2016 has been one of the best music years that i've experienced in a long time. Kanye West, Beyonce, Rihanna, and Chance The Rapper are some the artists that have dropped great albums this year. So in honor of this amazing music year, I've decided to do a four part series on recent albums that I think are slept on, that you should give a listen. I know they're mad slept on albums out there that I like too, but in this series, i'm focusing on the slept on albums that i've been listening to most recently. So starting off the series in part 1 is YG's album Still Brazy (2016).
I first heard about YG back in October this year from one of my closest friends Mckenna. She had on one of his "Still Brazy" hats and she told me it was an album so I decided to give it a listen, and let me tell you, I haven't put the album down since! Still Brazy has this late 80's early 90's Nostalgia about it that you just don't hear in the rap game no more. Another thing I really liked about this album was YG really gives you a look into what's on his mind right now as he becomes the next face of west coast rap with his commentary between songs. After all, he did have a lot to say considering he was shot back in 2015 while working on this album. He talks about the incident in the song "Who Shot Me?". YG talks about his trust issues that came about from the incident and how it affected his family around him too, but he let us know at the end though, that shit didn't stop him and that kinda inspired me.
Another thing about Still Brazy that I liked a lot was YG's awareness on the social issues going on in 2016. He talked about the racist coward that doesn't care about the lower class, Donald Trump, in the song FDT (feat. Nipsey Hussle). "FDT" means "Fuck Donald Trump" if ya'll ain't know. One of my favorites on the album though is "Police Get Away Wit Murder". As you'd imagine this song is about police brutality. YG talks about his friends that got shot by the police and says this unfortunate but true line: "...If they catch you with the strap and you black that's a wrap". YG ends the song bringing up innocent young victims of police brutality( Tyler Woods, David Joseph, and Kimani Gray).
Still Brazy to me is one of the best rap albums of 2016 and I really mean that. All the songs up there tell a story and you can tell YG put a lot of effort and passion into his craft on this album. I know I talked a lot about the serious side of this album but they're are some songs up there that make you want to dance like "Word Is Bond" and "Twist My Fingaz". YG got a classic west coast rapper vibe and he's definitely up next, so don't hesitate to give Still Brazy a listen!
