But the rawness required to succeed in this instance is generally there on this 11-track mixtape: many of the samples, true to mixtape custom, are unlicensed, whilst Glover generally exhibits a playful recklessness in his raps any lapses in braggadocio are made up for by the presence of loudmouth hypeman DJ Drama. For a place that nurtured Outkast, Killer Mike, and, er, Lil Jon, Glover’s place on such a boisterous roster might seem ill-fitting on first glance. Named after the Atlanta suburb he grew up in, STN MTN is ostensibly an effort to heighten Glover’s standing as one of major players to come out of the hip-hop rich city. Although a joint release, let’s split up this Yin and Yang creation. You can’t fault Glover’s vision and ambition, but such output still felt more like pieces of a puzzle rather than the finishing brushstrokes of a masterpiece.Īnd so two weeks ago the latest chapter in the Gambino narrative dropped, which took two forms: the thoroughly hip-hop mixtape STN MTN (available for free download) and the smoother, hip-pop grooves of EP Kauai (available to buy on iTunes). Indeed, because the internet was presented as a part of an even bigger project that would also incorporate an as-yet-unreleased film (its interactive script-of-sorts can be easily located) about a wealthy, sketched-out teen (‘The Boy’) whose existence is almost entirely played out on various social networking mediums. The last two – 2012 mixtape R O Y A L T Y (which boasted guest spots from RZA, Chance The Rapper, and Beck) and last year’s album because the internet – saw Glover moving away from an ultra-defensive, hashtag-rap agenda to indulge in heavily-meta braggadocio and convoluted takes on the salient might of the World Wide Web. Active since 2008, prior to this month he’d released six mixtapes, two studio albums, and one EP – a smorgasbord of productivity that’s demonstrated incremental progress with the passing of each work.
Having eschewed all else in the past 12 months to focus solely on his Childish Gambino project, chances are that you’ll have come across his hip-pop moniker at some point: a derisory Pitchfork review here, an Instagrammed series of revealing handwritten notes there, a compelling ‘Pound Cake’ freestyle everywhere.Īnd this emphasis on music is paying dividends: amongst the Tumblr-baiting, Troy-worshipping throng is an increasing number of admirers who are becoming acutely aware of how potent a force Glover is becoming in his Gambino guise. Pop culture chameleon Donald Glover – beloved former star of Community and intermittent stand-up comic who started out as a member of the ‘Bro Rape’ sketch troupe Derrick Comedy – is undoubtedly a super-talented dude.
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