Review Summary: Gucci, i think the marijuana has finally fried your brain cells.
Ah, Gucci Mane, you either love him or you hate him. Me, i'm split right down the middle. I absolutely loved last years
The State Vs. Radric Davis and some of his earlier albums. On the other hand, i'm not a very big fan of his mixtape work. Gucci holds appeal to many people for sure. There are the casual listeners who hear one of his hits playing on the radio and they dig it, but they wouldn't get the actual album. Then, you have his hardcore fans(Bulldog) who will listen to anything he puts out no matter how terrible. The Appeal: Georgia's Most Wanted is Gucci's latest album, and surprisingly, both me and Bulldog think it's pretty awful.
The State Vs. Radric Davis was great in that it was something fresh in the world of southern hip-hop following a bunch of generic, cheap copies in the game. Ludacris at that point hadn't written anything great, Outkast were slowly losing their touch, and UGK were still suffering from Pimp C's passing. Then came Gucci, who had mainstream appeal but could still spit and appeal to backpackers and underground rap fans alike. Now, here's my theory, but i think Gucci was lazy on this record because he thought he could be. I mean, after all, Big Boi's album destroyed any chance of this becoming hip-hop album of the year. It's too bad he didn't try harder, because here he sounds lazier than ever.
His flow, while still decent, is pretty much the same as ever. He never changes it up and it turns into a boring background drone. It seriously ruins the quality of The Appeal, especially because vocals are such an important part of rap. He sounds like he doesn't even care. On the plus side, his voice has become clearer and his lines are more understandable. For instance, on
Little Friend he raps over an epic-sounding beat in a clear and concise voice and even outshines Bun B on the same track. So yeah, his voice and drawl are still pleasing to the ears but his flow remains in the same, steady pace, leaving the music incredibly monotonous.
The beats, at least from what i can tell, are a little different for Gucci. There's less straight southern rap club bumpers and more epic, horn-laced beats and spacey, synth-loaded jams. There's a little something for everyone, except for the backpack rap fans(you and your minimalist, almost-as-if-there's-nothing-there-but-drums beats, you). His various producers show they can craft something that makes even the worst rap worth listening to. Drumma Boy and Zaytoven definitely produce the best sounds here. The guest spots are definitely hit or miss. Bun B drops a great verse and even the usually awful Wyclef Jean drops something anthemic on here. The Other guests range from average(Swizz Beatz, Pharell) to awful like Ray J, and Nicki Minaj, who has absolutly one of the worst voices a female emcee can have.
Now about the actual songs, only a few boast a pulse.
Little Friend and
Trap Talk kick off the album nicely while the rest dis-assenbles itself into a moody, jumbled mess(Missing) or mindless club jams(Gucci Time). The album picks up in the later half, with
It's Alive sporting an anthenic sound and Wyclef Jean's best guest spot ever, and
Weirdo. which is definitely one of the better club bumpers on here. Gucci still drops some interesting lyrics hre and there, but it's usually still the same old, same old. Raps about marijuana, alcohol and partying are still present, but he occassionally delivers something a listener of say, 2Pac or Atmosphere might like.
Basically, What The Appeak:Georgia's Most Wanted is telling me is that Gucci no longer really cares about the rap game anymore. Almost everything here sounds horribly forced and contrived, and his label probably forced him to rush this one in. Gucci, i bet you think the rap game realy sucks right now, but could you at least try a little? Please?
