Alternative hip hop artist Earl Sweatshirt’s third studio album is a creatively unique, jazz influenced
masterpiece that explores the dark depths of his struggle with mental health, as well as his grief
following the loss of his father.

Earl Sweatshirt (real name Thebe Kgositsile) is a rapper from California who blew up when he released
his debut mixtape Earl in 2010. His intricate rhyme schemes and rough/scratchy vocal delivery made him one of the most recognizable and unique artists at the time.

With Some Rap Songs, Earl brought a completely new sound to the table. The production, primarily
done by Earl himself, consisted of numerous jazz samples. The instrumentals contain distorted loops,
and his vocals are often distorted as well. Earl executes this fusion between genres perfectly to create a
refreshing, experimental sound that was nothing like anything else at that time.

The record begins with the track Shattered Dreams, in which Earl sets the tone for the rest of the
Album. Rapping over a gloomy loop of a women’s voice singing the word “dream,” Earl introduces his
struggle with suicidal thoughts.

The couple of tracks carry the same themes of suicidal thoughts, with heavy emphasis on them in the
track Cold Summers.

In the sixth track, titled Ontheway!, Earl begins discusses his loss of hope and reflects on his past neglect
of his mother’s advice, as mentioned in the line “Momma say don’t play with my scabs / it’s safe to say I
see the reason I’m bleeding out.” Which refers to how Earl ignoring his mother resulted in bad things
happening to him.

Tracks 7-12 all carry the same themes established at the beginning. Depression, anxiety, the loss of his
father, and suicide. The highlight of the album is the tenth song, Azucar. Earl raps about the different ways

he copes with depression over a cheery, optimistic-sounding instrumental that contrasts the rest of the
album. Earl’s flow and delivery is on point, and his cadence complements the instrumental beautifully.
Following shortly after Azucar is the track Playing Possum, which is a tribute to his father. It features
and audio recording of his father reading a poem, as well as his mother talking in the background.

The sorrow and depression of the album reaches its climax in the track Peanut. Earl raps with distorted
vocals over a static-filled, dragging instrumental with faint piano cords in the background. In the span of
just 1:13, Earl delivers some of the most depressing lines of his career.

The outro, an instrumental song called Riot consists of many samples of jazz blended together. It is the
perfect ending to the record, as the cozy, comforting vibe of the song causes it to act as a place of solace
in the heavy hitting, emotional album. It also serves as a sign of hope, and that all bad things eventually
come to an end.

Overall, I would give this album a 10/10, as it exhibits some of the most innovative production,
masterful use of rhyming, and vivid portrayal of emotion I have ever heard on an album.