Review: Freddie Gibbs’ ‘You Only Live 2wice’
Not His Greatest Work, But Still Better Than His Peers
Befitting his holy resurrection depicted on the album cover, rapper Freddie Gibbs’s third album is strewn with religious imagery and airy choral samples over the hard-hitting trap beats he’s rapped over the length of his career. Songs such as “Dear Maria” and “Amnesia” are proper showcases of both his abilities as an emcee and his ear for catchy instrumentals that complement his head-nodding flow. Unfortunately, this record suffers from a lack of ear-grabbing hooks. Gibbs’s rapid-fire delivery, while serving him well in giving his verses a sense of urgency, feels tiresome when carried over to the choruses. But at the end of the day, though, hip-hop fans will appreciate this album for Gibbs’s technical ability on the mic compared to his peers in the trap rap genre.