Born D’Anthony Carlos, GoldLink is a Hip Hop/R&B artist that has been rising in prominence over the last couple of years. In 2015, he appeared on the XXL Freshman cover and released his second mixtape “And After That, We Didn’t Talk.” This project was my introduction to the D.C artist, and I was fascinated by his unconventional use of funk and electronic music as a rapper. Some of the highlights on the record include “Dark Skin Women,” “Spectrum” and “Dance On Me.” My favorite song on the record, however is probably “Unique.” Upbeat and fun to dance to, “Unique” was only made better by a feature from fellow up-and-coming artist Anderson. Paak. As GoldLink was able to provide such strong records so early in his career, I knew that his music would only get better.
“At What Cost” is the perfect example of an artist recognizing what made their last project great and capitalizing on it. GoldLink doubles down on the funk and electronic influences that he had in his previous project, as well as adding a more soulful sound in some songs. He also capitalizes on the popularity of “Trap Rap,” where Trap beats were heavily utilized in songs like “We Will Never Die” and “Kokamoe Freestyle.” His rapping skills are on full display, showing of his ability to keep his flow while still showing off his musicality.
In addition to his rapping skills and production, GoldLink manages to provide some solid lyrics. He recounts the different type of relationships that he’s had in the past, whether they were strictly sexual or if they were strong romantic relationships. “Meditation” and “Summatime” recounts to different summer relationships that he’s had, where in “Meditation” the relationship was wild, sexual, and almost fantastical, and in “Summatime,” the relationship was more personal and sentimental. I especially enjoyed the track “Same Clothes as Yesterday” lyrically, as his frustrated and “over it” attitude fits extremely well with the laid back but still drum heavy instrumentals in the song.
The main critique I have about this project is one that I’m actually not too worried about. GoldLink tends to keep with the common Hip-Hop trope of discussing his various relationships and bragging about all of the success he has. However, he’s a relatively young artist, and I believe as he gets older and release more music he will be a bit more personal.
Specific artists’ inclusion on the XXL Freshman cover has become a point of contention in recent years, as people claim that more and more artist who are featured on the cover have no promise of a successful and long-lasting career. However, with GoldLink’s debut album, it’s safe to say that GoldLink’s unique flow and production only elevate his career and contribute positively to the Hip-Hop genre.
