A Review of YG's "4REAL 4REAL"
Compton rapper YG looks to build off his 2018 album, “STAY DANGEROUS” with the release of his 2019 album, “4REAL 4REAL.” Overall, I liked “STAY DANGEROUS,” because its inclusion of Hip-Hop sounds and trends from Atlanta made it fit in with the current landscape of Hip-Hop while also showing YG’s ability to excel with a sound that differs from the default west coast sound he displayed throughout the earlier years of his career. However, “STAY DANGEROUS” left me with questions about how YG’s sound would change as he continues his career. “4REAL 4REAL” looks to give us some answers with YG releasing it just nine months after “STAY DANGEROUS.” For the release of this album, YG dropped off two singles, the first titled “Stop Snitchin” and the second titled “Go Loko” featuring Tyga and Jon Z. “Go Loko” had the most success out of the two singles because of its distinct Mexican feel to it. Looking at the tracklist for the album and both songs are included amongst the total 14 tracks on the album which make up about 47 minutes of music. Tyga, Jon Z, Valee, Boogie, Rose Gold, Meek Mill, Arin Ray, SAFE, Kamaiyah, G-Eazy, RJ, Mitch, Ty Dolla $ign, Day Sulan and DaBaby all appear as features throughout nine of the fourteen songs on the album. The number of features interests me because of the potential impact each feature could have on the overall sound of the album. Without further ado, let’s get to the review!
Categories
The songs on this album divided into four lanes that are prevalent throughout the project
West Coast Storytelling
“Hard Bottoms & White Socks” (1.5), “Keshia Had a Baby” ft. Rose Gold (1.5), “Heart 2 Heart” ft. Meek Mill, Arin Ray & Rose Gold (1.5), “Play Too Much” ft. SAFE (1.5), “Her Story” ft. Day Sulan (1)
Songs with an intense focus on the stories told within the lyrics.
Turn Up Beats
“Bottle Service” (1), “Stop Snitchin” (1), “I Was On The Block” ft. Valee & Boogie (.5), “Do Not Disturb” ft. Kamaiyah & G-Eazy (1), “Do Yo Dance” ft. Kamaiyah, RJ, Mitch, &Ty Dolla $ign (1), “Stop Snitchin (Remix)” ft. DaBaby (1)
Songs with a less intense focus on the lyrics. Bass driven beats, catchy lyrics and a more turn up vibe are found within this section.
A Unique Sound
“In The Dark” (1.5), “Go Loko” ft. Tyga & Jon Z (1)
Songs with unique components that set them apart from the other songs on the album.
RIP Nipsey Hussle
“My Last Words (Nipsey Tribute)”
YG’s eulogy during the funeral of deceased rapper Nipsey Hussle. Long Live Nip, The Marathon Continues!
Must Listen Songs
The concept of Must Listen songs are the songs that would give the best overview of the album as a whole. Songs that stand out for reasons to be described in the pending descriptions of the songs.
"Hard Bottoms & White Socks"
The intro track to YG’s “4REAL 4REAL” starts off with a smooth bassline with a proper introduction to YG before YG comes in with the hook to the song. YG’s hook has some of his known repetitiveness within the hook with him ending every line of the hook with “I’m the face of it.” The verses remind the listener of YG’s ability to rap with him rapping about how he feels about his place at this point of his career. One line that stands out to me comes when YG raps, “When you think about the West, it’s me and Nip, red and blue, nigga” at the end of the first verse. This line pays tribute to the deceased Nipsey Hussle who was a pillar in the LA community for his music, most notably his Grammy-nominated debut album “Victory Lap” as well as his activism and investments within the community. The beat produced by Lil Rich has a boom bap feel to it which comes from a soft bass line and hard kick along with a background soft piano. One feature I would have liked to see on this beat is Snoop Dogg. The song is a great intro song to the album, setting the tone with its storytelling.
