What is Westside Gunn doing????

Summary

The video script is a passionate critique of Westside Gunn's album 'Pray for Me,' which the speaker finds disjointed and lacking in cohesion compared to previous works. The reviewer highlights a few standout tracks but criticizes the album's length and quality control, suggesting that the artist is surrounded by 'Yes Men' and lacks the right creative direction. The critique calls for an intervention to help Westside Gunn return to his best form, with the hope that future projects will be more carefully curated.

Takeaways

• 🎶 The speaker is a big fan of Westside Gunn and his music, except for a few projects.
• 📅 The speaker had planned to release a video about Westside Gunn's new album but had to release it before the album due to time constraints.
• 🚫 The album 'You Pray For Me' was not well-received by the speaker or other fans, differing from the speaker's usual positive take on Westside Gunn's work.
• 🔄 The album lacks cohesion and pacing, which the speaker finds disappointing compared to previous works like 'Fly God,' 'Supreme Blant,' and 'Pray For Paris'.
• 🎵 'Pray For Paris' is highlighted as a strong album due to its cohesive sound and smooth transitions between tracks.
• 👨‍👨‍👧‍👦 The speaker feels Westside Gunn is surrounded by 'Yes Men,' which may be affecting the quality of his music.
• 📊 The album is criticized for its length, with 21 tracks and over an hour of runtime, which the speaker finds excessive and not all enjoyable.
• 👎 The speaker rates the album with a score of 38-46% based on the tracks they enjoyed, indicating a significant dissatisfaction.
• 🔝 The speaker praises some tracks like 'Mama's Prime Time' and 'Kitchen Lights' as high-quality, but criticizes others for being outdated or poorly mixed.
• 🔄 The speaker suggests that Westside Gunn should focus on his strengths, avoid certain themes and styles, and work with a trusted circle of collaborators for better results.
• 🚫 A new song snippet 'Kenny Omega' is mentioned as an example of continued issues with hooks, choruses, and overall quality.

Q & A

What is the speaker's general opinion about Westside Gunn's music?

The speaker is a big fan of Westside Gunn, enjoying almost every project except for a couple of them.

Why did the speaker release the video about Westside Gunn before his new album?

The speaker ran out of time and had to release the video before the album 'You Pray For Me' was released.

How did the album 'You Pray For Me' compare to Westside Gunn's other works according to the speaker?

The speaker thinks 'You Pray For Me' is downright bad, lacking the cohesion and pacing found in other albums like 'Fly God,' 'Supreme Blant,' and 'Hermes 8.'

What is the speaker's opinion on the length and track count of 'You Pray For Me'?

The speaker finds the album to be too long, with 21 tracks and over an hour and 15 minutes of playtime, which contributes to its lack of cohesion.

How many tracks on the album did the speaker enjoy and what percentage does that represent?

The speaker enjoyed eight tracks and enjoyed three others, which represents a 38 to 46% score based on the number of tracks.

What is the speaker's critique of the album's production and quality control?

The speaker feels that Westside Gunn is surrounded by 'Yes Men' who do not provide proper quality control, resulting in an album that feels unmixed and unmastered.

Which track on the album did the speaker consider to be a contender for one of Westside Gunn's best songs ever?

'Mama's Prime Time' is considered by the speaker to be a contender for one of Westside Gunn's best songs ever.

What does the speaker suggest Westside Gunn should do to improve his music?

The speaker suggests that Westside Gunn should get rid of the 'Yes Men' and focus on what he's good at, possibly collaborating with people in his circle like Daring, Conductor, Sadu Gold, Nicholas Craven, Alchemist, Camouflage Monk, and others.

What is the speaker's view on the song 'Kenny Omega' featuring Stove God Cooks and Westside Gunn?

The speaker finds 'Kenny Omega' to be an okay track with a lot of issues, including an unmixed sound and a repetitive, unimpressive hook.

What does the speaker propose as a solution for Westside Gunn's future projects?

The speaker proposes that Westside Gunn should collaborate with a variety of artists who may not seem like they would work well together, and focus on creating a cohesive project.

Outlines

00:00

🎶 Disappointment with Westside Gunn's Latest Album

The speaker expresses their dissatisfaction with Westside Gunn's recent album, 'You Pray for Me,' which they believe lacks cohesion and pacing compared to his previous works. They mention that despite being a big fan, they could not enjoy this album in its entirety due to its disjointed nature and poor quality control. The speaker also criticizes the album's length and lack of flow between tracks, contrasting it with the well-received 'Pray for Paris.'

