Creating The TWENTY 88 Aesthetic: An Album Review

When the worlds of R&B and Hip Hop collide, it usually brings about some stellar music. Incredibly huge stars have come together to make albums that become larger than life. Some examples of that are Jay Z and R Kelly's The Best of Both Worlds from 2002 and Bow Wow and Omarion's Face Off from 2007. Jhené Aiko and Big Sean's collaborative effort TWENTY88 is the latest installment in the magic that hip hop and R&B can make.

Big Sean and Jhené Aiko coming together musically is definitely not out of the blue. They've made a couple different songs together, such as 2015's "I Know" from Big Sean's latest solo album Dark Sky Paradise and 2013's "Beware" from his album Hall of Fame.

The first thought that I had once I listened to their album is that it sounds like a body of work and less like a bunch of singles plastered together in no real type of order. That's seems to be an anomaly these days.

(Cough, cough, I'm looking at you The Life of Pablo.)

Anyway, all of the music of TWENTY88 sounds cohesive. It has a futuristic jazzy, chill out-esque vibe. It's fearless and unapologetically sexy. It's like if we time traveled to the year 3016 and they've brought back Soul Train. Cause, you know, everything comes back in style one day.

I thoroughly enjoyed the album as a whole, but there were definitely some high points for me that stood out of the bunch.

1. "Deja Vu"

The first track sets off the album on a high note. I am in love.

2. "2 Minute Warning"

The harmonies on this song are lovely. And a feature from K-Ci and JoJo is just the icing on the cake.

3. "Push It"

Jhené's vocals shine on this song, and the beat is absolutely insane.

In an interview with Flaunt magazine, Aiko explains the vibe perfectly "It's a 70s aesthetic, but we're in the future." This energy unapologetically bleeds through their short film, Out of Love, which features some of the songs from the album.

Big Sean and Jhené Aiko seem to have figured out the recipe to success with TWENTY88. They seem to be selling more than just mindless music, like many are trying to do in today's music industry. They're selling an aesthetic, a vibe that's perfect for this generation that's very much obsessed with what's hot and happening right this second. I hope the success of this album mean there will be more music from TWENTY88 in the future.