A$AP Rocky: Don’t Be Dumb review – A catchy and fun comeback, but not a slam dunk | A$AP Rocky

IIt’s been eight years since A$AP Rocky, the one-time king of New York rap, released an album. In the world of hip-hop, where even A-list stars like Rocky’s friend and collaborator Tyler, The Creator tend to release multiple albums a year, that’s age. Around the time Rocky released his third album, 2018’s Test, Kanye West had rebranded himself as a born-again Christian and veered to the right. and He released five albums. Rocky has not been sitting around: he has been a mainstay of the press, thanks to his relationship with pop star Rihanna, with whom he now has three children, and he was acquitted last year of shooting a former friend, dodging up to 24 years in prison. He has also won acclaim as an actor, starring opposite Rose Byrne in the acclaimed black comedy If I Had Two Legs to Kick You, and Denzel Washington in Spike Lee’s Highest 2 Lowest.

Aside from a few singles, such as the Tame Impala Sundress collaboration, Rocky has released music sporadically in recent years. (In terms of major stars, perhaps only Rocky’s romantic partner outshines him when it comes to keeping fans waiting: it’s been a decade since Rihanna’s last recording.) The test yielded “Praise the Lord (Da Shine)” featuring Skepta, but it otherwise failed with fans and critics alike, lacking the dynamism and powerful charisma of his standout albums. This album seems to have left Rocky at a crossroads. Would it be better for him to continue exploring his vulgar experimentalism, or to try to cut back and return to the more straightforward music that made him famous?

Don’t Be Dumb, Rocky’s fourth album, attempts both at once: despite its hour-long running time, it feels bold and fast-paced, evoking Testing’s heavy avant-garde samples and vocal experiments, and reigniting some of the fiery, edgy attitudes that animated Rocky’s 2013 debut, Long.Live.A$AP. But it’s hardly a slam dunk. Some songs feel lyrically invited, others feel overstuffed with production elements; As is often the case with albums years in the making, editing feels necessary. However, it is coherent and clear Hazar TO LISTEN TO: The guest list may include everyone from Hans Zimmer to Tyler, The Creator and indie folk star Jessica Pratt, but Rocky is the star here, and he’s worth the price of admission.

As always, Rocky’s appeal knows no bounds. Stole Ya Flow is ostensibly a diss Drake track, but it works because Rocky sounds like he’s having so much fun: “N***** gettin’ BBLs / Lucky we don’t shade Body,” he raps, reveling in the selflessness of the line’s triviality. (Drake has denied having some plastic surgery.) On the warm, dazed Playa, Rocky sounds positive, singing as if he’s giving advice to someone in love for the first time, though the advice is, admittedly, very specific and somewhat harsh: “No receipts, don’t text.” On Air Force (Black Demarco), he raps over the kind of harsh, dazzling beat that would feel right at home on a Playboi Carti album, before the beat turns into psych-rock; It feels like a clever breaking of the fourth wall, a sly taunt to anyone who has subverted the independent-leaning test.

These sharp moments clash with lyrics that can sometimes feel downright lazy: his remark on Helicopter that people “will do anything for a blue check” — as in X — is a powerful reminder that Rocky is now a father of three. Later, on Gorillaz Collab Whiskey, he seems to move into full-blown free association: “Tipsy, kiss me so wet, they’re building bridges / I’m not burning any bridges / Try to keep them, I’m not burning any friendships,” he mutters, his lethargy so strong that it threatens to sink the entire record. Fortunately, these flabby passages are outweighed by Don’t Be Stupid’s livelier moments: overall, it’s Rocky’s strongest album since his debut, buoyed by a sense of fun that he seemed to lose for a moment. Fans who were blown away by the tests can breathe easy.