You guys probably already know who A$AP Rocky is because you probably heard Fuckin' Problems with Kendrick Lamar, Drake and 2 Chainz on the radio a few times, but A$AP is way more than that.Whether you like his music or not, A$AP Rocky is a force to be reckoned with. A$AP Rocky is a New York rapper who rose to prominence through his 2011 mixtape Live. Live. A$AP and the single Purple Swag. What made that album so great was not A$AP's lyrical ability, but the strong production assisted by mostly Clams Casino. I'm not saying that lyrics aren't important, but with A$AP Rocky, his strong point is the sound of the music. This type of music became very popular among the public and A$AP's major label debut became very hyped up. Now with the release of his debut Long. Live. A$AP, A$AP Rocky has proved to me he is a very smart rapper when dealing with the appeal of his music for several reasons.
A$AP Rocky has a great ear for beats and production. When Live. Love. A$AP came out, everyone was in love with the catchy music he picks. He combines sonically consistent modern beats with old-school samples that satisfy not only the modern listener but the listeners used to old-school Hip-Hop. While the production is fantastic, A$AP makes his songs better by being able to "ride" the beats with his charismatic flow. He is very mellow and his attitude and delivery will leave you with great satisfaction. What I love about A$AP Rocky is that he learns from the small mistakes he commits from previous projects. In Live. Love. A$AP, he was able to provide with a lot of great production, but a lot of it sounded similar. On his new LP however, A$AP uses his old style but also allowing more commercial producers like 40 and Hit-Boy to add their taste of music into his album. He also made put more effort into his lyrics giving his music stronger stems. His genius is being able to pick up ideas by keeping his ear to the streets and the music industry and therefore puts out the best music he can, and that is very impressive!
The second reason I think A$AP Rocky is a genius is his picks on featured artists. The guy is so smart when choosing who to collaborate with. When Fuckin' Problems came out, I was happy to see Drake and Kendrick Lamar as feature artists but was skeptic when it came to 2 Chainz. I didn't know how his inclusion would affect the overall song. Nevertheless, I put on my headphones, pressed play and listened to the song and I was not disappointed. What struck me with the song is how smart he was to choose the featured artists. A$AP Rocky took two of the most respectable, lyrical yet commercial artists, Drake and Kendrick Lamar, on verses while he only used 2 Chainz, the hypest rapper, on the hook. That was a smart move because you get the great verses from three great lyrical rappers while enjoying a catchy hook from someone who really knows how to make a song feel more enjoyable (sonically speaking).
Continuing on his choice of features, A$AP Rocky continues to prove he has a great ear from lyricism with the song 1 Train from his album Long. Live. A$AP. If you're a Hip-Hop fan and haven't heard this song, I highly recommend you check it out asap (no pun intended). If you want a reason to why you should check this song out, I'll give you six: Kendrick Lamar, Joey Bada$$, Danny Brown, Action Bronson, Yelawolf and Big K.R.I.T.. A$AP Rocky took a perfectly produced song, with great strings and violins, and puts six of the top acclaimed rappers in one song. I think this song is perfect because with no chorus, each rappers comes up, spits several bars, brings their own taste and style into the song, and diversify the song. With all the heavy weights in one song, A$AP Rocky is still able to hold his own with a great verse. Big K.R.I.T. (one of my favorite Hip-Hop artists right now) absolutely murders it, with Yelawold in a close second and Joey Bada$$ in third. But that isn't fair because all the rappers are awesome and different in their own way.
With collaborations with Kendrick Lamar, Big K.R.I.T., Joey Bada$$, Drake and even Skrillex, A$AP Rocky proves his devotion to appeal to as many different audiences as possible while still putting his own style into his music. A$AP would appeal to old-school fans, modern Hip-Hop fans as well as non-rap fans by collaborating with artists like Skrillex and Rihanna. He truly is a genius in how he spreads his music and will no doubt remain in the game for a while.
What do you think? Is A$AP Rocky overlooked or overrated? Can he even be called a "genius"? Let me know in the comment section below!
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