This Friday, 31st May, brought with it a flurry of hip-hop releases. From Skepta's highly anticipated album 'Ignorance is Bliss', to Cardi B's single 'Press' and Justin Bieber's feature on Gucci Mane's new 'Love Thru The Computer', there seemed to be something for everyone this time around. However, the project that we'll be focusing on is the new album, 'ZUU', by Denzel Curry.
The Florida native has gained absolutely massive traction in the last year or so mainly thanks to his debut studio album, 'TABOO', stylised as 'TA13OO', which was, in my opinion, close to a creative masterpiece. Flanked with singles such as 'CLOUT COBAIN' and 'SUMO', 'TABOO' consisted of three 'acts' - the light act, dark act and gray act - seemingly to represent three different styles of Denzel's music. This worked massively in his favour, resulting in a project that should have been album of the year in my opinion, as well as having already been cited as a modern classic, despite being less than a year old, and overall propelling Curry right into the mainstream spotlight of hip-hop. However, this time around, Curry announced his new album 'ZUU', fairly spontaneously - barely a week in advance - and from what he's described, he seems to be aiming for a modern spin on the Southern hip-hop sound of the 90's and 00's, which is a fairly drastic switch up from the style of 'TABOO' - with Denzel even going as far as putting deep underground local talent as his main features, Rick Ross being the only recognisable name on the list. However, with Denzel being one of my favourite rappers, it's a project I've been very excited for, and so without further ado, let's get right into 'ZUU'.
ZUU - First things first, it's a pretty strong first track. 'ZUU' is a loud, gritty introduction to the album, mixing both Denzel's laid-back delivery with his more aggressive side, resulting in a final product that gives the best of both worlds. Perhaps critical points are that the song doesn't offer the most lyric-wise. It's fairly simple in that respect, but often introductions can get away with that, and I think Denzel does here. A strong first tune - not the best on the album but certainly not the worst. 7.5/10.
RICKY - The first single released from the album is a very, very good one. 'RICKY' is a hyper, loud song, and the production from FNZ is excellent, with the beat being a very weird, bouncy one that seems to be all over the place, but it fits Denzel's delivery excellently. The song is named after Denzel's father - who appears on the cover of the single - and pays tribute to not only the man who raised him, but his lifestyle as a youngster in Carol City, Florida, and his deceased older brother, Treon Johnson - who died from injuries inflicted by tasering and pepper spraying from police officers. The track's energy sets the listener up with the theme throughout the rest of the album, and considering how good 'RICKY' is, it's a very high bar for the rest of the tracks. 9/10.
WISH (feat. Kiddo Marv) - I'll admit I have no idea who Kiddo Marv is, but regardless, he's helped Denzel create my favourite song on the entire album. 'WISH' is incredible, combining a mix of loud and dirty South Florida style, with a feeling that it could still survive in a nightclub environment, resulting in a fantastic song. The instrumental, looping the words 'Your wish is my command' at the start of the song, alongside the dreamy, repetitive chimes throughout the rest of the song, is great. Kiddo Marv successfully holds his own alongside Denzel, providing a killer guest verse, whilst Curry himself provides not only the catchiest chorus in the entire album, but also some fantastic lines through his verse, in which he also shouts out one of his old friends, the late XXXTENTACION, a couple of times, and his deceased brother Treon again. Behind the energetic feeling of this track, one has to wonder if Denzel also meant it as a reminiscent tribute to those that he's lost. There's really not much I can fault this song for, having already replayed it countless times. 10/10.
BIRDZ (feat. Rick Ross) - Featuring the biggest name on this album, one of Florida's greats - Rick Ross - 'BIRDZ' reflects the nature of the big names on it. Another strange, distorted beat from FNZ, yet it still works. It's wild and all over the place, but Denzel and Rick manage to control it thanks to their confident delivery and astute approach to the track. With shoutouts to the late Nipsey Hussle, all the way through to their lavish lifestyles, there's a mix of lyrical content in 'BIRDZ'. I can't lie and say that it's my kind of song to be honest. Yes, Denzel and Rick do work well together on the song as a whole, but the beat is just too 'all over the place' for me to truly enjoy it to its full extent. However, I can still appreciate that this is subjective and for some, 'BIRDZ' has proven to be the best track on the album. Still, a 7/10.
AUTOMATIC - Modern legend Tay Keith helped produce this one, so you know it should be a good one. Sure enough, Keith helps Curry deliver a great track. A bit different to the previous songs we've heard so far, it's a bit more relaxed, but Denzel still flexes his power over the rap game through his delivery. His flow is great on this one, with some humour thanks to metaphors and lines like 'You a lick like a stamp' and 'N****s throwing shade on my light, that's a lamp'. Only real complaint would perhaps be that the chorus is a bit weak and repetitive. 8/10.
SPEEDBOAT - The second single from 'ZUU', 'SPEEDBOAT' is as good as its companion, 'RICKY' if not better. It's a different style to the rest of the album, but it's a welcome change in pace from the aggressive, retro South Florida sound that the rest of the songs have been so far. Denzel's flow is excellent once again here, with the lyrics rolling off easily, and with it being so easy to listen to, before you know it, all 3 minutes 42 seconds of it are over. 9/10.