"Bottle Service"
The second track produced by Mustard and CuBeatz gives us a party vibe with the high-pitched piano, bass, and fast-paced high hats. YG holds his own on this beat with solid verses, however, the story of the song for me is what he does between each of his verses. Instead of a hook, we get an interlude of a demanding woman, who talks about what she wants in a man. The inclusion of this interlude adds to YG’s lyrics about his ability to get any girl he wants.
"In The Dark"
The third track produced by Mustard has a bass driven beat with the high hats and that tempo that causes the listener to bump their head, which is typical in a Mustard beat. The story of this song is what YG does with his cadence on the hook with his repetition of the words “in the dark.” When delivering this hook, YG appropriately whispers in his cadence which adds more catchiness to the already catchy hook. This adds to the verses where YG raps about things that would happen in the dark which executes the topic of the song well.
"Go Loko" ft. Tyga & Jon Z
The fourth track and second single to YG’s “4REAL 4REAL.” The beat, produced by Mustard and GYLTTRYP has a distinct sound most similarly to Mexican music, because of the use of the Mexican guitar in the background of the bass, and high hats. There’s also a sound of a chair rocking back and forth within the beat that is subtle but adds more to the beat. The hook and verses by YG and Tyga use adlibs well within each verse and the hook allowing the beat to rock out between lines in each verse. The feature by Jon Z adds to the overall Spanish feel with Jon Z rapping in Spanish.
"Keshia Had A Baby" ft. Rose Gold
Track seven on YG’s “4REAL 4REAL” produced by DJ Swish gives the feel of a mid-2000’s song. The piano, slow pace of the high hats along with an R&B singer, Rose Gold adlibbing throughout YG’s verses and hook provide the throwback vibe. The storytelling within the song by YG about a girl named Kiesha and her relationships with two men which take place over the duration of the song is done well in a way that’s easy for the listener to follow.
Final Review
YG’s “4REAL 4REAL” may be YG’s best album to date, with the only contest coming from his debut, “My Krazy Life.” The mix of vibes present on the album from the calmness of “Heart 2 Heart” ft. Meek Mill, Arin Ray, and Rose Gold, to the party vibe of “Go Loko” ft. Tyga and Jon Z come together perfectly. Both vibes are clearly different but at the same time have elements that make each song flow with the other. The storytelling throughout the album from the intro track to Day Sulan’s verse on “Her Story” was executed beautifully. I also thought the inclusion of YG’s eulogy to Nipsey Hussle was a nice touch to the storytelling aspect of the album, following the words on the album art that reads “In Loving Memory of Nipsey Hussle.” The production throughout the album, done by committee, is done exceptionally well. YG’s use of many producers kept the album fresh with each producer adding their own spin on YG’s idea of how he wanted the album to sound. The features were executed well throughout the album, however, I didn’t like the inclusion of Boogie on “I Was On the Block” and G-Eazy on “Do Not Disturb.” I think both songs would have been stronger without those verses because they didn’t seamlessly fit into the vibe of each song. Boogie and G-Eazy were both the third verse on each respective song and didn’t do the job of finishing each respective song strongly. YG’s ability to create an effortless repetitive hook shines through for the duration of the album, especially on the songs “In The Dark” and “Do Yo Dance” ft. Kamaiyah, RJ, Mitch & Ty Dolla $ign. Overall, “4REAL 4REAL” has the feeling of a classic album making it a top five Hip-Hop album thus far into 2019.
Scoring
Raw Score: The number of good songs on a project versus the overall amount. Songs must have a +1 or above to be counted.
Quality Score: The total amount of points accumulated over the total amount of songs.
Playback value: The resonance an album is perceived to have if played again in full. Scale out of 5.
Raw Score: 12/13
Quality Score: 16/13
Playback Value: 5/5
Go out and listen to YG’s “4REAL 4REAL” wherever you listen to your music. Also, don’t forget to check out OLDMLK’s Instagram page (@OLDMLK) and Twitter (@OLDMLKDOTCOM) for updates on OLDMLK.COM: The Most Essential Hip Hop Blog, The OLDMLK.Com Playlist, The OLDMLK Radar and more!
