Transforming from an underground crooner to a Top Ten-charting rapper in just over a year, Charlotte MC
DaBaby's rise has been nothing but meteoric. Every part the genuine article, the rapper blends cockiness, charm, and humor into a vibrant persona, a recipient of the crowd-winning charisma of artists like
Missy Elliott and
Ski Mask the Slump God. When paired with impressive technical skill and a clear musical vision,
DaBaby's success seemed inevitable, and this winning formula has produced some of the most infectious rap of 2019 so far.
DaBaby's best material has typically been scored by bouncy, electronic-led loops. "Taking It Out" would have lacked oomph without its breakneck-paced production, while the piano-like warbles of "Gorilla Glu" lent it a menacing swagger. Though we see this mimicked to varying degrees of success in
Kirk's "Vibez" and "Raw Shit," there's some refreshing variation, too. Along with expressive pianos on "Gospel" and a club-inspired bounce on "Really," eighth track "Toes" treats us to some Wild West-inspired trap. Of course, a
DaBaby release comes with a certain set of lyrical staples: charismatic boasts come with reassuring regularity, and there are enough "jit"s and "ain't no cap in my rap"s to bring the record back home. Given the right production,
Baby's charisma can carry them forward, with "Toes" and "There He Go" landing firmly in the upper ranks of his catalog.
But there's a firm standout in opening track "Intro." Discarding
Baby's blanket braggadocio and style, the track is his most personal work to date. Amid descriptions of his mother's battle with cancer and his own internalized misery, he reflects on the death of his father with the cutting "How the f*ck I make it to the top, same day I lost the n*gga that had me?"
DaBaby's consistency is hard to call into question -- with some new production tricks added to the artist's tried-and-tested formula, fans of the Charlotte rapper are sure to find a lot to like in
Kirk. ~ David Crone