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This album was released on November 18th in the year of our lord 2016. I haven’t heard too much of this guy’s music, and I honestly don’t really know much about him other than the fact that he’s gay, but I’ve seen his name around the internet a lot, and I recently heard a couple songs from this project that sounded really good, so I figured I’d finally give him a shot. Sorry for the run on sentence… Anyway, I don’t really have anything else to say before listening to this project. I REALLY liked the songs I’ve already heard, so I’m expecting this to be really good. Every song is produced by BLACK MONDAY, except where noted.
Track 1: Empty (Co-Prod. Michael Uzowuru & Romil Hemnani)
This is one of the tracks that I’ve already heard before. I love this piano driven beat. It sounds really light hearted, but the lyrics are pretty depressing. It almost reminds me of some of Childish Gambino’s earlier work. Mostly because he’s rapping about being a loser in high school.
I hate my yearbook photo / I hate my passport / I hate my last name; I hate everything it stands for / I should probably fucking transfer / Blue and brown JanSport / Tired of public transport / I never went to prom, now I’m stuck on the dance floor.
This is awesome. The hook is fantastic too. This song is really fuckin’ good. The second verse is pretty simplistic, but he gets his message across pretty well. He has a homophobic mom who doesn’t accept his sexuality. There’s not really anything I don’t like about this track. I think this is a very well put together song. This is dope af.
Track 2: Seventeen (Co-Prod. Kevin Abstract, Michael Uzowuru & Romil Hemnani)
Holy shitfuck. This production is amazing. Kevin’s rapping about his friend who he was in love with in high school. His melodic delivery is cool. It kinda reminds me of Kid Cudi to be honest. He’s a more capable vocalist than Cudi tho.
Showed me obscure bands he was into / His mom in the dining room, we’re in his bedroom / His girl too; had to pretend like I didn’t mind that bitch just so I could see his face.
Good lord. This production is crazy. Holy fucking shit. This hook is so fucking good. Goddamn. This motherfucker knows how to make music. It feels like Jesus Christ Our Lord & Savior himself came back to Earth to make sweet, sweet love to my ears down by the fire. The verses are really short, but this song is absolutely fucking incredible sonically. I love this shit. This is dope af.
Track 3: Blink (Co-Prod. Kevin Abstract, Roy Mabie & Michael Uzowuru)
This beat is awesome. I’m really enjoying this verse too. His flow isn’t that impressive, but the lyrics are intriguing despite their simplicity.
I need a friend, I need you to hate me / I need you to tell me I’m better than Drake / I need attention, I need a flannel that’s not bloody / I wish my mommy would try loving.
The first verse was cool. This hook is awesome. Man, this guy is REALLY fuckin’ good at coming up with great hooks. I love the discordant piano keys that come in after the hook too; it sounds fucking fantastic. Oh. The song just ended. There’s only one verse. Damn. I really fuckin’ like this song, but another verse would’ve really elevated it to the next level. It’s still a really great track tho. The production sounds like a mansion on fire in the form of a song. I don’t know if that makes sense. Fuck it. This shit is dope to me.
Track 4: Friendship (Prod. Kevin Abstract & Romil Hemnani)
This track is just a 23 second interlude. It’s the sound of Kevin performing some song at a show, and then there’s a crashing noise, and then somebody’s like “what the hell?” That’s how the track ends. The song he was performing sounded dope. I wonder if there’s a CDQ version…
Track 5: Tattoo (Co-Prod. Michael Uzowuru, Romil Hemnani & Om’Mas Keith)
Good fucking lord. Why the hell is the production on this album so fucking good? This is insane. Kevin’s vocals sound really fuckin’ good on this first verse. This sounds like something that could’ve appeared on The Love Below by Andre 3000. I’m hearing acoustic guitars, pianos, and even fuckin’ harmonicas in this beat, and it sounds fucking phenomenal. This is pretty much just R&B. It’s honestly incredible tho. He’s rapping on the hook.
My dad tried to tell me that I’m not functional / I gotta bunch of homies but not a bunch of homes / Said come back home to an empty home / I gotta different home, my home is fake.
This is fucking insane. This isn’t gonna blow anyone away lyrically, but this shit is amazing sonically. I definitely fuck with this shit. This track is dope af.
