NazLace - Dopest Youngin ALBUM REVIEW

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Before the age of social media, many smaller artists have just gotten around and have gotten fame off of word of mouth. NazLace is an anomaly, in this case. During this pandemic that the country is in, many people have gone into a deep dive of up and coming artists. Over the past couple days, some friends of mine have posted things about NazLace, hyping up his debut album Dopest Youngin. So, after hearing the single “Pain,” which revealed a voice that sounded like a hybrid of Roddy Ricch and even a little J. Cole, that got me convinced to cover this album (along with a request from NazLace himself, but I digress). Let’s get right into Dopest Youngin.

Dopest Youngin is a hip-hop album with trap influences. Now, each artist needs inspiration or a reference point to go off of. Whether this was intentional or not, I feel like there’s a lot of Lil Baby in NazLace, or at least that’s what comes to mind. On the standout track “Street Credit,” there’s themes of being there for your friends and family and getting famous and while it’s nothing new for the genre, NazLace has this laidback but also a passionate way of delivery that you can feel how he feels. Another highlight is “Outro,” a four-minute piano-laden and somewhat sinister-sounding track, and while it tackles the same themes as the rest of the album does, the new side of production gives his words a new cinematic flare. What I feel like is the downfall of Dopest Youngin isn’t to the fault of NazLace himself, but the state of the rap game in general. NazLace is in the position of many upcomers who are trying to make themselves known, and without trying to differentiate from each other, projects like Dopest Youngin are going to be lost in the waves of rappers like him. What I’m trying to say is that this sounds like a lot of rappers that sound like this, but there’s also a lot of potential for NazLace.

For each artist like NazLace, there’s always something that’s gotta click with me to make an artist stand out in the crowd, and Dopest Youngin is an example of an artist who has the potential for something bigger. For NazLace, what stood out to me was his flow, his delivery, and performances here. He’s hit this abnormal combo of a chilled and laidback delivery with aggressive and hard-hitting beats that’s absolutely killer. One thing I could say to improve is the beats. While I do enjoy them on this project, more unique production could suit this style. Either way, Dopest Youngin is a triumphant debut album that cements NazLace’s spot in the game.


7/10


Stream Dopest Youngin here

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