05:00

😓 Critique of Individual Tracks and Overall Quality

In this paragraph, the speaker delves into specific tracks on the album, highlighting a few they enjoyed and many they did not. They discuss the issues with the beats, flows, and the overall outdated sound of some songs. The critique also touches on the lack of quality control and the presence of 'Yes Men' around Westside Gunn, which they believe has negatively impacted the album's production.

10:02

🔥 Mixed Reactions to New Music and a Call for Intervention

The speaker shares their thoughts on a new song snippet featuring Westside Gunn, 'Kenny Omega,' which they find to be underwhelming and indicative of a broader issue with Gunn's recent musical direction. They call for an intervention from fans to encourage Westside Gunn to return to his previous quality of work and avoid the pitfalls of his latest releases.

15:02

🚫 Urgent Plea for Westside Gunn to Reclaim His Signature Style

In the final paragraph, the speaker makes an impassioned plea for Westside Gunn to abandon his current musical path and return to the elements that made him a favorite among fans. They suggest collaborating with a select group of producers and artists to create a project that reflects his strengths and avoids the missteps of 'You Pray for Me.' The speaker expresses concern for their continued support if the artist does not make these changes.

Keywords

💡Westside Gunn

Westside Gunn is a central figure in the video script, being an artist the speaker greatly admires. The term is used to refer to the musician's body of work and his specific style. The speaker discusses Westside Gunn's albums, indicating the artist's significance to the video's theme of music critique and appreciation.

💡Cohesion

Cohesion, in the context of this video, refers to the unity and flow of an album's tracks, creating a harmonious listening experience. The speaker criticizes the lack of cohesion in Westside Gunn's album 'You Pray For Me,' contrasting it with the well-received 'Pray For Paris,' where songs flowed seamlessly into one another.

💡Pace

Pace, in this script, pertains to the rhythm and tempo of the music, as well as the progression of the album as a whole. The speaker feels that the album 'You Pray For Me' lacks a good pace, which is a critical component for an engaging musical project.

💡Quality Control

Quality control is mentioned to describe the process of ensuring that a product, in this case, an album, meets certain standards. The speaker suggests that the absence of quality control in Westside Gunn's recent work has led to a decline in the music's overall appeal.

💡Yes Men

The term 'Yes Men' is used metaphorically to describe individuals who only agree with and support Westside Gunn without offering critical feedback. The speaker implies that being surrounded by such individuals may have negatively impacted the artist's recent work.

💡Track Length

Track length refers to the duration of individual songs within an album. The speaker notes that the album 'You Pray For Me' is lengthy, with 21 tracks and a runtime over an hour and 15 minutes, which contributes to the listener's diminishing interest.

💡Flow

Flow in music, particularly in rap, is the rhythmic and lyrical delivery of words. The speaker critiques Westside Gunn's flow in several songs, stating it becomes 'exponentially worse' and lacks variation, impacting the enjoyment of the album.

💡Outdated

The term 'outdated' is used to describe certain songs that feel old-fashioned or behind the current trends in music. The speaker finds some tracks in the album to be outdated, suggesting they do not resonate with contemporary listeners.

💡Trap Music

Trap music is a subgenre of hip hop characterized by its use of 808 kick drums, fast hi-hats, and oftentimes dark, violent, or drug-related lyrics. The speaker discusses Westside Gunn's attempts at creating trap music, suggesting it may not be his strength.

💡Mixing and Mastering

Mixing and mastering are audio production processes that balance and polish a track's sound. The speaker criticizes the album for being 'unmixed' and 'unmastered,' indicating that the songs lack professional refinement.

💡Hooks and Choruses

Hooks and choruses are repetitive, catchy parts of a song designed to be memorable. The speaker points out that Westside Gunn's hooks and choruses are weak, particularly in the song 'Kenny Omega,' where the repetition of the title becomes tiresome.

Highlights

The speaker is a big fan of Westside Gunn and his music, with a few exceptions.

A previous video by the speaker detailed why Westside Gunn is one of their favorite artists.

The speaker had to release a video before Westside Gunn's new album, which was not well-received.

The album 'You Pray For Me' lacks cohesion and pacing compared to previous works.

