This album was released on November 26th in 2021. Mic Logik is an artist from Chicago with whom I became familiar through his work with Ronesh. He’s one of those rare artists who can rap and sing, so that’s pretty impressive. I don’t actually know that much about him, but based on the singles I heard from this album, I pretty much knew that I would enjoy this project to some extent.

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As always, I’ll write about the songs I actually fuck with before discussing the tracks I won’t be returning to. The album begins with the title track, As I Was Saying, which features an artist named Willow Wells. I really fuck with the production from Krikit Boi, and the rapping from Mic Logik is great.

Now we don't know about this vaccine
But we know the cops are still killin' black teens
We're all human beings, hope you know what that means
I can't forget the way that George Floyd was last seen
I know you're tired of hearin' "race this" and "race that"
But until you face this you can't erase that
Always will be haunted by the ghost of our great past
That's the convo that you always wanna race past

He was rhyming really goddamn well here, and his flow is nice and smooth. I actually think Willow Wells sounds fantastic on the hook too. Her soft voice just sounds really goddamn good. I like how Mic Logik switches to a slightly more energetic and melodic delivery for the outro. The song’s really dope overall. I think the following track is even better though. It’s a highlight entitled Whiskey on the Rocks, which I covered earlier in 2021.

I love the smooth, melodic beat from Ronesh, and the guitar from Nikko Daniel is the icing on the cake. The sung hook from Mic Logik has a really sweet melody as well. The verses are just as well written as those of Dreams.

And I just found another gray hair
Supposedly that makes me wiser, Father Time don't play fair
Tryna eat a little cleaner, got too much at stake, yeah
If you ain't matchin' my energy I say "farewell & take care"
Might sing a little bit, but ain't no Drake here
Rap game full of crybabies, it needs a daycare

Part of me wants to think that that’s a diss to Drake, but I feel like that’d probably be a stretch. Anyway, I really have no issues with this track at all. I love Mic Logik’s melodic performance, and the production from Ronesh is fantastic. The song is dope as hell.

Track 3 is another highlight entitled We Live, and it has features from two MCs named WRDS & IAMGAWD. The melodic production from Krikit Boi is great, and I think WRDS murdered the first verse. He actually had my favorite verse on the song, but I wouldn’t say he completely smoked Mic Logik & IAMGAWD. I just really love his bouncy, fast-paced flow.

Feelin' like Bruce Lee
I write with a pen and a looseleaf
I swear these brothers can't move me
I step in the scene like a movie, spit like a uzi

The lyrics aren’t super thought-provoking or anything, but his rhymes and flow were on point. The second verse from Mic Logik is really great too. Everyone on this track performed really well. IAMGAWD’s verse was really nice. WRDS had the catchiest flow in my opinion, but I appreciate how they all tried to match each other’s energy level. I even like the slightly melodic hook on this track. I like this song more now than I did when I initially listened to it. I think it’s dope as hell. This track is followed by yet another major highlight for me entitled So Low. This song is produced by Krikit Boi, and it features the same sample that Hit-Boy eventually flipped for Hollywood Gangsta by Nas. I think this song is better personally. If you guys know me, you know I’ve struggled with depression ever since I was 11 years old, so the content of this song really resonated with me.

I don't wanna get up outta bed
I just wanna get whatever this is out my head
Not bein' who you thought I was is something that I dread
Some things that I have written down, they never should be said
My sanctuary can be found somewhere inside these beats
The answers that I need ain't from a book or from a priest
I tried to bury my dirt deep inside of these sheets
I ain't shit, I'm a loser, I'm a fuck up, I'm a creep

