Music Moose

Playboi Carti has become a sort of cult hero within hip-hop after his breakout ‘Magnolia’ and 2018’s ‘Die Lit’, inevitably leading to this point. December 25^th couldn’t have come any sooner. 859 days after Carti first announced he was working on his sophomore album, fans finally have the most anticipated album in recent memory; ‘Whole Lotta Red’. The album cover sets the tone throughout the album, as the cover pays homage to Los Angeles based publication ‘Slash’ which covered the underground punk scene in the late 70’s. Carti’s new punk guise isn’t that much of a surprise since his 2018 debut ‘Die Lit’ depicted the rapper crowd diving into a mosh pit, suggesting Carti was always a punk at heart despite his animated persona. Whole Lotta Red finds the Atlanta crooner steer away from the vibrant psychedelic sounds we have come to love but embrace a more darker sound.

Hip-hop’s love for rock has always been a huge staple within the genre since its creation. Artist such as Kid Cudi have called rock music their first love despite being a rapper. Hip-hop’s embrace of rock has been evident during the 2010’s with artist like XXXTENTACION and Juice Wrld blurring the lines between the two genres. Carti much like his contemporaries is experimenting with his sound in order to give hip-hop the firsts of it’s kind; a punk-trap album.

The intro ‘Rockstar Made’ sets the tone for the aesthetic the album is going for. From its chiptune synths and distorted 808’s, Carti reveals his inner Rockstar as he emphasizes being “Rocktare made”. In comparison to Die Lit’s introduction, Carti is no longer the blasé stoner.

‘Stop breathing’ further channels the rappers evolution, with Carti’s vocal being more raw and aggressive throughout the record.

‘Whole Lotta Red’ consists of two main themes; Carti embracing his punk persona and his admission of being a vampire. The album tracklist is littered with Dracula references as ‘No Sl33p’ and ‘Vamp Anthem’ find vampire clichés. ‘Vamp Anthem’ even goes as far as sampling gothic organs; shout out to Kanye ensuring Carti’s vision is met sonically, which definitely gives the album a spookier feel and would’ve been a marketing success if released during Halloween.

Nevertheless, highlights from the album can be found on ‘King Vamp’; Carti channels his inner vampire as well as remain loyal to his unique sound. It’s euphoric feel but yet dark message gives me the urge to blare “when the sun goes down, yeah it’s hard to creep” whilst raving; a feat only Carti is capable of. ‘Slay3r’ is another highpoint from the album, it’s ear-pleasing production to Carti’s silky-smooth flow can only be described as Carti being in his ‘bag’. Unlike his contemporaries, Carti’s ability to use his voice in order to create a psychedelic ambience remains unmatched, the 14^th track ‘Control’ feeds into this narrative.

Nonetheless, criticism of the album seem to remain consistent throughout Carti’s discography. “JumpOutTheHouse” stagnant performance can be viewed as too repetitive; even for an artist like Carti. After 10 seconds the record has already reached its climax despite the instrumental remaining interesting. This follows on the Kid Cudi assisted ‘M3tamorphosis’; not even Cudi’s warm hums could save the track’s misery.

The features of the album are sparse unlike ‘Die Lit’, which isn’t necessarily a bad thing but could’ve added more depth to Carti’s ideas. Kanye’s feature on Go2DaMoon serve as a funny juxtapose between Carti being lucifer and Kanye’s love of God. The beat switches between their verses find their respective sounds cater to one another. Future builds on this note as he does his best impersonation of Carti’s famous baby voice as they discuss their use of titular intoxicants on the drug-fueled anthem ‘Teen X’.

Overall, ‘Whole Lotta Red’ is a step in a new direction for Carti’s artistry. Although Carti does cater to his day one fans with ‘Beno!’ and ‘Place’, it’s clear Carti is evolving into something we haven’t seen; a punk trap-star. However, the albums aesthetic could’ve been delivered better sonically if Carti had chosen to work exclusively with Pierre Bourne, as the two have showed undeniable chemistry. On other hand, Carti working with multiple producers like Kanye did thrust him out his comfort zone; fans could easily be divided due to Carti’s decision to do so. Furthermore, the second half of the album had more succinct ideas and featured production we have come to expect from Carti. But ultimately the main question is ‘did Carti live up to the hype ?’ – the answer may vary depending on the listener, but from what I’ve concluded, the streaming era has put pressure on artists to release every six months to match demand of the consumers. This fast-food approach does put pressure on artist who have taken long breaks from music and causes fans to have an unrealistic expectation of what to expect going forward. All in all, Carti’s long await and leaks from his camp inevitably hindered the albums success before it’s release. The album is definitely the first of its kind and in years to come could be herald as an innovator much like ‘Yeezus’. Currently ‘Whole Lotta Red’ is Carti’s most versatile piece of work to date, but still features his infamous sound. However, If you are expecting complex rhyme schemes this is certainly not the album for you.