After nearly two and a half years of waiting, rapper and trap innovator Playboi Carti has officially released his sophomore album, Whole Lotta Red. After countless teases and hype train chug-a-longs, Whole Lotta Red came out Christmas morning.
Expectations have been high since day one. With Carti releasing his self-titled mixtape, and 2018 studio debut Die Lit, the task of making an album that followed up the expectation of past releases was a daunting task. While his Self Titled was a mash of ideas, with Carti still trying to find his sound, Die Lit was a masterpiece. Between high energy bangers and emotionally backed cuts with surprisingly profound meaning, Die Lit is like no other. Not to mention, the innovation on a genre that has been oversaturated for the past few years was clearly no feat to scoff at.
Whole Lotta Red is something that is completely unique and different from any trap album with mainstream attention, though. This album is executively produced by Kanye West, which surprisingly doesn’t shine through. The production is grimy, punk and electric. The album starts with highlight “Rockstar Made” with an electronic beat that the bass flows through as if it’s a Lil B album, with Carti’s incredibly infectious delivery in it. After this, you hear “Go2DaMoon” with Kanye West featured.
This is one of Kanye’s first verses of the entire year, and it has his signature wordplay and flow, which is always a blessing for any album.
After this, “Stop Breathing” plays, with Carti’s repetitive “I take my shirt off and then the h**s stop breathing!” Carti yells as if he’s been performing for hours already. By this point in the album, it’s clear this will be a truly new trap experience, with a totally new style to it that hasn’t been explored…until now. It’s sure to produce copycats and innovated further, despite Carti metaphorically rising from the grave to save the genre.
Banger after banger plays, with “Beno!” likely to be blaring in my car speakers for the foreseeable future.
“M3temorphesis” arrives, with Kid Cudi pulling off a surprisingly consistent feature considering his highly inconsistent recent releases, even if the song is overall just a bit long winded.
“N3w Tank” is another highlight of the album, with an extremely experimental sound to it that hooks you from the first seconds with Carti’s, “Wake up, filthy” production tag. Carti delivers these bars like he’s out of breath, with the same energy of a heavy metal singer. The song also offers a hilarious line of, “They thought I was gay” which has been a running joke for the past few years in the Playboi Carti community.
While “Meh” is a bit of a low point in the album, considering the beat is slightly weak, the flow and lyrics don’t necessarily feel out of place in the grand scheme of the album.
“Vamp Anthem” makes up for the slight speed bump that is “Meh” with a genius vampire-organ sample to it. The looping organ makes you feel as if you are rising out of the coffin to do a thriller-like jig and milly rock.
Over the course of the two years leading up to the release, Playboi Carti’s albums were likely scrapped numerous times over the many many leaks that came out. Despite these struggles, a couple famous leaks found themselves onto the album; “Plac3” and “N3on”, both of which gathered millions of views and streams on youtube and other sites.
After the final tracks finish up, all exciting, unique, and new in their own way, the final track “F33l Lik3 Dyin” is a soulful, melancholy, and touching track that updates listeners on carti’s mental health and his yearning for love and deep affection.
Overall, Whole Lotta Red is a new take on a genre that is grasping for a new take. While some few flaws bubble to the top of listeners mind, it’s amazingly consistent, and feels majorly like the future of trap as a whole, and undoubtedly Carti’s best work to date.
Available for streaming:
