Continuation of Excellence or Lack of Innovation? “It’s Almost Dry” Review
by Asher Ali
Pusha T’s status as one of the most preeminent figures in “cocaine rap” has been in the work since he went under the moniker of Terrar as one half of the duo Clipse. Layered over beats almost exclusively produced by none other than Pharrell Williams, Terrance Thorton and his brother Gene slang bars like they were on a street corner.
Push then caught the eye of Kanye West, and after signing with GOOD Music label in 2010, Thorton was promoted to company president two years later, and has been guided by Ye’s production and industry insight to a fruitful solo career. Push’s “DAYTONA” in 2018 was an elaborate composition arranged by West that took Push’s sound to new heights far and above what other coke rappers were doing then.
Now, the duality of Push’s past career has conjoined on his newest project “It’s Almost Dry,” featuring six songs produced by Pharrell and six songs produced by West. The two hip hop maestros go toe to toe bringing some of the most solid beats heard this year, but outside of a few of tracks, this album doesn’t advance Push’s sound, much less the sound of contemporary coke rap.
Pharrell immediately kicks it back to the Clipse days with “It’s Almost Dry’s” first track “Brambleton.” A smooth kick drum driven beat comes with Push’s malfeasance bars that cover his young life in Brambleton, Virginia where his mother worked and his adverse feelings toward ex-Clipse manager Anthony Gonzalez, who aired some dirty laundry with Push in a recent interview Gonzalez did with VladTV.
Push immediately jumps onto another, more bombastic Pharrell beat with “Let The Smokers Shine The Coupes” where Push paints himself as the “coke game’s Dr. Seuss.”
The first Ye backed track is introduced third on the track list with “Dreamin Of The Past” which is both lifted and brought down by Kanye. The track soars thanks to a well-pulled sample from Donny Hathaway’s “Jealous Guy” that lifts Push’s fluid drug-laced bars to a euphoric plane. As Push’s final verse fades, listeners are bombarded with an unwelcome verse from West, an awkwardly mixed 30 second feature the West rounds out with an uncomfortable line about how his family is currently unsafe.
Ye once again manages to be the greatest advocate and detriment for Push on “Rock N Roll” the alleged final song with Kid Cudi and West. Once again, a beautifully assembled beat on Ye’s end comes with a heinous guest verse from him, this one sounding more like the nonsensical bars that Kanye gave on the first rendition of DONDA 2. Cudi’s hook sounds muffled and over-produced as well, while Push delivers some strong verses about his premiere status at the top of the rap and the drug-dealing game.
At his best on this album, Pusha T is elaborating on the narrative of authenticity, or lack thereof, in a world of glamor and fame. The two singles on the project, “Neck & Wrist” and “Diet Coke” address the lengths that people will go to fabricate a glamorous drug lifestyle in order to avoid actual hardships.
“Neck & Wrist” sees Push and feature Jay-Z spitting over a whining synth and sharp piano key beat while they boast about a lifestyle they live but others pretend to have. HOV’s cutthroat line, “y’all spend real money on fake watches shockingly,” getting to the core of the absurd lengths people will go to construct facades.
“Diet Coke” then expands on why people aspire to have a certain kind of life but aren’t willing to assume the risks.
It seems on the latter portion of this project that Thorton lost motivation to push any boundaries however, which is disappointing when listeners come to expect that from him and his pen constantly. Not only did Push lose interest, but it appears Pharrell did too on “Call My Bluff” which is completely dry of energy and motivation.
“Scrape It Off” is definitely this album’s attempt at a top charting club banger, featuring Don Toliver on the hook and Lil Uzi Vert. Toliver is as reliable as ever giving an ethereal hook, but Uzi phones in his verse and Push doesn’t bring an interesting flow to spice up the track on its back end.
The final three songs on the albums are decent in their own right, but all come off as watered-down versions of more innovative cuts Push had earlier on the album. Even the final track “I Pray For You” doesn’t do much despite a beautiful intro and a Malice feature to rekindle a Clipse cut.
“It’s Almost Dry” comes out strong to show that Push is still among the one of the most elite in the game, but a weak back half of the project doesn’t propel him to the new heights that people wanted to see.
Favorite tracks:
Just So You Remember
Neck & Wrist (feat. JAY-Z & Pharrell Williams)
Dreamin Of The Past (feat. Kanye West)
Asher Ali is a staff writer. Follow him on Twitter.
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