A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie – Artist 2.0 (Album Review)

A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie speaks to the streets, the women, and the ballers in the action-packed “Artist 2.0.”

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TOP 5

5. MOOD SWINGS

Though A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie’s legend has risen these last couple of years, I love that he hasn’t necessarily changed his hood ways. In “Mood Swings,” these sentiments never felt truer, as, in the song, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie gifts us with something that is violent, braggadocios, and hood-certified. The infectious track also features this bass boomin’ instrumental by Wheezy that does everything in its power to knock the cereal off of the top of your fridge.

4. CALM DOWN (BITTERSWEET)

I love the following things about “Calm Down (Bittersweet)”: It’s authentic/old school R&B vibes, the sensual lyrics and fearless singing you get from both A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie and Summer Walker, and the fact that the track absolutely changes the tone of Artist 2.0. What I DON’T like about the track is that it sounds like A Boogie has a bunch of Cheerios in his mouth while he’s singing on it.

3. REPLY

In a world where every muthaf**king rapper thinks they are Chico Debarge, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie and Lil Uzi Vert are two that I’m OK with singing. On “Reply,” they unite, gifting us with a passionate gem that features an instrumental that is on some slow jams s**t, tons of soulful crooning, and lyrics revolving around the good, the bad, and the ugly that comes with falling in love with a chick that seems as insecure as Issa.

Rap duets are interesting.

2. STAIN

You know what’s funny? “Stain” features an instrumental that is on some smooth summertime s**t, yet, in the song, you get overly-passionate singing by A Boogie, reckless/violent/flossy lyrics by A Boogie and featured guest DaBaby, and a very aggressive tone from DaBaby (I’m confused).

Gangstas come in all shapes and forms these days… I felt like I was getting verbally beat up by a singing ass n***a and a trill ass n***a while I was listening to this song.

1. NUMBERS

A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, Gunna and Roddy Ricch absolutely murder “Numbers!”

With “Numbers” being powered by this emotional trap instrumental, A Boogie and Roddy melodically go back and forth with one another on some violent/braggadocios s**t, while Gunna spits a few bars here and there that reminds the world that he’s the drippest mumbler on the planet. (Hold up, nevermind, Gary Busey is still alive)

I swear to GOD, Gunna, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie, and Roddy Ricch are all phenomenal at riding beats!

SONG BY SONG BREAKDOWN

1. THUG LOVE (4/5)

2. CINDERELLA STORY (3.5/5)

3. GUITAR SONG (3/5)

4. MIGHT NOW GIVE UP (3/5)

5. NUMBERS (4/5)

5. ANTI-SOCIAL GANGSTA (4.5/5)

6. STAIN (4/5)

7. HIT ‘EM UP (3/5)

8. DTB 4 LIFE (3.5/5)

9. CALM DOWN (BITTERSWEET) (4/5)

10. ANOTHER DAY GONE (4/5)

11. GOOD GIRLS GONE BAD (3/5)

12. BLOOD ON MY DENIM (3.5/5)

13. R.O.D. (4/5)

14. BIG SHIT (3.5/5)

15. RIGHT BACK (4/5)

16. LUV IS ART (3/5)

17. KING OF MY CITY (2/5)

18. MOOD SWINGS (4/5)

19. REPLY (4/5)

20. STREETS DON’T LOVE YOU (3/5)

OVERALL RATING

(C+)

In my opinion, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie is great at creating memorable melodies. He is also really good at rapping about some gangsta s**t. With that being said, in Artist 2.0, Boogie secretly shoves street codes and reckless ideas down our throats through glass-breaking singing and brash bars.

I think we can all agree that A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie isn’t on Mariah’s level singing-wise. Now that I got that statement out of the way, I am a lot more comfortable saying that A Boogie’s vocals weren’t all that great in Artist 2.0. What he did do that was great on the album was harmonize daringly, turning your everyday gangsta-ass lyrics into s**t that sounds like it could be made into a TV movie. Boogie also made sure to treat his vocals like a tug-o-war rope, jerking them all over the place. (So no one else noticed how unstable A Boogie sounded vocally on this album?)

For the most part, A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie talked about playa s**t, heartbreak s**t, street s**t, and vengeful s**t in Artist 2.0. Though any n***a on this planet can respect the topics he covered, by the time you get to track number 12 of the album, you get a bit fatigued by his dramatic tales/feelings.

The one thing I loved about Artist 2.0 were the beats. Most had dark/striking vibes that would make you think that you were in for some cinematic s**t. I also love how A Boogie keeps every beat he attacks on a leash, controlling them every step of the way on the album.

I didn’t love the guest features on Artist 2.0. Don’t get me wrong, I thought both Gunna and Roddy Ricch were in their bags on “Antisocial,” Lil Uzi shined on “Reply” and “Luv Is Art,” and Summer Walker was great on “Calm Down (Bittersweet)”; however, I simply didn’t believe this album needed anyone other than A Boogie.

A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie isn’t just a complex individual, he’s also a very complex musician. In Artist 2.0, the Brooklyn rapper tries to mesh all of his thoughts and music-making abilities together, and what he ends up giving us is a body-of-work that is fatiguing, but also real as s**t and extremely infectious.