Two months ago, Lupe Fiasco had retired. After posting a freestyle on Soundcloud in which he ranted against music industry executives in terms that were described as offensive by the Anti Defamation League, Fiasco first tried to put the remarks in a considerate context (“I’ve been in the Ghettos of Warsaw. I’ve seen [systemic] genocide”) then stormed off in a huff into retirement. Now, here we are with the first part of what is described as a three-album “final curtain call”, and uncertainty is still apparent.
Fiasco, who emerged as a protege of Kanye West over a decade ago and subsequently earned a dozen Grammy nominations, seems torn between trying to find relevance and staying true to himself. There are songs that are confrontational (NGL) and songs that are soppy (Tranquillo). There are trap beats and Mark Ronsonesque ones. On some songs he sounds like Drake (Promise), on others he sounds the way he did on 2006’s Food and Liquor. Ultimately, this lack of direction means the album doesn’t take off. Even amid the mish-mash, however, there are enough moments of quality to remind the listener why this MC deserves to finish his career on his own terms.
