PTSD - G Herbo
G Herbo has recently become one of my favorite rappers recently, after dropping his fourth studio album 25 which quickly became one of my favorite trap albums of the year. It is an album with a bunch of hard songs but also a lot of reflective and concise lyricism. Since I've been listening to him frequently, especially in the gym, I decided to revisit PTSD, his best selling album, for the first time in a couple months.
The intro track, Intro, starts out with a flashy, loud instrumental. G Herbo raps passionately about growing up in the streets to eventually becoming a wealthy star, claiming that he was born. It is a great and bombastic start to the album, setting the pace for the album. Glass in the Face is a pretty big step down from Intro but it is not a bad song. The instrumental is a bland trap beat, G Herbo's verse is solid but nothing great. What really stands out about the track is A Boogie Wit Da Hoodie's horrible verse, which is unfortunate because his chorus is great, but his verse brings the track down a bit. Gangstas Cry's instrumental is pretty good, better than Glass in the Face, and it's a bit more emotional. G Herbo sings a lowkey chorus and has a light delivery, and raps about all the emotional trauma he encountered living in the streets, even causing him to relapse at points. On the outro of the track BJ The Chicago Kid delivers some beautiful vocals as well.
In This B*tch features another lowkey delivery, which is different from his signature aggressive and raspy delivery. G Herbo's flow is solid but doesn't really pick up until the second half of the track. In This B*tch can get a bit boring at times but his second verse really picks the track up. Death Row has a strong but ominous beat, Herbo's chorus is really great and he keeps up the infectious energy into his verses which is what makes this track one of my favorite songs on the record. Party in Heaven features an alright chorus from Lil Durk, although it can get annoying at times, he does step it up on his verse on the latter half of the track though. The instrumental is another eerie sounding beat with a lowkey but impactful delivery and bars about his time in the streets and how it affected him as a person.
PTSD was a hit before the album came out, and for a good reason too. The instrumental is upbeat and Juice WRLD delivers an amazing, catchy, anthemic hook. G Herbo continues the high energy on his verse with some good flow switches as well, rapping about having PTSD from his time gangbanging. Chance The Rapper delivers one of his last good verses, and Lil Uzi Vert's verse was alright as well. Both bring great energy to the track but are outshined by Juice and Herbo. On By Any Means, G Herbo delivers a lowkey, nasally chorus over an instrumental with solid trap drums and horns. The energy picks up from the chorus when he kills his verse with a high-paced, fast flow and a commanding delivery, rapping about how he'll do whatever it takes to succeed and survive. 21 Savage's guest verse is great, as per usual, with his vicious delivery and his signature way of floating over the beat.
Gangbangin has a more high tempo instrumental with some nice strings and a solid performance from G Herbo. He has the typical bars about growing up on the block but they are still just as entertaining. Lawyer Fees has a more emotional beat, with some emotional keys and a good chorus from Polo G. G Herbo however is a stark contrast on this track, with a killer flow and one of his raspiest deliveries yet, but it is the best part of the track. The beat of Feelings could be a bit annoying but G Herbo raps about his fast lifestyle but also gets deep sometimes. Rapping about a struggling relationship and how he wouldn't want to raise his children in a broken home.
High Speed is a moment of great lyrical exercise for G Herbo. With some solid storytelling he raps about getting in a high speed car chase, which is typical to him, but how at the end of the chase he felt scared and regretful. These feelings are new to him and he raps about how he never thought he'd want to leave the streets and actually feeling guilty of the crime he committed. At the end of the track he admits that that was his last chase in two years, and how the experience he rapped about changed him. Shooter with Jacquees is a more R&B type cut that goes over surprisingly well. Jacquees's chorus is incredible and Herbo fits surprisingly nicely on a track like this. The outro track, Intuition is nothing to write home about but it's solid. Sonta and 2PRETTY both contribute good vocals and G Herbo drops a good verse rapping about taking control in his life. The album isn't too long of a listen but it's engaging throughout.
In my opinion G Herbo really leveled up on PTSD, it's when I became a fan. He is an immensely entertaining artist from his unique and aggressive flows and deliveries to his vivid and fun lyricism at points. The features were hit or miss and most of the instrumentals were good at best, with only a few standing out. With that being said I think it's just a testament to G Herbo's captivating style of rap, as there is not a second of boredom here. And with the flaws not being related to Herbo himself it shows that this is just the beginning of what could be a solid run for with, considering 25 was also great.
Final Rating:
HIGH 6