If just a few months ago someone told me that the artist behind the hits "Bodak Yellow" and "Cartier Bardi," Cardi B, was planning on releasing a full-length feature album I would have been quick to doubt its critical reception. Today, however, after listening to "Invasion of Privacy" for what must be my thirtieth run-through, I no longer doubt the power of Cardi.
In October of 2017, Cardi B's breakthrough single "Bodak Yellow" peaked at the number one spot on the Billboard Top 100. After effectively usurping Taylor Swift's three-week hold on the top spot with "Look What You Made Me Do," Cardi B, became the fifth ever female rapper to lead the charts and the second to do so with a solo song. This song was all over the place – it played constantly on the radio, in clubs and bars, and most surprisingly for me, in a video shared on Facebook by my middle-age worker! Cardi B slowly began creeping her way into every ear across the globe and soon became a household name.
The success of her first single attempted to pave the way for the second, "Bartier Cardi," which peaked at the fourteenth spot in the Top 100. The loss of widespread attraction from the first to the second single caused me worry when she made the announcement of her full album. If unsuccessful in her commercial success with her debut album, Cardi B's fifteen-minutes-of-fame would have been over.
In retrospect, my worrying was in vain after she released tracks that revealed her ability to create more than just a one-hit-wonder, such as "Be Careful," "I Like It," "Ring," and "I Do" featuring SZA. These tracks in specific are filled with surprisingly witty lyrics like this one from "Ring":
The ring on my phone, ring on my finger
You actin' like you ain't tryna do either
Was a good girl, watch me turn diva
Here goes my heart, I put it on speaker
What is impressive about Cardi's debut album is the balance of an emotional connection and sincerity that you feel as you listen to her perspective on past relationships with men who cheated on and emotionally abused her––while still simultaneously experiencing the fun, rambunctious Cardi that we've come to expect from her own songs and feature tracks like G-Eazy's "No Limit" and Bruno Mars' "Finesse."
Without a doubt, "Invasion of Privacy" has quickly become a favorite in my personal playlist. And I have somehow been able to memorize the catchy verses of multiple songs scattered throughout. Based on the reviews that came in shortly after the album's release, it seems I was not alone in my appreciation.
Metacritic scored the album with an 84 rating out of 100, and other critics were not shy to praise the young artist for her capability to produce such an unexpectedly amazing album. With little criticism, other than from some who simply hate on Cardi B for being Cardi B, I offer up only one criticism myself.
Of the thirteen tracks on "Invasion of Privacy," another artist is featured in nine of them. This only comes to me as a critique because on the four tracks that are solely Cardi, she holds the song and she does a wonderful job at keeping us entertained. Apart from just seeming flashy, the excessive amounts of features come across as though her management team did not have enough confidence in her capability to sell an album on her own.
Moving on from my small criticism, this is most definitely an album to give a listen to as soon as possible. I encourage you to do so even if you are not a huge fan of the rap genre, I can attest to this since I do not listen to rap otherwise and have found immense pleasure from this album. Without a question, my respect for Cardi B has since grown from my first encounter with "Bodak Yellow" and my love for her personality and style will only grow from here.
"Invasion of Privacy" was released on April 6, 2018, and features singles "Bodak Yellow," and "Bartier Cardi." It is available to stream on Apple Music and Spotify.
