Heading into 2019, Georgia rapper Gunna had established himself as one of the year's most anticipated and sought after — with the success of his Lil Baby collaborative project Drip Harder, and massive guest features. Without making fans wait too long, he officially dropped Drip or Drown 2, which serves as both his first official studio LP and a followup to his 2017 EP with Atlanta producer Wheezy.
Rather than work exclusively with Wheezy, Turbo (who executively produced Drip Harder) also handles a lot of the heavy lifting — with a few one-off co-producers like Jet, Keyyz, and Ghetto Guitar. Keeping the production cohesive is a key to this project's overall charm; on paper much of the actual songwriting can come off very basic and repetitive (foreigns on foreigns with some "I made it out" fare) but it's his delivery meshed with the depth of the production that makes this project such a good listen.
Some of the project's bigger standouts come when Wheezy and Turbo come together, like on "Yao Ming" — a track that was originally meant to feature Nav (his verse was scrapped) — and the Playboi Carti featured "Same Yung Nigga." The brightest moment is the album closer "Who You Foolin," which sees Gunna spitting over an elegant Japanese koto that feels like his "Mask Off."
Ultimately, Gunna sticks to his guns and delivers a solid effort that lives up to all the hype. He may not be the most innovative MC, but he continues to craft great bodies of work, which is what will cement his career, at the end of the day.
(300)Rather than work exclusively with Wheezy, Turbo (who executively produced Drip Harder) also handles a lot of the heavy lifting — with a few one-off co-producers like Jet, Keyyz, and Ghetto Guitar. Keeping the production cohesive is a key to this project's overall charm; on paper much of the actual songwriting can come off very basic and repetitive (foreigns on foreigns with some "I made it out" fare) but it's his delivery meshed with the depth of the production that makes this project such a good listen.
Some of the project's bigger standouts come when Wheezy and Turbo come together, like on "Yao Ming" — a track that was originally meant to feature Nav (his verse was scrapped) — and the Playboi Carti featured "Same Yung Nigga." The brightest moment is the album closer "Who You Foolin," which sees Gunna spitting over an elegant Japanese koto that feels like his "Mask Off."
Ultimately, Gunna sticks to his guns and delivers a solid effort that lives up to all the hype. He may not be the most innovative MC, but he continues to craft great bodies of work, which is what will cement his career, at the end of the day.
