Life > January 24, 2008

By Max Griffith | Staff writer

Lupe Fiasco has certainly achieved coolness. His lyrics flow elegantly and he weaves masterful stories.
His sophomore album, Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool is a departure from the more focused approach of his debut.

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American rapper, Lupe Fiasco, avoids the traditional sophomore slump with Lupe Fiasco’s The Cool. (www.blogs.guardian.co.uk)

However, it still retains his style and he still remains apart from the trivial lyrics most rappers spout. Fiasco seeks to tell a story in this album, a weird-ass story, but a story nonetheless.

“Go Go Gadget Flow” lets the listener know Fiasco has not foregone any of the strengths he displayed in his first album and attacks the listener with a frighteningly fast flow.

The song reveals his intentions to awe the listener with his talent and it’s this kind of confidence that makes Fiasco so appealing.

A combination of brashness and geekiness make him a unique character in the rap world.

He utilizes plenty of guest stars, although most are singers as opposed to rappers.

This only enhances his flow because their singing brings a sense of grace to the songs, especially on “Superstar.”

“Superstar” is a slower song featuring Matthew Santos.

The pace is similar to “Kick, Push” from his first album, Food and Liquor,

It seems like he’s content to speak at his own pace with no regard for the listener.

Snoop Dogg lends his talents in “High Definition” and brings some star power with him, once again proving he is still one of the top talents out there.

He also proves that Fiasco still has more to do and must improve himself before claiming his place up there with the legends of rap.

Fiasco’s sophomore effort definitely proves he can keep to his style without losing his strength as a rapper.

Fiasco is also proving that it is possible for a rapper to survive without resorting to excessive swearing, repetition and the normal content matter of gangster rap that is common among many other rappers.

He managed to make me laugh with tales of failing to beat Blanka in Street Fighter 2, in “Gold Watch,” proving he has a lighter side.

Still, I do miss some of the political rap he showed in Food and Liquor.

I suppose it does get tiring to spit out the same old rhetoric again and again.

My favorite track of the album is “Streets on Fire,” another song featuring Matthew Santos.

There’s a bit of social commentary about how people perceive each other and overall the song shows insight.

In “Dumb it Down” Fiasco succumbs to the gangster rap trap and the song quickly become repetitive and annoying, even though his lyrics are actually pretty good.

The albums picks back up with “Hello/Goodbye” a story of a soldier during wartime who is confronting the idea of death.

The song is powerful and the beat and guitars in the background give the feeling of a tense battle proving that Fiasco also has a good sense for background music.

“Put You On Game” is another gangsta’ rap styled song and again proves that Fiasco should stay away from the style. It doesn’t fit him well.

The next song, “Fighters,” takes a different approach, but it’s one that is far too sentimental. This again causes a sense of annoyance.

Although thank you tracks are touching, it feels like a bad way to end an album.

The final song, “Go Baby,” is a track filled with ups and downs, and it shows Fiasco’s youth as a rapper with its inconsistency.

Overall the album was good, but once again Fiasco has trouble ending the album solidly.

His strengths appear the most in tracks with background singers and he is able to get by without relying on many huge moguls of the rap world, proving that he has what it takes to last in the business if he so desires.

If Fiasco relies on his strengths and stays away from the gangsta’ rap style then he will be able to continue to release solid albums.