"In 17 months I done turned to a Rapper" the lines from 21 year old Memphis rapper Pooh Shiesty. In 17 months he has created a huge buzz for himself. He has signed to Gucci Mane's "1017 Records" label which has given him great exposure he since has been consistent with songs and features.
He recently collaborated with Lil Durk for their hit "Back In Blood" gaining over 30 million views on Youtube.
After that build up, the anticipation for his debut project was high. The tape starts off with "Shiesty Season Intro" a track with a engaging piano chords and a up tempo flow that we are not used to hearing from Pooh Shiesty it showed us he can ride a beat. This song was followed by his recent singles "Back in Blood" and "Guard Up" so the listener was reminded straight away of the person they were dealing with and gave the tape the jumpstart in the right direction.
Gucci Mane and Big 30 were the next two features, two familiar faces to Pooh Shiesty fans because he has many songs with them. I liked the choice because it showed fans he wasn't comprimising his sound. Its early in his career so a feature like Roddy Ricch wouldn't make sense. Out of the two tracks I preferred Neighbors with Big 30, the song flows perfectly, "The chopper stay so close to me that you would think we neighbors" a smart catchy lyric that you can picture fans screaming at a show. Big 30 bodied his verse as usual, this guy never has a bad verse, this track displayed that you do not need a glamorous feature for your song to pop, this songs currently on 3 million views in 3 days.
The middle of the mixtape saw revert back to his traditional laid back sound. However on "No Chorus he started to open up about some heartfelt issues, something we haven't seen him do as of yet "But no, I won't display my feelings, that's another side of me" is what he said after rapping about the passing of his friend. He might not go too deep now but in future projects I think he will, it might be too raw to speak on now. What this tells me, is that there is room for other topics with Pooh Shiesty, because I wasn't expecting anything like that on this project. Great song.
"Box of Churches"with 21 Savage was the next feature on the album the title paying homage to the fast food franchise where he grew up. I like the fact that he wants to let everyone know where he is from, 21 Savage gave a solid verse on this record.
Pooh Shiesty did not forget to put his team on for "Big 13 Gang" with two signees from his label (Lil Hank and Choppa Wop". This is one of my favourites gave you that raw South Memphis sound filled with clever punchlines and grit.
"I'm a big snake, you a rat, you know them two won't ever mix
Just look at him, he gon' tell, these niggas two times six" My favourite bar from the song. Its good to see someone so young already owning a label, looking like he wants to stick around.
MASTER P! The beat on this track was insane he has finally collaborated with fellow Memphis producer Tay Keith, and it definitley worked. The beat allowed him to be cocky and talk reckless "Ain't no cappin', I just get up in the yo and speak my mind (No cappin')
Send my lil' nigga to do some work, he ask for overtime" The guy just doesn't run out of bars.
Overall, this is a strong start to his catalogue. He owed his fans a tape of his raw work, it didn't feel like it was overproduced or too mainstream. Looks like he is in good hands with Gucci Mane. Its a very bold move nor comprimise your sound at all so I respect it. In the future I would like to see him talk about different topics because he has the lyrical capacity to do so. A joint tape with Big 30 wouldn't hurt as well.
Rating: 8/10
Top Tracks: Shiesty Season Intro, Gone Mia, Master P, Big 13 Gang, No Chorus
コメント