As I said, this is a new, collaborative project from California singer/rapper Ty Dolla $ign and Chicago singer/rapper Jeremih. I don’t really need to introduce either of them because, if you’ve been keeping up with this blog, you’ve probably seen these two names fly around a good bit. With Ty, I covered his last album “Beach House 3,” along with the bonus tracks on the re-released Deluxe Edition of the album, and he’s also been one of the most prominently featured artists on the albums I’ve reviewed here, appearing on albums like “Coloring Book,” “The Life of Pablo,” “Heartbreak on a Full Moon,” “Culture II,” “beerbongs & bentleys,” “ye,” “KIDS SEE GHOSTS,” “Liberation,” “K.T.S.E.,” “Scorpion,” “15” and “FM!” (fill in the artists on your own accord). This year, he also earned his first #1 Billboard Hot 100 single as a feature on Post Malone’s “Psycho.” And while Jeremih hasn’t been seen as often, he’s kept himself relevant around here with features on “Coloring Book,” “Views,” “ye,” and Ty’s very own “Beach House 3.”
Admittedly, this sounded like a fascinating collaboration to me, because even if Jeremih isn’t an artist I listen to often, I do think he’s a very nice vocalist, as is Ty, and I think these are two guys that could sound really great together. And fortunately, while they have touted this as a full-length studio album, it is a pretty breezy 35 minutes spread across 11 tracks, so it’s not like the duo is gonna be overstaying their welcome throughout the duration of the project. And given the length of “Beach House 3,” as well as all of its unnecessary interludes, it’s a welcome reprieve that Ty (and his friend, Jeremih) are keeping things tight here and reducing some of the filler that stopped that album from reaching its full potential. So let’s listen in to this and see if it’s as fun as it sounds on paper:
The Light: Said to be a “casual, sex-fueled” song, this one has some more bouncy production and a rather groovy bassline. It’s not the most enticing production I’ve heard out of a song like this, but it’s not terrible. Ultimately, though, I’m not too crazy about Ty’s vocals, it almost sounds kinda silly hearing him sing “let’s have sex” on this one. Jeremih really shines here, as his higher-register vocals are more enjoyable, and it almost feels like he takes over the song. Overall, I just have mixed feelings on this cut: there are some good things about it, but it’s not the most memorable thing on the album, and it’s not really a hard-hitting starter.
Goin Thru Some Thangz: I had no idea people still spelled “things” like that. Huh. Anyway, this is a song about a beautiful woman who is, as the title suggests, “going thru some thangz.” Figure that out. Anyway, this is a darker, murkier trap banger, and while it doesn’t sound terrible, I don’t think Jeremih’s high-pitched, filtered vocals really mesh quite well with the instrumentals here. Fortunately, though, Ty sounds more at home on this one, and I think this is a better showcase of his vocals than the last track. Still, though, it’s kinda disappointing because they aren’t sounding as strong together as I had thought. Still, it is early in the album, maybe the next track will do a bit better.
FYT (feat. French Montana): Oh, French Montana is here…never mind, we’re doomed. All jokes aside, this is a song about flexing and getting a girl’s attention with diamond rings, Ty showing no subtlety by literally saying “I’m fucking you tonight” on the hook. Smooth, Ty, smooth. And while the somewhat slow-paced production is chill and very fun, French Montana still sounds a bit boring. Luckily, he’s not here long enough to ruin things and Ty sounds smooth as hell on this track, even when he says that “I’m fucking you tonight” line on the chorus. Jeremih also sounds really good, not letting his vocals get too high or filtered to sound out of place. It’s good to see that Ty and Jeremih are actually showing some solid chemistry with this track. I dig it.
Perfect Timing: Yeesh, with a name like that, I was praying NAV wouldn’t be on this thing. Thank God he’s not. Anyway, this is another sex-driven song, go figure, and it sounds like another slow jam type of track. It’s somewhat glitzy and very pretty, and I do think that Ty and Jeremih have some good moments of smooth chemistry throughout it, but I honestly think the song is almost ruined for me by the hook. Jeremih’s higher-pitched vocals just kill the vibe for me, and I think it could’ve been better if Ty handled it. It’s definitely not a bad track, but that hook could’ve been better if Ty was on it.
New Level: A song about trying to put a girl on a “new level” and show her what she’s really worth, I like the more fast-paced production on this cut. It feels different enough from the last few tracks, and even if it doesn’t really do a whole lot with the typical trap-rap formula (which admittedly is hard to do in the day of potentially reaching “peak trap”), it’s still catchy and head-noddy fun. And Ty and Jeremih both sound great together: they both show some smooth runs throughout and counteract each other nicely, with Ty’s lower register and Jeremih’s higher register actually juxtaposing nicely here. It’s short, but I like this one!
Take Your Time: Here, Ty and Jeremih talk about how they want a girl to “take her time” on them. Ty even points out that he will curve other girls until this one is ready. I myself have had the mindset of waiting for a girl to be ready several times before, so…right on, Ty. And this is another more dark, sinister-sounding cut, which is certainly a bit different, but the problem is that the song just sounds a bit too standard to me. And ultimately, there are a few decent vocal moments here, like Ty’s vocals on the hook, but overall, some of the song just sounds a bit goofy to me. Some of the inflections in Jeremih’s vocals just sound silly, and even Ty only really sounds great on that chorus. It’s not precisely bad, but it’s probably one of the lesser tracks on the album.
