Paint It 6LACK
While it may have been two years since 6LACK (pronounced black) released his album Free 6LACK, there were still multitudes of people waiting on a new album to drop. With his soft spoken R&B style rap, 6LACK has one of the most distinguishable voices in a music industry that is very generic. While 6LACK may have hinted at what his album was going to be like through his singles “Switch” and “Nonchalant”, that ended up on the album and its pre-release preview, it was impossible to know just what his album would be like. With it now being released, 6LACK’s album seems to be one made up of his soft spoken R&B style.
Track 1. “Unfair”
A big key to an album’s success is its intro and 6LACK hit the nail right on the head with this one. With a buildup of confused noise before he enters, the track with the words “Hope my mistakes don’t make me less of a man”, this truly is a 6LACK way to start an album. By doing this, he immediately shows a level of vulnerability that is not easy to find. This song is all about 6LACK being unfair to his girl, so he decides that he needs to put his ego aside and be a better man for her. Another thing that 6LACK does on this intro is hit some really high notes, which he had never done before in any of his other songs.
Track 2. “Loaded Gun”
This song on the album starts off with 6LACK talking about the rendezvouses he has with various women. He talks about this to explain to a girl that she needs to do her best to please him. While the track starts off like this, it quickly turns into 6LACK talking about how he has worked to earn everything he has. With one of the truest lyrics ever “More money, more problems, that ain’t no lie”, this song is as perfect example of 6LACK using his hard times to write a song.
Track 3. “East Atlanta Love Letter (feat. Future)”
With hip hop artist Future making a surprise appearance on this song, 6LACK added a whole new level of listeners to his album due to just one person. While Future may be a part of why this song is so good, he is not the only reason. This song has a really good hook in which 6LACK and Future’s voices combine to form a silky smooth hook that is hard to find in today’s music industry.
Track 4. “Let Her Go”
In this song 6LACK is deciding whether he should stay with his girlfriend or if he should leave her now that he is rich and famous and he can get about any girl he wants. This song fits 6LACK perfectly from the lyrics down to the beat. It sounds like many of the songs that have made him such a big name in the music industry.
Track 5. “Sorry”
One thing that makes this album so great is its smooth transitions between songs. This song starts of with a woman talking about how men are a distraction to her. This conversation is started at the end of “Let Her Go” and carries over smoothly to “Sorry.” While the intro may be really good, it is not the only good part of the song. With 6LACK using his typical R&B style rap this song is one that seems to pass very quickly even though it is a longer song. In this song 6LAck is talking about writing about his wrongs and how he needs to hold himself accountable for his actions.
Track 6. “Pretty Little Fears (feat. J. Cole)”
J. Cole is one of the music industries most liked rappers, so when 6LACK brought him on a song it did not come as much of a surprise. In this song 6LACK is talking about one of his relationships that crashed and burned while J. Cole raps about his wife. This song is good because it catches both sides of the relationship spectrum. It captures the bad relationships that fail and also the good relationships that end in marriage and having a very happy couple.
Track 7. “Disconnect”
“Disconnect” may start off a little jumbled up with its random noises, but as soon as those noises quit, the song is pretty straight forward. This song has powerful lyrics like “Love is not looking over shoulders love is you should trust what I told you.” In this track, 6LACK is talking about how he is trying to work things out with one of his many lovers, but he can not seem to do it because they are on different pages.
Track 8. “Switch (feat. Ty Dolla $ign)”
“Switch” was a song that 6LACK released on June 22nd as a preview for things to come. When he released this song, it quickly gained listeners, and it had many people ready for 6LACK to release his new album. This song is all about 6LACK’S recent changes in his life. In the song, he is saying that if people think they can do what he is doing then they should just be him. With Ty Dolla $ign’s vocals on the track it elevated it to a whole other level.
Track 9. “Thuggers Interlude”
In this song 6LACK is hypocritical because he is talking about how R&B music which he writes depresses him. He says “Lately I been bumping trap music” which is about as far away from his music as possible. This song shows how musically diversified 6LACK is even though he is a predominantly R&B type rapper.
Track 10. “Balenciaga Challenge (feat. Offset)”
In this song featuring Migos member Offset, 6LACK shows a rap side that before had never been seen. This song starts off with 6LACK and Offset switching back and forth rapping before it enters the chorus. The chorus on this song is catchy and gets stuck in the head easily. This song shows that 6LACK is not just a moody R&B singer, but that he can also produce a more trap style song.
Track 11. “Scripture”
“Scripture” is a song about 6LACK using his tragedies in life to make him who he is now. In this song the zone 6 artist shows just how rough of a life he has had. He also talks about what almost getting killed will make a person think about. With hard hitting lyrics like “Them bullets really have you thinking about your unborn” , 6LACK opens eyes to a whole new world of what has happened to him.
Track 12. “Nonchalant”
“Nonchalant” is another song that 6LACK released earlier in the year as a preview for his album. The definition of nonchalant is calm and relaxed and 6LACK keeps that mood throughout this song. This track has the typical 6LACK tempo which is laid back and chill. While this song may be like 6LACK’s usual style, that does not mean it is unoriginal. In this song 6LACK is talking about how his flow is calm and mellow.
Track 13. “Seasons (feat Khalid)”
6LACK must have realized just how good Khalid was when he worked with him on the single “OTW.” This song it starts off with 6LACK’s R&B rap, but as soon as Khalid enters the song, it quickly changes tempo. In this song 6LACK uses the seasons to describe a relationship he is in. With the chorus constantly repeating “Oh, summer’s calling” one can tell that 6LACK still has hope in the relationship.
Track 14. “Stan”
A person is referred to as a stan if they are a die hard fan of a musical artist. This term comes from an Eminem song titled “Stan.” In this song 6LACK is saying that he will be okay just as long as his girlfriend loves him like his fans do. In reality this is the perfect closing song for this album because throughout the whole album 6LACK is referencing love in all of his songs.
Beau Fuqua is a senior and he has been on the staff for four years, though nobody can actually figure out why. HE can't write, take pics, or edit anything....