Lupe Fiasco's The Cool Review
Chicago Emcee Lupe Fiasco Resurrects a Dying Hip-Hop Genre
Jan 13, 2008
Served with linguistic superiority and a timeless message (“Check your ingredients before you overdose on the cool,” Lupe’s sister states on the intro), Fiasco’s sophomore release, The Cool, is an album unlike no other entity in hip-hop right now. Crafted to provoke not only good times, but thought, the Chi-Town emcee dwells where no other rapper dares to step with a concept album.
Michael Young History: The Cool
After an intro and the hyperactive “Go Go Gadget Flow,” Fiasco gracefully wanders into the album’s concept with “The Cool,” the first track to follow Michael Young History, the album’s fictional protagonist. “Come, these are the tales of the cool/Guaranteed to go and make you fail from your school/And seek unholy grails like a fool,” Fiasco raps over a beautiful but eerie mixture of piano chords, strings, and choral harmonies.
Fiasco explores a much darker side on “The Die” which features newcomer and label-mate Gemini. Both emcees emit speedy flows similar to those of fellow Chi-Town veteran Twista. “Well, I heard like group of cows/That all ya enemies wanna shoot ya down,” Fiasco raps, signifying the end of Michael Young History. The Game, representative of the hustle, and The Streets, a temptress who attracts Michael Young History, also are focused on in the album’s underlying story. Perhaps the most impressive of all the concept tracks, “Put You On Game” features Fiasco rhyming as The Game with lyrics like, “I am the American dream/The rape of Africa/The undying machine/The murderous regime.” Over frightening strings and heavy bass, Fiasco articulates his overall message flawlessly.
Beyond the characters and the album's concept
Outside of The Cool’s concept, Lupe spits poetry over laid-back tracks such as “Paris, Tokyo.” Over a sound reminiscent of earlier work by A Tribe Called Quest, Fiasco proves versatile in flow with lines such as, “I really missed ya/Each and every night I kissed ya in my dreams/Before I went to sleep to La-La Land to count them sheep.”
Though Lupe proves he is just as ill with the lyrics as he was on his debut, musically, the album stumbles sometimes. In-house producer Soundtrakk sounds uninspired and lazy on “Dumb It Down” and, though it adds a bit of diversity to the album, “Hello/Goodbye” and its heavy-metal feel are completely out of place between much softer cuts.
The Final Verdict
On the whole though, The Cool is an album that stands out in today’s rap industry. When it lacks musically, Fiasco pulls the listener back with his views on materialism (“Gold Watch”), celebrity status (“Superstar”), and even food (“Gotta Eat”).The Cool, unlike most hip-hop experiences today, manages to reach the masses while kicking out positive and insightful vibes.
Residing in the shadow of a classic debut, like Mr. Nasir Jones did on his sophomore effort, It Was Written, Lupe Fiasco falls just a tiny bit short of transcending his previous attempt but manages to concoct the next best thing. With an interesting and intellectually-fueled statement on coolness encompassing the album’s concept, Fiasco easily convinces that he is the driving force behind a revolution that hip-hop desperately needs.
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