This is the sophomore full-length album from New York rapper, singer/songwriter, producer & Galactic Records founder Lil Tecca. Blowing up in 2018 after signing a distribution deal with Republic Records & the viral single “Ran$om”, it would later be included on his debut mixtape We Love You Tecca that same year & would receive lukewarm reception although it’s truthfully grown on me a tad bit over the course of time. His debut LP Virgo World was released during the pandemic & is widely considered to be the weakest entry in his discography. The last time we heard from Tecca was a couple summers ago when Internet Money Records founder Taz Taylor executive produced a worthy sequel to We Love You Tecca & is looking to give a listeners a closer at Tec.
“Yves” is a cloudy trap opener produced by BNYX of Working on Dying asking the the fuck is you on & that his shawty knows he’s a Don whereas “H.O.E. (HVN ON EARTH)” featuring Kodak Black works in a cloudy pop rap atmosphere talking about the women in their lives behind Heaven to them. “Gist” goes into plugg territory a bit courtesy of Rio Leyva & Taz Taylor feeling like they tried to stab him in the back when all he did was count the bread, but then “500lbs” blends some synths & hi-hats talking about not trusting a single thing he’s told.
On the other hand, “Fell in Love” featuring Ken Carson finds the 2 getting boastful over some rage beats just before the title track talks about regretting but not receiving accompanied by cloudier instrumental from Taz. “Salty” has a spacey, orchestral trap quality to it that Dynox provides with Nick Mira as well as Rio & once again Taz ballin’ regardless leading into the summery “Real Discussions” looks to never take this shit for nothing.
“Dead or Alive” shows off his wealth & looks back on his upbringings over a glossy instrumental while the dancehall-inspired “Want It Bad” is soured by mediocre romance-inspired subject matter. “U Don’t Know Tec” gives off a moodier vibe dissing those try to associate themselves when it only benefits them while “Used2This” talks about switchin’ hoes like switchin’ the channel over an incredibly colorful ass beat.
To start the final leg of the LP, the piano-driven “Trippin’ on U” admits he can’t change this bitch & is unwilling to do so while “Either Way” promises to never switch sides with a somewhat afrobeats inspired sound. The penultimate track “Need Me” returns to a trillwave groove keeping his day going & “Monday to Sunday” concludes Tecca’s sophomore effort by doing this shit early every day over synths as well as hi-hats.
I’m going to have to take back my previous statement when Virgo World dropped that this guy was a 1-hit wonder because as I mentioned: We Love You Tecca has grown on me with time & the sequel was cool. That being said: Tec beat the sophomore slump allegations on here because I can truly say it’s the best full-length LP to date. The production compared to the debut 3 years before is more consistent & Tecca profoundly shows us how much he’s grown up.
Score: 3.5/5
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