Apr 28, 2016
A$AP Ferg’s sophomore album is a side of the artist his fans are not yet acquainted with. A side that gives us greater insight into the multi-talented rapper that he is. His debut Trap Lord introduced us to him as the hard-core hustler, with tracks like the infectious “Shabba” or the remix to his debut single “Work,” so in this album we expected more of the same thing. Not so.
The album opens with the aptly-named “Rebirth” that ushers in the change Ferg has apparently undergone over the three years. In it he speaks about fame, and how circumstances have resulted in him becoming the “Hood Pope,” noting the perils of success, stating it isn't at all what everyone thinks it to be. "I ain’t rich like they think cause I copped me one mink," he states in one verse.
Next, we have “Hungry Ham” featuring Crystal Caines with Skrillex. It’s an ode to Ferg's hometown of Harlem, New York City. In an interview with Complex, he says it is so titled because "everybody over there go ham for their hungriness," and talks about his rap dreams which, at the time, were nothing more than a dream. His collaboration with Missy Elliot comes next but sounds more like the few made-for-radio-play tracks on the album. While the chorus is strong, his verse is unusually lackluster. Missy is relatively better, however she too abandons her hardcore hustler facade for something closer to the mainstream pop realm.
What follows is a tidbit we recently heard on the “Let It Bang” video. Earworm number “Psycho” is a well-told story of Ferg’s erratic uncle who he looked up to in his childhood. Ferg shows that although Uncle Psycho created a stressful environment for everyone around him, he had nothing but the utmost admiration and reverence for him. It serves well to usher in his Schoolboy Q collaboration which is a typical Q hard hitter, similar to his new single “Groovy Tony."
The next few tracks are reminiscent of the Frankie P productions we heard on Trap Lord. We have “New Level” featuring Future at his most coherent, which works surprisingly well. Next, we have “Yammy Gang” featuring his A$AP Mob cohorts and excerpt of a speech from Tatianna Paulino, the mother of their late founder, A$AP Yams. “Swipe Life” is a banger, while “Uzi Gang” shifts the spotlight over to Lil Uzi Vert more so than Ferg himself.
Ferg then diverts from his trap identity to a more meaningful, J Cole-esque lyricism. “Let You Go” and “Grandma” have the raw emotion more typical of MCs like Logic, while the soul-imbued “Beautiful People” is reminiscent of Anderson .Paak’s Malibu. “World is Mine” and “I Love You”, with their pop-style rapper collaborations (Big Sean, Ty Dolla $ign, Chris Brown) are more of the same comfortable, radio-ready pieces, with the former much better than the latter.
All in all, the album feels like it was designed to cater to a wide variety of listeners. Some songs are destined to be, if not already, bumping from high school dorms, others on breakfast radio and more still for late night club floors. While the sheer variety, not to mention collaborations and styles can feel overwhelming, and indeed some meaning is lost throughout, it works out for the Harlem MC. A$AP Ferg is growing as an artist by exploring the vast expanse of his music capabilities and for that alone, we have to commend him. He does indeed, strive and prosper.
Image: Complex