Album of the Year 2018 #4: A$AP Rocky - TESTING - HipHop | HipHop Channel

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Album of the Year 2018 #4: A$AP Rocky - TESTING - HipHop

Album of the Year 2018 #4: A$AP Rocky - TESTING - HipHop


Album of the Year 2018 #4: A$AP Rocky - TESTING

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 03:01 PM PST

Artist: A$AP Rocky

Album: TESTING


Listen:

Spotify

Apple Music

Tidal


Background

On December 19, 2016, about a year and a half after his last project, Harlem rapper A$AP Rocky uploaded a snippet to his Twitter account with a single word caption; "TESTING…" The song previewed in that tweet was never released, but the hype from it set off the TESTING hype train. Unfortunately for fans, most of 2017 didn't give us much new information when it came to the album. We got a few features and a new A$AP Mob tape, plus we heard a few snippets, but there was no new solo Rocky.

On January 23, 2018, fans finally regained hope for an album drop. A long-awaited snippet, "5IVE $TAR$", aka "Wok", was released on Soundcloud. The next day, "ABOVE" was released. And the next day, a freestyle over Babyfather's "Meditation" was released. Though the singles received mixed receptions, they were a positive sign for the album. And once again, Rocky went ghost.

It took another couple months for a proper single to be released on streaming sites. "Bad Company" with BlocBoy JB was released in March. About a week later, Rocky appeared on Jimmy Fallon, where he performed two new songs, "Distorted Records" and "A$AP Forever", the latter of which was released as the first actual single from the album a day later, accompanied by it's music video, which stands as one of the best of the year.

And finally, FINALLY, TESTING dropped on May 25, 2018, to mixed reception from fans and critics.


Review

The album opens up with "Distorted Records". The simple, distorted production gives Rocky enough to work with and make a banger of a track. Although the track is short, it serves its purpose as an intro. The song then transitions beautifully into a new version of the album's first single, "A$AP Forever", this time with an added verse from Kid Cudi. I absolutely love this song. It feels like it could have come out in 2011 when Rocky was first coming out. The beat is super airy, the drums are punchy, and Cudi and Rocky both deliver on their verses. The breakdown at the end with Moby's vocals is a great use of the sample, and also gives the song a more uplifting vibe.

The next song on the trackless is "Tony Tone", which was heavily anticipated by fans due to snippets. The guitar loop and drums have an old-school feel, but the distortion brings it into Rocky's world. Lyrically, Rocky talks about fashion, his lifestyle in Harlem, and even addresses A$AP Bari's sexual assault scandal. Next up is "Fukk Sleep", which features British singer FKA twigs. The song continues the airy production, with Rocky and twigs' voices both drenched in reverb.

"Praise The Lord (Da Shine)" with Skepta was the second single from the album, and for good reason. It's the closest thing the album has to a typical club banger, with a bouncy, bass-heavy, Skepta-produced beat that could be mistaken for something Pi'erre Bourne would make. Skepta handles the hook, with him and Rocky both getting a verse, plus the final verse where they trade bars. It's not a particularly deep song, but it's super fun and energetic, and it's easy to why it became one of Rocky's biggest hits.

The following song, "CALLDROPS", is less of a proper track and more of a short interlude. Though it's pretty short, it actually showcases themes which come up a lot across the album. There's the chopped and slowed sample in the beginning, the guitar sample, very airy, reverb'd out vocals, and another across-the-pond collaboration, this time with English singer-songwriter Dean Blunt, who sings the chorus along with Rocky. The song then ends with Kodak Black, then incarcerated, singing us a verse from inside jail, ending the song on somewhat of a poignant moment.

After the short interlude, "Buck Shots", which features AWGE artists Smooky Margielaa and Playboi Carti, brings the tempo back up. The production sounds like what I'd imagine trap music will sound like in the year 3000. And while I love Rocky's part and Carti wasn't shabby, the real highlight is Smooky. His autotuned voice and the beat mesh perfectly and I'll be damned if "Got them bullets aimin' at your head top" isn't a super hard way to start the verse.

