THA WOLF ON WALL STREET: ALBUM REVIEW
Your Old Droog and Tha God Fahim are two of the best underground rappers out right now, and they’re both in the middle of wildly successful creative hot streaks. They also happen to be two of the most polarizing figures in hip-hop, as they constantly have upset fans and critics on their backs. So, what happens when two of the most controversial rappers on the planet team up while they’re in their creative primes? It turns out that they create one of the most relaxing yet motivational releases in recent memory.
Fahim and Droog have been friends for a long time, so they sound incredibly comfortable on any song together. Even though they rarely directly trade off lines, it always feels like their bars are in conversation with each other. For example, on the title track, “Tha Wolf On Wall Street,” Fahim takes the first couple verses, then Droog effortlessly slides in with the bar, “bout time they heard from some cats who truly do this.” Droog bridges their verses together so perfectly that you could barely notice any changes in the flow of the track. This trend continues for almost every song on the project. Eventually, their styles end up blending together seamlessly to create a beautiful mesh of flows and lyrics.
Tha Wolf On Wall Street is also a surprisingly positive album. Although Droog and Fahim address heavy topics, they always find the light in every opportunity. The song “Meditation” centers around this concept as Fahim talks about the importance of taking time to love life. Both rappers talk about their dedication to becoming the best artists they can be. Droog even says he’s willing to “sacrifice [his] life to give [fans] something to bump in their Subarus.” That idea of dedication and sacrifice is present in everything that both artists release, but this album drives that feeling home.
The project’s incredible production allows both artists to showcase a variety of flows and intonations. Fahim produced every single beat on the album, and the instrumentals never feel like “boom bap” throwbacks. You can hear Fahim pushing outside of his typical production comfort-zone on songs like “Value,” which has an insane bass line and a funky chord progression. Fahim perfectly blends instrumental simplicity with a depth in the sounds he chooses to highlight.
The highlight of the album is clearly the track “The Poverty Bothers Me” which feels like a 2021 version of Ghostface’s “All That I Got Is You.” The beat gives Droog, Fahim and the featured rapper, Mach-Hommy, so much space to spit, and they all step up to the challenge. Each of their verses sharply focus on how poverty forces entire communities to suffer. The simple phrase, “the poverty bothers me” contrasts with the complexity of each of their verses and takes the song to a new level conceptually. This track highlights each rapper’s unique style while also demonstrating how smoothly they can flow together, which is an incredible accomplishment in itself, showing the versatility of all three artists.
Tha Wolf On Wall Street is an inspiring listen and a great start to 2021 for both rappers. If this year is anything like the last, we’ll be hearing a lot more from both Droog and Fahim in the next couple of months as both artists continue to step up and push the underground in more creative and forward-thinking directions.