Big Boi - Vicious Lies and Dangerous Rumors (5/10)

"Living legend, rap scholar, art major.

Cause I make major art.

Like Beethoven, Van Gogh, or Mozart

so don't start.

Around these parts we reign supreme,

and stay Krispy Kreme clean.

Blue jeans, Jordans.

Number 3's, that's important."

from Mama Told me

I'm generally pretty jaded when it comes to misoginy in music- I know it's terrible but I generally don't mind. I understand that artists I listen to might not be in a place where that type of analysis is generally accessible or come from backgrounds where you might stop and question patterns in society and that I'm lucky to come from a home where I was taught to think critically and read books. That being said, the lyrics on this album mostly revolve around women being objects, being prostitutes, looking fine, having sex with Big Boi or some combination of these themes. If those themes bother you even slightly then just don't listen to it because it will irk you.

With that out of the way, the album has a lot of positives and a few additional negatives that I'll go over. The positives are that the production is as crisp as always, with no real deviation from the usual Atlanta/Outkast/Dungeon Family sound. The beats are varied and well thought through. Big Boi's flow is also top notch while lyrically(even disregarding the misoginy) he never quite pulls through for me, the wordplay just isn't there. In addition to the afforementioned lyrical theme, he does take the time to talk about other things- in particular a culture he sees as obsessed with consumerism and a younger generation without the proper tools to question it. Somewhat ironic, given the blatant sexism throughout the album, but not without insight.

The choice of guest artists on the album is disappointing. Not only does nearly every track feature one, but the ones on the album seem to be chosen moreso by their current popularity than actually displaying skills on the mic or having some sort of previous relation to the Dungeon Family clique- one notable exception is Ludacris, who unfortunately drops an unusually weak verse on "In the A".

When all is said and done, it's just a very average rap album in this day and age and not one that I suspect will stand the test of time like some of Outkast's previous work.

High point of the album: Apple Of My Eye

Low point of the album: Thom Pettie ft.Little Dragon & Killer Mike