Before this review even gets started, let's just go ahead and give the album cover a soft two out of ten. It takes a truly special photographer to make every part of an image look photoshopped, but FATHER OF 4's photographer pulled it off. Congratulations.
The unanimous criticism over the cover art is about all I can agree with the general public with, regarding Offset's first solo project. FATHER OF 4 is by far the best solo album of any of the Migos and contains a great album within itself(foreshadowing).
In terms of what makes Offset's project better than his groupmates, the signs were there before any mentions of solo albums arose. When it comes to hooks and adding energy to a song, Quavo is your Migos. For a verse that makes you start the song over, Takeoff is your Migos. And somewhere in the middle of both of those categories is Offset. Throw in the fact that Offset is the most willing member when it comes to sharing life experiences, and it's clear why an Offset solo project would turn out as the most cohesive.
Coming into this project, I didn't allow myself to expect anything of Offset. Expecting that Quavo would deliver an album filled with a bunch of "Oh My Dis Side"'s led me to get through about 50 seconds of QUAVO HUNCHO before I sighed and closed my unnamed streaming service(protecting future bags). Takeoff's project met my expectations, but my expectations were the literal bare minimum of figuring that he would rap well on each verse and stay safe on the hooks. The Last Rocket was like a dad getting a tie on Father's Day; it's cool, but it's clear which parent you love more. If that was a bad analogy and dads actually do get excited for ties, I apologize; I wouldn't know.
The Good
"I was 17-years-old when I had you, trying to find my soul when I had you."
The first words Offset utters on FATHER OF 4 sets the tone for the rest of the album. By featuring his four children on the album cover, as aestheically displeasing as it turned out to be, it tells you how serious Offset sees this album; it will forever serve as a place in history for both him as an artist and his children. Offset treats it like that, making sure anyone who listens to the album finishes it knowing more about him than they came in with.
Songs referring to his relationship with Cardi B like "After Dark" and "Don't Lose Me" won't catch anyone by surprise, but the fact that Offset is willing to apologize and talk about his alleged(#blackmendontcheat) adultery on a forum as public and permanent as his album says a lot about his potential as an artist. There's a reason why Drake was willing to quintuple-text Kodak Black after hearing Dying to Live; the ability to openly provide a raw introspective look into your life is one of the biggest walls for an artist to climb over and Offset hurdled it on his first attempt.
From confessing his robberies to the world and repenting to God on "Lick" to championing his mother and denouncing his father throughout the project, no topic seemed too sensitive for Offset to touch on. It was clear the 27-year-old had a lot he wanted to get off his chest, and he did just that.
The other notable positives of the album come at the hands of mostly Metro Boomin and Southside, along with a passionate feature from CeeLo Green on "North Star".
The Bad
Remember earlier in the review when you saw the word foreshadowing in parentheses, here comes the fulfillment of that foreshadowing.
FATHER OF 4 is JR Smith in album form.
Throughout his career, Smith had the potential to be an all-star and one of the NBA's best shooting guards. From his shooting ability to his athletic ability, Smith had something special inside of him. The same goes for FATHER OF 4; from Offset's subject matter to the album's production and features, the debut album has a great album trapped inside of it. However, much like JR Smith, FATHER OF 4 has too much fluff in its entirety, and that fluff manages to overshadow the good that is in the album.
The album is too close to the hour-and-six-minutes of QUAVO HUNCHO when it should've been striving for the 38-minute runtime of The Last Rocket. FATHER OF 4 is six songs too long, causing many of the impactful stories on the album to lose their effect after their third time being told. For example, "How Did I Get Here" featuring J. Cole and "Lick" both talks about Offset's tough upbringing and they're literally back-to-back to one another. Tracks like "On Fleek" featuring Quavo, "Clout" featuring Cardi B, and "Quarter Milli" featuring Gucci Mane, sound out-of-place in the greater context of the album and feels like Offset just threw big name features onto catchy songs in the hopes of higher first-week sale numbers.
The Verdict
FATHER OF 4 is the best of the Migos solo projects and reestablished Offset as the most well-rounded member of the group. The serious subject matter combined with the energy of trap production proved to be a great blend of two of rap's most polarized operating points.
However, in the quest for higher streaming numbers, Offset sacrificed a great project by diluting it with meaningless features. FATHER OF 4 has a great album inside of it, but thanks to greed, it takes some digging to get to.
Score: JR Smith/10
Click here for the good album inside of Father of 4.