ScHoolboy Q has been around for a minute. He’s been featured on a handful of bangers throughout his tenure in the mainstream rap game (A$AP Ferg’s Work Remix) and we all know him for his famous ad lib. He’s also dropped 2 mixtapes of his own: Setbacks in 2011 and Habits and Contradictions in 2012 that did relatively well. Being the second artist from the TDE label to drop a debut album, there’s a lot of pressure on Q to deliver a project that stands up to Kendrick’s “good kid, m.A.A.d. city“. But the boy from Hoover Street delivered.
Oxymoron is a solid debut album. ScHoolboy Q brings you the harsh realities of his past with gangs and drugs and intertwines those stories with his more recent successes like making it with rap. He does all this over some dope production and with clever bars.
The album kicks off with “Gangsta” which features Q’s daughter introducing her pop as a gangster. The first track off the album should always set the tone of the album and this track does that perfectly. ScHoolboy Q in many interviews has said that he’s a gangster rapper and he’s expressed that most rappers in today’s game are too “nice” and he wanted to return to the hard hitting beats, bars and imagery. This track has probably one of the most infectious, chant-worthy hooks out. Listen and tell me you don’t agree.
Speaking of hooks, ScHoolboy is pretty good at writing hooks. This is pretty evident on tracks like “What They Want“. With MikeWillMadeIt on the boards and a feature from 2 Chainz, this is that ignorant shit you love to hate but will bump regardless.
Two of the best tracks off the album are “Hoover” and “Prescription/Oxymoron”. These tracks really highlight ScHoolboy’s ability to tell stories about his cripping and drug dealing past. Hoover has Q sharing stories form his childhood and adolescence when he was first exposed to the gang and drug life through his uncle. Prescription/Oxymoron is more about Q’s addiction issues. The beat combined with the vocal additions from his daughter, make the track that much more real. It’s almost sad. When the track splits into Oxymoron, Q drops one of the catchiest chants off the entire project. Peep below.
I just stopped selling crack today!
If you’re looking for good tracks to jam to, the boy from Hoover brings you at least three tracks (all one after the other) that you can bump. “Hell of a Night” is up first and before writing this review, I expressed how much I was bumping this track. It is easily one of the best tracks and what’s nice (for Q and the label) is that its commercially viable. This track will be heard in clubs and at festivals all summer. Again, the hook is super infectious. The beat is produced by DJ Dahi, the same dude who brought us Drake’s “Worst Behaviour” and that’s an anthem in itself. So is “Hell of a Night”. This track is followed by “Break the Bank” and “Man of the Year“, which have been in rotation for a minute now.
Kudos to ScHoolboy Q for dropping a dope debut album. It’s no simple feat, and for him to drop this after nearly 2 years, I’m sure this will please fans of the TDE artist. There are a few other tracks that deserve an honourable mention. That list follows below. Check out the album and sound off in the comments to let us know what you think.
Honourable Mentions:
1. Studio featuring BJ The Chicago Kid
2. The Purge featuring Tyler the Creator and Kurupt
3. Blind Threats featuring Raekwon
