He's kind of a generi-clone and can be a scumbag: the pair of god-blessers are beholden to Frank Ocean and Future respectively, and procuring the Porsche just ain't good enough; there's gotta be at least ten bitches inside too. He also prefers telling said bitches to suck it before they can ask, has a crib that's only open to lingerie models and porn stars, sends his steak back at restaurants. So it's striking when he somehow suaves his way through it. Could be his convincing low-key croon and Guyanese inflection or the stark+woozy aura or that damn catchiness, but the clincher for me is when that cocky coldness folds to vulnerability over gettin' too "litt" too often. The needlessly extended version of "Some Nights" in particular is genuinely and effectively pitiful. And hey, if you heard the soulful pop magic that is "Selfish" as a standalone you'd probably assume he's straight sweetheart -- little would you know it comes between correlating his GF-n-mistress with internet speeds and going right back to the ratchet bitches. His bucket list? "All I ever wanted was a brilliant bitch / with a nice ass."
4 Bumps | Bump |