GRITTY BUT GRANDIOSE: Painting edited for the Westside Gunn album cover - The Entombment of Christ, 1602 by Caravaggio, Vatican Museums
Westside Gunn alters his sound after cementing himself as a leading hip-hop artist in a maelstrom of an album.
Rap group Griselda, named after Colombian drug kingpin Griselda Blanco, was co-founded
by Westside Gunn who is known for his modified ‘gangsta rap’ making it sound luxurious,
bringing a sense of bravado to drug dealing. This is helped by a choice in production, which
is gritty but grandiose with soulful samples.
In his latest album ‘And then Pray for Me’ we see luxurious samples like in ‘House of Glory’
where Tchaikovsky is played followed by lines like “pulled up on Tiffany, shot out the Audi”.
The lavish lifestyle theme is continued by saying “Valentino down to my shoestrings” in the
same song.
Guest appearances helped amplify the setting of decadence and crime with Stove Good
Cooks contributing several times. There were also appearances from JID, Giggs, Ty Dolla
$ign, and his Griselda compatriots Conway and Benny.
Gunn takes an interesting pivot by using more trap beats rather than the boom-bap we are
accustomed to with some unforeseen producers in DJ Drama, Tay Keith and Trap-A-Holics.
Experimenting with your sound after establishing yourself as a leader in your lane does not
always bode well. As seen with Gunn, he may not sound bad over trap beats, but he could not
keep up with the other Griselda members on his own songs.
The style change makes the album a more chaotic project compared to its prequel ‘Pray for
Paris’. The lack of structure makes it fit for listening to on shuffle, allowing the disorder to
flourish fitting the dichotomy between illegality and opulence. Even the anarchic skits are
replayable with ‘AA Rashid’ notably appearing in the intro.
This oxymoron between this album and its predecessor sums up Gunn. The unpredictability
of his artistry leads to an anticipation of a new era as he moves away from full-length albums.
Genre: Rap | Label: Griselda | Reviewed: 11th October 2023
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