Ye has finally dropped his collab album with Ty Dollar $ign and features a song with his daughter, North West (the song was released prior to the drop). As always, I rate each track and give an overall rating. Bolded means my favorite. (Keep in mind this my is opinion, and of course can change over time.)
"STARS" 8.3/10
"KEYS TO MY LIFE" 8/10
"PAID" 7/10
"TALKING" 7.6/10 feat North West
"BACK TO ME" 7.3/10 This song is funny. Freddie Gibs saved the song.
"HOODRAT" 6.8/10
"DO IT" 9/10 feat Nipsey Hussle and YG
"PAPERWORK" 6/10
"BURN" 8.6/10
"FUK SUMN" Feat. Travis Scott and Playboi Carti 7.8/10
"Vultures" 6.3/10
"CARNIVAL" 6.9/10
"BEG FORGIVENESS" feat Chris Brown 7.5/10 interesting track
"GOOD (DON'T DIE)" 7.1/10
"PROBLEMATIC" 8/10
"KING" 7.6/10
Overall Rating 7.3/10
After months of initial release dates, "VULTURES 1" has finally dropped. It's an interesting one, compared to his other albums. Some tracks focus on heavy bass instrumentation like "PAPERWORK" and "FUK SUM." The writing of this focuses on different topics that go from sexual desires/women and flexin' their wealth, to Ye's perspective on recent events. "BEG FORGIVENESS," mentions how he's lived a great life and that his kids should live life the way they want to (North specifically). On "KING" Ye reflects how despite the controversial moments and negative things that the media has covered about him, he's still able to stay relevant and make an impact.
Moving on from the themes and the unique writing of it, the tracks. "BURN" and "DO IT" are my favorite so far. My least favorite might be either "HOODRAT or "CARNIVAL." I think the chorus for "HOODRAT" felt out of place with the gospel/soul production, but other than that good verses. "CARNIVAL" is one that I'm mixed about, again the chorus feels awfully mixed, but the bars and the verses were solid. (Also name drops Taylor Swift.) However, one track that will not grow on me for sure is "VULTURES." When this was previewed I was scared for the album. That song is the definition of a mumble rap song. "BACK TO ME" is such a funny song. How Ye made a whole song just over one line in a movie is so hilarious. Freddie Gibs killed it as well, if anything he might've saved the song.
All in all, I think that we can all agree that Ty Dollar $ign did an incredible job with the choruses and hooks for a good majority of the songs. The cover art for this is also an interesting choice, there's nothing wrong with featuring his wife, and it's not the first time we've seen an explicit picture of a woman's booty cheeks (Life of Pablo). But when comparing albums to Ye's catalog (talking about music now) I don't think this album will be in discussion of Ye's best work. Like if I had to prove why Ye's an amazing artist and one of the best, I wouldn't start or suggest this album. Especially with not releasing on said dates and two listening parties, along with previews/leaks, this album wasn't worth the wait. I was also hoping to hear "Everybody" a song he previewed months prior, but I guess that song wasn't clear.
In conclusion, while there are some solid tracks that I will go back to, this felt underwhelming. Hopefully the next 2 sequels of the album top this album.
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