Justin-Jude Clarke Samuels, better known as Ghetts (formerly Ghetto), is a British rapper who has garnered some critical acclaim, but has never, according to what I’ve been reading, really broken through to the mainstream or won awards. And, as Ghetts turns 40 this year, he is seemingly now one of the older cats in the British rap scene, having gotten his start in the early 00s after getting out of jail at the age of 19.
Early on, though, he ran with a Grime collective called the NASTY Crew, and that influence is still very prevalent in his music. On Purpose, With Purpose, at-large, is aggressive in delivery with layers of grungey, grimey instrumentation and electronic production. At times, it waxes jazzy and deep or wanes into thinner, almost minimalist approach of just vocals, beat, and ambient grime. At all points, though, Ghetts has plenty to say in his casual cockney.
That’s where the meat of On Purpose, With Purpose is – the commentary. There are, of course, some shallower tracks, like “Stylish Nxxxa” and “Lap”, but the best tracks are focused on substance. As the title suggests, the commentary is pointed.
On this front, the album starts strong with “Mount Rushmore”, “Double Standards”, and “Anakin (Red Saber)”, the last two being two of the best tracks on the album, hands-down. These are the songs where everything comes together – lyricism, commentary, and music.
The album that follows still sounds great. Many tracks seem to flow pretty easily into the next, which gives straight-through listens for the whole album an easy, enjoyable experience. Yet, each song is distinct, and most sound really good.
There are only a couple of moments where the album’s vibe really snaps, but the biggest is track 8, “Twin Sisters”. The minute-long spoken intro of a woman leaving a voicemail (?) in a foreign language (?) is odd enough, but then Skrapz’s feature is a lengthy verse of monotonous and dull bullshit. The amount of apathy in that feature is tangible, and the fact that “Twin Sisters” is the third vapid song in a row, following the aforementioned “Stylish Nxxxa” and “Laps”, really begins to negatively affect my opinion of the album. The next track, “Mine”, is better; track 10 is an interlude, and the album starts to pick up again in the second half.
By the end, it’s fully burning again with the interesting, if rushed and glossy, story song “Street Politics”, followed by the strong discussion track on post-partum depression and abortion, “Jonah’s Safety”. Several of the songs (and the interlude) which precede the closing trio focus on faith, but at least the stereotypical wealth/gangster focus is mostly gone on the second half.
The album has some incredibly strong and interesting moments. It is, unfortunately, watered down, at least on a conceptual level. But Ghetts’ wordplay is strong throughout, and the beats and music which accompany his verses are solid even on the worst tracks. I do find myself wishing that maybe this one had trimmed a bit of fat, but overall it’s pretty good.
Rating: Green