First of all, it's absurd how a pretty much B side album still is better than almost everything that others rappers do. This album could arguably be higher, I just thought that everything above it was more cohesive. This album builds on the style he created in To Pimp a Butterfly. It's so raw and almost minimalistic at times, it has some groove but his bars still bang hard. Track 7 is legendary. The album tackles a lot of political themes and has a lot of clever wordplay and doesn't shove everything in your face. King Kendrick, that is
I really don't think the album got the praise it deserved. It definitely doesn't feel as cohesive or as hard hitting/accessible as Oxymoron but I really enjoyed this project from front to back. THat Part is an instant classic. Ride Out is another great track that bangs hard. And of course fucking E-40 is a legend and having him on Dope Dealer was wonderful. A lot of these features are great, and I think Schoolboy does a good job of showing his diversity in production and different styles, there are some rock samples, some groovy jazzy cuts, and bangers mixed in. The only track I really didn't like was Overtime, just way too poppy and glittery for me. I think the part the album is lacking is really much cohesiveness or a story but the tracks were great so that makes it up for me.
6. Kanye West - The Life of Pablo
The long awaited album from Yeezy. It's not MBDTW but obviously I don't think we should expect him to reach that level. I think he's at a point in his career where he's proven he can make a perfect album/track and now he's just experimenting, which is fine. I think that's most shown on his first track, Ultralight Beam. Easily one of the perfect/best Kanye tracks of all time. Really beautiful, definitely proves that he still is pushing the envelope. Father Stretch my Hands, Famous (amazing banger), Real Friends, No More Parties in LA, and Facts are some of my favorite tracks. Some of the other tracks are a little more experimental and not really my cup of tea. Overall its a dece project.
Honorable mentions:
-Gucci Mane - Everybody Looking
First tape since getting out of prison. Sounds much more focused then his previous work recently. Good for him for getting clean, def improved his music and hustle imo. It's not on the level of Trap House, but it's pretty hard to reach that peak again. Lots of great features and some icy cold tracks, burr. A lot of tracks will have a permanent home on my Bangers playlist
7. DJ Khaled - Major Key
Definitely has a lot of great tracks (I Got the Keys, For Free, Nas Album Done, Holy Key (one of the best Kendrick features of the year imo) but it has a lot of shitters on it. The R&B/slow jam tracks are just so bad and ulistenable to, they drag on a lot. But that's not to discount the great tracks. Great production that bangs hard
-Anderson Paak - Malibu
Definitely an interesting sound. Mixes lots of influences from R&B, Soul, Hip Hop, and more. Pretty funky. Really interesting production IMO, definitely smooth as butter. A little boring at times but still an overall enjoyable project
-Kaytandra - 99.9%
Great track with Vic Mensa. Definitely great production, he really shows his strength/versatility in a lot of different styles. It is a little spacy at times and isn't the most coheisve project, but I still think that's fine. Some tracks are kinda unfocused and dull at times. But it's enjoyable and I'm curious to see what else he's got.
AND BAM! That's 2016 wrapped up. Just in time :craig:
