THE LIFE OF PABLO
I remember standing on the mountaintop championing Kendrick Lamar's To Pimp a Butterfly & I'm not saying that I've removed myself from that position, but man...the new Kanye The Life of Pablo is a MAGNIFICENT piece of art! I've been waiting for someone to come & knock K-Dot off his perch, not because of dislike, but because I wanted to see who would emerge from the arena of hip hop & take my eargasm to another level! I know longer have to laud TPAB...the 11 Grammy nominations & 5 trophies spoke volumes! I know...I know...FUCK the Grammys...but at least that shit isn't on the Oscars level!!! Now, I won't sit here & lie like there wasn't any good projects that came after TPAB...The Game did the idiot w/The Documentary 2, Wale's The Album About Nothing was spectacular...J. Cole's 2014 Forest Hills Drive was superb...Fabolous' Summertime Shootout is my shittt (just to name a few)! I'm a Yeezy head (like frfr) & he's never put out anything I didn't acquire an appreciation for (biased...I know...but fuck it lol) so I was literally like a kid on Xmas waiting for the new project! Folks soured on Yeezus & I ovastood...some just wasn't ready for that one...but imo...it was one of his best offerings...then along comes...The Life of Pablo! For all of those who can't get passed the rants, him being married to KK, Taylor Swift admirers, I like the old Kanye, etc, etc....exit NOW; this isn't for you! This is for the one's who despite all of the aforementioned, still give his music an ear.
The Life of Pablo may drift like a dense piece of wood in a heavy stream simply because it's only offered at one spot...Tidal! You know...the music streaming service that Jay-Z purchased...you know...the service that Samsung is reportedly willing to offer up to a billion to own? Oh okay...you don't fuck w/Hov...I get it (another story for another day).
Back to the program....
Kanye simply outdid himself on this project! Everyone has been waiting to hear something similar to the Trilogy (The College Dropout, Late Registration, & Graduation)...ummm...newsflash...true ARTISTS...never conform & get stuck in our little box; they keep innovating & raising the bar! Kanye has been doing that every since he dropped 808s & Heartbreak...increasing the temperature with every pulsating beat & soul sample that he rebirths! From the very first track..."Ultralight Beam" ft. Chance the Rapper, Kelly Price, & Kirk Franklin...the intro stems from one of the more popular social media videos of a little princess preaching the gospel...which (in my opinion) sets the whole tone of the album. There's NEVER been a harsher critic of Yeezy than...Yeezy! He pulls back the curtains & peels off the layers from the beginning to his current. He incorporates some of the best talent in the industry then proceeds to show up & show out! Rihanna, Desiigner (mistaken for Future), Frank Ocean, Chris Brown, Kid Cudi, Swizz Beats, Travis Scott, Kendrick Lamar, Young Thug, The Dream, Post Malone, Weekend, Ty Dolla $ign, & the infamous Andre 3000...hell he even found El DeBarge to make an appearance...go figure! I might be leaving somebody out, but not on purpose. Whatever you've ever came to like about Ye musically...he puts it all in one pot & pours it into porcelain bowls for the serving; I mean...how can you FAIL w/such a lineup?!?! Just when I thought TPAB had penetrated the very fabric of hip hop musically...TLOP came thru & tipped the scale! Now I will admit, you'll have to give it a few listens to get into it but after you're there...this will go to the top of your rotation! Sonically...this shit is on another level, but I don't expect anything less from Ye! He's back to giving us the classic verses that we've longed for, still giving us timeless music, & forever bringing together some of the best talent that we would never hear assembled on one project! He's still singing, still using auto tune, still saying crazy shit, still giving us the WOW factor, & on top of all of that...still remaining the dude we all fell in love with upon hearing 'Through The Wire'! I'm not going to go into every song, but some of the standout tracks...Ultralight Beam, Famous, Waves, Real Friends, 30 Hrs, Wolves, & No More Parties In L.A. could've been dropped as an EP alone. Weaving in & out of his timeline is like watching the 'Best Of...' whatever your favorite tv show is; it's literally like listening to the soundtrack of a movie....just like TPAB...only better (and that's hard for me to utter)! If you ever stumble upon Tidal...this should be the very first thing you allow to penetrate your ears! And despite what Billboard or any other numbers chaser, those who can't get passed the rants, him being married to KK, Taylor Swift admirers, I like the old Kanye, etc, etc. may say...this is currently the best hip hop offering right now...hands down! He's been holdin' it down over 10 yrs. now, but it seems more like 20...meaning...he's never been removed from our presence...every since he made his...PRESENCE!
Let the HATE start in 5...4...3...2...GOOOO!
#beVocal
