A Boogie wit da Hoodie - The Bigger Artist Album Review
A Boogie wit da Hoodie broke into mainstream hip hop’s scene last year with the release of his debut project Artist. Since then, A Boogie has released a follow-up EP titled TBA and has been featured on XXL’s annual freshman cover for 2017. The Bigger Artist is A Boogie’s first studio album and the Bronx rapper has shown tremendous growth.
The Bigger Artist showcases the artistic versatility that A Boogie possesses. He continues to impress by beautifully blurring the lines between hip hop and R&B. On tracks like “Let’s Start Over” and “Get to You,” A Boogie showcases that he is not just a rapper but a multi-faceted artist who can perform non-traditional hip hop songs at high quality.
If there were any questions on if A Boogie could crossover to a mainstream artist, this album answers that question with an emphatic yes. There are several songs on this album that have the potential to be mainstream successes, such as “Say A’” and “Undefeated.” Both songs contain some form of mainstream appeal. “Say A’” contains a very melodic beat that one might expect to find if listening to a nursery rhyme, but A Boogie provides a catchy hook and creates a bouncy pace to a song that will garner well-deserved attention. “Undefeated” features 21 Savage, who recently released the well-received album Issa. “Undefeated” is a boastful song and both A Boogie and 21 Savage provide quality verses that fit the theme of the song. The 21 Savage feature is important as he has bridged the gap between hardcore gangster rap and mainstream music, which is what this song does extremely well.
The debut single off The Bigger Artist is “Drowning” featuring Kodak Black and the song has been quite successful to this point, peaking at number 38 on the Billboard Hot 100 list. The simple, catchy hook drives the song, but that does not take away from the verses that A Boogie and Kodak provide. The lyrics on this song won’t make you sit down and contemplate, but it is fun and contains several Instagram caption worthy lyrics.
A Boogie assembled several big name features such as 21 Savage, Kodak Black, Chris Brown, PnB Rock and more. This speaks to the multiple spaces that A Boogie occupies in mainstream hip hop and he can create songs that pure hip hop fans will enjoy due to the lyrical content, as well as making songs that newer mainstream hip hop fans are looking to sing along with and bounce along to the beat.
Some may complain that the album is not lyrically deep enough, as there is no song on the album that will provoke deep thought. The album also doesn’t contain any emotionally deep tracks either, even with some of the R&B influenced tracks. Most of the songs on the album, from a lyrical perspective, are braggadocios in nature or are carried by their chorus.
Though, the album isn’t the deepest, it doesn’t necessarily have to be. The album solidifies A Boogie’s place as a hit maker in hip hop and proves he is as versatile as they come. The Bigger Artist also showcases a younger artist who oozes potential and this debut album pushes A Boogie closer to reaching it.
Rating: 7/10
Jerome Taylor is a junior majoring in Broadcast Journalism. To contact him, email jerometaylor91697@gmail.com.
