A little dripping. A little drowning. A lot of treading.
With each song bringing a feeling as or more engaging than the last, Drip Season 3 was one of the best projects of 2018 and turned Gunna into one of rap's newest stars. Drip or Drown 2 is the polar opposite, as only a handful of songs and moments separate themselves from a project that barely does little more than stay afloat.
In 2018, Gunna could do no wrong.
From dropping a classic solo album to fusing with Lil Baby to create Drip Harder to delivering on feature after feature, Gunna seemed incapable of failure, making his follow-up campaign in 2019 that more interesting.
Drip or Drown 2 is the 25-year-old's first solo-project since Drip Season 3 ascended him to stardom. The original idea for this article was to play on the album's title and label whether or not Gunna had dripped(good album) or drowned(not good album), but he didn't do either; instead, he just trode(is this even a word?) water for 48-minutes.
Treading water sounds negative, slightly because it is, but the album has its fair share of exciting moments.
The Good
Listening to Gunna and Young Thug go back-and-forth, line-for-line is one of the most beautiful duo displays God has ever produced. Matter of fact, here's a top-5:
1.) 2016 Finals Game 5: LeBron James and Kyrie Irving
2.) Ed and Al from Full Metal Alchemist
3.) Teanna Trump and Brittany Renner
4.) Shaggy and Scooby
5.) Gunna and Young Thug
HM.) Basketball and Music content on one platform
Placing Gunna and Young Thug in the same category as those other duos is only a slight overstatement, as "3 Headed Snake" easily earns its way into the best of Gunna playlists.
Despite the project lacking overall, Gunna still creates a good amount of songs that can stand alone.
Gunna's ability to vocally hop around on a track pushes songs like "Speed It Up", "Richard Millie Plain", "IDK Why", and "Yao Ming" into everyday listens. The album shines brightest when Gunna combines his vocal ability with storytelling on songs like "Outstanding" and "Out The Hood".
Playboi Carti delivered one of the project's highpoints, displaying a voice and flow that effortlessly glides from line-to-line.
Another positive takeaway from Drip or Drown 2 is the quotes only Gunna could pull off. The following all come from the same song, "Baby Birkin":
"She made me bust a nut, that's a starburst"
"My girl put that dope in her booty crack"
"I got boomerang bitches. They comin' back."
"She a groupie, keep asking where Uzi at."
Mediocre project or not, there are a few things only Gunna can pull off, and he displayed that throughout Drip or Drown 2. From the above quotes to naming a song about shooting after Derek Fisher(a career 37% shooter), Gunna makes things that would normally raise questions sound repeatable.
The Bad
Wilson Chandler. Michael B. Jordan in Black Panther. Drip or Drown 2.
All of the above-listed items are average in their respective fields or when compared to their past works.
Michael B. Jordan as Killmonger was alright, but he wasn't exactly snapping billions of people to dust. The same goes for Drip or Drown 2. The 16-song project was alright, but it doesn't have the lifespan or replay value of Drip Season 3.
The main reason for the project's lack of replay is value is Gunna's over-dependence on his ability to create a good song. Upon first listen, each song sounds great and generates the same feeling as past projects, but a couple listens later, the album sounds like forgettable microwave trap.
Look no further than the lyrics of one of the projects most ambitious songs, "Speed It Up":
This is just one damning outlier, but nevertheless, it's upsetting on a song with so much potential. The same sentiment goes for the album as a whole. At times it feels like Gunna is just saying the first thing that comes to his mind.
"In New Orleans for my birthday, got me buku cake."~Sitting on a Mountain
The Verdict
Gunna had the world's attention being one of the first big-name rappers to drop in 2019. With Drip or Drown 2, Gunna doesn't shrivel under the light, but he doesn't step up to the plate either.
Just as the project didn't add to the respect Gunna earned from 2018, Drip or Drown 2 is far from a shot back down to Earth for the Atlanta rapper; instead, the project feels like Gunna is just treading the waters of stardom.
Final Score: Jared Goff/10