After the storming success of his critically acclaimed debut album, Nothing Great About Britain, slowthai is back with his second studio album named TYRON.
The Northampton-born rapper has quickly established himself as one of the best artists around due to his versatility on gritty instrumentals, skilled lyricism and an image that goes against the norm of the typical UK rap scene. With this swift growth in popularity, the 26-year-old has even reached an international audience with big name American artists such as A$AP Rocky, Denzel Curry and Dominic Fike just to name a few.
None of slowthai’s previous works encapsulates the sheer versatility of his style quite like TYRON does. Although it is quite a short project, clocking in at just over 35 minutes through 14 songs, the album is split evenly with the first seven songs capitalised resembling the in-your-face, grungy production slowthai fans have become so accustomed to.
Tracks such as ‘VEX’ and ‘45 SMOKE’ certainly contain the high energy, moshpit feel that has been synonymous with the rapper’s earlier records. A lyric from the latter, “People think I’m Satan’s son”, epitomises the chaos and controversy that has often been a shroud throughout slowthai’s career. It is this exact controversy that he addresses in his track ‘CANCELLED’ featuring UK Grime legend Skepta. In the track, slowthai expresses his nonchalant attitude toward cancel culture on the internet as well as mentioning some of his own viral mishaps, “I ain’t an actor, f*** the Oscars, Main stage in my boxers.
However, the other half of the album resembles quite the opposite. These song titles are all in lower-case, showing that slowthai embarks on a journey of self-discovery in these tracks away from the loud-mouthed youngster that he is perceived to be. The more mellow beats allow the rapper to show a level of maturity whilst reflecting on his past childhood and mistakes in a melancholic – but never self-pitying – manner. A line that best suits this resides in ‘nhs’, “All the best shits’s got scratches on the surface.” The collaboration with artists such as James Blake and Mount Kimbie aid in the theme of a soothing transition into adulthood as seen on “Feel Away,” where the two features offer a sense of sympathy to slowthai’s guarded heartache.
Overall, slowthai has exceeded expectations with TYRON which can be summed up as being a short but sweet journey in which he shows an air of emotional awareness whilst maintaining the braggadocious attitude that makes him so unique.
4/5