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| Childish Gambino |
This could simply be because I am not an adamant pursuer of rap music. However, when I hear an artist that I like, I tend to give them a fair shot. Still, it seemed like to hop on board Donald Glover's Childish Gambino would be an easy sell given my appreciation for his role on Community. In fact, there's weight in his early mix tapes such as "Cul de Sac" and "I Am Just a Rapper" in which he mixes emotional struggles with pop culture references. Still, as he progressed, I found it harder to appreciate his approach. It was no longer about being funny and cheeky in ways that most performers were. It was about pushing the medium into a "weird" direction. Say what you will about "Because the Internet" and its failed marketing, but the album was simply too strange. While I love ambition, I feel like there needs to be a production quality to the music as well. If anything, that album felt over-produced and lacked any consistent interest. It is why I continue to revisit it in hopes of figuring it out. However, it is strange that when it came to his recently released mix tape "STN MTN," I was considering giving it a shot. I wanted to give it a fair shake. I simply don't get it.
Maybe the issue is that where Glover initially had the music as a side project, it is now his focus and that he wants to make it as abstract and specific as he can. Despite being excited about the arbitrary release, there is still the news around it to be weary about. "STN MTN" is part one of a full album of song that includes "KUAI," which finishes off the narrative. It will come out soon, he swears. However, with the concept that this is "the first concept mix tape," my trepidation rises again and I don't know if I want to to continually listen to him rap over his ambitions. In a sense, I want him to just go back to rapping about whatever it is he wants to rap about.
The simple comparison is between "Because the Internet" and even his verse on Chance the Rapper's "Favorite Song." For starters, the production is more fluid and his rapping feels more playful and his cheeky humor comes across more naturally. Then cut to "Because the Internet," which is a concept album that works with visual accompaniment. It is full of arbitrary samples and songs that have to four parts. The production is more complex, but that doesn't mean it is more interesting. It requires him to sing more, and that doesn't work. He is great at nasally rapping, but when given atmospheric sounds and tracks that don't even feature him, there is no weight to the music.
Maybe it could be that I am just not invested in this take on Childish Gambino. I wouldn't call myself the biggest fan with a passing knowledge of his music. Still, I know what I like and I feel like rap is in an interesting period that is kind of shooting itself in the foot simultaneously. Rap is getting high concept. Between Kanye West's "My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy" and the career of Kid Cudi and Danny Brown, this version of Childish Gambino makes sense. He wants to not only rap. He wants to prove his intellect by challenging the soundscape. Compared to the straightforward "Royalty," he has lost most of his immediate appeal. Even if he left Community to focus on music, he will still be "Troy Barnes" to most people. It is unfortunate, but is probably his only real claim to fame simultaneously. Without it, would anyone care?
With "STN MTN," there are some improvements over "Because the Internet," though it still plays like a concept mix tape in mediocre ways. It is meant to be a love letter to his hometown Atlanta, Georgia and more specifically the radio station. To those who haven't been to the city, a lot of the references will likely go over your head (they did to me). However, the bigger concept is that this is being played on the least censored radio station out there. "Fucks given" is a common phrase throughout the album. He is playing to the hardcore mindset.
Still, there are aspects about the album that are a little jarring. Even when he gets into the swing of rapping, the concept has to butt in. There's random drops of Lil Jon saying "Gangster grizz eel" and a countless barrage of music samples that somehow become incorporated into the bigger picture. For a free album, there's a lot of input and thought put into it. However, there's still Childish Gambino there trying to make the concept work in a serious manner. Even if Glover is maturing as a person, it doesn't work to mix with the "Zero fucks given" mantra of the album. There's something off. It could just be that mix tapes are foreign to me. However, it is such a strange, all over the place album that it is impossible to warrant a proper review.
The issue with Childish Gambino for me is that he CAN be interesting, but he chooses to play into a moodier seriousness that doesn't work. He can be funny with his not so clever wit and pop culture references. Thankfully, "STN MTN" has better production, but I feel like we're losing his general charm, which is the sloppiness, in favor of a polished sound that doesn't quite hold together. I want to like him and I will probably foolishly support him every time for those few moments that click. However, he is a problematic performer in a problematic time for rap. The concept album is an interesting idea, but he doesn't have the ego to pull it off. If anything, he is too understated for the part.
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