The speaker believes the album is bad due to its lack of a cohesive sense.

The album 'Pray For Paris' is cited as having a strong cohesion and flow.

The speaker feels Westside Gunn didn't recognize what made 'Pray For Paris' great.

The album 'You Pray For Me' is criticized for having 21 tracks and being over an hour long.

The speaker enjoyed only 8 tracks and enjoyed three others, giving the album a low personal score.

The album starts with 'Fly God' and 'Mama's Prime Time', which are decent tracks.

The track '1989' is considered a tragedy and a momentum killer in the album.

The speaker feels Westside Gunn is surrounded by 'Yes Men', lacking quality control.

The track 'Kitchen Lights' is a contender for the best song Westside Gunn has ever made.

The album contains outdated tracks that sound like leftovers from other artists.

The track 'Babylon B' is praised for carrying the second half of the album.

The speaker suggests Westside Gunn should work with certain producers and artists for better results.

The speaker calls for an intervention, urging Westside Gunn to improve the quality of his music.

A new song snippet 'Kenny Omega' is criticized for its lack of polish and weak hook.

Transcripts

some of you know that I'm a big Westside

gun fan I love almost every project

besides like two or three out of

20 last year I released a video about

Westside gun where I detailed why he's

one of my favorite artists what he

brings to the table and why I enjoy his

music I was planning to drop the video

in his new album at the time and then

you pray for me came out but I ran out

of time and I had to drop it before the

album and good on me for doing so

because that album was not

exactly received

well as big a fan as I am and as much as

I wanted to enjoy this album in its

entirety I just couldn't I've been the

Scarecrow standing in the field before

with some of my other Westside gun takes

but this time I knew it wasn't going to

be just me

and clearly like you saw there are other

people who are not a fan of this album

and because it's been over 6 months I

think I finally have a solidified

opinion of the

project I think this album is downright

bad because it doesn't have any cohesive

sense to it not that a lot of other

Westside gun albums do it's just that

when you look at a project like fly God

Supreme blant tell Hermes 8 or pray for

Paris which this is supposed to be the

successor of this is in a different

league in terms of lack of pacing and

cohesion and this album being based on

pray for Paris is crazy for me to think

about because how did he on his own not

realize what made pray for Paris so

great pray for paris's biggest strength

is its cohesion and every song flows

into the next even after he had to

remove one or two of them after being

dmca or or uh copyright you get the

something happened you get the idea

every song here had a similar sound so

in one transition to the next you're not

wondering wait what the [ __ ] is going on

last song was drumless and felt like

we're walking through the Lou L Lou Lou

I don't know it's French who gives a

[ __ ] Lou the last song was drumless and

felt like that French Museum and this

one sounds like we're racing [ __ ] boxes

in downtown Atlanta the other thing is

that pray for Paris felt like because it

was going for a certain Vibe it was

controlled and there were people who

knew better and there were quality

control on Deck whereas this feels like

Westside is just surrounded by Yes Men

And if you take one look at his Twitter

or Instagram really you'll know that's

exactly right not only that it was a

concise project or one of the other

notable problems with this album is the

blow this album is 21 tracks long

clocking in over an hour and 15 minutes

and while I won't give other artists a

chance with that amount of time I would

happily give that time to Westside gun

until I realized halfway through that

this is not the album I was hoping for

let's take it from the top this album is

21 tracks long I loved eight tracks and

enjoyed three others but didn't love

those that's anywhere from a 38 to 46%

score based on number of tracks I

enjoyed I want to make this distinction

right away though because with a lot of

other gun albums I don't love every

track but the tracks I don't like aren't

bad they're usually just not something I

love to listen to the tracks I don't

like on here they're actually bad and

they have aot lot of problems the album

starts out rough with fly God did

another intro track with AA Rasheed

whatever it's fine move on Mama's prime

time is a contender for one of the best

Westside gun songs ever probably the

best opener track after the intro he

could have chosen I just wish the Denzel

Curry feature was on a beat like this

and not where it ended up but we'll get

used we'll get to it I actually enjoyed

the third track cus I think Benny flowed

pretty well here unlike the very similar

sounding Red Death from Hermes 10 Conway

showed up here I think his flow on this

is

unrivaled uh my only complaint is where

was this Conway the machine for over

half of 2023 clearly he was out sick

during won't he do it and the four other

projects He made last year 1989 is the

first downright tragedy of the album

because okay Mama's prime time starts

off with a gritty energy and then cus

keeps the pce face and it picks up a

little bit and it feels like the album

is clearly ramping up and then just

starts off with this subtle Baseline and

the momentum is just ruined by

1989 the song has multiple points where

Westside gun and stove God cooks are

competing to see who can be more

[Music]

