7.8/10
Favorite Track: "Goin Baby" Least Favorite Track: "Celebrate (Feat. Rich Homie Quan)"
Charlotte, North Carolina rapper DaBaby is chalk full of charisma. His eccentric flows and energetic style are now recognizable at first listen all over the world, but it hasn’t always been that way. Behind the mountains of fun and character that spew out of this man’s music is a classic success story of someone who knew music was their only way in and simultaneously their only way out. The guy’s early mixtapes are rough. At least that is in comparison to his new 2019 major label debut ; Baby On Baby. This project is a perfect example of what happens when you work harder than anyone thinks you are willing to ; DaBaby finally hit his stride. His impressive ability to noticeably improve his craft with every project while at the same time capitalizing on the hilarious public persona he has made for himself is why DaBaby is only going to keep growing quicker than he already is. Throughout Baby on Baby the constant focus on gritty and deep base and trap drums meshes seamlessly with his conveniently and naturally low vocal register. It creates this aggressive and gritty energy that fuels his energetic, fun, creative, and unique flow and style perfectly. Additionally, the production on this project feels fresh, even though it isn’t too different from anything we have heard before. The beats on this thing are genuinely interesting and consistently hit hard on almost every track. For a debut record Baby on Baby certainly doesn’t overstay its welcome but it simultaneously runs long enough to feel satisfying. Tracks #2 and #3 are a double kill and a great way to introduce the album. The base hits on “Suge” are volcanic almost to the point where the song has a house feel. The single garnered a ton of attention and I love the track. The beat on “Goin Baby” is way more creative than anything you would expect to find off this record. The flutes in the background seem like they would be more out of place than fitting but they end up being a pretty solid choice to go with the feel of the song. Baby does his thing on the track and performs well per usual. “Pony” is another instrumental choice that works well for Baby. The acoustic guitar and flutes in the background makes me feel like im crawling through the desert in search of an Oasis and my hallucinations from the dehydration consist of Baby’s absolutely cutthroat verse. “Best Friend” marks another stand out moment for me. The track is a remix of a song that originally landed on Baby’s last album Blank Blank. It is a sample of the vocal melody from “SAD!” by XXXTENTACION but this time around Baby’s rendition of the track features a verse from New York rapper Rich The Kid. It’s a pretty average performance from Rich but I think the sample ends up working out pretty well as included on this album and in his last effort. More than anything Baby on Baby is fun. There’s this consistent focus on songwriting that makes you want to get up and slap this thing at full volume in your car. Baby on Baby is a little one dimensional in terms of subject matter but overall this release is a project with a focus on bangers and a track list full of them.