Freddie Gibbs and The Alchemist: Alfredo
On their latest album, Alfredo, Freddie Gibbs, and The Alchemist combine their talents to create one of the duo’s best projects to date. The subject matter of the album ranges from the disillusionment Gibbs faces from his various experiences as a drug dealer to his hopes of changing for the better in the future. The Alchemist’s masterfully crafted beats are the perfect complement to Gibbs’ abrasive yet endearing flow. While Gibbs is not new to singing about his experiences selling crack, the album still feels firmly rooted in the present as lyrics reference current pop culture such as the newly-released Tiger King and The Last Dance documentaries. Though the project primarily features hip-hop, it transcends the traditional definition of the genre through its use of unique instrumentation and samples not commonly found in today’s rap.
The album opens with a grandiose flourish of drums and electric guitar, setting the tone for the rest of the album. The Alchemist effectively incorporates transitions between songs to create a uniform feeling to the project while allowing for each song to tell its own story. On the track “Frank Lucas,” named after a famous American drug trafficker who operated in Harlem during the 1960s and ’70s, The Alchemist sets the stage for Gibbs and Benny the Butcher to rap about life as drug dealers over a beat that feels grimy and nocturnal. While both rappers are very explicit in their accounts, the track feels more like the rappers are venting about the trauma that they faced than glorifying the things they did. As the track is ending, the beat slowly fades away from the darkness toward splashing water and mellow, yearning guitar chords. Alongside the change of beat and tone, on “Something to Rap About,” Gibbs tells the listener that he is appreciative of his past because it has allowed him to become the person he is today, but it is time to leave the past behind him. A highlight of this track is Tyler, The Creator’s slightly more lighthearted verse due to the parallel subject matter that it covers.
On the album’s best track, “Scottie Beam,” Gibbs interpolates the words of Gil Scott-Heron from the song “The Revolution Will Not Be Televised” to make his own statement about the plight of Black people in the United States. In the song, he states, “The revolution is the genocide/ Yeah, my execution might be televised,” in reference to the civil unrest in the United States provoked by the killing of unarmed Black men by the police. Since the album was released before the killing of George Floyd, the subject matter of this track is a testament to the fact that the systemic racism that Black Americans face has always been a point of discussion within the Black community.
Overall, Alfredo is an extremely strong album with excellent features, production, and ambiance throughout. With this early contender for album of the year, Gibbs has once again proved why he is one of the best rappers out right now.