Genre: Sadboy Review — beachboymusicreviews

Genre: Sadboy is the debut EP of the duo consisting of rapper Trippie Redd, and ex-rapper Machine Gun Kelly. Well this album is actually an emo rap album, so technically both of the artists on this are rappers? Having heard some of MGK’s music whether it be the diss track towards Eminem that made him switch genres, or the laughably bad “Emo Girl,” featuring Willow Smith, I am far from a fan of this guy’s work. He butchered “Aerials,” by my favorite band, System of a Down, on Howard Stern’s radio show, in what might be one of the worst live covers ever. Safe to say, I was not looking forward to reviewing this album, as I dislike MGK’s music and I don’t care for Trippier Redd’s music much either. Still, as a music reviewer, I have to listen to all music and give it a fair chance.

We start the EP off with the acoustic track, “lost boys,” which starts off pleasantly enough instrumentally. Trippie Redd’s sung chorus sounds alright too, but I will say that the post-chorus is annoying. And MGK’s verse half-rapped and half-sung verse is pretty much just a “boo-hoo I’m rich and famous but sad,” snoozefest. Other people more relevant and much more talented than MGK have done this concept better. And no, you’re not “Illmatic,” please don’t ever compare yourself to Nas. And this cliché “I’m emo and suicidal” shit is a mockery of pop-punk and emo music that MGK claims to be trying to bring back. Track one and I’m already disliking it so far.

Following that, we have, “beauty,” an emo rap track, which has a great sample of a group I like, Frou Frou, and is wasted by a 30 something year old cosplaying as an angsty teenager. The singing from MGK is abysmal, and the lyrics are trite and eyeroll inducing. I don’t get this whole shtick of his, like my guy, you dated Megan Fox, one of the most beautiful women on the planet, you’re rich, what is there to be so sad about? In addition, the topic of drug addiction has been dealt with way better than the way MGK talks about it. He’s trying so hard to be Lil Peep or Juice WRLD, the biggest differences being, well, the fact that they were in their early 20s and had a unique sound, while MGK is in his 30s and parroting their sound without adding anything new or unique. Trippie Redd’s verse is tolerable, I guess, but the pretty production is wasted by the duo’s boring clichéd lyrics.

“time travel,” featuring Zzz, has a nice instrumental and is well produced and mixed, but has corny lyrics like “Leave out the crib, in all black, with a mask. Got me feelin’ like Christian Bale.” Really? Does MGK not have ghostwriters to help him write better lyrics? We get more overdone lyrics about drugs, and a chorus with a weird deep voice from MGK that just sounds like it was meant to be humorous. Trippie Redd doesn’t add much to this track and neither does Zzz. In fact, “Zzz” is what I’d rather be doing than listening to this song.

“struggles,” is another soft emo track with lackluster lyrics about love and drugs, so nothing new. “I know I struggle with drugs. And I know I struggle with love. Sometimes I’m sad as hell,” really deep stuff, guys. I don’t understand what these two millionaires are so sad about, I mean I’ve been depressed before, these guys are just cosplaying as “sad boys” because they’re chasing a trend. They’re trying to copy the style of artists like XXXTentacion, and Lil Peep, who I’m not really a big fan of, but the difference is that when those artists did it, it was somewhat unique, and they actually had the talent to pull it off. “suddenly,” changes it up with a trap aesthetic with electronic snares and hi hats, but has soulless production, surface level basic lyrics, and regurgitates the same love-sick lyrics that I’ve gotten sick of hearing on this album. Maybe it makes it more cohesive, but it doesn’t make it fun to listen to. “half dead,” sounds like a Juice WRLD throwaway, that would’ve been better if it was actually sung by Juice, because unlike MGK and Trippie, he was a very talented singer. No amount of autotune and glitzy production can cover up the facts that these lyrics are as basic as you can get, and that the singing is soulless.

“hiding in the hills,” is a short track like most of the album, but somehow feels like it’s longer. I do like the instrumental on this track, but MGK and Trippie Redd’s heavily processed vocals completely ruin it. This album is truly a taxing listen, like, if shitty music helped me lose weight, I’d be built like The Rock. And this whole persona about MGK being “a loner,” is completely false, dude’s like Pete Davidson when it comes to women. He’s got fame and fortune, but what he lacks is an original, unique sound, and the vocal talent to pull said sound off. And talent isn’t something that can be bought. No amount of money can make you as talented as X or Peep. Not to mention, he’s got friends in the industry, because this is a collaborative album.

“no more,” repeats the same “no more,” line in almost every line of the first half. Musically it sounds incredibly repetitive, MGK’s melodic flow is clearly inspired by someone else, another boring track. Probably my least favorite off of the EP. “who do i call,” has a swirly instrumental and the song features the incredibly talented rapper, JID, who for some reason, barely has any presence on the song. The features on this album add nothing substantive, as the record just completely focuses on MGK. Trippie Redd’s presence barely feels recognized on the album, as his verses are either incredibly short, or he’s just the guy who does the hooks.

Finally, mercifully, we end the album with, “summer’s gone,” a lo-fi acoustic track with a suicide line that I find incredibly tasteless. I feel like MGK using the topic of suicide for his music is incredibly selfish, because there are actual depressed people who struggle with suicidal ideation, that deserve to feel less alone, not have their pain co-opted by someone who is capitalizing on a sound that is inauthentic, directionless, and repetitive. There are artists like Kid Cudi, and Billie Eilish who are not only far more talented than Kelly and Trippie, but are open about their struggles with mental health, and actually are genuine about the topic in their music. Maybe I’m wrong, and MGK has struggled with mental health, I wouldn’t wish that on anyone including him, but how it seems to those who have to listen to this EP, and review it it feels cheap and exploitative.

In conclusion, Genre: Sadboy, is a short EP that feels much longer than it is. It features two untalented artists who are running out of ideas, because they aren’t creative enough to produce something that puts a new twist on the genre of emo music. In addition, vocally, they sound very unpleasant, and there is literally no differentiation between the tracks, as they all talk about the same themes of heartbreak, sadness, and drugs. Like if this record came out back in 2017-2018, during the Soundcloud rap era, it still wouldn’t have been received positively. MGK can’t pull off any genre, whether it’s hip hop, pop-punk, or emo rap. I’d much rather listen to the pioneers of emo rap like X, Juice, or Peep, because they were actually, genuinely dealing with mental health issues, or had dealt with addiction. Not to mention they were exciting to listen to, as their sound was fresh and engaging. I still bump Juice to this day, and he was open about the skeletons in his closet. Sadly, this album is boring, maddening to listen to, and a soulless husk that is basically the equivalent to a teenage girl self-diagnosing themselves with depression and claiming that these basement level lyrics are “deep.”