DJ Khaled - KHALED KHALED ALBUM REVIEW
The mysterious shit prevails again.
DJ Khaled is a bit of a hypocrite. After criticizing Tyler, the Creator’s rollout of IGOR (announced Monday and dropped Friday with no singles), which helped him top Khaled’s last album Father of Asahd on the charts, Khaled did a very similar rollout: KHALED KHALED was officially announced Tuesday and dropped Friday with no singles. Well, actually, two Drake collaborations were on this but I totally forgot about them. Either way, DJ Khaled albums are always a star-studded affair, and with that comes a bit of anticipation, no matter what type of reception the album gets. So, before we get into the album and how I felt about it, let me show you all the names that are on this (in order of appearance): Lil Wayne, Jeremih, Lil Baby, Lil Durk, Cardi B, H.E.R., Migos, Post Malone, Megan Thee Stallion, DaBaby, Justin Bieber, 21 Savage, Bryson Tiller, Roddy Ricch, Drake, A Boogie wit da Hoodie, Big Sean, Rick Ross, Puff Daddy, Nas, Jay-Z, James Fauntleroy, Justin Timberlake, Meek Mill, Buju Banton, Capleton, Bounty Killer, and Barrington Levy.
Let the record show that the last DJ Khaled album I enjoyed was 2016’s Major Key. While I do think that this record was a little long, Major Key simply has some of the best tracks DJ Khaled has curated to date. The first five tracks on that album should honestly be respected as one of the best openers in the past few years. Why am I talking about one of Khaled’s old albums, though? It seemed like he put so much care into Major Key. If a DJ Khaled album gets a Grammy nomination, that’s really saying something. His albums after that, Grateful and Father of Asahd, just lacked that. It felt very sloppy and thrown together. Khaled’s curation abilities took a serious nosedive for these two albums. Again, why am I talking about his past? I’m talking about his past because KHALED KHALED is just as sloppy and thrown together as his last two albums. Yes, there are some bangers on here. “I DID IT” with Post Malone, Megan Thee Stallion, Lil Baby, and DaBaby is actually a really sweet track with good contributions from all four artists. “SORRY NOT SORRY” with Nas, Jay-Z, and James Fauntleroy was a fun listen, although Nas’s ‘cryptocurrency Scarface’ bar made me laugh in a not-so-good way. Also, seeing DJ Khaled not saying that he got Beyoncé background vocals a la Frank Ocean’s “Pink + White” because he signed an NDA will never not be funny.
As highlights go, that’s really where this album ends. Why did Khaled put an autotuned H.E.R. on the same track with Migos? What was A Boogie wit da Hoodie doing? Why is there a solo Justin Timberlake song on here? Even though it could’ve possibly maybe worked, why would Khaled think Justin Bieber and 21 Savage would be a fun duo? Everything else outside of what I’ve mentioned so far just feels so phoned in with no effort whatsoever. Then again, that’s nothing new for a DJ Khaled album. Is this the worst thing I’ve ever heard? No, not by any means. I completely understand if you wanna listen to this, but to me, KHALED KHALED is yet another DJ Khaled album: painfully mediocre with some good highlights sprinkled in there.
3/10
Listen here
YouTube Music
KHALED KHALED is an Epic Records release.
DJ Khaled is a bit of a hypocrite. After criticizing Tyler, the Creator’s rollout of IGOR (announced Monday and dropped Friday with no singles), which helped him top Khaled’s last album Father of Asahd on the charts, Khaled did a very similar rollout: KHALED KHALED was officially announced Tuesday and dropped Friday with no singles. Well, actually, two Drake collaborations were on this but I totally forgot about them. Either way, DJ Khaled albums are always a star-studded affair, and with that comes a bit of anticipation, no matter what type of reception the album gets. So, before we get into the album and how I felt about it, let me show you all the names that are on this (in order of appearance): Lil Wayne, Jeremih, Lil Baby, Lil Durk, Cardi B, H.E.R., Migos, Post Malone, Megan Thee Stallion, DaBaby, Justin Bieber, 21 Savage, Bryson Tiller, Roddy Ricch, Drake, A Boogie wit da Hoodie, Big Sean, Rick Ross, Puff Daddy, Nas, Jay-Z, James Fauntleroy, Justin Timberlake, Meek Mill, Buju Banton, Capleton, Bounty Killer, and Barrington Levy.
Let the record show that the last DJ Khaled album I enjoyed was 2016’s Major Key. While I do think that this record was a little long, Major Key simply has some of the best tracks DJ Khaled has curated to date. The first five tracks on that album should honestly be respected as one of the best openers in the past few years. Why am I talking about one of Khaled’s old albums, though? It seemed like he put so much care into Major Key. If a DJ Khaled album gets a Grammy nomination, that’s really saying something. His albums after that, Grateful and Father of Asahd, just lacked that. It felt very sloppy and thrown together. Khaled’s curation abilities took a serious nosedive for these two albums. Again, why am I talking about his past? I’m talking about his past because KHALED KHALED is just as sloppy and thrown together as his last two albums. Yes, there are some bangers on here. “I DID IT” with Post Malone, Megan Thee Stallion, Lil Baby, and DaBaby is actually a really sweet track with good contributions from all four artists. “SORRY NOT SORRY” with Nas, Jay-Z, and James Fauntleroy was a fun listen, although Nas’s ‘cryptocurrency Scarface’ bar made me laugh in a not-so-good way. Also, seeing DJ Khaled not saying that he got Beyoncé background vocals a la Frank Ocean’s “Pink + White” because he signed an NDA will never not be funny.
As highlights go, that’s really where this album ends. Why did Khaled put an autotuned H.E.R. on the same track with Migos? What was A Boogie wit da Hoodie doing? Why is there a solo Justin Timberlake song on here? Even though it could’ve possibly maybe worked, why would Khaled think Justin Bieber and 21 Savage would be a fun duo? Everything else outside of what I’ve mentioned so far just feels so phoned in with no effort whatsoever. Then again, that’s nothing new for a DJ Khaled album. Is this the worst thing I’ve ever heard? No, not by any means. I completely understand if you wanna listen to this, but to me, KHALED KHALED is yet another DJ Khaled album: painfully mediocre with some good highlights sprinkled in there.
3/10
Listen here
YouTube Music
KHALED KHALED is an Epic Records release.
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