Getting Out Our Dreams, Inc. - Def Jam Recordings

This new Big Sean album has been in the pipeline for several months but due to COVID-19 it’s release was pushed back to September. The album is a reflection of the growing importance of the Californian in the American rap scene. As its name suggests, Detroit 2 (following his 2012 mixtape, Detroit) is a tribute to the city and its history. Big Sean kindly invites three inspirational artists, namely Erykah Badu, David Chappelle and none other than Stevie Wonder, to declare their love for the Motor City in delightful spoken interludes. These interludes intersperse a tracklist with featuring artists that would make any rapper in the industry green with envy.Big Sean doesn’t have a remarkable voice. It’s through his lyrics, his concepts and his skill of wordplay, used wisely here, that he stands out. This skill is particularly apparent on the awesome tracks Lucky Me and Lithuania (featuring Travis Scott) and is the perfect complement to the cooler sounds of ZFTO and The Baddest (which samples the famous soundtrack from the Godzilla films). The album’s single, Deep Reverence, is a collaboration with the late Nipsey Hussle and shows that Big Sean is more at ease with lyrically optimistic songs, like the superb and sensual Body Language (featuring Ty Dolla $ign and Jhéné Aiko). But that’s a good thing because Detroit 2 is full of them. © Brice Miclet/Qobuz

Big Sean's roots are inarguably in Detroit. He may have grown into a multi-platinum rap superstar, but the unpolished talent and blunt force of his style owe a significant debt to being raised in the beautiful but unforgiving city that has consistently produced some of music's most unique artists. Sean's 2012 mixtape Detroit was an early testament to his love and gratitude for his city, and eight years later his fifth studio album, Detroit 2, finds the rapper revisiting themes of formative experiences, self-reflection, and growth through a lens of appreciation for the city that made him. One of the first things that stands out about Detroit 2 is its nearly overwhelming guest list. Songs are dotted with features from huge names, with some of the most inspired moments on the album coming from the late Nipsey Hussle's verses on "Deep Reverence," Lil Wayne's signature all-directions-at-once wordplay on "Don Life," and Travis Scott's narcotic hooks on "Lithuania." The album's energy crests with the ferocious, nearly-ten-minute freestyle session "Friday Night Cypher." As the beat changes frequently, 42 Dugg, Tee Grizzley, Kash Doll, Sada Baby, Eminem, Boldy James, and other Detroit heavyweights take turns on the mike, further highlighting the collective intensity of the Detroit scene. As if the musical cameos aren't enough (Post Malone, Young Thug, Diddy, Anderson .Paak and many others all swing through on various tracks), the album is broken up into three segments that start with anecdotal spoken stories about times in Detroit from Dave Chappelle, Erykah Badu, and Stevie Wonder. Despite a personnel list that borders on audacious, Big Sean is at his best on Detroit 2 when he sounds like he's standing alone in his room giving himself a pep talk. "Harder Than My Demons" somersaults through bars that slowly move from confidence to triumph to belligerence. "Lucky Me" finds Sean effortlessly trying on different flows like he's shopping for a new hat, spitting out biographical lyrics that jump between different points in his life. The production is clean and engaging, with polished beats and the occasional glossy hook (the R&B-infused "Body Language") providing a contrast for Big Sean's visceral rhymes and urgently delivered performances. © Fred Thomas /TiVo

Big Sean's roots are inarguably in Detroit. He may have grown into a multi-platinum rap superstar, but the unpolished talent and blunt force of his style owe a significant debt to being raised in the beautiful but unforgiving city that has consistently produced some of music's most unique artists. Sean's 2012 mixtape Detroit was an early testament to his love and gratitude for his city, and eight years later his fifth studio album, Detroit 2, finds the rapper revisiting themes of formative experiences, self-reflection, and growth through a lens of appreciation for the city that made him. One of the first things that stands out about Detroit 2 is its nearly overwhelming guest list. Songs are dotted with features from huge names, with some of the most inspired moments on the album coming from the late Nipsey Hussle's verses on "Deep Reverence," Lil Wayne's signature all-directions-at-once wordplay on "Don Life," and Travis Scott's narcotic hooks on "Lithuania." The album's energy crests with the ferocious, nearly-ten-minute freestyle session "Friday Night Cypher." As the beat changes frequently, 42 Dugg, Tee Grizzley, Kash Doll, Sada Baby, Eminem, Boldy James, and other Detroit heavyweights take turns on the mike, further highlighting the collective intensity of the Detroit scene. As if the musical cameos aren't enough (Post Malone, Young Thug, Diddy, Anderson .Paak and many others all swing through on various tracks), the album is broken up into three segments that start with anecdotal spoken stories about times in Detroit from Dave Chappelle, Erykah Badu, and Stevie Wonder. Despite a personnel list that borders on audacious, Big Sean is at his best on Detroit 2 when he sounds like he's standing alone in his room giving himself a pep talk. "Harder Than My Demons" somersaults through bars that slowly move from confidence to triumph to belligerence. "Lucky Me" finds Sean effortlessly trying on different flows like he's shopping for a new hat, spitting out biographical lyrics that jump between different points in his life. The production is clean and engaging, with polished beats and the occasional glossy hook (the R&B-infused "Body Language") providing a contrast for Big Sean's visceral rhymes and urgently delivered performances. © Fred Thomas /TiVo

