Music Review
Ozzy Wagenseil, 22’
For this review, I will be using the source https://www.billboard.com/charts/hot-100. I will listen to the top 10 songs so far of the week and review them based on lyrics, singing/rapping, and beats. In the end, I will calculate the average ranking of that song based on those three categories. This list is in the order that the website lists the songs.
10. “Lemonade” Internet Money and Gunna Featuring Don Toliver and NAV: This is a pretty good song that helps get Don Toliver into the rap scene. In this song, Don Toliver sings the chorus in his singing style, which is really appealing to the ear. Gunna raps with a pretty fast flow, but NAV is the one whose rapping lacks among everyone else as it is very forgettable. The beat for this song is a very cool guitar lick with trap beats mixed with it, making for a very nice sound. Beyond that, however, it does not do anything. Finally, the lyrics are mainly focused on the stereotypical drugs and jewelry, as shown with the lyrics “Did a Percocet, Promethazine, I feel gnarly” and “In my earlobe, got two karats, VVSs.” Overall, this song is pretty good when it comes to the rapping and singing, but not much else otherwise.
Lyrics: 6/10. Singing/Rapping: 7/10. Beat: 7/10. Average: ~7/10.
9. “Watermelon Sugar” Harry Styles: This song is well-deserving of the hype it is receiving. “Watermelon Sugar” was the summer anthem of 2020 because of the fun energy it emits. The beat is a very exciting guitar riff that is accompanied later by trumpets and horns when everything comes to a climax. The buildup is perfect, and it makes one feel they are relaxing on a beach, sipping their favorite summer drink. The lyrics are pretty simplistic, but are more playful than anything else. Such examples include “Tastes like strawberries on a summer evenin' And it sounds just like a song” and “Baby, you're the end of June.” And finally, Harry Styles’s singing is very relaxed and nothing too extraordinary. He manages to get his point across from his fun lyrics and enunciates well how fun this song is.
Lyrics: 7/10. Singing/Rapping: 7/10. Beat: 9/10. Average: ~8/10.
8. “I Hope” Gabby Barret Featuring Charlie Puth: This song sounds very sweet, but instead it is a bit more savage than one would think. This is in part to the well-written lyrics. The lyric that stands out the most is none other than the chorus, when it says “And then I hope she cheats, Like you did on me.” Everything up until the chorus talks about love and the future hopes for the ex of the song’s main character, and then the unexpected line shows how the ex should feel the pain now. Overall, a good story for this song. The singing is fantastic not only due to the amazing vocal control from Puth and Barrett, but also the emotion they display of saddened vengeance towards their former lover. And finally, the beat is beautiful due to the calm guitar riff in the beginning, slowly turning more intense as the real message is displayed. In other words, this song knows how to use the beat to clearly explain the story of sweet revenge for a cheating spouse.
Lyrics: 8/10. Rapping/Singing: 8/10. Beat: 8/10. Average: ~8/10.
7. “Rockstar” DaBaby Featuring Roddy Ricch: TikTok has a way of hyping up songs that are very overrated. Rockstar is one of these instances. In this song, the two rappers speak lyrical nonsense about guns and keeping the strap on in the car. However, one moment of importance in this song is at the end of DaBaby’s verse. In this section of the song, DaBaby says “My daughter a G, she saw me kill a ni**a in front of her before the age of two, And I'll kill another ni**a too, 'Fore I let another ni**a do somethin' to you, Long as you know that, don't let nobody tell you different, Daddy love you (Yeah, yeah).” At this moment, DaBaby references his incident in late 2018 when he shot a robber in self-defense in order to protect himself and his family, showing realism in his lyrics. The tone of rapping also slows down and feels more serious, whereas in the rest of the song it is the typical tough voice. Roddy’s rapping is not noteworthy here as it is in some of his other songs. Finally, the beat is pretty nice with the string playing, but unfortunately lacks much creativity.
Lyrics: 7/10. Rapping/Singing: 6/10. Beat: 7/10. Average: ~7/10.
6. “Savage Love'' Jawsh 685 x Jason Derulo: It is honestly surprising to hear Jason Derulo make another hit in a while. Nobody could forget when “Wiggle” and “Talk Dirty” came out around 2014 and we were all humming along to his songs. And this song exemplifies that same energy. Obviously, the beat is well known by now as it has been used for many, many TikTok dances. And to be fair, the beat is very simplistic, but does emit a goofy and cute mood. Therefore, it is moderately decent. As well as this, Jason Derulo’s singing is actually not that bad. His voice hits every beat perfectly and he likes to hit high notes a lot. Pretty good vocals for a song is very nice to hear every now and then. Finally, the lyrics are the lacking factor in this song as they are generic and do not emit some sort of creativity, other than the term “savage love.” For instance, the song talks about the repeated topic of a lover with such lyrics like “Thought I could be single forever 'till I met you” and “You got a way of makin' me spend up all my cash.” Although the lyrics are bland, this song is good because of Derulo’s lyrics and the fun beat that correlates with it too.
