Big Sean is ready to let the pieces fall. The Santa Monica rapper’s rise was explosive, becoming one of the go-to MCs for a generation. A series of albums on GOOD Music transformed Big Sean into a mainstream player, commercial success matched to personal growth. Severing ties with the label following 2020 release ‘Detroit 2’, the path to ‘Better Me Than You’ hasn’t been smooth – the initial leak caused Big Sean to go back to the drawing board, finessing his work still further.
Now finally on streaming services, the results are in – ‘Better Me Than You’ is deft and personal, boasting a caramel-smooth sense of West Coast funk. At 21 tracks – including a surreal walk-on role for Ellie Goulding in a skit – it’s perhaps too long for its own good, but as personal testimony it works in spades.
Opening with the introspection of ‘Pressure’ the rapper then switches it up on ‘Iconic’, his deft pen game exploring the tributaries of fame. A hard-hitting moment, the sharp-edged trap snares are perhaps an outlier – songs like ‘Typecast’ are more soulful (with echoes of Ye’s earlier sample game), while ‘Who You Are (Superstar)’ has a neat gospel switch.
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Exploring his bedrock, some of the throwbacks here are amongst the album’s most effective moments – ‘On Up’ is a 90s homage, the hazy, laidback beat echoing those formidable Pharcyde cuts. Th DJ Premier produced ‘Million Pieces’ has a slight Soulquarian vibe, with its afterhours appeal – aided by the majestic Teyana Taylor – showing another side to Big Sean.
One of rap’s true MVPs, Big Sean is able to call on some incredible talent to bring the new album to life. Artist-of-the-hour Cash Cobain lights up ‘Get You Back’, while Kodak Black is impressive on club cut ‘This N That’; a dextrous Thundercat is more surprising, with ‘Black Void’ taking Big Sean out of his wheelhouse, and the results are truly impressive.
Spread over the piece ‘Better Me Than You’ can seem inconsistent, but taken as a whole it’s a testament to Big Sean’s vitality, his artistic self-awareness, and his commitment to creative growth.
7/10
Words: Robin Murray
