Immigration To The Trap: Alright, Belly’s got some flow! I see why The Weeknd pipes him up so much. This was a really fun track that, despite being very short, was still an impressive showcase of Belly’s rapping abilities and clever lyricism. A good start to the tape for sure.
Make A Toast: I love the instrumental on this one, and once again, Belly’s flow is really great. For some reason, this gives me some good throwbacks to the rap music I used to hear on the radio as a kid. It’s a really enjoyable track overall.
The Come Down Is Real Too: Once again, I’m getting some old-school vibes from this one. This one is really fun, Belly’s flow is still strong, the instrumental is exciting and enjoyable, and the hook is really catchy. Really strong track.
Mumble Rap: The opening to this track is honestly kinda creepy. I also find it really interesting that the only “mumbling” in this song is on the hook. While said hook is not particularly “amazing” (I feel like that was kind of the point), this track changes things up a lot from the others and feels more “modern.” That doesn’t stop Belly from delivering another strong performance on this track. Another pretty fun track overall, even though it’s not my favorite so far.
Lullaby: The intro of this one is really interesting, and the song as a whole feels a lot more emotional and personal to Belly. Lyrically, it feels like it really came from the heart, and it feels like there was a lot of passion on this track. And the result is a track that’s probably the best on this mixtape so far.
Bobby Brown: A more upbeat track that has a decent hook and some good flow from Belly, but ultimately, I don’t feel like I’ll want to listen to this one much after this review. It’s upbeat, but I don’t think it’s as fun as some of the other tracks on this tape.
Papyrus: Belly has a lot of fun with the lyrics on this one, and while it’s really short, it’s got some solid flow and a fun, solid beat overall. I wouldn’t call it my favorite track on the tape, but it’s a good one for sure.
Alcantara (ft. Pusha T): Another slower track, but one with some more fun lyrics and good flow from Belly. Pusha T is also featured on this track, and his verse is also pretty fun. The song ends rather abruptly, but kinda creepily, and in a really good way. I like this track.
Clean Edit: Remember how I said that the last track ended creepily? Well, the way this one leads in from that track really adds to the creepiness. And I really like his track a lot largely thanks to the subject matter. Belly performed at the Nathan Phillips Square in Toronto and received criticism because he used profanity at what was considered a “family-friendly” event, even though his performance occurred past midnight and that organizers were made aware that he would be using such words. Here, he talks about how he will not apologize for his actions, and he calls out the media for making him seem like the bad guy and being quick to report negative things about him while ignoring him when he gets nominated for an Oscar/Grammy Award. He uses this to make a track with great flow and really awesome lyricism. I enjoyed this one a lot.
P.O.P.: I actually remember hearing this when Belly opened for The Weeknd back in May. I was a little horrified because P.O.P. stands for “power of pussy” and hearing him yell that while being with my female cousin at the concert made us both say “oh my.” Hearing the master track instead of the loud version is a lot better, in that it sounds more subdued and less “shouty.” And as mortified as I was of the hook when I first heard it, I gotta admit it’s kinda catchy. And Belly’s flow and lyricism on the verses make this one for me to resist.
All Alone: As I’ve said countless times before on this review, Belly’s flow is really strong and his lyricism is really solid. I also really like the extremely-autotuned vocals on the outro, and while this track as a whole is really short, it’s a fun, really solid end to the mixtape.
Overall, I’m actually very impressed with this tape! When The Weeknd posted about this on his Instagram, I was a little nervous that The Weeknd was just trying to be nice and support his XO boy, but even if that was the case, it’s a good thing he was so supportive. This tape is a lot of fun, the lyricism is really strong, Belly’s flow is rock-solid, and I find it really interesting that Belly called this “Mumble Rap” kind of ironically since there’s really little to no “mumble rapping” to speak of on this thing. If anything, in my eyes, quite a bit of it feels pretty old-school. Hearing this gave me some flashbacks to the rap songs that used to play on the radio when I was a kid (I couldn’t help but think about “Gold Digger” by Kanye West & Jamie Foxx, for some reason). And in this case, sounding more old-school really worked, and it made this a really strong listen. I honestly hope Belly gets a bit more attention in the future because he’s good.
Favorite tracks: Immigration To The Trap, Make A Toast, The Come Down Is Real Too, Lullaby, Alcantara, Clean Edit, P.O.P.
Least favorite track: Bobby Brown
Rating: Excellent
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