Toxic Rap Royalty & Beat Maestro, Team Up and Make Magic. Again!
We Don’t Trust You, Album Review
The combination of Future and Metro Boom on an album is sonically analogous to what happens when lightning strikes. Lightning sparks when the positive and negative charges between the earth and clouds intensify. In this musical mix, Future is the emotionally charged force, similar to the negatively charged electron, while Metro Boomin is the positive force, steady like a proton. All of their collaborations produce what we can call -SONIC LIGHTNING.
Future
Future’s 9th Studio album, last released in 2022, I Never Liked You featured the number 1 hit ‘Wait For You’ featured Tems and Drake.
Before his latest work, he built a brand on aggressive machismo and intense lyrics while keeping his personal life, except for occasional news about his children's mothers, mostly secret. Undeniably one of the most unforgiving lyricists in the Rap game, yet, his raw and truthful approach to music makes him intruiging to fans.
Metro Boomin
Much like Future has made waves in rap, Metro Boomin has made a name for himself producing music. Originally from St. Louis, Missouri, Metro wanted to be a rapper at first. With his mom's support, he traveled to Atlanta every month during high school to hone his craft and make connections. That hard work paid off with Metro having more team-ups with Atlanta artists than from anywhere else, including Migos, Gucci Mane, 21 Savage, Young Jeezy, and Young Thug.
Future and Metro Boomin
This rapper-producer duo is responsible for ‘Big Rings’, ‘Wicked’, ‘Jumpman’, ‘Where Ya At’, ‘Blow A Bag’, ‘I Serve The Bass’, ‘Diamonds Dancing’, and more.
Futures' contribution will always be grandiose lyrics rapped in misogyny and Metro brings the futuristic trap beats. This addicting recipe is well received by radio, nightclubs, strip clubs, street corners, and everywhere in between.
And yet, they're part of a long tradition of iconic rapper-producer duos including Dr. Dre and Eminem, Ye and Jay-Z, 40 and Drake, Pierre Bourne and Playboi Carti, Mike Dean and The Weeknd, Hit-Boy, and Nas just to name a few.
We Don’t Trust You
After nine studio albums and one collaborative album, Future arrives with his tenth studio album produced by Metro Boomin entitled We Don’t Trust You.
The album consists of 17 songs, with 6 features, including 2 from Travis Scott, and one each from The Weeknd, Playboi Carti, Kendrick Lamar, and Rick Ross.
In Hip-Hop, feuds are nothing new. But Kendrick's verse on ‘Like That’ may very well be the most cunning and impactful blow in recent years. Despite the hype around the album's launch, this one show-stealing verse seems to have pushed the rest of the album into the shadows. It's a bit like what happened when Kanye released ‘Monster’; everyone ended up talking about Nicki Minaj's mind-blowing lyrical performance, even though she followed three iconic male rappers. Kendrick's lyrics serve as a bold reminder that the rap game remains a competitive sport, and it is refreshing to see the living legends continuously sharpening their pen, even if it is at the expense of a competitor's reputation.
On this album, Future maintains the same level of edge (toxicity lol) as his previous works – no more, no less. It's what we've come to expect from him at this stage in his game: familiar lyrical ground. He's aiming with his sharp words again, but this time it's more about calling out rivals instead of taking shots primarily at women. The album’s theme is all about the letdowns in loyalty from his peers, which echoes the album's title spot-on. While Future's wordplay might not be breaking new ground, Metro's beats are top-notch. The standout feature here is the album's deep dive into Metro's classic trap rhythms, loaded with that thumping bass and snappy synth-percussion. Even with Future's usual style and moderate delivery, the tracks hit hard thanks to those intense beats. It might not be Future's best lyrical work, but the beats are some of Metro's best. The production is so rich in flavor, that even with Future rapping from recycled content with mid cadences, it is still sonically robust.
The album also shines with samples from Prodigy's 2003 WorldStar HipHop interview, honoring Mobb Deep with a bold, edgy touch that echoes the album's title.
To top it off, there's more music on the way with a second album dropping in a couple of months! It's great to see Metro really in his element, and as a St. Louis native, I can't wait to hear what he and Future come up with next.
Easy Listening, The Urban Music Enthusiast.
Post Album Listening ?s for Future
Looking ahead, what kind of creative works will you be bringing to us beyond the recording booth?
Which of your albums fills you with the greatest sense of pride, and can you share your reasons?
As you grow as an artist, how do you aim to reinvent the somewhat negative connotations that have become synonymous with your music and image?
If Metro Boomin stands as your top beat-maker, who claims the runner-up spot on your list for music collaborations, and what makes them stand out?
Reflecting on the buzz around Kendrick Lamar's "Like That" verse, do you have any second thoughts about not dropping it as a single before the whole album came out, to prevent it from stealing the album's thunder?
Post Album Listening ?s for Metro Boomin
What draws you to team up with Atlanta musicians so often?
What impact did growing up, in inner city St. Louis, have on your hustle and work ethic?
With artists like Smino, Jordan Ward, and Sexyy Red coming up from St. Louis, could you see yourself creating music with them in the future?
Who's still on your wishlist to collaborate with?
And after the success of Spiderverse, any plans to dive into more movie soundtracks?