A Review of Lil Nas X's "7 EP"
Atlanta rapper Lil Nas X looks to capitalize off of his sudden superstardom with the release of his debut project titled, “7 EP.” It seems like Lil Nas X came out of nowhere, suddenly dropping a chart-topping, genre-bending song titled “Old Town Road,” only to follow it up with the scorching hot, “Old Town Road (Remix)” featuring Billy Ray Cyrus. Lil Nas X combines the best of country and the best of trap with some catchy lyrics to create the hottest song of 2019 to date. Lil Nas X then followed up with the song “Panini” which didn’t gain much traction, probably because of its release on the eve of the release of this project. Now, taking a look at the tracklist, Lil Nas X’s “7 EP” is made up of 8 tracks, which add up to almost 19 minutes of music. The three singles released prior, “Old Town Road,” “Old Town Road (Remix)” featuring Billy Ray Cyrus and “Panini” all appear on the project. The only feature besides Billy Ray Cyrus on this project is Cardi B which is an interesting combination. Without further ado, let’s get to the review!
Categories
The songs on this album divided into lanes that are prevalent throughout the project
Country Trap
Country and Trap collide!
• “Old Town Road – Remix” featuring Billy Ray Cyrus (1.5)
• “Old Town Road” (1.5)
Trap-Rock
Trap and Rock collide. Songs tilt towards one genre while still incorporating elements of the other.
• “Panini” (1)
• “F9mily (You & Me)” (1)
• “Kick It” (1)
• “Rodeo” ft. Cardi B (.5)
Rock
True Rock Songs
• “Bring U Down” (1)
• “C7osure (You Like)” (1)
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.
“Kick It”
The fourth track on Lil Nas X’s “7 EP” is a mix Rap-Rock with a beat produced by Lil Nas X, Bizness Boi, FWDSLXSH, and BoyBand. The beat has the high hats of a Hip-Hop song, with a mix of brass instruments, and bass guitar. This along with the cadence used by Lil Nas X doesn’t sound like a true Hip-Hop song. In the middle of the song is a nice instrumental bridge that pushes the song farther from Hip-Hop. Overall, this is a solid song, however, doesn’t live up to the hype on the hook as Lil Nas X opts for a more chill vibe instead of a higher inflection of the vibe given off in the verses.
“Bring U Down”
Track six on Lil Nas X’s “7 EP” is a true rock song with a bass guitar line, and drum set, on the beat produced by Zach Skelton and Ryan Tedder. The cadence used by Lil Nas is a more Rock-like cadence with the dragging of the first syllable of every line. The guitar solo towards the end of the song is a nice touch.
Final Review
Overall, Lil Nas X’s “7 EP” is a solid foundation for him to build from. Many of the songs felt more like Rock than Hip-Hop, which isn’t a bad thing. However, this project does nothing to establish Lil Nas X in the Hip-Hop genre, ultimately leaving me with more questions than answers about Lil Nas X’s career trajectory. The flow of the project is mediocre at best, at times feeling like a bunch of singles put together in a rush. The songs would stand alone by themselves as singles in my opinion, however, lose value under the pressures of the extra criteria for a project such as a consistent concept and flow. Lil Nas X’s “7 EP” confirms that Nas X will be looking to stay out of the traditional genre box most artists are put into, however, doesn’t show a true mastery of any genre which leads to more questions than answers.
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: 7/8
Quality Score: 8.5/8
Playback Value: 1/5
Go out and listen to Lil Nas X’s “7 EP” 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!
