Album Review: Future - Honest - RESPECT. | The Photo Journal of Hip-Hop Culture

No one has controlled the sound of hip-hop over the last 3 years more than Future.

The man born Nayvadius Wilburn has illustrated an umatched knack for blending street hip-hop and R&B crooning. After introducing himself to the world in 2011 on “Racks,” the Atlanta native took us to Pluto with his first major label release. The album featured everything that fans could hope for from Future: incredible melody, well constructed production, and boastful lyrics that would make the most audacious rapper proud.

Hits like “Same Damn Time,” “Turn On The Lights,” “Tony Montana,” “Neva End,” and “Magic (Remix)” created a heatwave around Future that spawned collaborations with some of hip-hop and pop music’s elite as well as a spot on Drake’s Club Paradise tour. With over 25 songs on the Billboard charts over the last 36 months, Future’s resume seems to have grown in the blink of an eye.

From “We In This Bitch 1.5,” to “Love Me,” to “Tapout,” to “U.O.E.N.O.,” the hip-hop world could not escape Future even if they wanted to, even when he was between LPs. Not to mention the fact that he is at least tangentially related to two of the most popular songs in 2013 from Mr. Graham and Mrs. Carter.

Fast forward to April of 2014, and the hit maker’s 2nd major label release, Honest. The opening track illustrates an evolved sound from Future. The Runners-produced record incorporates a sample from a Malian song “Dougou Badia,” and features Santigold. Santi’s tone on the chorus next to Future’s grizzly tone provides a more alternative sound than most fans are used to. On “Blood, Sweat, Tears,” Boi-1da provides a backdrop mostly comprised of acoustic guitars for Future vent on. Future ventures into full fledged singing and talks about his sacrifices to get where he is in music, fake industry people, ambition, and the joys of winning. He chants, “I gave my blood, sweat, tears / You couldn’t have known what I did for this.”

Most of the tracks on Honest represent sides of Future that we have heard before; oscillating between being executed phenomenally and repetitively. The most prominent examples of the former are the second and third tracks on the album. On the lively, Nard & B produced “T-Shirt,” he declares: “Got my t-shirt game crazy, I’m goin’ money crazy / All this money confiscatin’ ain’t no imitatin / All it took was some patience–Niggas still hatin/Mo’ money and mo’ problems, ain’t no imitatin’.” T-Shirt is an energetic and bass filled record the turns up the energy on the album. This track provides a perfect transition into the more excitable music Future is known best for.

Then there is “Move That Dope.” There is nothing like putting other people in position to be successful and letting them do what they do best. Mike WiLL Made It on the beat? Pusha T talking about coke for one verse? Pharrell stunting after the year he just had? Future on the hook? Casino adding some grit as the anchor on the track? This song might be perfect and could possibly make you consider a new line of work with its infectious hook. Songs like “Move That Dope” reinforce the undeniable chemistry between Future and Mike WiLL Made It. It’s a match that can’t be duplicated.

The rapper/producer chemistry shines again on “Never Satisfied,” featuring Drake. Again, Mike WiLL Made It supplies the canvas and both artists sing about their ambition for success and women. Oddly enough, and unfortunately for the listener, this song is almost a snippet as it wets the listeners’ appetite, only to fade out at just under 2 minutes.

The expression “the same thing that will make you laugh will make you cry” comes to mind upon listening to “My Momma” and “Covered N Money.” Many of same components that were present on previous tracks are on these as well, however, that seems to be the issue. Future is more than talented at sing-rapping his bombastic verses, but these tracks seem to lack direction or an overarching aesthetic to hold them together. That lack of direction can lead songs feeling the too similar to the listener.

Future’s brushes with romanticism on Honest are on par with his efforts on Pluto. Both “I Won” and “I Be U” paint a picture true to Future’s brand, but with softer colors. On the macho “I Won,” Future and Kanye West celebrate having being crowned champions of their women’s affection. Mr. West’s presence on the track compliments Future very well and also serves as a reminder to the world that West can rap on semi-traditional hip-hop production. Future croons, “I just want to take you out and show you off / You already know that you the perfect one / Girl when I’m with you, feel like a champion / Ever since I got with you I feel like I done won me a trophy,” to which West adds, “You the number one trophy wife / So it’s only right to live the trophy life / You grew up on J. Lo, Timberlands by Manolo now / Till one day I put an angel in your ultra sound.” As illustrated by their lyrics, both artists have many reasons to be proud of their mates and truly emote honesty on this track.

If Future didn’t already know he made it, having Andre 3000 join him for “Benz Friendz” should serve as a wake up call. The Organized Noize-produced track sticks out like a sore thumb in this body of work, but in a good way. At this point in the album the records have primarily fallen in Future’s sonic wheelhouse–that is to say, many of the beats are 808 heavy, and designed to get the police called on you. This track is less drum heavy and constructed mostly around the choir-esque sample behind the beat. The song breathes life into the back end of a project that can at times blur together. On the song, Future and 3 stacks denounce gold-digging women and materialism to an extent. The execution of the song is exceptional, despite the message being a tad inconsistent with other moments on Honest. Benjamin Andre raps: “I was zippin’ through the city and I don’t give a fuck / 1994 Toyota Land Cruiser because / That bitch ain’t never broke down on me, why would I do that to her? / Simplism, symbolism, I’ll pull up at a club.” While this sentiment is more believable coming from Andre, it is a tad bit less credible coming from Future. He can’t always be honest.

The first single from the project presents everything fans love about Future and perhaps the most challenging element of the project overall. The song features elements of street hip-hop with Future’s well placed melodies, while also incorporating the honesty he pushes for on the project. The problem lies in the fact that while Future has grown in a few ways that he has illustrated on this project, his core sound has been loaned out to so many others since the last full length effort. There is a feeling of staleness or repetitiveness in particular moments on Honest. This also lessens the likelihood of duplicating the success of the first album, in regards to impacting hip-hop’s landscape. His first effort innovated a bit more, while this album is more status quo than Pluto. Perhaps hip-hop has been so saturated with Future that these tracks that would otherwise sound different had they not become the new norm. While Future has certainly demonstrated some growth on this project (and supplied hip-hop fans for another banger that might last until summer), this album falls slightly short of the lofty expectations set forth by Pluto.