May 21, 2015

Suggested by Narsh lol. Seen lots of people hate on Thug for a while, and lots praise him at the same time. Seems pretty split. I've heard a song or two and wasn't very pleased with it, but I didn't want to base my opinion of him on just those songs. So I was kind of excited that Narsh was putting this little "Starter Kit" together. So, after a while of putting it off because of things getting in the way, I finally sat down and listened. I listened with as open mind as possible. So here's my track-by-track first reaction.

Note: Again, this is a first reaction. That means I didn't look into each song for deep meaning or anything. This is just how I feel about them sonically.

Loose Tracks I
1. There's Gonna Be (Good Times) - 3/10.
loved the beat, but there were times where thugger's voice just went way too high... very uncomfortable in my ears. plus I couldn't understand a d--- word he said. hands down the worst song on the list... pretty s-----y start, Narsh haha

2. Speed Racer - 8/10
THIS is what I'm talking about. I absolutely love this one. Great beat, and the vocals don't sound awful like the first track. "constipated" line was kind of cringy but passable. this is a song I can see myself going back to a lot.

3. Boy/How to be Real (Remix) - 6/10
another great beat (Thug picks some good ones).. but I still can't understand what he's saying. sonically it's appealing..

4. Dripset - 7/10
another fairly great track. but there were little pieces that were pretty inaudible... with all the vocals all stacked up against each other. still enjoyed this song nonetheless

5. Flaws - 9/10
hands down my favourite on the whole thing. fantastic song. if I wanted to show someone thugger, this is the song I'd show them. loving the beat, loving the whole overall vibe of the song...

6. Love Me - 8/10
another really great track! This one is up there with "Speed Racer". This one is definitely going in my library lol. hook is golden and the beat is superb.

7. I SWEAR TO GOD - 9/10
I SWEAR TO GOD this one is up there with Flaws. Holy s---. I'm in love with this track. Another one into the library.

8. Myself - 7/10
Not a bad track. Not a huge fan of the line "like my pants down I got crack"... pretty corny lol but it doesn't ruin the song. Yet ANOTHER great beat too. Hook is actually pretty catchy too, d---.

9. Guarantee - 10/10
I don't usually rate songs 10/10 but this one deserves it. song sounds flat out beautiful, to say the least. kind of sucks that the song is so short though... I'd k--- for a longer version.

10. Power - 7/10
Not as good as the previous track but definitely worth listening to. It's a good song but tbh, I don't think I'd be listening to it often. It just feels very average to me. The song itself is an easy 7 though.

Overall - 7.4/10

Final Thoughts
Y'all sleeping on Thug, man. h---, I was sleeping on Thug and I feel stupid as s--- for doing so. These songs were fantastic, and they weren't even officially RELEASED. That's ridiculous, imo. You guys who bash Thug for being "gay", you're pretty f---ing unintelligent and closed minded. He's worth the listen.

To those who dislike him because of his flow or his voice... TRUST ME. I know what you mean. That's what turned me off too... but not every song is like that. A large chunk of this (especially the last) is fantastic. Thug does have some corny lines here and there, but they are done in a way that almost seems proper...

So that's how I feel about the first piece of this "Starter Kit". Huge thanks to @Narsh for putting it together.

Everyone in the Starter Kit thread needs to get off their a----s and listen to some of this s---. I guarantee you'll be pleased with a good portion of this.

Essentials I
1. Givenchy - 8/10
Fantastic start. especially compared to the start of Loose Tracks. Lyrics were a lot clearer in this song compared to some of the others. Song is fairly long but it almost doesn't feel that way. It doesn't drag on and isn't a chore to sit through.

2. See You - 6/10
Not a bad song, but compared to some of the others, it feels fairly average. This one does drag on a little bit, even though it's only 4 minutes long. Personally, I'd say this type of song should max out at around 2-3 minutes. "Ice Skating like Lupe Fiasco"

3. Old English - 7/10
The second I heard that beat This one is a b-----r for sure. Really diggin' it. Not too long... perfect club track. I really enjoy his rhyming on this track too.. something about it feels more prominent compared to the other songs. BUT.... I have to say Freddie Gibbs murked this track. Best verse on the song. Gibbs > Thugger > Ferg. Not used to Ferg's voice so it was pretty cringe...

4. About the Money - 5/10
This one I heard before. It's TI's song right? This was one of the songs that, I won't lie, turned me off Thug. Could not stand his flow/voice on this track. Not easy to understand his delivery. TI definitely delivered though.

5. Danny Glover - 6/10
So so... feels like a filler track for something (even though this is a fan-made project lol) and I probably won't be going back to this track. The beat is incredibly repetitive and I found it really rough to sit through... That's not necessarily the result of Thug's rapping, but the producer of the track... Shoulda picked a better beat. Felt relieved when the song was over.

6. Check - 8/10
Here we go.. now we're back on track. It may seem like your typical "money and hoes" track but it's more of "who gives a s--- about b------s, I got money on my brain". "Don't gotta chick, I gotta cheque". Beat is real chill... really liking it. Hook is simple as f--- but it's real catchy. Another one that's gonna be stuck in my head.

7. The B Language - 9/10
Best song on this list. Had me bobbing my head the whole time through. Beat is prime And Thug's flow on this track is superb. This is the kind of s--- I would love from Thug more (granted I've onl heard this small handful of material). In terms of my favourties, this one goes up there with Guarantee, I SWEAR TO GOD, and Flaws.

8. Tell 'Em (Lies) - 10/10
Oh s---! This is f---ing great! God d---! I love everything about it! From that beat... to the flow... f---!! Hands down, best on this project in my opinion. I can listen to this s--- all day. It very vaguely reminds me of a song called "I'm So Paid" by Akon featuring Young Jeezy and Lil' Wayne sonically. Wish I could pin point exactly why. Money. Power. Respect.

9. Stoner - 8/10
That beat right from the start This also reminds me of another song but I can't think of the name... If I was showing Thug to someone, this is another one of those songs I'd show them. His voice gets a little high around the 2:35 mark, but that's just a small blemish on the song. I'll definitely be listening to this more.

10. 2 Cups Stuffed - 8/10
This song goes hard as a MFer! I love the aggression in his voice... I'd definitely take more material of this caliber. UNO DOS CUFFS STUFFED UNO DOS CUFFS STUFFED!!! This song released my inner BigQuint... Wanted to get up and dance my a--- off, snappin' my fingers n s---.

Overall - 7.5/10

Final Thoughts
This part of the project definitely had a better starting track, but it had a more rough middle selection of songs. That said, it ended with a b---... That last track is great and "Tell 'Em (Lies)" is absolutely amazing. Again, like I said before, you should definitely give Thugger a shot before just saying "he's a gay h--- f-- who talks about smoking penis and dresses like a f---ing idiot... therefore his music is s---". Stupidest mindset ever.

Now, after hearing these, I would not say Thug is one of the greats... yet. I'd have to hear more before I make a decision. Again, huge thanks to Narsh for this... I was happy to listen and I'd be happy to listen to more.