The year has crossed the halfway mark, and rappers young and old(er) have blessed us with some standout albums. Lupe Fiasco and Kid Cudi, two artists who might be considered part of the old guard, are still finding new ways to express themselves. Here are two of the most exciting projects of 2024 so far.
Lupe Fiasco – Samurai
Watching the Amy Winehouse documentary, Amy, Lupe Fiasco was struck with inspiration. Winehouse told her producer about the battle raps she was writing. “They’re just pouring out of me, like Wu-Tang stuff. But really neat, very beautifully alliterated little battle raps. So next time you wanna come for me and have a battle rap-off, I’m gonna kill you. Because I’m a samurai.”
Even with Wu-Tang Clan having established martial arts in hip-hop, and battle rapping always being popular, that quote might seem like an odd starting point for an album. The chorus of the title track would seem just as odd if you read the lyrics without being aware of Winehouse’s quote. Somehow, Lupe makes the words flow beautifully, twisting the sounds of “these” and “neat”, and stretching the “ay” sound in “alliterated”.
Samurai is a loose concept album in which Lupe narrates a rapper writing battle raps, the mentality of trying to be the best (‘No. 1 Headband’) and the responsibility and unmet expectations of rap stars (‘Bigfoot’).
Long-time producer Sountrakk provides Lupe with delicate touches of horns, synths and natural-sounding drums. Those drums provide a solid foundation as Lupe drifts off-beat (as on ‘Bigfoot’), and on other tracks like ‘Cake’ their faster tempos match angrier and more urgent lyrics.
‘Cake’ is chockfull of internal rhymes, references to popular culture, and alliteration that might have made Winehouse proud. As megacritic Anthony Fantano said, “[Lupe’s] really a dying breed kind of rap artist who reminds you of the level of pen game you used to hear on a regular basis during the genre’s golden age.”
Kid Cudi – INSANO (NITRO MEGA)
INSANO features plenty of Cudi’s intriguing and downright weird rapping and singing style. The groans of ‘BABE AND I’ recall his best singing on KIDS SEE GHOSTS, the much-loved collab project with Kanye West. Cudi’s vocal innovation hasn’t always been matched by his beats, and that’s mostly true for this album, but occasionally manic synths, industrial-sounding groans and touches of drum ‘n’ bass add extra intrigue. Still, they’re mostly supportive elements for Cudi’s bizarre vocals full of pitch-bends and decorative hums and murmurs.
Listening to Kid Cudi is often an unpredictable experience. It’s like dealing a deck of cards, except, instead of aiming for a full house or a 21 in blackjack, you’re just letting them fall where they like and creating some narrative from the result. Some rappers’ annunciation is off the charts – each syllable perfectly detectable, even when they’re going at 100 kph. Kid Cudi’s annunciation? “Sloppy,” his schoolteachers might have said. The hook on ‘MOON MAN S###’ is barely detectable unless you’ve read the title first. Somehow, Cudi makes a sloppy sound like the coolest thing you’ve heard all day.
Listen to the first verse of ‘EVERYBODY LIKE’: “They love to love him some more, caught up in that groove / It’s the Rager supreme, now here’s a shovel. Can you dig it?” Cudi’s so laid back he sounds like he was barely able to stand up at the height of the microphone. Maybe he wasn’t – it’s easier to imagine him recording this with his feet up on the couch.
For much of the album Cudi is similarly chilled out, but guests like Chip Tha Rapper inject some energy. Cudi’s own verses sometimes have more bite, as on ‘DOSE OF DOPENESS (2007)’, where he pairs crisply delivered internal rhymes with a staccato beat.
The quickly strummed guitar and drama of ‘ALL MY LIFE’ sound like a final jam, but there are three more songs. INSANO is one of the year’s lengthier releases at just under an hour, with Cudi ignoring the trend of tight, half-hour projects. It’s fortunate, then, that the actual closer ‘SUPERBOY’ is a similarly moody and fitting finale.