Track 6: Yellow (Co-Prod. Michael Uzowuru & Om’Mas Keith)
Again, the production is outstanding. The first verse wasn’t bad. The lyrics were honestly kinda lame to me, but the way he was flowing over the beat was really nice. This is another R&B song. Oh God… These vocals on the hook… They uh… They sound really fuckin’ bad. I don’t know how to explain it. You know how whenever Nicki Minaj sings it sounds incredibly Pop-ish and sugary? This shit sounds like a fuckin’ unicorn sang it through a sparkling, variegated microphone. I don’t even like the melody that much to be honest. The production is really fucking good tho. This is definitely the weakest track so far. This is the first song that I actually dislike. The production is pretty much the only thing I like about it. Everything else about it is tolerable at best. I’m honestly not really feelin’ it. It’s not terrible, but it’s just way too sugary for me personally. This is wack to me.
Track 7: Suburbian Born (Prod. Kevin Abstract, JOBA & Robert Hale)
Oh fuuuuck… This beat is so good. Lmao. I know I’m saying that for every track, but the production is just really spectacular so far. It sounds like some shit that’d be heard in a video game. Oh boy… This robotic vocal effect he’s using is annoying as hell. It sounds really bad. It’s hard to make out what he’s saying. Yikes… The song just ended. It’s just over a minute long. It’s not good. I think I like this even less than the previous track. He kinda ruined this beat. The production is fantastic, but the verse he spit was average as hell. The preposterous vocal effect he used just added insult to injury. I’m not feelin’ this shit. This is wack.
Track 8: Kin (Co-Prod. Kevin Abstract)
This album’s starting to go downhill. Hopefully he picks things up as soon as possible. This track is half a minute long. I guess it’s an interlude. There’s apparently a longer version on the physical release of this album tho. This didn’t need to be here. He should’ve left this off the digital version of the album. If he wanted to make it exclusive to the physical version, he should’ve just made it a bonus track for the physical CD. We don’t need this abrupt 30 second snippet of a song in the middle of the album. It really kills the momentum of the project.
Track 9: Runner (Co-Prod. Michael Uzowuru, Kevin Abstract, Romil Hemnani & Roy Mabie)
Ohhh fuuuuuuuck. This beat is deep as hell, and Kevin’s vocals sound so fuckin’ rich over it. Goddamn. This shit sounds emotional as a motherfucker. I mean that in the best possible way tho. This is fucking amazing. OH FUUUCK.
When the beat dropped in before the hook this shit made my heart explode. There’s only one verse, and it’s really short, but this shit is HEAVY as fuck. I can’t imagine a more appropriate time to use that reaction photo I just posted. This shit is just so fucking heavy. This is a full on R&B track, but this might honestly be my favorite song on the whole album so far. This is incredible.
Track 10: Flintridge (Prod. Kevin Abstract, Roy Mabie & Romil Hemnani)
This is another short interlude. It’s just over half a minute long. It’s audio of some homophobic dickhole crying and telling Kevin Abstract that he can’t be a star. It’s not real tho. I don’t want y’all to think this was a real conversation that Kevin recorded. He most likely recorded this himself and just shifted the pitch of the vocals.
Track 11: Papercut (Co-Prod. Michael Uzowuru & Romil Hemnani)
This is definitely the most underwhelming beat on the album so far. It’s not bad tho. It’s actually pretty good. It’s just nowhere near as great as the other songs on this album. Gotdamn. This first verse is emotional as hell. This is awesome.
The harshest of all times, can’t tell my family I’m bi / Can’t tell my mother I’m gay / The hardest part of my day is wishing I was fucking straight / Life could be so fucking easy, man.
The hook is really catchy. Man, this is so fucking dope. Shit brings a motherfuckin’ tear to my eye. This is fuckin’ incredible. I do have one VERY minor nitpick tho; it sounds like the vocals are improperly mixed. When the beat starts building up towards the hook, it kinda drowns out Kevin’s vocals. It’s not too bad tho. I love this song. This is dope af.
Track 12: June 29th
This beat is really nice. Oh shit. The song just ended. Lmao. Okay. This track is under a minute long. However, unlike the other tracks that have a very short length, this actually sounds like a song that was meant to be enjoyed by itself. It’s not just a pointless interlude that breaks up the momentum of the album. I think it could’ve been better if it was a little longer, but I enjoyed it as it is. This is dope to me.
