is with a sound this intense you would expect one note of gangster shit throughout the record, but Gates is wide open and vulnerable on many of these tracks. On "Pride" He discusses his commitment phobia and his love for little moments in his life that have meant so much. He is able to balance his aggression and tenderness in a really great way. The Deluxe version of this record is 17 tracks which for an album that does not have much in the way of difference in the tracks can be a bit much, but there is so much to like that the time really just flies by. "The Truth" is just that, Kevin Gates telling you exactly what his life is and exactly what that means to him. A lot of times you would assume that a track titled "The Truth" would be full of blustering and a heavy dash of bullshit but that simply is not the case here nor in Kevin Gates' music at all. "Jam" is the one song where the features come in to play including Jamie Foxx, TY Dolla $ign and Trey Songz. The track is ok but it lacks that real emotional depth that Gates is able to reach when he is on his own. Islah shows what a complicated life can look and sound like, it is a slice of what a person is really going through and for that it is important.

8.4 out of 10