Lyrics: 6/10. Singing/Rapping: 8/10. Beat: 8/10. Average: ~7/10.
5. “Dynamite” BTS: Alas, BTS appears on the billboard again. This song, admittedly, is very energetic and as fun as is their rest of their songs. The positive beat, being accompanied by a funky bass beat, is very funky and makes your head bop on every beat. The guitar riff also adds some extra flavor, enticing the background beat even more. The singing, while obviously autotuned, is not that bad as well. They even manage to hit some high vocals, showing their dynamicness as a group. This is shown in the last chorus when there is a key change, ending the song with a positive note. The lyrics bring out positive vibes as well, showing the kind of energy BTS brings to their audience. Such light-hearted lyrics are “Life is sweet as honey, yeah, this beat cha-ching like money” and “Cup of milk, let's rock and roll, King Kong, kick the drum, Rolling on like a Rolling Stone.” Overall, a very fun song for everyone who is or is not into K-Pop.
Lyrics: 6/10. Singing/Rapping: 7/10. Beat: 8/10. Average: ~7/10.
4. “Blinding Lights” The Weeknd: Damn this was unexpected. The Weeknd just put out a retro theater intro song. But it is that good type of retro that makes this song very unique. The beat is clearly the best part of the song with the use of synth keyboards and drums. The beat makes one feel like they just traveled back to the ’80s and everything has become laid back and relaxed. The lyrics very sadly do not add any relevance to the song except for a few cool lines such as, “I look around and Sin City's cold and empty (oh)” plus “'Cause I can see the sun light up the sky, So I hit the road in overdrive, baby.” Finally, his singing is very polished when combined with the beat of this song. The “oohs” of the song show a clean smoothness to his singing, adding a slick tone to the song.
Lyrics: 7/10. Singing/Rapping: 8/10. Beat: 9/10. Average: ~8/10.
3. “Laugh Now Cry Later” Drake Featuring Lil Durk: A really decent new song from Drake has been released. First things first, the beat for this song is fantastic. The brass instruments emit a royal feeling of accomplishment. The trumpets themselves fill everyone with a feeling of bliss. The trap drums only add on to the triumphant feeling. The only shortcoming this song has is Lil Durk’s 26 second long verse. Lil Durk’s entrance to the song is already iconic, and his pacing while rapping lines up with the beat perfectly, but slowly falters as the verse progresses. Drake leans more towards a singing approach and only starts to rap decently in his third and final verse. As the lyrics goes, Drake raps lyrics that are stereotypically about wealth, such as, “Been wakin' up in the crib and sometimes I don't even know where I'm at.” On the other hand, Lil Durk has more meaning in his words, such as calling out New York Rapper 6ix9ine by saying “Can you not play that lil' boy in the club? 'Cause we do not listen to rats,” as a reference to 6ix9ine testifying in court. All in all, it’s another Drake certified hit.
Lyrics: 7/10. Singing/Rapping: 8/10. Beat: 9/10. Average: ~8/10.
2. “WAP” Cardi B Featuring Megan Thee Stallion: This is… this is very raunchy. I really have no idea how else to put it otherwise. Just seeing Megan and Cardi B together on a song suggests they are going to make a song that is explicit to the core. Even the clean version somehow gets away with the dirty messages. Such lyrics like, “I want you to park that big Mack truck right in this little garage” and “If it don't hang, then he can't bang” really show the erotic symbolism within the song. These are concepts that I cannot explain in a high school newspaper. As for the rapping, Megan Thee Stallion carries this tune with her fast paced enunciation, as shown most in her first verse. Cardi B lacks in this department but at least has a flow switch. And to put it simply, the beat is… well, simple. The ongoing phrase “There’s some h**s in this house” is played over, and it does simply fulfill the job of being the trap, naught beat for this very unrestrained song.
Lyrics: 7/10. Singing/Rapping: 6/10. Beat: 6/10. Average: ~6/10
1. “Mood” 24k Goldn Featuring Iann Dior: Now this is actually quite decent compared to Rockstar in terms of songs that blew up over TikTok. 24k Goldn has made consistent hit after hit recently, and this song may be one of his best new songs yet. The chorus is very catchy and memorable, and 24k Goldn’s voice is fitted well for a song like this. The same goes for Iann Dior, but 24k Goldn fills the role perfectly. The sort of melodic singing is very nice to listen to, but nothing too flashy or special. The beat is very nice, with a nice electric guitar riff to introduce the song along with trap beats to make for a fun vibe. As for the lyrics, another repeat of the same girl problems and lamenting that other rappers tend to write every now and then. However, 24k Goldn has a nice rhyme scheme in his verse when he says, “I'm talking slick back, kick back, gang sippin' forties, You keep playin, not another day with you shorty.” All in all, a very fun tune that is nothing flashy.
Lyrics: 7/10. Singing/Rapping: 7/10. Beat: 8/10. Average: ~7/10.