American Dream is 21 Savage’s most recent album, featuring artists such as Travis Scott, Young Thug, Metro Boomin, Brent Faiyaz and many more. American Dream follows up his 2018 release I Am > I Was. This album is his third solo studio record. American Dream debuted at number one on Billboard 200 with 133,000 equivalent album units earned in its opening week. Album units are gained from album sales, song downloads and song streams. I personally think that this album was a shot in the right direction for 21 Savage to grow as an artist and expand his horizons as a lyricist, while also sticking to his roots and where he first started in music.
The first track on this album is titled “american dream.” It opens with his mother, Heather Carmillia Joseph, speaking about what she did for her son. For him to succeed in life, how challenges are part of life and overcoming said challenges. She also speaks about her trials and pain and how her son helped her never stop moving forward. The track ends with her saying what her mission has always been: “For my son to become a man and live his free american dream.” I really thought this was an interesting intro to the album as it wasn’t a song but a sort of speech from his mother, setting up the album in a way he hasn’t before. Normally he would just jump straight into a song with no interlude or a sample that doesn’t really have a large connection to the album.
Next track is titled “all of me.” This begins with a more laid back, southern/soul sounding beat with eerily gorgeous background vocals. The track reminds me of a soul southern song with all the long notes and sort of a opera singing style. “all of me” has background vocals that sound very angelic, but the lyrics carry a more murderous energy. The contrast and the attention to detail of this track is really what makes it so interesting to listen to. The song overall sounds very smooth, and I think that this is one of his more pristine songs that he has put out. The keys and strings that he added definitely puts it up there as one of my favorites from this album.
“redrum” is very similar to “all of me” as it continues the laid-back beats with the gorgeous background vocals but carries a very heavy energy that makes the contrast more intense. It shows that he can maintain a very good flow across various beats. It also shows that his flow can be very ear-pleasing.
“should’ve wore a bonnet” features Brent Faiyaz, which is a super interesting combination. Faiyaz is more of a mellow sounding R&B singer. The contrast between Faiyaz and 21 Savage works very well. The contrast through out the album with his lyricism has been amazingly consistent throughout this whole album. Personally, I think this is a good feature for Faiyaz, it feels very repetitive with repeating lyrics. This is a very good track, but I feel if Faiyaz would have got more vocals, it could have been one of my favorite tracks. Overall, this had a lot of potential but was kind of lackluster
“dark days,” which features Mariah The Scientist, is definitely one of the more lyrical artistic tracks off the album. This is a sadder, slow paced song, which demonstrates how diverse 21 Savage’s music can be. I really enjoy the line: “Who would have thought I would emerge from all that gun smoke?” because he’s reflecting on his past and reminiscing on his life. He also goes to rap like he’s lecturing or giving advice to someone. I feel like the Mariah The Scientist feature was a very good choice by 21 Savage, as she adds a sort of soothing tone to the already very serious song which makes the track so great. This track was definitely my favorite off the whole album as it has a very meaningful tone and depth to it. The song to me seems like it’s portraying facing adversity and dealing with the street life and having a sense of hope through all of it.
Overall I personally see this album as worth a listen. I think this could be a contender for one of the best albums of 2024, although it’s a bit early to decide that. This is a very good stepping stone for the future and how 21 Savage can be versatile while also sticking to his roots of where he started in music.