Track 13: Miserable America (Co-Prod. Michael Uzowuru & Ricky Reed)
The productiiiiooooon thoooo. Goddamn. The intro verse was cool. The hook’s alright. His flow on the first verse is great. He’s rapping about how his mother is black and homophobic, and his boyfriend’s white parents are accepting of people of all sexual orientations, but racist. The female vocals on the hook kinda suck to be honest. I mean, it’s fine I guess, but… Eh… I’m not really feelin’ it. Oh wow. The song just ended. There’s only one verse. It was cool, but I feel like he could’ve gone a lot farther with the topic. It’s a cool song, but there’s honestly not much replay value in it for me. It’s alright.
Track 14: American Boyfriend (Prod. bearface. & Ricky Reed)
This beat is great. Kevin’s soft vocals on this first verse sound great. Man… This hook is really gay. Lmao. I’m sorry. I couldn’t resist saying that. You’ll know what I mean when you hear the song tho. It’s not bad. It’s just… Well, when you hear it you’ll be like “yeah, this dude’s gay.” I wish I could explain it better. It’s just super Pop-ish to an almost painful degree. It’s not bad tho. The second verse was cool.
I wanna die on sunset / He was a pop star with a bounty on his head / My parents wanna kill me; let them kill me / I’ll finally be on TV.
I like this track lyrically, and the production is really nice. Well, honestly the only thing that hinders this track is the hook in my opinion. It’s just way too sugary for me. It sounds like glitter in the form of music. It kinda ruined this one for me. It’s definitely not a bad song tho. Again, I enjoyed EVERYTHING about this song aside from the hook. It’s a decent track.
Track 15: Echo (Co-Prod. Albert Gordan, Romil Hemnani & Michael Uzowuru)
This is the only other song that I’ve already heard from this album. It’s another R&B track. Huh. This is pretty much an R&B album review I guess. Oh well. This beat is fantastic. The structure of this song is kinda strange. It’s split up into a few different sections where he’s repeating very similar lines. There’s only one point where it seems like he’s actually reciting a verse. The rest of it just sounds like repetitive phrases that he came up with on the spot. I enjoyed this tho. It’s definitely not the most memorable track on the album, but I like it. This is dope to me.
Track 16: I Do (End Credits) [Co-Prod. Romil Hemnani, Kevin Abstract, Michael Uzowuru & JOBA)
I think that’s Kevin rapping right now. The pitch of the vocals is shifted up, so it’s kinda hard to tell. This kinda reminds me of Nas’ Scarlett alter ego. Hmm… Is this supposed to be listened to like a legitimate song? This verse is really sloppy. It sounds like he’s freestyling this shit. This is weakest beat on the album. It’s not bad, but it’s not really anything special either. This isn’t good. The vocal effect is annoying as hell. I think this is my least favorite song on the album. Nothing about it stands out for good reasons. This is wack to me.
Final Thoughts:
This is a really good album. I feel like Kevin Abstract is just raw talent at the moment, and with a little more… uh… finesse? Yeah, with a little more finesse he could be a truly great artist. He’s great at writing hooks and coming up with earworm melodies, and it’s cool to hear someone rap about struggling with homophobia. I know there are other homosexual Hip Hop artists, but I’m unfortunately not very familiar with any of them. The only one I can name off the top of my head is Cakez Da Killa, and I’m really not into Pornocore, so he’s not for me. I consider Frank Ocean more R&B than Hip Hop, but when he raps he’s pretty fuckin’ good. I feel like he doesn’t really talk specifically about other men the way that Kevin Abstract does. When you listen to a Kevin Abstract song, you know exactly who he’s talking about. With Frank Ocean it seems like it can be left up to interpretation most of the time. The production on this project is fucking Godly. It’s not a perfect album tho. I think my main problem with it is the way a lot of these songs are structured. The majority of these songs are under 3 minutes long. A lot of them only have one verse. Shit, four of these tracks aren’t even ONE minute long. There are 16 tracks, but the album as a whole is under 40 minutes. I like albums with short tracklists that have reasonably sized songs. What I DON’T like are albums with a lot of tracks that feel unfinished. If he got rid of a handful of these tracks and put more effort into others, I think this could’ve been one of the best albums of 2016. It’s definitely worth checking out tho because a lot of these songs blew my testicles clean off. This shit is dope.
Favorite Song: Runner
Least Favorite Song: I Do
Verdict:
B-
Focus Hip Hop 
It’s a good project. However you aren’t going to hear a lot of heads (especially older dudes) talk about this joint because of the content and Kevin’s lifestyle, though it deserves praise and perhaps be further discussed amongst elitists.
I give this project an 8.5/10.
Good job