Still Bumpin’ is a new series in which The Edge contributor Peter Walpole muses on albums still getting airplay in his personal library months after their release.
More than eight months after its initially intended release date, Big Sean, GOOD Music’s first Detroit player off the bench, has finally dropped his sophomore LP, “Hall of Fame.”
Sean elected to omit the originally intended subtitle addendum to the album, “Memoirs of a Detroit Player,” in the lead up to the release, but the sentiment is intact.
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The story here is that there is a story here. The MC most known in popular music for his radio single “Dance (A$$)” off his uneven debut effort “Finally Famous” and his turn-on-pop-institution Justin Bieber’s radio single “As Long as You Love Me,” has become a storyteller.
Thematically, Sean follows the classic rapper arc; this is his struggling-with-success project.
He pours his heart out on “Ashley,” a not-so-subtle nod to his high school sweetheart and there-before-the-fame girlfriend Ashley Marie. This song is aided by a stellar Miguel hook that rivals, if not surpasses his contributions to Wale’s “Lotus Flower Bomb” or J. Cole’s “Power Trip,” one of the marquee radio hits of the summer.
This level of reflection defines the best tracks on the album, and Sean proves he is just as adept at writing love songs as he is at developing quotable ad-libs.
“Hall of Fame” has enjoyed moderate success on the charts since being sidelined and delayed multiple times after the modest charting of singles “Guap” and “Switch Up.”
Even the album’s release day was overshadowed by the social media firestorm stemming from “Control,” a No I.D.-produced lyrical marathon which did not make the album due to sample clearance issues. Featured artist Kendrick Lamar’s boasting, calling out competition and proclaiming himself ‘The King of New York” set the hip-hop world ablaze. In conversations about the song itself, Big Sean nary gets a mention.
Big Sean does however make his case as the King of Detroit. No one puts on for his city like Sean, as he mentions the depressed metropolis that raised him in seemingly every song, if not every verse. He may not be the savior the city so desperately needs, but he is Detroit’s angel, he’s even got Red Wings. Although to become king he must first dethrone Eminem, who has made a valiant resurgence with the unapologetically weird punk-rock radio single “Berzerk.” The two have been spotted in the studio, and I would be disappointed if Sean did not appear on a Detroit posse track on Em’s upcoming “Marshall Mathers LP 2.”
[quote] While sales disappointment and Sean’s perennial position as a featured artist lend themselves to a sophomore slump narrative, it is important to consider not missed opportunities, but potential here. [/quote]
Big Sean has developed a unique sound. His flows are experimental, unique and playful, over distinct production primarily from No I.D. aided by Sean’s own signee Key Wayne. The instrumentals are soulful and ambitious. Sean’s lyricism is spectacularly thoughtful and introspective, yet he never loses the punch lines, crew nods and ad-libs that have gained him so many fans.
The lengthy album is not too high-concept, not too lowbrow, even though he approaches those places at times. This dichotomy is best exemplified by four bars on “All Figured Out,” a humbly ambitious cut that exemplifies many of the best aspects of Sean’s style. The project as a whole is complete, fun, uplifting and successful at conveying the mood of success. Even the intended club bangers “10 2 10” and “MILF” don’t take themselves too seriously.
On standout tracks “Mona Lisa,” “Fire” and “First Chain” among others, influence from hip-hop royalty Kanye West and Nas is felt, but Big Sean’s charismatic style and attention to detail shines through.
To quote a sentiment Big Sean had expressed on a feature on “See Me Now,” a “My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy” bonus track “What Sean sound like ‘Ye protégé'/ Nah he sound like he a pro to me.”
The braggadocious torch has been passed. The beauty of Sean’s lyrics is that everything positive you can say about him, he has already said about himself. With “Hall of Fame,” he lives up to what he has been saying on tracks for years.
While Sean desperately wants this album to have staying power, his message isn’t as timeless as the greats. He is a middle class rapper who accomplished his dreams. “Hall of Fame” exists as a prospective of everything the tireless Detroit player has accomplished thus far – a testament to success that serves as a launching point for more opportunities to come.
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