A Review of Denzel Curry's "ZUU"
South Florida rapper Denzel Curry looks to follow up his impressive 2018 album “TA13OO” with the release of his 2019 album “ZUU.” Curry’s “TA13OO” was one of the most impressive albums of last year in my opinion because of the consistent smooth sound throughout the album. With “TA13OO” we also saw Denzel Curry experiment with new sounds and cadences proving he’s more than the rapper who made the hit song “Ultimate” in 2015. Looking at the first two singles to “ZUU,” titled “RICKY” and “SPEEDBOAT” Denzel Curry seems to be moving into a sound best suited for the summer. It’ll be interesting to see how he chooses to execute this concept through the sounds he chooses throughout the album. Taking a look at the tracklist for Denzel Curry’s “ZUU,” twelve tracks make up the album equating to about 29 minutes of music. Kiddo Marv, Rick Ross, Tay Keith, Ice Billion Berg, Sam Sneak, and PlayThatBoiZay are featured on the album’s six songs with features. This album is a short one with features on half of the songs on it, leading me to ponder how much of Denzel Curry we will hear on the album. Without further ado, let’s get to the review!
Categories
The songs on this album divided into lanes that are prevalent throughout the project
The Aggressive Turn Up
Turn Up type songs executed the bass within each beat and the cadences and flows used by Denzel Curry.
• “ZUU” (1)
• “RICKY” (1.5)
• “BIRDZ” ft. Rick Ross (1)
• “CAROLMART” ft. Ice Billion Berg (1)
• “SHAKE 88” ft. Sam Sneak (1)
• “P.A.T.” ft. PlayThatBoiZay (1)
The Chill Turn Up
Slower Party Songs. Curry experiments more with his cadences leading to a softer vibe.
• “WISH” ft. Kiddo Marv (1.5)
• “AUTOMATIC” ft. Tay Keith (.5)
• “SPEEDBOAT” (1.5)
Interlude
Interludes only count towards the Quality Score!
• “BUSHY B INTERLUDE”
• “YOO”
• “BLACKLAND 66.6”
Must Listen Songs
The concept of Must Listen songs are the songs that would give the best overview of the album as a whole. Songs that stand out for reasons to be described in the pending descriptions of the songs.
“ZUU”
The intro track to Denzel Curry’s “ZUU” sets the tone for this summertime masterpiece. The beat produced by KeanuBeats and FnZ starts off with a soft piano beat before the high-powered bass comes in with a slight taste of high hats. Denzel Curry’s voice overpowers the beat which is impressive because of how heavy this bass is. The story of the song is the hook where Curry starts off in a soft cadence before he starts yelling “ZUU” on the track. This delivery is infectious, immediately getting the listener hyped up. The use of the outro on this track, a skit with someone insisting on being called Mr.Rick, is a well executed set up to track two and the first single “RICKY.”
“WISH” ft. Kiddo Marv
Track three on “ZUU,” produced by Mickey De Grand IV, FnZ and Charlie Heat, starts off with a slow dance song before Curry comes in with the hook. The beat of the actual song incorporates the same slow jam vibe with a sparkling sound in the background of the hard bass that comes in on the Curry hook. The story of this song is best encapsulated in the hook where Curry raps,
“She gon' bust it open for a nigga in designer
That's gon' be the reason why she let you get behind her
You might be the nigga that's gon' probably wine and dine her
I'ma take her home only usin' one-liners”
Overall, the beat and flows from Curry and Kiddo Marv come together to create a nice vibe that slows the album down while still keeping the aggressive feel of the previous two songs.
“P.A.T.” ft. PlayThatBoiZay
The outro track on “Denzel Curry’s “ZUU” produced by FnZ and Ronny J is a Heavy Metal-Hip-Hop cross over song. The beat is aggressive, with a bass that doesn’t seem to go away and with a little trace of a high hat and a fax machine sounding instrument. The Heavy Metal cadence of PlayThatBoiZay and Denzel Curry adds to the turn-up feel of the song, closing out this summertime masterpiece.
Final Review
Denzel Curry’s “ZUU” is a summertime masterpiece that is holistically dedicated to the summertime vibe. The production, mostly done by FnZ with help from other producers throughout the album has the bass that pedestrians will be able to feel from a car with the top down blasting music from a mile away. From organizing a party on the track “YOO,” to a song to twerk to like “SHAKE 88” ft. Sam Sneak, Denzel Curry does an exceptional job painting the picture of a lit summer. Curry uses his aggressive flow on songs like “RICKY” to describe the feeling of brotherhood throughout the summer and his soft cadences on songs like “WISH” ft. Kiddo Marv to illustrate how he attracts women during the summer time. The lyricism throughout is easy to understand in a way that doesn’t dumb down the concepts for the listener. The use of interludes and skits like “YOO” and “BLACKLAND 66.6” help cement the concept of summer for the listener. The use of “BLACKLAND 66.6” reminds me of the execution of Vince Staples’ last project, “FM!” on tracks like “New earlsweatshirt – Interlude,” “Brand New Tyga – Interlude.” The commonality between all three tracks is the use of radio to set the summer vibe, for Vince Staples’ “FM!” the use of radio snippets from the radio show “Big Boy’s Neighborhood” does this throughout the album. Denzel Curry, on the other hand, uses the idea of people hanging out and listening to the radio to set the stage for his outro track “P.A.T.” The transitions throughout the album are seamless. One key example is the transition from “ZUU” to “RICKY” where in “ZUU”’s outro skit one person insists on being called Mr.Rick which, of course, sets up the next song “RICKY.” Overall, Denzel Curry carries out the concept of summer well throughout the album adding “ZUU” to Denzel Curry’s already impressive discography.
Scoring
Raw Score: The number of good songs on a project versus the overall amount. Songs must have a +1 or above to be counted.
Quality Score: The total amount of points accumulated over the total amount of songs.
Playback value: The resonance an album is perceived to have if played again in full. Scale out of 5.
Raw Score: 8/9
Quality Score: 13/9
Playback Value: 5/5
MUST LISTEN IN FULL!
Go out and listen to Denzel Curry’s “ZUU” wherever you listen to your music. Also, don’t forget to check out OLDMLK’s Instagram page (@OLDMLK) and Twitter (@OLDMLKDOTCOM) for updates on OLDMLK.COM: The Most Essential Hip Hop Blog, The OLDMLK.Com Playlist, The OLDMLK Radar and more!