BUSHY B INTERLUDE - I'm never really sure how to rank interludes, because sometimes they just don't feel like actual songs. In this case, 'BUSHY B INTERLUDE' feels like it's over before it's even begun. It's the first real interlude Denzel has ever provided for an album though, and really it's just one minute of what appears to be Denzel freestyling. It's catchy, but there's not much else i can really comment on, other than it being a nice break in pace, and giving the listener a minute to relax before the next half of the project. 7/10.
YOO - What a strange track. 'YOO' is basically just a phone call skit where Denzel tries to portray how people in Miami speak - with simple, sometimes one-syllable words, that are straight to the point. No rapping or any other instrumentals of any sorts in this one, so it's a very big change compared to the rest of the album. However, it's essentially just another interlude and it still relates back to Denzel's focus for this album, and what he was trying to convey - the Florida scene - and so it's 6.5/10.
CAROLMART (feat. Ice Billion Berg) - Ice Billion Berg is another name that I don't know, but once again it's a feature that should be kept in mind.Producers FNZ and Jasper Harris come through with another great instrumental, which for the first real time in the album, mixes in a little of that modern Florida-bass style that has become so huge in the last few years. Ice Billion Berg provides a catchy chorus whilst Denzel does his thing over the verses, reciting what life was like in his hometown of Carol City, and this track is actually named after the now-defunct 'Carolmart' shopping centre in the city. It's not the most memorable track on the album, but it's still a good song, so it's a 7.5/10.
SHAKE 88 (feat. Sam Sneak) - Starts off very loud and in-your-face, and with a sample of 'Stick That Thang Out (Skeezer)' by Lil Jon and The East Side Boyz. Whilst Denzel cools off a little, the instrumental still shakes your speakers in the background throughout the rest of the track. It's a strip club anthem to be honest, with fairly basic, dirty lyrics and a bouncy beat. The pre-chorus is interesting though, as it's reminiscent of the pre-chorus from N.W.A's 'Gangsta Gangsta'. 'SHAKE 88' contains 'Here's a lil something 'bout a b***h like me', whilst 'Gangsta Gangsta' contains 'Here's a lil something 'bout a n***a like me'. It's a strange call-back from Denzel considering N.W.A are from California, the complete opposite side of the USA from Florida, and arguably one of Florida's biggest rivals in the East v West hip-hop battle, but still, it's an interesting note. Anyway, the track itself is unfortunately not my favourite to be honest. There's too much going on in the background with the instrumental for Denzel to truly display his talent lyrically. So overall, 6.5/10.
BLACKLAND 66.6 - Another interlude it seems, based around the switching of radio stations, Denzel features a sample of the song 'F**k Taylor Gang' by his old mentor - SpaceGhostPurrp - from the aforementioned's 2011 mixtape 'Blackland Radio 66.6', hence the name of Curry's track. Apart from this interesting tribute and callback, there's nothing else to really say about this, so 6/10.
P.A.T. (feat. PlayThatBoiZay) - This is old Denzel at its finest - the style that he and X became well known for. Aggressive, loud and unnecessarily violent lyrics and delivery, alongside a grainy, distorted instrumental with earth-shaking bass. Considering it's a Ronny J beat, it's perhaps not something that should surprise us nowadays. PlayThatBoiZay is incredible on this track, and is actually reminiscent of the style of a young X - he's certainly a name that we should remember for the future. Denzel is equally as impressive and it's a fantastic end to the album, wrapping up the part of the project where he pays tribute to the old Florida scene, and signing off with a fast-forward to the modern Florida style that leaves the listener wondering where Curry will go with his sound in the future. 9/10.
In conclusion, 'ZUU' is a great album. I really think Denzel Curry succeeds in what he set out to do with this project, which was of course to pay tribute and put a modern twist on the sound of Southern hip-hop in the 90s and 00s. Through the use of raunchy, aggressive lyricism and delivery, paired with the earthy, bass-ridden backing tracks, Denzel really helps bring the Southern scene back to life. Of course, this means there is a risk of repetitiveness throughout the project. Outside of the loud tracks like 'P.A.T.' and 'BIRDZ' though, Denzel does deliver a bit of versatility thanks to 'SPEEDBOAT', and the interludes, which at first listen seem a bit random, but after examination become as relevant to the idea behind this project as the actual tracks themselves. It also helps slow the project down overall though, and breaks up what could become somewhat of a monotonous sound. That being said, the commitment to one style of hip-hop and sound means this album was never going to be quite as good as 'TABOO', and so it suffers in that respect. This in no way means it's a bad project though, as 'TABOO' was wildly exceptional for Denzel.
Overall then, I'm going to give 'ZUU' an 8.5/10. Like I've mentioned already, Denzel made clear what he was setting out to do from the start with this project and it's hard to argue that he hasn't achieved this, whilst also mixing in a bit of the modern sound of Florida's hip-hop scene. In terms of his discography, I'd probably place 'ZUU' beneath 'TABOO' of course, but probably on par with his 2016 album 'Imperial', which itself was perhaps not too dissimilar in style to what we've just heard from the Florida native. It seems as though Denzel just can't release a bad project thus far, and let's hope it stays that way. If his recent tweet is anything to go by though, it appears we won't be getting another project from the man himself for another 'year or two', so my advice is to take advantage of the music we have from him so far. After mixing it up from 'TABOO' and releasing this though, no matter when the next project drops, it'll be interesting to see where he takes his sound next.
'ZUU' by Denzel Curry is available now on all major streaming platforms, including Apple Music, Spotify and YouTube.
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