All DJ Akademiks & Joe Budden memes aside, mumble rap is a joke today and will forever be a joke, and let me be the only music journalist on the internet to say it. Furthermore the way music media covers this artform is embarrassing, as what’s thought to be cool and provocative is nothing but loud noise and meaningless content, that to praise as a result is a flagrant disrespect to the ‘culture’ that we all supposedly represent. Thus my issue isn’t with Migos themselves or even their dedicated fans, but instead the paid journalists who promote Molly and Percocets but don’t hesitate to call the likes of J Cole "boring", therefore making it painfully clear how they define the genre and view the artists within it.
Instead it would make a lot more sense to appreciate BOTH styles of artists, which at LegacyArtsMedia we endorse and promote. Yet to write for the NYTimes, NYMag, Rolling Stone, Pitchfork, Fader, etc., and create lengthy thinkpieces as to why BEAUTIFULTHUGGERGIRLS is a masterpiece compared to how 4 Your Eyez Only makes you sleepy, is once again an awful indictment as far as what’s expected from this art form in the first place. The solution is to provide nuance in your writing, stop following trends and cool table peer pressure, and simply let the music tell the story - and then maybe finally we’ll get some respect and order back in music media.
Now that we got that out of the way let’s get back to the business at hand, orginally formed in 2009 out of Lawrenceville, Georgia, artists Quavo, Offset, & Takeoff (whom are all related) formed the group Migos, and after grinding with mixtapes for a few years they got their breakthrough success in 2013 with their hit Versace, which gained far more notoriety once Drake put out his own official remix. After that success they capitalized on that momentum with another hit record in Fight Night, followed by a debut album that was critically acclaimed but commercially unsuccessful [side note: for all the praise on the internet very few people seem to buy mumble rap, as the numbers even boosted by streams clearly suggest otherwise, thus begging the question are ya’ll trolling… honestly I don’t know]
Yet fast forward a few years and Migos is back with their second studio album off Atlantic, which not only has dominated the internet once again but has also performed very well commercially, which perhaps is suggestive that Migos has reached an echelon that most of their contemporaries have not.
Without further ado Culture is critiqued track by track below, where for the most part it’s indeed a fun and enjoyable listen.
Culture ft DJ Khaled
“CULTURE?, how the fuck you fuckboys ain't gon act like Migos ain't reppin the culture? they rep the culture from the streets, fuckboy, bow down” 😂😂😂 DJ Khaled speaking on behalf of Migos is hilarious for some reason, yet the title track of the album is decent at best.
T-Shirt
“Neck water faucet, mocking birds mocking (woo), act pint, stocking, nats keep thotting (nat), wrist on hockey, wrist on rocky (rocky), lotta ***** copy, name someone can stop me (no one)” This is one of the singles and it’s catchy enough if you hear it 1000 times… and honestly that 999 times too many… enjoy if you will tho, cause truthfully it’s not bad for what it is
Call Casting
“How many chickens? You can get 'em whichever way, ***** trap turned Zaxby's, I beat the pot with a passion (beat it up), a hundred acres on the mansion, I dab in the latest fashion (eat it up), bitches need a call castin (yeah)” More Molly & Lean raps and it’s decent enough only cause the production by Buddah Bless is thus far the highlight on the album. I also enjoy the Andy Milonakis reference… overall not mad at this
Bad & Boujee ft Lil Uzi Vert
“Raindrop (drip), drop top (drop top), smokin on cookie in the hotbox (cookie), fuckin on your bitch, she a thot, thot (thot)” Another one that’s classic enough as long as you hear it 1000 times, although this one you’ve probably heard more, and as one of the most played records of the year I won’t shoot it down or disrespect it - it simply is what it is for better or for worse. [side note: most records you hear this much you’ll enjoy the same way - we’ve all been basically brainwashed - but it’s all good]
Get Right Witcha
“Hold up, get right witcha (I'ma get right witcha) bad bitches, fuck 'em then dismiss 'em (bad, woo) I ain't really here to take no pictures (flash) middle finger up, fuck the system (fuck 'em)” Produced by Murda this one is one of the smoothest records off the tape off the production alone.
Slippery ft Gucci Mane
“I buy Ferraris like Jordans, I'm Mike and y'all Pippen, chillin, just me and my millions, *****, they all in they feelin's, my bitches, I spoil them like they chillens” Gucci! A decent album cut no more no less.
Big on Big
“If I pull out a dub, you pull out a ten, how you gon' big on big? If your bitch is a five, my bitch is a ten, how you gon' big on big?” Produced by Zaytoven this one should definitely be a fan favorite for it’s flow and repetition - this one could even have anthem potential if it was played the same amount.
What The Price
“Bad Mona Lisa, slide with my people, pink slip for the ride, but what's in the trunk, it's illegal, came from dimes, no cosigns, you can read between the lines, like a pro skater did my own grinds” 😒 nah… but the vibe of the record makes up for the lyrics and overall this record produced by 808Godz, Ricky Racks & KeanuBeats is halfway enjoyable to listen to. I fux with this one.
Brown Paper Bag
“Brown (brown) paper (paper) bags (bags) (cash), smashing your hoe on the low and she callin' me dad (smash, dad, smash)” You’ve heard this record a million times already without ever hearing it… but to their credit it’s not a trash variation of that record at the same time. Not mad at this but at the end of the day it’s more of the same.
Deadz ft 2 Chainz
“Uh, ooh, fresh out the bed, uh, ooh, count up the deads, uh, ooh, fresh out the bed, uh, ooh, count up the deads” The deads as in dead presidents but I’m cool on this… go ahead and skip this
All Ass
“Her daddy the plug (aye), she fuck with the bricks, she with the shit (yeah), she bought a salon to clean the money, he feed the bitch, now he on the run, they seized the house, they seized the whips (yee), now she on the run, she took the money, he need the bitch” Storytellin in a strip club record… consider me officially a fan of the Migos…
Kelly Price ft Travis Scott
“Don't stand too close, my diamonds gonna bite (bling), I get drugs for the right price, yeah, yeah (drugs), she gon eat this molly like it's rice (eat it up), I'ma let that lean flow through my ice (lean lean), said she never had a Migo night, I'ma make her sing like Kelly Price (sing!)” I’ll let Quavo cook but it’s insane that there’s honestly journalists that write pretentious thinkpieces in favor of records like this, particularly in comparison to records that actually mean something, when instead this is a record to simply vibe to and nothing more.
Out Ya Way
“You go out your way and break rules, you go out your way, so out your way, you're going out your way, you can't lose, vacate, trips to Cancun, spaceship trips to the moon, never likes to tell the truth, head full of hair, but the cat well groomed, plan a trip to Peru, charter jet, me and you, you going out your way, way out your way, so I had to do this for you, jackpot, hit the right spot, so she had to get a tattoo” In comparison to all the previous records, the outro and best record off the album is one that has a real message in it - and for that I really hope they get praise for this record and continue to evolve to a point where they really contribute to the culture, because all Twitter hype aside this is their best record to date.
Overall this a decent album from Migos, as there are more than a few enjoyable records on here, and as long as you love this subgenre of Hip Hop then relatively speaking there’s also very few skips. At the end of the day Molly, Percocets, and Mumble Rap is what it is, and as a form of entertainment I take no issue with it whatsoever. Thus the problem isn’t Migos or artists like Migos, yet instead it’s the publications that anoint them in comparison to the real spitters, without any real respect for the music other than their steadfast determination to have a front row seat at the cool table.