"Gunz N Butta" again shows off Rocky's skill at blending different musical styles together. The track is most obviously indebted to '90s Memphis rap with the Project Pat sample, but also sampling Dean Blunt's Babyfather project. Next is "Brotha Man", one of two collaborations with Frank Ocean on the album, and which also features French Montana. French comes with a wavy hook, and Rocky delivers a solid verse. Frank's contributions are limited to a couple lines in the bridge and an outro, which is admittedly a little corny, thought I like his reference to Trump at the end.

Though "Bad Company" ended up not making the album, "OG Beeper" gave us another collaboration with BlocBoy JB, though he's wisely relegated to adlib duty this time. Though this is one of my least favourite songs on the album, it's still entertaining, with Rocky talking about life before fame, his time in prison, and his current modelling endeavours. The production is weird enough to where I'm still really enthralled by the song. The following song, "Kids Turned Out Fine" is another guitar-based song, The effects on the guitar and Rocky's voice give it a psychedelic, wonky feel.

"Hun43rd", which feature Blood Orange's Devonté Hynes, is another highlight. Rocky's rapping is super smooth over the beat's G-funk esque synth works great. Dev's hook sounds beautiful, and the chopped Thug Life sample fits in perfectly. We also hear a a classic Rocky maneuver, with his voice changing pitch. The outro with Tyler and the Mob is also a nice touch, showing Rocky's crew.

"Changes" is a three-part epic. The first features Rocky rapping over just a guitar talking about a former lover, before the beat drops. The next part has a more '90s feel, and is Rocky at his more braggadocios, and the final part returns to the guitar of the first part. Honestly, there's not much I can say about this song besides that it's beautiful.

"Black Tux, White Collar" is a long-awaited collaboration between Rocky and producer Clams Casino. The Clams beat is exactly the type of beat I would've wanted from him, it's super atmospheric and the drums work well without doing too much. It's a throwback sound from Rocky, with a flow that's reminiscent of his first tape.

The last song on the album is "Purity", which features none other than Frank Ocean. The beat (also guitar-based) is initially simple, but as the track goes on, grows with new layers. The Lauryn Hill sample on the hook is great and Frank snaps on his verse. On the other hand, Rocky delivers a verse that doesn't really adhere to the beat but still works. It's a great closer to the album.

I'm not gonna sit here and say that TESTING is my favourite Rocky album, because it's not. I'm not gonna say it's perfect, because it's not. But I will say it's a damn good album no matter what people think. Throughout the album, Rocky blends so many different influences, samples, and styles, but still manages to make an album that gels together extremely well. Recurring themes like chopped samples, psychedelic guitar loops, and airy vocals help give the album a sense of cohesion.

A large portion of the criticism was about the album being "boring" or "one note", but I disagree. There are quite a few slow paced songs that are somewhat light on drums, but that doesn't make a song boring. And it certainly doesn't make the album as a whole boring, because songs like "Tony Tone" or "Buck Shots" is anything but. There are so many unique songs and collaborations on this album. TESTING may not be everyone's cup of tea, but to me, it sounds like the future of rap music.


Favourite Lyrics

The bigger they are, the harder they fall

Like dominos, nigga, Geronimos

When it's my time to go, adiós, vámonos

Flacko no Dominicano but eat the tostones with plátanos

  • "A$AP Forever"

Pockets loaded, rocket loaded, okay, let's rock and roll this

It's time to go, Lock, Stock and Two Smoking Barrels

Locked and loaded, diamonds glowing, chart-climbing on 'em

  • "Praise The Lord (Da Shine)"

Grandma was a Catholic, and mama was a Christian

My pop returned to Muslim when he spent some time in prison

No Jehovah Witnesses where I'm from, kinda different

They don't leave no witnesses so folks just mind they business

  • "Gunz N Butta"

