21 Savage "American Dream" Album Review
For the first time in over five years, 21 Savage dropped a solo album, “The American Dream.” It details the story of 21 Savage’s upbringing, as well as his rise to fame, all of which will be documented in his upcoming feature film by the same name. The title originates from the very early years of 21 Savage’s childhood, as he and his mother immigrated from the UK when he was just seven years old. His mother’s influence is still strong today, as illustrated by her interludes included in the project helping to connect the storyline of the album. While the album does have the usual hard-core rap and hip-hop beats that many associate with 21 Savage, there is a clear underlying story of the album, something 21 Savage, and rappers similar to him, have lacked with their albums in recent years.
In the first interlude, “american dream,” 21 Savage’s mother explains how she was willing to do anything to give her son the best life possible and not struggle in the same ways she did. While this has received hate online as being a boring way to start the project, I think it’s brilliant, as it makes clear exactly where we are in the development of 21 Savage as an individual. The first real track of the album, “all of me,” reveals the dangerous influences on 21 Savage during his early years, leading him to gang violence. He talks consistently about not taking disrespect from other individuals, while additionally attempting to focus on remaining faithful to God despite the many evil temptations surrounding him. Murder spelled backward, “redrum,” is the next song on the album, and it has a phenomenal sample at the beginning of the track that is very well produced allowing 21 Savage to transition seamlessly onto it. The title indicates exactly what the track is about, as it shows how he had begun to reach a new level of violence to fit in and protect himself.
Other tracks that stood out on this project were “letter to my brudda,” “dangerous,” and “dark days.” In particular, “letter to my brudda,” is a very personal track to 21 Savage, as he discusses the situation, and subsequent consequences, of his brother being sent to jail while he was still very young. 21 Savage explains how this experience was one of the first times he truly witnessed betrayal, as his brother was turned on by everyone around him. The collaboration with Lil Durk and Metro Boomin, “dangerous,” is another song with a deeper meaning than others on the album, as 21 Savage and Lil Durk discuss those they’ve lost through gang violence. They also air their frustrations of not being able to do anything against those who caused them so much trauma, with many of them hiding from any form of confrontation. Finally, “dark days,” the final song on the album, did exactly what a final song of an album should do: conclude the story. The song begins with 21 Savage summarizing all the experiences he went into more detail about throughout the album, with the main focus being on difficult decisions such as “kill or be killed.” Mariah the Scientist then adds a refreshing chorus before 21 Savage’s mother ends the album with another interlude. In the interlude at the end of the song, she discusses how proud she is of her son for fighting through all the adversity and achieving the better life she so desperately wanted him to have.
21 Savage’s “The American Dream,” brings together a multitude of ideas, creating a cohesive storyline in the process. This results in some slightly irrelevant tracks throughout, but the underlying themes stay constant throughout, creating an album with a storyline, something refreshing to see in the rap genre. The album also sees a slight turn in 21 Savage’s message overall as a rapper, as he begins to slow down on promoting gang violence as something “cool,” but rather, something that must be stopped at all costs. Overall, this album received a very solid 8/10for me. The mixture of catchy lyrics, intriguing interludes, and an overall storyline, makes this an album that will be difficult to top in 2024.
By Luke Birch