Again, that perfectionism is on display most with his battle-rapping Ol’ Dirty Bastard homage “Shimmy,” on which he shouts out actor Dennis Haysbert with one of the funniest lines of the year, reminds his competition to pay their taxes, and flips a reference to classic Black cinema into an urge to check out one of the most pioneering musicians in African music. Switching from his mischievous rap flow to a ‘70s soul-influenced croon, Aminé frames his racial rumination around a piece of near-universal advice for Black kids everywhere: “Mama said, ‘Don’t ever bring a white girl home to me.’”Īminé said he was most proud of that latter aspect, often re-writing verses over and over to ensure there were no weaknesses in his bar work. On Limbo, he repeats the feat with “Becky,” a glittering, soulful meditation on race relations that remains timely despite being the first song recorded for the project two years ago. He even accompanied the project’s unveiling with a clever complement: At various release parties throughout the country, he gave away copies of a complete newspaper filled with articles written by his friends, family, and Aminé himself.Īnd while the overall tone of the project was breezy, sunny, and upbeat, Aminé wasn’t afraid to tackle heavier subject matter from oblique angles, like “Turf” and its empathetic view of the ongoing gentrification of Aminé’s hometown, Portland. Every song on Good For You has its own concept or story, and all the songs together create a multifaceted reflection of the artist himself. Aside from diligently detailing the aesthetics he wanted for the rollout, he also resisted the urge to chase the success of his breakout single “Caroline” with a dozen or so clones. This is the kind of patience that yields tremendous results and Limbo’s finished product is all the evidence you’d need to prove it’s an objectively better way to record than just emailing files back and forth.Īminé first displayed his tendency toward artistic perfectionism with his 2017 debut album Good For You. On a Zoom call to discuss the creation of the project, Aminé related holding onto the beat for “Roots,” against JID’s insistence that he text it for over six months. Today’s constant content churn would never have allowed him to insist on recording all the album’s features in person with his various collaborators. However, were it not for Aminé’s 2018 EP/Mixtape OnePointFive, he wouldn’t have been able to create Limbo. In contrast, Limbo - the title of Aminé’s second official studio album - is a refreshing throwback to the days when artists still cared about a vision more than streams and Billboard. It’s an anomaly in today’s rap release climate, where seemingly every major star drops off 20-plus tracks per project, then follows up a month later with 10 more “deluxe” edition throwaways. You wouldn’t think it to look at the tracklist, a trim 14 tracks, including one interlude. It took Aminé over two years to complete his sophomore album. Inclusion in this category is the highest distinction we can bestow, and signals the most important music being released throughout the year. The RX is Uproxx Music’s stamp of approval for the best albums, songs, and music stories throughout the year.
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