T.I. – The L.I.B.R.A. (Album Review)

T.I. reminds the world about his king status on “The L.I.B.R.A.”

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HONORABLE MENTION. PARDON

T.I. enters into Lil Baby’s world on “Pardon.”

In “Pardon,” T.I. reminds the world that his resume is as impressive as your favorite rapper’s favorite rapper’s resume. He also reminds the world that he’s driving in the nicest cars and that he knows some cold-hearted killers. As for featured guest Lil Baby, he lets the world know that he has no love for floozies but has love for smoke.

5. RING

When Young Thug and T.I. link up, they are undefeated.

On “Ring,” T.I. and Young Thug go back and forth with one another on some playa, gangsta, and violent s**t. While the former sounds like a rogue businessman on the song, the latter sounds like a trill-ass Tiny Toons character.

If they ever decided to reboot Pinky & The Brain, T.I. and Young Thug need to voice the two characters.

4. HYPNO

You get a classic rap performance by T.I. on “Hypno.”

The beat attached to “Hypno” gives me chills (The beat flips Notorious B.I.G.’s “Hypnotizing” beat). As for T.I., I absolutely love both the flows that he raps with and the sly-ass lyrics that he blesses us with on the song. The hook that Rahky blesses us with on the song is the icing on the cake.

Don’t sleep on T.I.’s ability to ride beats, folks.

3. HOW I FEEL

“How I Feel” is simply a good, powerful, and meaningful song.

Even though “How I Feel” boasts both a soothing beat and a soulful hook, the verses that you get from both T.I. and Killer Mike on the song are beyond powerful. In their respective verses, the two rappers ferociously call out racists, bigots, Christians, and those who don’t want to fight against oppressors.

You can literally hear the anger in both T.I. and Killer Mike’s voices on this song.

2. MAKE AMENDS

On “Make Amends,” T.I., Benny The Butcher, and Jadakiss rap ferociously about biblical contradictions and street codes.

What I love about “Make Amends” is that T.I., Benny The Butcher, and Jadakiss approach the idea of war differently in the song. I also love the churchy beat that powers the song.

“Make Amends” reminds me of a heavenly version of “Stand Up” from Urban Legend.

1. 1/2 TICKET

“1/2 Ticket” boasts all sorts of vibes.

“1/2 Ticket” is powered by a horny beat (Maybe horny is the wrong word to use in this situation). Over it, London Jae hooks us up with a chorus that will make you bop your head violently, T.I. hooks us up with verses that will motivate hustlers, shooters, and dreamers, and Conway The Machine hooks us up with a verse that will force you to put respect on his name.

How the hell did Conway The Machine fit on this song?

SONG BY SONG BREAKDOWN

1. THE L.I.B.R.A. INTRODUCTION (3/5)

2. HIT DOGS HOLLA (3/5)

3. RING (4/5)

4. PARDON (4/5)

5. ON THE HOOD (4/5)

6. MOON JUICE (4/5)

7. AIR & WATER INTERLUDE (N/A)

8. HYPNO (4/5)

9. 1/2 TICKET (4/5)

10. RESPECT THE CODE (4/5)

11. PUT SOME ON IT (3/5)

12. FAMILY CONNECT (4/5)

13. MAKE AMENDS (4/5)

14. FIRE & EARTH INTERLUDE (N/A)

15. PANTONE BLUE (3/5)

16. HORIZONS (4/5)

17. HOW I FEEL (4/5)

18. WE DID IT BIG (4/5)

19. THANK GOD (4/5)

20. DEYJAH’S CONNECTION (N/A)

OVERALL RATING

(B)

T.I. made sure that every single track on The L.I.B.R.A. struck a chord with folks. For instance, in a song like “We Did It Big,” he pays homage to his fallen friends, while in a song like “How I Feel,” he makes sure that he talks about all of the evils that are haunting the black community. T.I. also does a great job of reminding the world that he is more than willing to go toe to toe with his enemies on “1/2 Ticket,” that respect needs to go on his name on “Put Some On It,” “Respect The Code,” and “Pardon,” and that he can hold his own against some of the best lyricists on “Make Amends.”

So what do I like about The L.I.B.R.A.? The high-powered beats, T.I.’s hungry raps, and the album’s front cover. What I don’t like about the album is that it features way too many people and it is a little too long. All things considered, I think that The L.I.B.R.A. is T.I.’s best album since Paper Trail.