Two more drinks of everything before the bar closed

Face to face with my demons at a barstool

Haven't checked on my niece in weeks

Months past and months in between since me and my sister would speak

Not a call or visit in weeks, lost, nothin' since the September last

Seen her September '16, man it feels like "I'm undone because"

Lose someone every release, it feels like the curse is in me

A$AP Press is gone and I grief, I share with you my peace

  • Purity

Talking Points

  • If the album had a less rocky rollout (pun intended), do you think the reception would be different?
  • How do you feel Rocky's collaborators (Dev Hynes, Frank Ocean, Dean Blunt, Playboi Carti) influenced the direction of the album?
  • Where does Rocky go next? What would you like out of his next album?
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Daily Discussion Thread 12/04/2018

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 03:33 PM PST

Welcome to the /r/hiphopheads daily discussion thread!

This thread is for:

  • objective questions with right/wrong answers (e.g. "Does anyone know what is happening with MIXTAPE?", "What is the sample in SONG?")
  • general hip-hop discussion
  • meta posts...e.g. ideas for the sub

Thread Guidelines

  • Do not create a separate self post for these types of discussions outside of this thread - if you do, your post will be removed, as stated in the guidelines.

  • Please be helpful and friendly.

  • If a question has been asked many times before, provide a link to a thread that contains the answer.

Weekly/Monthly Threads

Other ways to interact

There are a number of other ways to interact with other members of HHH:

New to /r/hiphopheads or hip-hop in general?

Check out these:

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Earl Sweathshirt - Some Rap Songs ALBUM REVIEW (Fantano)

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 06:43 PM PST

Ghostface Killah and Czarface Announce New Album "Czar Meets Ghostface"

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 08:57 AM PST

[FRESH VIDEO] JID - Off Deez (ft. J Cole) Dir. Cole Bennett

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 10:04 AM PST

Cardi B Says She and Offset Have Broken Up: 'I'm Always Going to Have a Lot of Love for Him'

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 10:31 PM PST

Lil Pump arrested in Denmark. Helsinki show cancelled.

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 09:42 AM PST

Childish Gambino - Sober

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 11:21 AM PST

J.I.D announces Catch Me If You Can Tour.

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 09:57 AM PST

Larry Lovestein (Mac Miller) and Ariana Grande - Baby It's Cold Outside

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 09:30 AM PST

Billboard Hot 100 Discussion - November 23-29 2018 | SICKO MODE reaches #1

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 02:21 PM PST

From the Billboard Hot 100

Songs marked with a '*' are hip-hop songs or songs by primarily hip-hop artists.

Songs marked with a '\'are songs with hip-hop features or songs by hip-hop adjacents.