offbeat all right well sing on beat my

boy hey you pray for Paris then you pray

for me and then you pray for this album

to get better dog what was that and then

the rapping in the beat or like in a 12

round heavyweight fight over who can be

worse I normally like when Westside gun

do that pitch down thing but it don't

really work if you don't rap and it

don't really work if you tow the line of

being on beat and not being on beat this

stove guy verse could have probably

worked on a different beat and if it

wasn't a whole verse I think him singing

that 1,000 was kind of cares mad and

could have been entertaining but it drw

going way too long and then he got off

beat with that like bro this is not a

hard beat to stay on beat with and the

other thing personally I'm never a fan

of down pitching vocals if your vocals

aren't good enough at their normal pitch

you need to not make this song that goes

for my other favorite artist too side in

self for jiz is back up to top tier

quality guns verse is great I love the

alliteration and his flow is varied

which you'll realize is something you

didn't know you needed until it is taken

away further along in the album but

we'll get to that kitchen lights is is a

contender for the best song Westside gun

has ever made it's at least in the top

five or top 10 it's that good to me zero

complaints black God 2x has a nice

relaxed boombat beat uh Westside guns

verse here is good and no complaints

here either cu the immediate quality

decline to the next track Dunhill uh

this song just sounds like 13 years out

of date it sounds like a Chief Keef

leftover that even a good producer would

throw away get a sound engineer to mix

this [ __ ] man

actually maybe you shouldn't because I

think they'd be in a noose by the end of

the album Rick Ross could not save this

song the next song House of Glory in my

opinion is great I think this is one of

the rare cases where trying weird [ __ ]

