Freddie Gibbs- You Only Live 2wice Album Review

Released after his return from prison overseas, Gibbs latest project You Only Live 2wice recounts the mental and physical struggles of a man held overseas for false rape allegations. Gibbs once again comes out strong for his third studio album, demonstrating that his time overseas has not taken a major toll on his rapping ability.

Freddie Gibbs, born Frederick Tipton, is a rapper from Gary Indiana. Leading up to 2009, Gibbs produced a lot of loosies (individual tracks), culminating in his first mixtape, The Miseducation of Freddie Gibbs, the title being a homage to the critically acclaimed The Miseducation of Lauryn Hill. Receiving mostly positive reviews for his first mixtape, Gibbs would go on to produce several more, with Cold Day in Hell being released in 2011, and Baby Face Killa the following year. Soon, Gibbs was signed to ESGN and Empire Distribution, where he produced his first studio album ESGN (Evil Seeds Grow Naturally) in 2013. Then in 2014, Gibbs, in collaboration with the producer Madlib, released Piñata. After gaining critical acclaim for Piñata, Gibbs released his third studio album Shadow of a Doubt in 2015.

Gibbs' main focus throughout this entire album is the Earth-shattering event of being held in prison overseas after being arrested in 2016 under false rape allegations. In fact, two days before the single "Crushed Glass" came out, Gibbs tweeted that he had been acquitted and all charges against him dropped. This album, while short, reaches straight bars at times. Starting with 20 Karat Jesus, which has this amazing beat switch partway through the song, going from one amazing song with a serious tone, to this triumphant sounding beat with lyrics that sound like Gibbs is just having fun. This masterful song is a good intro track for the rest of the album, flowing into Alexys, which again is this great song with a lot of energy. The album continues on to Crushed Glass, another single with an aggressive beat and lyrics to match. You can almost hear Gibbs lamenting over being wrongfully put away throughout the entire song. Eventually, we reach Amnesia, which is probably the best song on the album. This song gives off vibes similar to DNA on Kendrick Lamar's DAMN, with the intense energy to match that song, and segments of flow that are almost better than Kendrick's. The album continues to be full of bangers, up until the end, where the album climaxes with "Homesick", a beautiful song that reflects the theme of the album in painting a picture of how Gibbs felt being away from his family while overseas.

I really liked this album mostly because of Gibbs rapping ability. The Indiana native is extremely proficient at switching up his flow partway through a song while still retaining a good rhythm. Additionally, Gibbs lyrics through this album are pretty good, and while not extremely though provoking at times, pair really well with the sounds of this album. Overall, this project was really fun to listen to, and not overly long such that it might become boring.

While I really enjoyed listening to You Only Live 2Wice, I felt that there were a few issues with the overall project. Individually, there is a part on the song Alexys where Gibbs does sound like he trips over his words. Besides that, the other main issue I had with this project is that it has songs that feel like filler, or are skippable. Songs like Andrea, Dear Maria, and even Phone Lit are really good, but lack the replay value songs like Alexys and Amnesia have.

As I previously stated, this is a short, fun project that I would really recommend you listen to. As my first Gibbs project, I laud his rapping mechanics, and I would even go to compare his raw skill to the likes of all-time greats like Kendrick, Biggie Smalls, or Eminem in his prime. The project sticks to its theme, does a good job doing so, and showcases Freddie Gibbs has made his return, and is ready to drop another fire collab with Madlib.

Lyricism: 8/10
Production and Mixing: 6/10
Flow: 8.4/10
Overall: 7.5/10

What do you think about this album, or songs from this album?
How do you think Gibbs' music will progress?
I hope you enjoyed this review.
-J

Comments

Post a Comment

Popular posts from this blog

Top 5 albums of 2023

Image
Happy 2024 everyone! I hope everyone has had a nice start to the new year, and that you have accomplished everything you set out to at the beginning of 2023. Last year was a crazy year in music, so I figured I would share the five projects I enjoyed listening to the most. While there were many other amazing albums that came out in 2023, I found these five to be the albums I would most consistently come back to. Truly, all of the albums on this list are excellent and I am excited to celebrate them! I  will say this a number of times during throughout this review, but I seriously recommend taking the time to give each of these projects a listen if you have not already.  5.   i was mature for my age, but i was still a child - grouptherapy. This is a fun debut album from the California based grouptherapy, and a follow up to past projects this is not the album. , there goes the neighborhood. , and Truth Be Told . One thing that I think really stands out about this album is th...
Read more

Mount Eerie - I Walk and Broom of Wind track review

Image
Happy Halloween! Hope everyone had fun celebrating a classic fall holiday! Given Mount Eerie’s album “Night Palace” came out a few minutes ago, I wanted to review two of the singles as a sneak peek at what seems to be a pretty strong album. Mount Eerie is a musical outfit lead by Phil Elverum. The band started in 2003 and has released countless EPs and full-length albums since then, many to critical claim. Most of Mount Eerie’s projects generally fall into the realm of indie-folk/rock, or lo-fi, with some experimental rock. Both the singles discussed and not talked about in this article follow a similar theme sonically. I Walk “I Walk”, takes us on a thoughtful exploration of healing and resolving trauma that comes from tragedy. Elverum’s lyrics tell a compelling story with how candid they are. Referencing something as mundane as “Discarded clothing on the ground” carries a powerful sense of realness. In this moment we are right there with Mount Eerie, and we are there ourselves, recou...
Read more

Best Albums of 2021 So Far

Image
Hope everyone is having a good summer! 2021 has been just as wild as 2020, and I sincerely wish that those reading this are doing alright. Since we are about halfway through the year, I figured I would share some of the best projects that I have listened to this year. While I expect many other excellent albums to be released throughout the next six months, the ones that I have written about here are for sure must listens.  5. Conway the Machine - La Maquina I honestly had my reservations about this album after the first three songs. However, the skepticism quickly evaporated as the album picked up with Clarity, barely missing a beat for the rest of the project. Conway drops banger after banger, with witty lyrics and impeccable rapping. The energy he brings on each song is complimented by excellent guest verses, with vintage performances from artists such as 2 Chainz on "200 Pies". Furthermore, the production across the entire album is so good it could stand on its own as a un...
Read more