Buddy — Superghetto — Album Review
Hip-Hop | RnB
Listen on Spotify | Listen on Apple Music
I was fortunate enough to have discovered the Compton rap artist Buddy, upon the release of his debut album back in 2018. Titled Harlan & Alondra, this album took no time at all to stand as one of the major summer records of the year for me.
Considering it’s been four years since the release of that debut album, however, I was certainly excited to finally see that Buddy had released his long-awaited sophomore record. Titled Superghetto, I was expecting a more accessible record from the get-go, despite having heard nothing that teased this album’s release.
Furthermore, all of the tracks on this thing served as a fresh listen for myself. But much of what I predicted about a more accessible album could be said in the case of the finished piece. Superghetto carries very much what rap fans would expect from a “Comptonified” gritty rap album. However, there are also plenty of twists and turns every step of the way, to make sure that Superghetto remains an album that could only come from an individual like Buddy.
This album does very well to accommodate both rap fans and r&b fans (and even throws in a bit of indie for good measure), as Buddy puts both his rapping and vocal chops on display. Superghetto does a pretty good job of fluctuating between both genres, so that the album stays an engaging listen throughout.
Diversity really is the name of the game with Superghetto, with many of its tracks covering a wide range of styles and moods. And while this makes for a fresh and exciting experience to some degree, I feel that this album’s case is where that sentiment does tip the scales ever-so-slightly.
With Superghetto being as diverse as it is, some of that narrative and aesthetical consistency is compromised. This is probably the main reason why this sophomore album didn’t have as much of an impact on me as Harlan & Alondra did.
However, to give Superghetto the credit it deserves, the overall quality of the record, and the production is undisputedly greater than Buddy’s debut. That being said, I think we can all agree that Buddy’s talent has evolved. But with such a great aesthetic already established with his debut album, I feel that the playing around with things that feels abundant on Superghetto, while enjoyable, is a case of trying to fix what isn’t broken.
Buddy is essentially jumping the gun, and trying out new things a bit early on in the scope of his discography. Especially considering the fact that this is the first Buddy album we had received since his debut, I was part of the party which wanted to hear more of the summery aesthetic that Buddy championed on his debut; the switching things up could come later.
Nevertheless, with all of my petty little nags aside, Superghetto is still a pretty damn good album, with the vast majority of the tracks working in Buddy’s favour.
Favourite Tracks: High School Crush | Coolest Things | Bad News
Least Favourite Track: Hoochie Mama
RCA Records | Sony Music