on this album actually worked I like

stove God's delivery here and I think

westside's verse is funny I also really

like the fake stop before Westside Gun

starts his verse it's just a good song

in the Riz up beat despite being

drumless and extremely subtle I love

this beat immediately after this song

ends we go right into JD wrist which is

a contender for the worst and most

outdated song on this album besides 1989

and a few others stove God Cooks tries

to save the song I think if for if we

have to rank the versus here he

definitely has the best uh but the

trapaholics adbs make me want to kill

myself it gets in the way of hearing the

verses it cuts out the beat I don't like

it Westside guns flow here here is the

usual Westside gun trap flow and if you

know what that means it means it's

tolerable the first time and then

becomes exponentially worse he also only

has one trap flow uh St Knack gives a

contender for St knack's worst verse of

all time here he needs to stop

Whispering if he fixes the delivery it's

still not a good verse the next track

disgusting is kind of just whatever

really um guns versus the usual gun trap

flow and gigs is more or less just kind

of there he showed up because he was

paid the beat is one of the few trap

beats in this album where I think it

doesn't really need to be mixed too much

it's kind of just already fine the next

track Chloe has a great beat and it's

just ruined mostly by Westside guns

verse uh the song after that LL bu gun

is so

bad I oh man this beat sounds horrendous

and westside's flow is the same as usual

this might be the slowest trap song I've

ever heard Babylon B is up next

and thank God it is this song carries

the second half of the album without a

doubt this beat is one of the best on

the album too right next to kitchen

lights for me shout out J.R Swifts for

that uh Westside guns verse is good and

stove God is here I suppose he talks

about being made into an art piece by

West which is really funny because stove

doesn't release music and no I'm not

talking about that kitchen walls album

that was allegedly secretly released you

know it doesn't count if I have to dig

around online to find your album and

then spend money on it after finding it

I'm not oh yeah man the secret album

it's in my ass you got to reach your

hands and just

just kha Plum is on this song is

something no one uh is happy about this

song is followed up by the single

biggest disappointment on the entire

project in my opinion Ultra Griselda

with Denzel Curry this beat is horrible

Westside needs to discover Miguel to

plug as soon as possible Denzel tries

his best and he kind of actually makes

the first half of the track decent the

only problem is this chorus is atrocious

Jaylen Rose is up next with the first

daringer beat here I think it sounds out

of the ordinary and the 808 drums don't

really fit Baldi tries his best and I

think the song works this is one of

those songs that I like it but I don't

love it Steve and Joanie through Freddy

Jays is the same old same old more

unmixed Westside gun trap throw it all

out the Revenge of Flip's leg is one of

the best songs here and Rome Street

saves this last little treack of the

album with an incredible verse and the

last track tries something new with Casi

over a drumless beat in my opinion it

doesn't really work but this is actually

bearable and besides a handful of tracks

like I the ones I enjoyed and some other

ones this album just sounds old so yeah

a bloated [ __ ] project if I were to

shorten this album I would make it about

11 Tracks keep the intro keep the title

track I think the title track is a

moment where trying stuff out actually

worked enough to keep here I would

switch out the order between the title

track and revenge of flips leg to have

it be the clo to have revenge of flips

leg be the closer because in my opinion

it makes a little more sense kind of

like how Steve bear from awesome God 2

was but without the unnecessary skit

over half the runtime I know I just

killed you all with a super dense album

review but I promise I'm going somewhere

with this the great tracks on this album

are great like some of his best material

great and this in my opinion shows that

he needs to get rid of the Yes Men and

stick to what he's good at for Westside

gun it really is that simple stop

rapping about visible violent vitriolic

vibrant sex I don't want to hear it at

least put it over a good beat like House

Of Glory or dance floor love love you

from heres 7 if you rap on this bro

please rap on

[Music]

this why aren't you

[Music]

rapping why aren't you

rapping this beat is so good

[Music]

[ __ ] even Liz loves Luger Westside

can try and uh make trap rap but at the

end of the day I don't think it will

ever be his strength the best songs in

this project are not trap oriented and

there is definitely a reason for that he

just needs to do a project with people

in his circle like daringer conductor

sadu gold Nicholas Craven Alchemist

camouflage Monk and Etc throw on some

features put some people who don't seem

like they would work well together and

just call it a day you know we look at

pray for Paris tracks like $500 ounces

Rock Marciano and Freddy Gibbs and

Westside gun in the same track no one

would be able to do that besides him the

reason I bring all of this up is that

despite how people took the album

clearly it did not stop him and he's

been working on new music and I saw a

song a month or so ago uh posted on

Billy eso's YouTube channel if you don't

know Billy Esco he's the guy who sings

the hook on Westside guns

327 he has a few songs Westside gun but

he dropped the snippet for the song

Kenny Omega with stove God cooks and

Westside gun and I think this track is

okay my comment on the video says this

is terrible and that was on my first

listen but let me elaborate I'll play a

few

[Music]

seconds ah

so right away the beat sounds like red

death from heres 10 which is a good

track I suppose this song just has a lot

of issues that are present on and then

you pray for me notably sounding unmixed

and for someone who prides himself and

being a curator you can't be both

unmixed unmastered and

unpolished while trying to give off the

luxurious grimy Vibe you have to pick

one and I just don't know if it's what

he should be going for stove God Cooks

gives a decent verse here it just

doesn't seem like anything special and

he's kind of just riding the beat

Westside guns weakness once again Hooks

and

choruses and on this one it's more

apparent than ever he just says Kenny

Omega with his little deep pitched voice

effects and if this were on an album I'm

skipping it every

time he says it over and over again

Kenny

Oma Kenny Oma

Kena K Omega Kenny Omega KY GA Kenny

Omega Kenny Omega Kenny Omega Kenny

Omega Kenny Omega Kenny Omega Kenny

Omega Kenny

[Music]

Omega the issue I have with this hook

going into Westsides verse though is

that he starts the verse he sounds

offbeat West verse isn't even that great

a lot of L of the lines don't rhyme and

then after that lackluster verse he just

does the Kenny Omega thing again Kenny

Kenny Kenny Omega K Omega K Omega K

Omega K Omega K Omega K Omega K Omega K

Omega k k k k k what a [ __ ] travesty

of a song that is it's somehow better

than most of the material on and then

you pray for

me so I'm making this video because I

think we need an

intervention I think we as the fans need

to tell him to lock in and make

something actually good the Kenny Omega

song has the first steps of being an

okay track but it misses the mark but

it's so close it's like if you get a

45 on a class where a 50 is just good

enough it's almost there and I don't

know what Westside gun is going to do

next but if he keeps making stuff like

this I don't know if I want to stick

around to find out that's all I've got

see you

[Music]