Die A Legend

Polo G

explicit

Released on 07/06/2019 by Columbia
Main artists: Polo G
Genre: Hip-Hop/Rap
Distinctions: Pitchfork: Best New Music

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Polo G is one of several late-2010s Chicago rappers to combine influences from their city's drill scene with more melodic hooks. While many of his peers got by on charisma and high-impact production, Polo G's lyricism sets him apart. Early single "Finer Things" announced his nuanced style as he switched gears from vulnerable uncertainty about his direction in life to bragging about his wealth in the same breath. The song's sentimental, piano-heavy beat served as a perfect instrumental for Polo G's introspective writing, and it connected with millions to become his first viral hit. Debut album Die a Legend delivers on the promise of early singles with 14 tracks of nonstop lyrical highlights and a production style equal shares hard-trap beats and melodic catchiness. Often debut releases from rappers with a massive hit are quickly assembled around that hit, but Die a Legend plays like a finely arranged statement. While "Finer Things" might be the strongest example of Polo G's mesh of lyrical excellence and sticky vocal lines, it's one of several versatile approaches. The airy production on "Battle Cry" leaves plenty of space for lyrics about losing friends to gang violence and fighting anxiety with self-medication. Depression, isolation, and healing from trauma come up as themes throughout Die a Legend, adding a deeper humanity to tales of raw street life and hustling to survive. Even as he rises from desperation and poverty to riches and stardom, Polo G's lyrics overflow with suspicion and sadness, distrustful of the fairweather friends who love him when he's on top and too smart to believe that fame is forever. There's a darkness even on huge bangers like "Pop Out," a would-be assertion of violence and confrontation that ends up feeling heavier and more resigned than aggressive. Much of Die a Legend finds its power in those heavy vibes. Polo G delivers his rhymes in unbroken flows, pouring out his soul, his struggles, and even his fears in a nonstop rush for the entirety of the album's 40 minutes. It's a dark place, but the painful honesty of these songs comes off as a bold and necessary purging of demons rather than emotional posturing. Direct and unflinching, Die a Legend is a masterful debut that stands a head above even the better acts in the crop of trap soundalikes.

© Fred Thomas /TiVo

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Die A Legend

Polo G

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