Roddy Ricch broke through to the mainstream hip-hop scene in late 2019, when the record shattering track “The Box” took hold of every radio station, aux cord, and meme well into 2020. In addition to this, the project that featured the song, the aptly titled Please Excuse Me for Being Antisocial, charted at #1 on the Billboard 200. As one of my favorite trap records of the year, the project served as a great introduction to Roddy, exciting by virtue of Roddy’s unique vocal deliveries and the energy supplied in his music. The undeniable impact of “The Box” left many fans wondering how Roddy would top this, given how rapid his ascent to fame was due to the track. Now, nearly two years to the day since Please Excuse Me for Being Antisocial, Roddy Ricch announced the forthcoming release of a new album, LIVE LIFE FAST. Sadly, this project fails to adequately address the thematic promises of its premise, leaving much to be desired in several aspects come the end of the record.
Examples of this are pinpointed throughout the first leg of the record. Following the project’s self-titled prelude “llf,” opener “thailand” gives a taste of both what I appreciate about the project and what I feel it is deficient in. Potent in its catchiness and lyrical flash, the cut lacks a certain punch in terms of production and its ability to communicate the theme or message of the album prompted by “llf.” In “llf,” Roddy describes the nature of fast living and how one’s lifestyle will catch up to them eventually. Although some could argue that “thailand” is the “before” image, prior to these consequences of living life fast, there is no foreboding notion or sense of future accountability given by the track. This is further exemplified by the fact that we never hear Roddy explain these “consequences” or that he’s even experienced them. Moments at which Roddy attempts to confront these themes are in “crash the party” and “more than a trend.” “crash the party” is beaming with good ideas and inspiration, but falls short of its potential in terms of execution for me. Aside from its hurried feel, Roddy doesn’t prompt deeper thought or stimulation as to the types of problems he faces. Similarly, “more than a trend” takes another stab at a soulful and emotional tone, but again falls flat due to its brevity and lack of impact. One place where the project consistently shines is in the use of features to back specific tracks. Although Roddy’s vocals come off a bit lazy in “all good” due to the overly vapid and basic lyrics, we do get an excellent verse from Future, who sounds as if he was made to float on this type of beat; this makes more sense in the context of Future’s 2020 project High Off Life, which has production very similar to that of “all good.” Likewise, “hibachi” fails to impress aside from the feature appearances from Kodak Black and 21 Savage. Kodak surprised me here with his verse; though his nasally delivery and typically deplorable lyrics are almost always an immediate turn off, he sounds great on this track due to the choral effect on his voice and how well the verse fits the beat. Though Kodak’s verse is good here, it’s 21 Savage that steals the show; like Future on “all good,” 21 Savage sounds destined to rap over “hibachi,” executing his verse sounding as hungry as ever. “paid my dues” has the best production up to this point in the record, with the slight synth runs spiraling upwards through the track. This time, the feature honor goes to Migos member Takeoff, who murders the chorus. Speaking on the trust issues he has both with his accountant and with women, his tone matches the eerie timbre of these synth runs layed down. We see similar cases with Fivio Foreign on “murda one” and Gunna on “don’t i.” “murda one” sees Roddy rapping over a classic Brooklyn drill beat, which is likely a homage to the late great Pop Smoke. Though it stagnates a bit with Roddy’s vocals on the track, Fivio Foreign does his part justice, continuing his hot streak from his appearances on Kanye West’s Donda. Slick melodies and deliveries throughout “man made,” along with beautiful piano chords and drum patterns, help make the track among the few all-around decent tracks on the record. The track also has some of the better lyrics on the project; I especially enjoyed the line where Roddy says he works from “Monday to Monday.” We get a Drake-inspired take in “everything you need,” which is another prominently beautiful cut. Production wise, the song is perfect; with the sped-up soul sample and piano chords harmonizing with the sample, this one’s hard not to love. Although the lyrics in the chorus are passable at best, it’s easy to overlook due to the rest of the spectacular elements of the track: Roddy’s melody over the entire song, the sample, and the subtle ambient synths setting the mood for the song. Following this, we get “moved to miami.” This track starts out as an unexpected jazz excursion, smoothly transitioning into a bustling trap song. The introduction doesn’t even feel out of place, despite the fact that nothing like it is heard at any other point on the album; it’s the one time where I look at my phone and go “Damn, that’s a Roddy Ricch song?,” in a good way of course. Lil Baby is in his bag with his verse on the back end, amusing listeners by finding several rhymes with “Roddy Ricch.” Roddy seals off a great three-track run with standout banger “don’t i.” On this cut, Roddy employs a take on a typical Gunna flow with the way he rides the beat. Though this will undoubtedly come off as “biting” to some, I see it more as paying respect; besides, Roddy’s crooning vocal delivery is unique enough to get away with it. Gunna follows Roddy’s lead, giving a flavorful follow up to Roddy’s chorus. There are also a few takes that either entirely or almost entirely hit wide of the mark, however. “rollercoastin” strikes lows that are, thankfully, seen nowhere else on the record. The awful chorus feels far longer than it is, with Roddy dragging his voice over the floor at an unbearably sluggish pace. Likely one of the worst songs I’ve heard all year, it’s a wonder how this track didn’t come off as utterly annoying to everyone on the executive production board that had ears. The track is marred by an equally-as-bad instrumental, which reminds me of the ASMR-inducing “lost souls” on Baby Keem’s newest album. Though I was still relatively excited to hear new music from Roddy, the lead single from LIVE LIFE FAST, “late at night,” failed to excite me in any way for the project. In order to spot bad writing and lazy, derivative production, look no further than this track. Another anomale from my point of view, this track debuted on the Billboard Hot 100 and still receives quite a bit of radio play 6 months after its release. I guess this is an echoed sentiment of his similar 2019 track “High Fashion,” which I was never particularly a fan of either. The somewhat mild closer “25 million” isn’t necessarily a bad track, but fails to positively stand out in any notable aspect. Roddy Ricch is outshined time and time again by his contemporaries on LIVE LIFE FAST, indicating that many of the things that are enjoyable about this project don’t have anything to do with Roddy at all. Very few tracks stand out as great all around, with most individual cuts usually missing one or two things that would vastly improve the track (harder hitting beats in “thailand” and “no way,” more focused thematic concepts in “crash the party” and “more than a trend”). The largest challenge posed to the record is the absence of the direct and visceral moments seen on Please Excuse Me for Being Antisocial. Even on the tracks I consider good or great (“moved to miami”, “paid my dues”), faint remnants of this same quality haunt the song. Moving forward, Roddy will need more of a thematic focus and better beat selection, tailored to fitting more of his own style. SUMMARY: Largely lacking in impactful songwriting and hard-hitting production, LIVE LIFE FAST sees Roddy Ricch fade between one of the few unique voices in hip-hop and commonplace trap rapper. RiYL: Young Thug, Gunna, Polo G, Lil Durk Recommended tracks: “everything you need,” “don’t i,” “man made”
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AuthorEnrique Cardenas III Archives
November 2021
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