Tory Lanez - Chixtape 5 (Album Review)

Tory Lanez flips some of our favorite R&B hits in “Chixtape V.”

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TOP 5

5. IF YOU GOTTA…

“If You Gotta” flips Fabolous’ “Can’t Leave You Alone” hit from back in the day.

“If You Gotta” feels holy, high-octane, and extremely lyrical. From the moment you press play on the track, you get nothing but feverish bars by Tory Lanez and featured guest Fabolous, as they do their best to let their chicks know that they are marveling at their killer wardrobes, unbelievable asses, and porno-like sex moves.

Hold on, wasn’t “Can’t Leave You Alone” a cute hip-hop track back in the day?

4. STILL WAITING

“Still Waiting” flips Trey Songz’s “I Can’t Help But Wait” hit.

“Still Waiting” features a gentle instrumental, but tons of emotional lyrics (That are delivered feverishly) and rather soulful singing. The combination makes for a bedroom track I probably wouldn’t play while I’m making out with a chick.

With the topic of “Still Waiting” revolving around exes that are living life fabulously, I can understand Tory Lanez and Trey Songz coming across as butt-hurt on the song.

3. JERRY SPRUNGER

“Jerry Sprunger” is the perfect first single for “Chixtape 5!” On it, you get infectious vocal performances by both T-Pain and Tory Lanez, an instrumental that takes a few elements from Pain’s “I’m Sprung” hit, and lyrics by both artists that are scandalous, anti-f**k boyish, and romantic. When you combine everything I just mentioned together, what you get is a banger that will give you both dance vibes and nostalgic feels.

2. THE FARGO SPLASH

“The Fargo Splash” is both insanely smooth and unapologetically trill. With the track being powered by this flipped version of Ludacris’ “Splash Waterfalls” instrumental, Tory and featured guest Ludacris get the complimenting, bigging up their girls’ head game, clean p**sys, and willingness to eat at dusty fast food joints.

While Tory’s highly-melodic singing on this song will catch your attention quite a bit, I think it’s Ludacris’ sly word-play, steady flow, and killer punchlines that will blow your mind.

1. THE TAKE

“The Take” flips Chris Brown’s “Take You Down” hit from back in the day.

Though “The Take” is as R&B as it gets, I feel like Tory Lanez and Chris Brown are untamed as s**t on it! With the instrumental to the song boasting nothing but passionate vibes, both dynamic musicians let loose, reminding their girls that they are the only ones that can beat the punani up like it was Mason Rudolph’s head (Too soon?).

“The Take” is too dynamic to ignore as number 1.

SONG BY SONG BREAKDOWN

1. JALISSA’S BACK (SKIT) (N/A)

2. THE TRADE (3.5/5)

3. JERRY SPRUNGER (4.5/5)

4. BEAUTY IN THE BENZ (3/5)

5. BLOWIN’ MINES // LEAH’S INTRODUCTION (3/5)

6. THE TAKE (5/5)

7. BROKEN PROMISES (3.5/5)

8. THE FARGO SPLASH (4.5/5)

9. LUV YA GYAL // LOVE SOUNDS (3.5/5)

10. YESSIR (4/5)

11. BEST OF YOU // BUSTED (3.5/5)

12. THE CRY (3.5/5)

13. STILL WAITING (4/5)

14. A FOOLS TALE (RUNNING BACK) (3.5/5)

15. THOUGHTS (3/5)

16. IF YOU GOTTA… (4.5/5)

17. ROOM 112 (3/5)

18. LAST LOVE LETTER (SKIT) (N/A)

OVERALL RATING

(C+)

For R&B lovers worldwide, you will consider “Chixtape 5” refreshing to listen to! Not only does Tory remake some of the hits from back in the day that we all lost our virginity to, but he also recruits a few of the stars that made those hits to help him give each track he delivers for us nostalgic feels.

No one is going to mistake Tory Lanez for Mariah Carey on “Chixtape 5,” but when it comes to both passionate singing and autotune abuse, he excels! In all seriousness, Tory does a great job of turning the melodies the previous artists were able to create on the original versions of the songs he copied more dynamic, exhilarating, and emotional (At times, too emotional). Tory also does a good job of blending tenacious rapping with soulful singing almost subconsciously on the album, reminding old head R&B fans how hard it is to distinguish between rap and R&B these days.

Content-wise, you get a version of Tory that comes across as sex-crazed, braggadocios, and slightly romantic in “Chixtape 5.” Personally, I think the combination of the three approaches makes for a body-of-work that feels kick-ass and in-your-face-ish. (kick-ass and in-your-face-ish R&B music is such a millennial thing) Do I wish Tory gave us soulful street cuts like “Watch Your Soul” on the album? Of course! But then again, I understand him wanting to stick with a lovey-dovey theme.

The production on “Chixtape 5” is amazing! I love how Tory collected instrumentals that slightly borrowed (Not completely borrowed) key elements from the songs he was trying to copy. It made s**t sound pure and organic, but at the same time, nostalgic.

The features on “Chixtape 5” are appropriate, important, and to be blunt with you, cool as f**k to listen to! I thought it was dope to hear dudes like Chris Brown and Trey Songz re-tackle some of their biggest hits to-date. I also thought guys like Fabolous, Ludacris, and Lil Wayne did outstanding jobs of rapping their asses off on their respective guest appearances, almost sounding like rejuvenated figures.

This “Chixtape” project doesn’t sound as pure as the previous “Chixtape” projects. This time around, I feel like Tory had way too much clout attached to his name to come across as an innocent music-loving individual that simply wanted to remake some of the hits he grew up listening to (I thought this aspect of the previous “Chixtapes” was what made it special). In the end of the day, the album is entertaining, but also unintentionally ticky-tacky.