21 Savage - i am > i was

21 Savage
i am > i was
2018
Spotify

21 Savage and Travis Scott have a lot in common. They both have super unique voices in a genre that continues to get more and more crowded. I don't know how many trap drums with cathedral style music behind it I have heard this year, but it has been a hell of a lot. When Kendrick released DAMN it was a revelation, something that wasn't new, but done at the highest level. This new album from 21 Savage continues his legacy as a unique voice, but his lyrical content seems to be taking a dip. Does he have guns? Yes. He talks about it all the mother fucking time. There is even a track here called "gun smoke" where, you guessed it, He talks about the guns He has and how his haters should be afraid. There is SO much posturing on this record, so much trying to prove himself that He never actually gets into any kind of real message. With this in mind you almost have to drown out the lyrics and just ride to the beat. 21 Savage stays in his lane in an odd way on this album, even recording a track with Post Malone "all my friends" likely trying to recreate their success on Post's hit "Rockstar". The problem with going back is that it's never as good as the original and the case is the same here. It's frustrating because throughout the record there will be these songs that transcend this box He has put himself in and those are the ones that truly soar.

One of these tracks is "asmr". The beat, the flow and everything else feels easy and smooth. The second half of the album shifts it into another more subtle gear. The flossing takes a backseat to some more heartfelt emotions like on "ball w/o you" a song about love lost. The beats also shift from the normal into a more avante garde stance. This is where 21 Savage shines, He needs to be different from everyone else or who would care? The last seven tracks are so much better than the first 8 it is almost shocking. The lull of uninterest the first half gets you into is smashed with finally an electric shot of life. "good day" with Schoolboy Q flips some old school gangster rap on it's head creating this blend of trap and G-funk that feels super new and exciting. "pad lock" also has a similar "hard to love" vibe as 21 sings "heart so cold got a padlock padlock padlock". The true standout here comes on "monster" with the first Childish Gambino feature of 2018. It's a truly inspired track with the two rappers bouncing all over the place. When 21 Savage actually has something to say He feels almost unstoppable. Half of this record, the front half, is so boring and mundane the second half almost gives you the bends it's so good. An uneven record to say the least, but it still has plenty of hits that you will be hearing for awhile. If He would have made it 10 tracks instead of 15 He would have had a bonafide hit on his hands.

7.0 out of 10