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yourolddunsparce · 3 months

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Benny the Butcher - Everybody Can't Go

Y.O.D, signing on,

WE ARE SO (kinda) BACK BABY

Alright, before I get into this, I gotta apologize for not dropping part 2 of my other post. I got like zero interaction and was massively discouraged, but after talking with other tumblr people I learned a very valuable lesson. Reblog all your shit. I told myself I was going to react to this album as soon as I could and not wait for the weekend, and I've had it on repeat for all of my work day, so I'm massively excited. Especially because I quite enjoy this album! This will act as my first "review", but I don't have the musical knowledge nor background to elaborate on what I really want to describe, so I'll be saying a lot of "I like this, I don't like this". If you want some actual in-depth critique from a huge Griselda fan, go watch B-Side Rap Reviews when he eventually drops a reaction video, if he even does. He's not a particularly huge fan of Hit-Boy, so he may skip on this all together, but who knows? It looks like he still has to react to Boldy James's latest project as well, but I like his content, so I hope he does. Let's get back into this though, for real.

(EDIT: Okay fine, I dropped it Saturday, sue me)

Background

As a small introduction, you should know that Benny the Butcher is an absolute fraud, because his real name is Jeremie. Carving out a niche in Buffalo, NY with his cousins Alvin and Demond, he's since started his own label, Black Soprano Family. The majority of his output for last year were features with many of his B$F crew, as well as some higher profile appearances on various projects with his Griselda brothers and a Smoke DZA + Flying Lotus collaboration album (I still need to check that one out). This followed up a huge 2022 when he dropped the latest installment to his critically acclaimed Tana Talk series, culminating in Griselda Records collectively receiving their first ever GOLD certified record. Safe to say, the Butcher has kept busy these past couple of years, especially with the crafting of his Def Jam debut in the new album. Originally set to release as early as August of last year, it got pushed back to this first month of this year. With dual production from Hit-Boy and The Alchemist, it's easy to be concerned with the lack of credits from Daringer and the Griselda stable of producers fans are used to hearing. As you'll soon find out, however, it makes for a mostly solid debut album on his first major label, so I think it all worked out well enough! No, we will not be talking about his mediocre Freddie Gibbs beef.

Track by Track

Jermanie's Graduation - The first Alchemist beat, and holy shit does it hit. Benny the Butcher has quite frankly never missed on intro tracks, and this is no different. A classic piano loop accompanied by a 3 minute verse and no hooks, Benny at his finest. He spits about his come up and keeping his clique together (and emphatically dispels any rumors of leaving his Griselda ties behind on his path to the mainstream), going from the streets to private jets as he flows over the beat. I could definitely do without the poop bars though ("So I'm shitting around these pussies just like a all-gender restroom"), but it's a top tier intro track that sets up new listeners for what's to come while exciting Griselda fans.

BRON - The first Hit-Boy beat, and probably my favorite one, but I don't think it holds much of a candle to Alchemist's beats. You'll see my point later on, but the layered horns make you bounce in your seat while Benny flexes about rich people things. Third single off the album, but I'm confused as to why it wasn't the first. Lebron has been seen vibing out to Burden of Proof and many other Benny projects before, dropping this as the first single probably gets this much more hype then the Lil Wayne feature. I know he's probably going to post a clip of him working out to this though, this track bangs hard.

Big Dog (w/Lil Wayne) - The big single off the album, I like just about everything except the hook and the outro. Benny and Tunechi are sliding on this beat with no effort, and Wayne especially delivers a great verse. The sample sounds like this synth being reversed accompanied by clattering piano chords that pop in occasionally. Not my favorite Alchemist beat, but the dog barks he adds lend to the theme well. The only thing I'm really caught up on is that stressed hook, I'm not convinced Benny can make it work. I especially dislike the outro being a refrain of the hook, and I don't think it adds much to the track, but overall it's an enjoyable listen. Wayne shouts out the Suns too, but they're barely clinging on to the 6th seed, come on.

