New 21 Savage - 'Ball w/0 You'

Atlanta rapper 21 Savage has just released new track 'Ball w/0 You' and the rapper has upgraded his sound.

The Atlanta rapper was at the centre of a lot controversy earlier this year when he was detained in a detention centre by Immigration and Customs Enforcement (I.C.E) for not having documentation of U.S citizenship. According to Savage he was born in the UK but moved to the U.S.A when he was twelve years old and considers himself an American citizen. Luckily fellow rapper Jay-Z assisted Savage by providing him with high profile legal representation that ultimately led to the case being closed and the rapper granted citizenship.

This latest release 'Ball w/0 You' is an attempt by the rapper to soften his music and branch out from just the hardcore, gritty trap music that brought him to prominence back in 2016 when he featured on the cover of XXL magazine.

'Ball w/o you' begins with a Rhodes electric piano playing a smooth melody accompanied by a bass guitar. After four bars the hit-hat groove and snare come in already overpowering the Rhodes. After four more bars the 808 bass and the kick come in and they sound very out of place, completely ruining what could have been a promising track.

The problem is fusing two genres together is a craft. You cannot just take an easy listening electric piano melody then throw in some 808's and hope they mesh, more often than not they will clash and the balance will be completely off and that is the case here unfortunately. While i can appreciate 21 Savage's heartfelt lyrics, there are some moments where the vocal has been auto-tuned even though the rapper is not attempting a melody, he is simply rapping.

Hip-hop and Jazz fusions are always exciting and Trap-Soul is also exciting, however, artists such as Bryson Tiller, Chance the Rapper and Isaiah Rashad do a much better job when it comes to this kind of music. I can appreciate the effort but the outcome has been disappointing.

1 Savage - 'Ball w/0 You' ★ ★

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