Chief Keef stands as yet another victim of desperate record labels trying to market music they don’t understand. Interscope recently dropped Keef, mostly due to his album not performing as expected and Keef not willing to play ball with the media. Keef even admitted that the dip in quality of his recent releases was due to drug use and lack of focus.
So now Keef is back with ‘Sorry For The Weight‘, and he feels stronger and more focused than ever. The tape uses a series of skits dotted throughout to give a more immediate take on where he is mentally. Skits tend to be quite an annoyance, but here the skits actually serve as the perfect lead in for the music. Chief Keef isn’t as vocal as most rappers these days, so to hear him talk about being influenced by Lil Wayne and 50 Cent is some much needed insight into his almost enigmatic character. The familiar subjects covered in the music, feel as if a documentary has come packaged with the tape and the skits give the music more context.
The skits aren’t everything though, they can’t be. The music initially starts out pretty good, before dissolving into more barely conscious sung raps. The tape is at its strongest when Keef is on aggressive form. ‘Send It Up‘ feels like a step in the right direction, but go to producer Young Chop’s absence from the tape is felt. He knows how to deliver the Keef anthems in ways that other producers just feel formulaic. ‘Hiding‘ has the perfect build up, but results in a very ordinary track. Surprisingly Keef’s performance takes centre stage here. Although it doesn’t feature any of the menace found on his earlier work, it feels as if that was more down to the mystery surrounding him, as opposed to a genuine threat. Calling Keef a song writer feels like a stretch, but his skill has certainly risen.
The whole feel behind drill is almost anti-lyrical at this point, at least where Keef is concerned. But lines like “woof woof, I’m a dog.” can be a little hard to take. Thankfully they don’t appear all that much.
The most interesting part about the tape is the juxtaposition between the violent content and the humble character found on the skits. This shows that the controversy around Keef, although not entirely without merit, is for the most part entertainment and he is a real person, which makes the content all the more enjoyable.