Everybody Can't Go (w/Kyle Banks) - By far my least favorite track, it's a definite skip for me. The actual song itself isn't that bad, but I think the chipmunk sample is tuned up way too much, to the point where it actively annoys me. It sounds eerily similar to Burden of Proof's Thank God I Made It, which is where I think most of my frustration comes from. It's got a better sample, a better hook, and Benny delivers a sweet tribute to both his mother and shouts out his deceased brother Machine Gun Blak (a very important footnote in Griselda history). Not that this track's lyrical content is lacking, but he's setting himself up for some terribly aged bars depending on this year's election cycle ("Know ima win, like the election if Trump run again").

TMVTL - Griselda fans, this is the one. Vintage storytelling from the Butcher on a double beat switch from The Alchemist. Benny switches up his flow in the first beat switch before reverting back when the second one rolls around, and the eerie soundscapes provided let him tell some haunting stories, with a repeating sentiment of trust over love in some chilling bars. It really turns up in the third half, when he's rapping about himself in third person in a story mirroring a real-life incident where he got shot in the leg. I'm not sure if Benny's done any post release interviews to confirm my speculation, but it would add another layer to the highlight of the album if it were intentional. If you're not into Hit-Boy and the mainstream direction Benny may be headed, this is the first track you'll want to hit up.

Back Again (w/Snoop Dogg) - Probably tied for my favorite hook on the album with a little help from the Doggfather. Snoop doesn't pen an actual verse, but his catchy hook fits in this bass driven beat, courtesy of Hit-Boy. The drums hit nice, and the little xylophones in this sample bring this shit together. Nothing special from Benny as far as rapping here, but he flows well on the track for a solid performance. I wish Snoop could have dropped a verse at the end to cap everything off, but I've now added "boogie" back into my lexicon, so thank you Snoop. I could easily see this track sliding into Burden of Proof, and it's a nice change of pace being placed immediately after the grimy TMVTL. Dub for the sequencing.

One Foot In (w/Stove God Cooks) - 2nd single off the album, and it is a damn shame we don't have Stove on the hook. The adlibs Benny throws in the hook feel way too wordy to work, I think keeping the empty space between his bars would have been fine. Either shorten the adlibs or have Stove come in, but it really takes the song from potentially being great to being just good for me, like with Big Dog before. Everything else about the track is great though, and I love hearing Stove over Hit-Boy as opposed to drumless loops or chaotic Conductor Williams beats (I love Conductor though, check out his new video on his YouTube channel). His verse is funny as hell too, and Benny continues to display his chemistry with Hit-Boy in the beginning verse.

Buffalo Kitchen Club (w/Armani Caesar) - THEY AIN'T FUCKIN WITH LIZ AND THE BUTCH. Tied with Back Again for my favorite hook, I think this is probably my favorite track on the whole album. Armani Caesar fucking murders the hook, and she has a nice verse before Benny comes in to finish the job. I'm not generally a fan of sex bars in general, especially if they're older dudes (looking at you Drake, Nas), but Benny doesn't try to hammer it in, and it feels natural with his flow. This is also probably my favorite Alchemist beat on the song, the bass is absolutely perfect with those piano loops. Low key would add this to the workout playlist as well, but I'll be bumping this regardless.

Pillow Talk & Slander (w/Babyface Ray & Jadakiss) - I've listened to this song maybe 20 times now, and I still don't know what to think about it. It is by far Benny's best hook by himself on the album, I feel like he should lean more into simply 4 bar hooks then try and do what he did on Big Dog and One Foot In. I understand he wants to get in his bag though (And he really does try his hardest, believe me), and he's really showing off his versatility throughout the entire album. The beat itself is this chopped string sample with some hi-hat stutters and a piano? I feel like I've heard this melody in JRPG before, but I know I'm wrong. Babyface Ray is a really interesting artist to me, he could easily have shown up with fellow Michigander Babytron on Lyrical Lemonade's latest album, but he's clearly a big Griselda fan. He has Westside Gunn on his latest album, Summer's Mine, and he's also featured on an Alchemist project as well. Even with those influences, however, his music has stayed predominantly in the trap soundscape, so he sounds right at home with Hit-Boy's production, and he holds his own next to Benny and fucking Jadakiss. Jadakiss's voice sounds like it's steeped in gravel, but it makes his bars more menacing as he snags the third verse of the track. I honestly still don't know how much I love this track, but I do enjoy it nonetheless.

