It feels like no month has been disappointing for music listeners this year. Now we are looking forward to an abundant month of May for hip-hop listeners, with two longtime artists in the industry dropping long-awaited albums. Isaiah Rashad dropped on May 1st, and Drake is dropping on May 15th.
It’s Been Awful is Isaiah Rashad’s 4th studio album. Rashad is a hip/hop and rap artist who has only dropped 3 albums since his first album, Cilvia Demo. Now he is adding a fourth. Rashad’s discography is very consistent
with some standout projects like Cilvia Demo and The Sun’s Tirade, featuring some deep and meaningful hip/hop performances.
Rashad is known for his soulful and honest vocals regarding his own personal problems layered on top of expressive jazz-inspired lo-fi beats.
Sophomore music enthusiast Kenneth Cameron-Antonucci felt impressed with what Rashad was trying to prove with this album. He said, “In the first couple of tracks he was trying to prove who he was and his stature and role in the industry. It is also a more laid back album, allowing the slow sound to reflect his feelings.”
Now, Rashad is back with a bang. It’s Been Awful is everything I expected and love from Rashad. He sticks to his melodic and soulful singing that is full of truth. Songs like Boy In Red (feat. SZA) feature Rashad’s slow singing that I enjoy so much from his raspy-ish voice.
SZA, one of the most prevalent female artists in the music industry right now with 70 million listeners a month on Spotify, adds her own melodic voice to the track. I really enjoy how Rashad formatted this album. He mixes his usual slower songs that remind me of Cilvia Demo with rapping songs that remind me of The Sun’s Tirade. Listening to the slow songs felt like a warm light in a dark room, allowing so much thinking and self reflection from the listener. The faster rap songs are energetic and contrast perfectly with the slow songs on track, showing how Rashad has been experiencing self doubt and a two-sided personality.
The production on this album is high quality and consistent throughout. The slow tracks feature hums in the background and Rashad’s voice with a radio voice. The production itself is very light and airy, allowing Rashad’s voice to push through. The fast tracks are heavy hitting with hard 808s that make you feel the flow.
The only problem with this album is that it might be too slow for some listeners. Songs like 10 STATES AWAY might be too slow since he is more talking than singing or rapping. It’s Been Awful has honestly been one of my favorite albums released this year so far. It is so meaningful for Rashad, expressing his personal problems, layered on with consistent flows and high quality production made this listen through very much worth it.
Music enthusiast sophomore Alexander Wilson, a Drake fan who is also tapped into the rollout said, “The singles that have dropped have kept me interested. When What Did I Miss dropped in September, it was hopeful because it seemed like Drake was back to making the mainstream hits that he is very successful at, and now in May, the anticipation is growing.”
Drake himself is dropping the most hyped album of May, Iceman. When an artist as big as Drake is dropping a project, he overshadows everyone. Last year, he dropped a single preview of Iceman titled What Did I Miss, a song that found major mainstream success, reaching No.2 on the Billboard Top 100, an immense accomplishment for any artist.
Drake has been creating this hype for months at this point with multiple fake dates. He first covered his courtside seats to a Toronto Raptors and Brooklyn Nets game in ice, hinting at his album. He then ran a whole rollout campaign with a giant ice structure in Toronto, Canada, that hid the official date: May 15th. His fans on Instagram flooded comment sections with “🧊🥶🦉” spreading the world across different artists’ pages. The ice block was very innovative and allowed many types of people to interact with the structure and generate social media hype. With all of this hype, this better be a high-quality album.
His last album, $$4U, has received abysmal reviews on Album of the Year, with a 47/100 from critics and a 37/100 from users. Most critics call it “boring” and “sleepy.” I believe that Drake is more than capable of bouncing back from this forgettable album.
Freshman Matteo Maldonado wants Drake to stick to his R&B roots for Iceman. He said, “He (Drake) is definitely good at R&B. He has a good singing voice that he has used for past albums, and I want him to keep that going.”
Drake has a good singing voice and he is excellent at making mainstream songs. I don’t know what it is, but his higher pitched voice and melodic flows just capture the mainstream in a net. He needs to use his hold on the industry to his advantage and use his skills to create another catchy album.
For Drake, this would mean a beat selection that fits the mood of the song (which he is usually very good at), not dragging the album on like he did for Scorpion, and features that support his tracks. Ever since the Drake and Kendrick beef, Drake has not been able to replicate his high-quality albums like Take Care and Nothing Was The Same. These 2 albums feature flowy and catchy melodies with some of Drake’s best singing. This album gives Drake the chance to strike back and prove why he is one of the most popular rap artists. He needs to stick to his slower, more R&B roots and focus on making a catchy album that Drake is so excellent at.
