Rating: 3 / 10
One of the things that makes Hip-Hop so entertaining is the level of unpredictability contained within it. Thanks to music opening doors for everyone and the revolution of the Internet, there are things that can happen now that originally seemed to be unthinkable or even ludicrous. For instance, Meek Mill might not have been here if it wasn’t for Twitter blowing up Rick Ross’ mentions of him on Twitter. Jay-Z and Kanye might not have been able to pull Watch The Throne without building hype through the Internet reporting on their listening sessions.
However, for every reasonable explanation, there’s always one unexplainable item that is unable to be rationalized, no matter how you attempt to tackle it. In one of the more confusing moments of 2011, it was announced that Gucci Mane and White Girl Mob representative V-Nasty would be teaming up to release a joint-album entitled BAYTL. It sounded like a bad idea at the time, and now that the LP is upon us, that doubt is reaffirmed in almost every way.
The one single thing that hinders this album from being even a decent output is the people attached to it, or rather the females. It’s unfortunate that Gucci Mane chooses this album to actually improve his flow and his bars, because the N-word toting V-Nasty is by far the weak link, and her weaknesses easily outweigh Gucci’s rap improvements and upgrades. The songs quickly slide into the typical topics of drugs, money, girls, and more, but with the added twist of V-Nasty taking pleasure in being one of the guys in every aspect. If there was ever any doubt, V-Nasty’s first verse on the project makes it clear what her subject matter’s going to deteriorate into:
“Hide the young ones, Cuz I’m comin’ for your daughter /
If she ain’t sellin p***y I ain’t gon’ bother /
Got a pornstar, a ho, and a model /
In the club we do big sh*t, pop a hundred bottles /
We getting’ h*es wet, they gon’ need goggles /
They said get that gas, ho I’m on that full throttle /
If I had a d*ck, then I’d tell that b*tch to swallow /
Thirty in my clip and it’s letting out hollows..”
Later in the project, she even goes as far as to ask listeners how she became “more ‘hood than David Banner.” And, by this point, it’s hard to take her seriously. The cameos here (aside from Slim Dunkin) aren’t worth checking for either; Mistah F.A.B. makes a forgettable appearance on “Loaded” (capped off by the obligatory Equestrian line that Drake’s has helped to make popular), and the other features just seem bland.
As mentioned before, it’s unfortunate that V-Nasty is tied to the project because Gucci Mane really did a decent job whenever he stepped to the plate. With clever lines (“I’m not romantic, but I cook my dope candlelit”) and his switching flows rather impressively (for him, at least), Gucci Mane sadly picked the wrong time to deliver a solid performance. One is only as strong as their weakest link, and thanks to V-Nasty and company, what little replay value that’s to be had is siphoned out, due to the generic topics and the all-around unappealing idea in general.
Hip-Hop is unpredictable (and that’s a great thing), but let’s hope that unpredictability never plays into something like this happening again. Unless it’s much, much better.
K1ng Eljay is the founder of his site, K1ngEljay.com, as well as a contributor to GoWhereHipHop and RapGenius.com. Follow him on Twitter at @K1ngEljay for more.