How To Rap - This beat came straight out of Roc-A-Fellas vault. I love the throwback, and this synth sample is super sick. This bass kind of hits like a whoopee cushion though, I know FL has to have better sounds then that. There's also a very faint cowbell sound you can hear, and it's kind of bugging me out, but it's still a nice beat. If anything, Jadakiss should've probably hopped on this joint, and even at 2:42, it still feels like a short track. Benny is still bringing his A-game though, and it makes for another good track coming to the finish line of this album's tracklist.

Griselda Express (w/Westside Gunn, Conway the Machine & Rick Hyde) - To air out a personal grievance I have with this track: Where is Conductor Williams? You got a track named "Griselda Express", you have Benny talking about "the Griselda train not stopping" (which happens like 16 times in the outro), and it's not produced by the dude whose entire shtick is being a Conductor?! No, I don't care if he's not actually a conductor, you're telling me we could've had these 4 on this immaculate shit?!

Anyways,

Solid track, even if it isn't the classic Griselda Big 3 (sorry Mach-Hommy) cypher you're used to on their albums. Benny, Rick, and Conway all do their thing while Gunn takes the hook (WHY I SHOOT LIKE THAT x24), which they've done in the past on Benny's projects. Personally, Rick Hyde doesn't do much for me, and I'd be okay with cutting his verse so you could make Gunn's hook slightly more tolerable. I understand putting your people on though (even if How To Rap is right there), so he's alright with me. It isn't my favorite Alchemist track, but if you're producing for a cypher, it's best for the beat not to be too busy, so I get it.

Big Tymers (w/Peezy) - Alright, this is going to be the main talking point of this album, I fear. Griselda fans, please proceed with caution, because that is Benny the Butcher using autotune on this hook. I honestly don't mind it, personally, but I'm also not sure if it actually enhances the hook either. I guess he's trying to compensate for not having the range of Mach-Hommy or the charisma of Westside Gunn, but even with auto tune, it's a super low energy hook that's almost hard to hear. Still, it's a decent track, and it definitely showcases Benny's ability to flow on trap beats (not that it was ever in question) (I know it's not an actual trap beat but it's so SICK). I had no fucking clue who Peezy was before this, but he does well enough, I think. Maybe this shouldn't have been the closer track, but I also don't know where else you put this on the tracklist.

Overall Thoughts

This was the only GIF I could find here with Benny in it, but why does Jay-Z look so perturbed? Did he forget his laundry? Is this when he found out Beyoncé knew he cheated?! That's a clean suit though, no lie.

I don't know what Benny's looking for in his career at the moment, whether it be going mainstream or simply making music he wants to make easier now that he's with Def Jam. If it's going mainstream, I think he could have definitely done a few things differently (I'm sure this dude has J. Cole on speed dial), but if he's just dropping music? Fuck it, let him do his autotune hooks. I think this was a solid project that's going to put a lot of eyes on Griselda moving forward, just as Gunn's AND THEN YOU PRAY FOR ME is currently doing. As long as these dudes make music, that's all I want. I would've loved to see Rome Streetz on this project as well, especially after learning that he's built like this:

HELLO??? WHAT IS THIS??? Get this dude on the runway immediately!!

In all seriousness though, this is a very good project for me, even if there's a few misses and not many truly "great" moments. The one song that I think will really be talked about in high regard for Benny is TMVTL, but otherwise, these all range from decent to great for most Griselda fans. For those not familiar with Griselda, however, this serves as a good base to find out what you like in Benny the Butcher. He showcases a lot of different things, and delivers (for the most part) on varying his performances and highlighting specific things about him. Maybe you enjoyed Back Again, which could lead you to Burden of Proof. If you liked Buffalo Kitchen Club, I would highly suggest Tana Talk 4. Even with more curated cuts like TMVTL, Tana Talk 3 will satisfy your tastes. If this was Benny's end goal, then mission accomplished.

You have to fix the fucking hair though dude, for real.

This is Y.O.D, signing out

#blog #hip hop #everybody cant go #benny the butcher #lil wayne #kyle banks #snoop dogg #stove god cooks #armani caesar #babyface ray #jadakiss #westside gunn #conway the machine #rick hyde #peezy #def jam #griselda #black soprano family

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