G Herbo's “PTSD” Deeply Explores His Own Traumas
In a world of ups and downs, men, in general, are forced to act unphased by the stresses and difficulties that we all deal with on a day to day basis. Being a black boy growing up on the southside of Chicago has the tendency to make you grow up faster than the average boy. Many kids grew up similar to G Herbo, exposed to violence, addiction and death at a very young age, ultimately, growing into traumatized adults that have difficulty dealing with their issues. This environment creates a dangerous cycle that feeds into itself and impacts many low-income areas in America. On G Herbo’s 4th studio album “PTSD,” the Chicago rapper talks about his upbringing in this type of environment, the impact of the gangbanging lifestyle on his mental health and the ways he attempted to overcome it.
“PTSD,” standing at 14 songs and 48 minutes, is easily Herbo’s deepest album, dealing with a range of topics from his childhood trauma, to the dramas he still deals with as a famous rap star. The album art features G Herbo holding up a tattered, bleeding American flag. The most important feature of this album art is Herbo’s replacement of the 50 stars with the faces of 50 of G Herbo’s lost friends, which adds context for the name of the album.
G Herbo isn’t the most prolific rapper out of Chicago, but his fan base still spreads nationwide. After the song ‘Everything’ off his debut album “Humble Beast,” G Herbo’s star has been slowly rising. He followed up his debut with two collaborative albums with super-producer Southside titled, “Swervo” and “Still Swervin” and is now back with his most serious project to date. The album features plenty of cameos from A Boogie Wit da Hoodie, to Chance The Rapper, 21 Savage, Polo G, the late Juice WRLD, BJ the Chicago Kid, Lil Durk, Jacquees, Sonta, and 2PRETTY. The album is full of stories of his past, his present and his goals for the future. Living a life where he’s always had to overcome, his rap success could not tame the demons of adolescence. Produced by a large variety of producers like DJ Victoriouz, D.A. Doman, and Dougie “PTSD” totes a wide range of sounds, showing different sides of G Herbo, making for an album that feels more mature in not just content but production as well.
Songs like “Gangstas Cry”, “Party in Heaven”, and the title track “PTSD”, give the listener a lens into Herbo’s headspace. On “Gangstas Cry,” he raps “I stayed up the longest when my nigga died/I poured up some more so I can stop from cryin'/Relapsed after quittin' like my second time/But I know I just wanna numb the pain that's inside.” These lyrics show the listener Herbo’s struggles to cope with the loss of many of his friends throughout his life, a concept that is reinforced on “PTSD” he says “How the fuck I'm 'posed to have fun? All my niggas dead.” Herbo also talks about how his life has changed on songs like “Glass in the Face” and “Lawyer Fees”. But on songs like “By Any Means” the rapper talks about how even through fame he still has the same ruthless mentality he needed to survive the streets of Chicago, desperately trying to outrun his demons saying, “No, I ain't/here all the time, but they still show me love/So this bitch on my hip, watch your dawg/Ain't with that drunk shit, we ain't come to brawl/Aww, you know lil' bro lettin' it off”. He also talks about a past relationship on “Feelings,” allowing the listener to also see a softer side of G Herbo, highlighting his ability to be vulnerable with his music.
While G Herbo may seem like just another Chicago Drill Rapper, “PTSD” shows he has the ability to be more than that. Authentic, honest and vivid, Herbo’s bars clearly show the pain and the success that has defined his life till now. His ability to put the listener directly into a memory of the Chicago war zones he grew up in, his aggressive raw delivery and high-quality production, “PTSD” is a great leap forward in G Herbo’s Discography.