Position Title Artist Last Week Weeks Charting Peak
(1x) * 1 Sicko Mode Travis Scott ▲+1 2 17 1
2 Thank U, Next Ariana Grande ▼-1 1 4 1
3 Happier Marshmello & Bastille - 3 15 3
4 Without Me Halsey - 4 8 4
5 High Hopes Panic! At The Disco ▲+1 6 17 5
* 6 Mo Bamba Sheck Wes ▲+1 7 14 6
* 7 ZEZE Kodak Black ft. Travis Scott & Offset ▲+3 10 7 2
* 8 Drip Too Hard Lil Baby & Gunna ▲+1 9 11 4
/ 9 Girls Like You Maroon 5 ft. Cardi B ▼-1 8 27* 1
* 10 Lucid Dreams Juice WRLD ▼-5 5 29* 2
* 11 Better Now Post Malone - 11 31* 3
12 Youngblood 5 Seconds Of Summer - 12 26* 7
13 Breathin Ariana Grande - 13 15 13
14 All I Want For Christmas Is You Mariah Carey ▲+15 29 26* 9
* 15 Wake Up In The Sky Gucci Mane X Bruno Mars X Kodak Black ▼-1 14 11 14
/ 16 Trip Ella Mai ▼-1 15 17 11
* 17 Sunflower (Spider-Man: Into The Spider-Verse) Post Malone & Swae Lee ▼-1 16 6 9
/ 18 Eastside Benny Blanco, Halsey & Khalid ▼-1 17 20* 17
/ 19 MIA Bad Bunny ft. Drake ▼-1 18 7 5
/ 20 Love Lies Khalid & Normani ▼-1 19 41* 9
21 It's The Most Wonderful Time Of The Year Andy Williams ▲+80 - 6 21
/ 22 Taki Taki DJ Snake ft. Selena Gomez, Ozuna & Cardi B - 22 9 11
23 Rockin' Around The Christmas Tree Brenda Lee ▲+78 - 23* 14
* 24 Money Cardi B ▼-3 21 6 13
25 Natural Imagine Dragons ▼-5 20 19 13
26 A Holly Jolly Christmas Burl Ives ▲+75 - 6 26
* 27 Leave Me Alone Flipp Dinero ▲+1 28 11 27
28 Shallow Lady Gaga & Bradley Cooper ▼-5 23 9 5
* 29 Better Khalid ▲+14 43 11 29
30 Beautiful Bazzi ft. Camila Cabello - 30 17 30
* 31 I Like It Cardi B, Bad Bunny & J Balvin ▼-7 24 34* 1
32 Broken lovelytheband ▲+3 35 20* 29
33 Jingle Bell Rock Bobby Helms ▲+68 - 21* 29
34 God Is A Woman Ariana Grande ▼-8 26 20* 8
* 35 Taste Tyga ft. Offset ▼-8 27 27* 8
* 36 FEFE 6ix9ine ft. Nicki Minaj & Murda Beatz ▲+2 38 19 3
* 37 In My Feelings Drake ▼-12 25 22* 1
38 Speechless Dan + Shay ▼-5 33 12 33
39 The Christmas Song (Merry Christmas To You) Nat King Cole ▲+62 - 13 37
* 40 Uproar Lil Wayne ▼-3 37 9 7
41 Lose It Kane Brown ▼-1 40 20* 28
42 She Got The Best Of Me Luke Combs ▼-8 34 16 34
43 Last Christmas Wham! ▲+58 - 5 41
* 44 Yes Indeed Lil Baby & Drake ▼-13 31 29* 6
45 Tequila Dan + Shay ▼-9 36 38* 21
* 46 Nonstop Drake ▼-14 32 22* 2
* 47 Ring Cardi B ft. Kehlani ▼-6 41 19 28
* 48 Dangerous Meek Mill ft. Jeremih & PnB Rock ▲+3 51 15 48
49 Best Shot Jimmie Allen ▼-2 47 11 46
/ 50 Boo'd Up Ella Mai ▼-8 42 35* 5
* 51 Lie NF ▼-3 48 18 48
