#BABYFACE SONGS ON YOUTUBE ZIP#

Beneath his cold resolve, he shows a yearning to move to the next level of stardom, and the mix of regional styles never dilutes the essence of what makes RayвЂ™s music great. Thankfully, the handful of stumbles have little to do with Ray or his raps. These moments distract from RayвЂ™s presence and feel less like songs than naked grabs at specific markets. A serviceable but completely unrelated Pusha T guest verse and Wiz KhalifaвЂ™s one-man weed nostalgia act waste the interesting beats and otherwise good verses on вЂњDancing With the DevilвЂќ and вЂњKush & Codeine,вЂќ respectively. вЂњBlood, Sweat, & TearsвЂќ is more indistinct, and boring, than its twin verses from Ray and guest G Herbo deserved. 808 Mafia and SouthsideвЂ™s menacing beat on the first half of вЂњ6 Mile ShowвЂќ is undercut by an unnecessary ATL Jacob beat change that ruins the songвЂ™s atmosphere. Some of the albumвЂ™s stabs at more mainstream-friendly production barely register.

Atlanta producer DJ EscoвЂ™s four placements mostly match the nervy energy of RayвЂ™s best beat choices-вЂњTunnel VisionвЂќ and вЂњMotown Music,вЂќ in particular, manage to be expansive without overwhelming RayвЂ™s voice. вЂњOvertimeвЂќ is far and away the strangest song on FACE, but it isnвЂ™t the only moment where Ray navigates relatively new territory. Flint mainstay Carlo teams up with Swedish producer and Sad Boy member Yung Gud on the standout track вЂњOvertime,вЂќ the drums and piano meshing with the spacey instrumental underlay to create a vibe thatвЂ™s weird and enticing. Producer Pooh Beatz decorates вЂњMe, Wife & KidsвЂќ with a deep low end and whirring synths, creating a menacing swing for Ray to demolish. He reunites with Icewear Vezzo on вЂњ6 Mile Show,вЂќ passing the baton like a hot potato over 808 Mafia and SouthsideвЂ™s wailing sirens. FACE features more Michigan names in the credits than last time, and every feature from the Great Lake State plays to RayвЂ™s strengths. RayвЂ™s world is bleak and flashy in equal measure, and an all-star team of guests and producers steps up to further flesh it out.

#BABYFACE SONGS ON YOUTUBE ZIP#

Moods shift on a dime, from celebratory to paranoid to reflective-especially on songs like the heartfelt closer вЂњMotown MusicвЂќ-with RayвЂ™s flat affect linking his non-sequiturs together like zip ties on a designer sneaker. He moves similarly through mid-album highlight вЂњMe, Wife & Kids,вЂќ stuffing money into a blue Goyard bag while questioning whatвЂ™s really driving his ambition (вЂњCould be the paper or the percs, I been fucking itchingвЂќ). At the end of his verse on вЂњOvertime,вЂќ within four short bars, he darts from protecting his nephew on the cold streets of Detroit to touring the world and wearing clothes from the Japanese streetwear brand Human Made. He likes to stack good and bad thoughts one after the other in his verses, revealing an intimacy to his words thatвЂ™s at odds with his tough-guy persona. ThatвЂ™s ironic, considering that RayвЂ™s writing has a sharp sense of symmetry. The same mismatch between beats that plagued Unfuckwitable lingers slightly here as well. The balance between his street-rap origins and more conventional fare still isnвЂ™t perfect, but Ray is closer to finding his sense of equilibrium.

But unlike Unfuckwitable, most of RayвЂ™s experiments here feel natural, and heвЂ™s given himself more time to spend in the comfort zone that endeared him to fans on earlier projects like 2019вЂ™s MIA Season 2. At 20 tracks and nearly an hour in length, FACE often scans as The Essential Babyface Ray, a variety pack of beats from different subsets of hip-hop from Michigan and beyond. HeвЂ™s been in the game for over a decade, and after the mainstream breakthrough of his 2021 EP Unfuckwitable, Ray is ready to show his growing range. RayвЂ™s fatherвЂ™s opening prayer also complements FACEвЂ™s epic scope, and not just in surface-level references (вЂњI know heaven real, man/I done been to hell and back,вЂќ he says on the excellent single вЂњSincerely FaceвЂќ).

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