I honestly love everything about this song. I thought it was great the first time I heard it, but I love it even more after repeat listens. The sung hook is fantastic, and all of the verses are super well-written despite their brevity. I think the song’s dope af. Track 6 is called Interlude, and it’s a pretty dope 54-second-long song. The whole thing is pretty much just one very aggressive verse. It’s really dope. I think he killed this shit, and the production from Max Julian is pretty cool too. This track definitely could’ve been fleshed out into a full song, but I don’t mind them keeping it as a short interlude. I think it’s dope. It’s followed by 80/94, which has a feature from Ronesh and production from ThatKidGoran. I actually think this song has one of the best beats on the album. It’s really nice and breezy-sounding. Mic Logik did his thing on the first verse, but I actually think Ronesh really killed this track. I swear I’m more and more impressed by him every time I hear him rap. The hook on this track is pretty simplistic, but it works really well with the smooth production. I think the song’s really dope. It’s followed by It Seems So Simple, which features Kastaway and production from RP. Once again, I’m really impressed by the production. I think the beat’s really dope. The sung hook is pretty nice, and Kastaway did a good job on the first verse too. Mic Logik definitely had the better verse in my opinion though. He went way more in-depth with the political content. I of course appreciate the diss to Derek Chauvin. I think the song’s really dope overall. The following track is another single that I covered ahead of the album’s release entitled Dreams.

I think the first verse is really well-written. The rhymes are really dope.

The lands infested with mass deception and scammed elections
We repress oppression and scared to look at our damn reflections

That’s my favorite couplet in the verse. The first verse is great, but the second verse is even better. He really went ham & cheese on the rhymes.

Money, I don't worship it, seen the worst that worst can get
Found my purpose then I supplied the verses that nurture it
No one is purposeless, and we all fall short of what perfect is
When the pain has been superfluous I pen the words to fit
The feeling of that point and time, and I craft some poignant rhymes
All you little girls and boys be kind, find your joy, and shine
Let the world see your light, listen, you will be alright
Unlocking your potential, well, that might be a key to life

I love his flow on this track too. I think he killed it. The beat isn’t amazing or anything, but I do like it to some extent. It sounds like something that would play during a training montage in a movie about fighting. Overall, I think the song is really dope.

The penultimate song is called Slice, and it was one of the most exciting ones in the tracklist for me because it features Doc Wattson along with an artist with whom I was previously unfamiliar named I.Deal. The production from Torrice Albarakat is nice and mellow, and the first verse from Mic Logik is pretty solid. I also really like the slightly melodic hook. The second verse from Doc Wattson was very good, but for whatever reason it seemed really short to me. It was probably about 16 bars, but it left me wanting more. I.Deal actually had my favorite verse to be honest. I thought his verse was very well written.

Treat others like you wanna be treated
Don't ever be greedy and go and take more than what's needed
Look for love, you'll find it with eyes untrained
Slow your pace 'cause there's beauty in the mundane
If I can tell you one thing, keep your head held high
Just do what you wanna do and live your life

The song’s really dope overall. The closing track is entitled Hold You Down, and it’s another dope song. I think the kind of celebratory-sounding production from Profound is really nice, and I love the endearing lyricism from Mic Logik. The song features ThrowEmC, who sounds pretty good on the hook. I think this is a very good way to close the album. It’s a dope track. The only song on the album that I don’t really care for that much is called No More. I don’t think it’s a bad song at all, but it’s not something I’d return to. I don’t really care for the R&B-adjacent production from Treymxn, nor do I care for the content. It’s pretty much just a song about Mic Logik arguing with his wife. Or girlfriend. I don’t know if he’s married. Anyway, I think the verses are all well-written, but this song isn’t very entertaining to me sonically at all. Again, it’s not a bad song, but I don’t like it. It’s just okay to me.

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^{This album is great. I actually like it more now than I originally did when I first heard it. There’s not a single song here that I would say is bad. Aside from one song, everything is pretty dope here. This project pretty much gave me exactly what I wanted. With that said, I look forward to seeing what Mic Logik does in the future because I think he can definitely surpass this. He’s a great writer, and he’s got a pretty good flow and voice. The production is pretty nice across the board too. I really don’t have any consistent gripes with this project. It’s dope. Check it out.}

Favorite Song: So Low
Least Favorite Song: No More

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