52 When The Party's Over Billie Eilish - 52 6 52
53 Drunk Me Mitchell Tenpenny ▲+2 55 16 53
* 54 BAD! XXXTENTACION ▼-15 39 3 16
* 55 Armed And Dangerous Juice WRLD ▼-2 53 3 44
56 Lost In Japan Shawn Mendes X Zedd ▼-2 54 10 48
* 57 Arms Around You XXXTENTACION x Lil Pump ft. Maluma & Swae Lee ▼-8 49 5 28
* 58 MAMA 6ix9ine ft. Nicki Minaj & Kanye West ▲+43 DEBUT 1 58
* 59 KIKA 6ix9ine ft. Tory Lanez ▲+42 DEBUT 1 59
60 You Say Lauren Daigle ▼-2 58 20 44
* 61 STOOPID 6ix9ine ft. Bobby Shmurda ▲+24 85 8 25
* 62 TIC TOC 6ix9ine ft. Lil Baby ▲+39 DEBUT 1 62
* 63 Close Friends Lil Baby ▼-6 57 8 28
* 64 Fine China Future & Juice WRLD - 64 6 26
65 Be Alright Dean Lewis ▲+11 76 5 65
* 66 Topanga Trippie Redd ▼-5 61 5 52
* 67 That's On Me Yella Beezy ▼-11 56 18 56
* 68 Smile (Living My Best Life) Lil' Duval ft. Snoop Dogg & Ball Greezy ▼-8 60 14 56
69 Come Out And Play Billie Eilish ▲+32 DEBUT 1 69
* 70 10 Freaky Girls Metro Boomin ft. 21 Savage ▼-7 63 4 42
* 71 WAKA 6ix9ine ft. A Boogie Wit da Hoodie ▲+30 DEBUT 1 71
* 72 1400 / 999 Freestyle Trippie Redd ft. Juice WRLD ▼-4 68 3 55
* 73 No Stylist French Montana ft. Drake ▼-7 66 10 47
74 Burning Man Dierks Bentley ft. Brothers Osborne ▼-5 69 6 69
* 75 Talk To Me Tory Lanez & Rich The Kid ▼-3 72 5 72
* 76 Backin' It Up Pardison Fontaine ft. Cardi B ▼-11 65 7 65
77 Consequences Camila Cabello ▲+5 82 4 77
78 I'm A Mess Bebe Rexha ▼-19 59 20 35
79 Hangin' On Chris Young ▼-12 67 13 63
* 80 Dip Tyga & Nicki Minaj ▼-9 71 5 63
81 Good Girl Dustin Lynch ▲+7 88 3 81
82 This Feeling The Chainsmokers ft. Kelsea Ballerini ▼-9 73 7 73
/ 83 Lovely Billie Eilish & Khalid ▼-3 80 7 78
84 Ella Quiere Beber Anuel AA & Romeo Santos ▼-5 79 4 79
* 85 Never Recover Lil Baby & Gunna ft. Drake ▼-15 70 8 15
* 86 BEBE 6ix9ine ft. Anuel AA ▲+15 - 5 30
87 Rich Maren Morris ▼-25 62 8 62
88 Sixteen Thomas Rhett ▼-1 87 3 87
89 Blue Tacoma Russell Dickerson ▼-12 77 15 52
* 90 You Jacquees ▲+11 DEBUT 1 90
* 91 Space Cadet Metro Boomin ft. Gunna ▼-17 74 4 51
92 Last Shot Kip Moore ▼-2 90 3 90
* 93 Best Part Daniel Caesar ft. H.E.R. ▼-10 83 19 75
94 Girl Like You Jason Aldean ▲+5 99 2 94
* 95 Don't Come Out The House Metro Boomin ft. 21 Savage ▼-17 78 4 38
96 Ocean Eyes Billie Eilish ▲+1 97 2 96
* 97 I Love It Kanye West & Lil Pump ▼-22 75 12 6
* 98 Falling Down Lil Peep & XXXTENTACION ▼-14 84 11 13
99 Noticed Lil Mosey ▼-6 93 10 80
/ 100 Close To Me Ellie Goulding X Diplo ft. Swae Lee ▼-2 98 2 98

