Album Review: Ty Dolla $ign - Free TC
By Eli Schoop, Copy Editor
[Atlantic; 2015]
3.5/5
Key Tracks: “LA,” “Straight Up,” “Blasé”
Ty Dolla $ign dwells in his complexity. “I don’t really consider myself a rapper, I just happen to have bars, or something like that. I still sing man, I’m a singer, ya feel me?” is a quote from a man who refuses to be pigeonholed in a dichotomy-obsessed industry. Free TC is his methodology expressed in full force--to the point where the man born as Tyrone William Griffin Jr. freely expresses any motif and feeling he wants without fear of criticism.
In that respect, Free TC is the result of an assessment of 2015 hip-hop as well as a grab-bag of varying styles. This record is chock full of different genres, ranging from mainstream EDM reminiscent of Omi or Diplo to the kind of R&B made commonplace by Trey Songz (who makes a questionable appearance here, on “Know Ya”). It's an impressive span of musical territory for the 30-year old and, while lacking in conceptual complexity, Griffin shows a definitive grasp of how to make a cohesive studio album.
The best work occurs when his hip-hop side is showing, however. Kendrick Lamar features on “LA,” a particularly Tupac-esque cut supplemented by angelic production and backing harmonies. While “Blasé” just slices straight through the babyface (no pun intended) facade Griffin has screened onto Free TC, “Straight Up” is the veneer completely highlighted and smoothed out courtesy of a wholly buttery beat.
When Griffin came up, his shtick relied on objectification and a “hood” take on radio R&B that appealed across the gender binary. Now, Ty Dolla $ign has truly matured and captured the essence of making creative yet enrapturing hits with his first major-label effort. The features may leave something to be desired, but on the whole, Free TC is gripping and full of quality.