After closing Kanye West's "Wyoming Sessions" series in 2018 with K.T.S.E., the new R&B queen Teyana Taylor has released the aptly named The Album. Probably because Keep That Same Energy was released in an incomplete form, 24 hours late, unlike Kanye's Ye, Kids See Ghosts with Kid Cudi, Nas’s Nasir and Pusha T's Daytona. Probably because her debut album The Misunderstanding Of Teyana Taylor - a reference to her idol Lauryn Hill - took six years to come out. And it’s hardly a coincidence, resonating with America’s current events, that The Album drops on “Juneteenth”, the day that celebrates the end of slavery in the United States.For this third work released on G.O.O.D Music, her mentor Kanye’s label, Taylor put all the odds in her favour: unexpected featurings and five-star producers who wrote the R&B of the 90s and today’s rap. We find Erykah Badu on Lowkey, Missy Elliott and Future on the slow track Boomin produced by Timbaland, Quavo on Let’s Build, Rick Ross on Come Back To Me and Wyclef Jean writing Ever Ever. Even the rare Lauryn Hill philosophises on We Got Love piloted by Kanye. The result is twice as long as usual with an omnipresent nineties sheen, brushed by samples of 808 by Blaque (Boomin) or Just Friends by Musiq (Friends), evoking Brandi, Aaliyah and Janet Jackson. It also makes rare detours, like the dancehall track Bad that sounds a little like Work by Rihanna. And as if there wasn’t enough symbolism, the album cover pays tribute to another icon of empowerment: Grace Jones. © Charlotte Saintoin/Qobuz

K.T.S.E. yielded a gold-certified, Top 20 R&B/hip-hop hit in the form of "Gonna Love Me." Despite those significant firsts for Teyana Taylor, the singer and songwriter had misgivings about the 2018 LP, the last in a sequence of five like-sized G.O.O.D. Music titles inevitably branded as an installment in the Kanye West-guided "Wyoming sessions." Taylor hits the reset button with The Album. Its title effectively brushes aside both K.T.S.E. and her fine 2014 debut, VII. Almost 80 minutes in duration, this set even dwarfs the aggregate of the two preceding releases as if to leave no doubt that it's her definitive and unrestricted work. Taylor furthers the notion by starting The Album with recordings of husband Iman Shumpert's marriage proposal and his 911 call in response to the unexpected natural birth of their daughter Junie. Soon enough, Junie -- a few years older -- introduces the misty "Come Back to Me," and then the tranquil "Wake Up Love" floats past with Taylor's husband the provider of a devotional guest verse. After she revamps Erykah Badu's elusive-temptation tale "Next Lifetime" with a featured appearance from the originator, Taylor closes out the romantic segment with the Guy-interpolating bliss-out "Let's Build," duetting with Quavo in sincere and mellifluous style. Next is a grip of bedroom slow jams. None eclipse "Request" off VII, but the Kehlani collaboration "Morning" is a seductive delight, while the snaking (and accurately titled) "Boomin" is a treat for lovers of late-'90s R&B with explicit references to Blaque and much of the Swing Mob (plus an appearance from the latter's Missy Elliott). Confident diversions into breezy Afro-pop and underwater dancehall lead to a half-hour stretch covering various romantic woes. Taylor confronts, pleads, departs, regrets, and more, delivering a couple of her most riveting performances on "Concrete," all toxicity and torment, and "Still," a strong contender for the surrogate Jazmine Sullivan ballad of 2020. The Album is rounded out by an up-tempo trifecta that with each verse and chorus, all the way through Lauryn Hill's closing words of wisdom, increases in power. © Andy Kellman /TiVo

K.T.S.E. yielded a gold-certified, Top 20 R&B/hip-hop hit in the form of "Gonna Love Me." Despite those significant firsts for Teyana Taylor, the singer and songwriter had misgivings about the 2018 LP, the last in a sequence of five like-sized G.O.O.D. Music titles inevitably branded as an installment in the Kanye West-guided "Wyoming sessions." Taylor hits the reset button with The Album. Its title effectively brushes aside both K.T.S.E. and her fine 2014 debut, VII. Almost 80 minutes in duration, this set even dwarfs the aggregate of the two preceding releases as if to leave no doubt that it's her definitive and unrestricted work. Taylor furthers the notion by starting The Album with recordings of husband Iman Shumpert's marriage proposal and his 911 call in response to the unexpected natural birth of their daughter Junie. Soon enough, Junie -- a few years older -- introduces the misty "Come Back to Me," and then the tranquil "Wake Up Love" floats past with Taylor's husband the provider of a devotional guest verse. After she revamps Erykah Badu's elusive-temptation tale "Next Lifetime" with a featured appearance from the originator, Taylor closes out the romantic segment with the Guy-interpolating bliss-out "Let's Build," duetting with Quavo in sincere and mellifluous style. Next is a grip of bedroom slow jams. None eclipse "Request" off VII, but the Kehlani collaboration "Morning" is a seductive delight, while the snaking (and accurately titled) "Boomin" is a treat for lovers of late-'90s R&B with explicit references to Blaque and much of the Swing Mob (plus an appearance from the latter's Missy Elliott). Confident diversions into breezy Afro-pop and underwater dancehall lead to a half-hour stretch covering various romantic woes. Taylor confronts, pleads, departs, regrets, and more, delivering a couple of her most riveting performances on "Concrete," all toxicity and torment, and "Still," a strong contender for the surrogate Jazmine Sullivan ballad of 2020. The Album is rounded out by an up-tempo trifecta that with each verse and chorus, all the way through Lauryn Hill's closing words of wisdom, increases in power. © Andy Kellman /TiVo