*Note: if a song has been charting for more than 20 weeks and is below #50, it gets dropped off prematurely.

Notable:

  • Sicko Mode reaches #1 after many weeks of being blocked.

    • Travis's first #1.
    • Credited as a solo #1 so doesn't count towards any other involved artists, though it would be Drake's 7th #1, and Swae Lee's second
  • 6ix9ine's album Dummy Boy charts 7 tracks, despite only having three days of tracking

    • #36 FEFE ft. Nicki Minaj & Murda Beats (▲+2)
    • #58 MAMA ft. Nicki Minaj & Kanye West
    • #59 KIKA ft. Tory Laneza
    • #61 STOOPID ft. Bobby Shmurda (▲+24)
    • #62 TIC TOC ft. Lil Baby
    • #71 WAKA ft. A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie
    • #86 BEBE ft. Anuel AA (re-entry)
  • Post Malone's Psycho drops out after 39 weeks, peaking at #1 for one week and spending its last week at #45

  • XXXTentacion's SAD! drops out after 38 weeks, peaking at #1 for one week and spending its last week at #46

Billboard 200 (Albums):

Position Title Artist Sales Last Week Weeks Charting
1 ASTROWORLD Travis Scott 71K (31K pure), up 60% 7 17
2 Dummy Boy 6ix9ine 66K (10K pure) DEBUT 1
8 Scorpion Drake 39K, down 10% 8 22
10 Drip Harder Lil Baby & Gunna 34K, down 10% 12 8

Billboard hasn't updated the full album chart so I can only see the top 10, I'll update later when they release it.

Apparently there's a recount and 6ix9ine's album may be put on top

(Also I can't post this next week)

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[FRESH VIDEO] Noname - Blaxplotation

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 11:15 AM PST

[Leak] XXXTENTACION - Skins

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 05:36 PM PST

It's out there.

submitted by /u/curlyhippy
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Pitchfork gives Meek Mill "Championships" a 7.7

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 09:33 AM PST

Top Ten Tuesday: Ka

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 01:14 PM PST

Here's how this works:

  • One song per comment.

  • The thread will be put into contest mode (randomized comment order).

  • Upvote the songs you like.

  • Please don't downvote!

  • Search/use ctrl+f to see if anyone posted the song already.

  • Try to limit yourself to posting one or two songs.

  • Please post a link with your song.

  • The 10 songs with the most upvotes will be HHH Top Ten.

  • Have fun!

Here is is our spreadsheet with all past results, made by /u/elektrikg33k.

Our upcoming schedule:

12/4/18 - Ka

12/18/18 - Kodak Black


https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Ka_(rapper)#Discography

please take 5 seconds to ctrl+f the thread to see your stuff has already been posted

we've officially switched to a bi-weekly schedule

and as always pm me if you want to see a certain artist here

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[FRESH] CZARFACE - Iron Claw (featuring Ghostface Killah)

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 08:37 AM PST

https://soundcloud.com/silveragerecords/iron-claw

CZARFACE MEETS GHOSTFACE releasing 2/15

Tracklist

  1. Back at Ringside

  2. Face Off

  3. Iron Claw

  4. Czarrcade 87

  5. Powers and Stuff

  6. Masked Superstars

  7. Morning Ritual

  8. Super Soldier Serum

  9. The King Heard Voices

  10. Listen to the Color

  11. Mongolian Beef

  12. (Post Credits Scene)

Preorder

submitted by /u/TheOldKanyeWest
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Tyler, The Creator & Earl Sweatshirt Are Finally Comfortable

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 09:49 AM PST

Rakim: Eminem to me is more of a lyricist than a rapper

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 10:05 AM PST

Pusha T - Alone In Vegas

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 05:07 PM PST

[FRESH] Meek Mill Funk Flex Freestyle

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 02:24 AM PST

[FRESH] Ice Cube - The New Funkadelic

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 09:45 AM PST

[FRESH VIDEO] Blood Orange - Dagenham Dream

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 06:52 AM PST

[FRESH VIDEO] Ngahere Wafer - Sand Outro

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 04:30 PM PST

Pimp C - Pourin’ Up (RIP Pimp C, dec 4th 2007)

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 09:54 AM PST

Curren$y - Scottie Pippen feat. Freddie Gibbs

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 01:47 PM PST

HipHopHead's 'What's Hot?' Playlist for November 2018

Posted: 04 Dec 2018 12:30 PM PST

The results of the vote are in!

  • Spotify

  • Apple Music

  • Tidal


    Do you think the list accurately reflects the tastes of the sub? What songs did not make the cut that you think should have? Will you be getting gassed to this playlist at the next function?

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