These Days: Here, the duo talks about how much they’ve changed lately. I’d go a bit deeper in explaining these lyrics, but honestly, that isn’t the point of this particular record, so why try? Anyway, this is another very slow-paced track that sees Jeremih and Ty both sounding very smooth and lovely. Even if some of the slower production is a bit similar to some of the other songs here, the song really succeeds for me on the strength of the vocals of these two. I feel like these two can really sell a song with their vocals, and they show it with this song. It’s a track that has a catchy enough hook, great vocal performances, and doesn’t overstay its welcome, either. Rock-solid track.
Surrounded (feat. Chris Brown & Wiz Khalifa): An R&B-flavored track that even has a powerhouse of features in Chris Brown and Wiz Khalifa, this is another song about having girls all over you. Again, no shock in the lyrical content at this point. And the production, honestly, is just really standard stuff to me. Your basic, somewhat brighter trap banger that doesn’t do much different with the formula. Chris Brown sounds mostly good on here, but some of Ty’s inflections on his verse just sound really goofy to me. Jeremih sounds pretty decent, too, though having Chris Brown on the song only reminds me that he sounds just like a Chris Brown clone. Wiz Khalifa’s verse also has some fun flows, but he’s not around enough to leave a lasting impression on me. Again, some things I liked about this, but it definitely could’ve been a lot better.
Lie 2 Me: With this track, the two are talking to a girl (of course) and reminding her not to lie to them. And right off the bat, Jeremih’s unfocused flow not only annoys me, but he almost sounds like Teo from that “Rolex” song that got popular a few years back. The bell-driven production here is almost a bit grating to me and, while Ty sounds nice enough, his vocals don’t really leave a lasting impression. I definitely think this is one of the weaker tracks here, and it reminds me of one of my biggest problems with this album: Ty and Jeremih generally sound good, but together, they end up being a little less than the sum of their parts.
Ride It: Hmm, I think with a title like that, I don’t need to explain what it’s about. Given how much we’ve been talking about girls on this album, we’re definitely not talking about cars when we say “ride it” on this one. And again, this is a song with very standard trap-production: a very grating piano melody and the same basic hi-hat-driven production that you may expect out of the genre. And remember how I said earlier that Jeremih sounded like a Chris Brown clone? Yeah, well now, he sounds like a Swae Lee clone. What’s worse is that he sounds like he’s cloning Swae’s vocals from the first “SremmLife,” which were far more underdeveloped in comparison to what they are now. Once again, Jeremih kinda relies on Ty to save the song, and sure, Ty sounds good, but he doesn’t really “save” the track or make it much better. This is a track that could’ve been improved a lot.
Imitate: Described as a “bedroom banger,” this more slow-paced song sees the guys swearing to give a girl anything she wants since their feelings for her can’t be imitated. And this certainly isn’t too different in terms of production, being another trap song akin to a slow jam, but it’s actually got a nicer edge to it thanks to the groovy, bright synths, and overall smooth feel. Jeremih and Ty also have good chemistry together and, for one of the rare times throughout this project, don’t feel like they overpower the other. They both come through with clean, fun, catchy vocals, and the song succeeds for it. It’s definitely a solid end to the project.
I dunno, though, I don’t think this album really did it for me in the way I was hoping for. It just happens that a collaboration between the two was better on paper than in practice, and that, as I said before, Jeremih and Ty Dolla $ign just happen to be less than the sum of their parts. Yes, I like both artists from a vocal standpoint, but I feel like there are only a few instances where the two of them can put it together on the same track. And when most of the production on this thing gets stale as quick as it does (and the songs lack lyrical substance), it’s kinda up to these guys to sell the songs with their vocals. Unfortunately, there’s only a finger-full of times where that happens: at its best, there are those rare instances where Jeremih isn’t yelping, and Ty sounds smooth along with it. However, there are some middle points where it feels like Ty does the heavy lifting while Jeremih brings in some out-of-place vocals and filters, and there are some low points where Jeremih just sounds like a clone of several other artists, and Ty’s moments don’t stick enough to make up for that.
What keeps this from being really “Awful” is that there are a good few tracks on the project, and I also think that, given its tight length and the relatively small number of tracks, it’s definitely listenable and not enough to make you angry. What it may make you, though, is disappointed: you might find, like I did, that Jeremih and Ty Dolla $ign are both talented vocalists that should either remain on their own, work out their chemistry a bit, or get some more enticing production that fits their styles a bit better. So overall, “MIH-TY” was certainly an interesting experiment on paper, and it’s definitely far from the worst thing you’ll hear this year, but I definitely think it’s an experiment that, if it were to happen again, needs some fine-tuning. I’m not against the duo trying something like this again, and I definitely wouldn’t be shocked if this was just a test run to troubleshoot and figure out what works and what doesn’t, but for now, I will approach their next release with a bit more skepticism. If you’re a diehard and you haven’t heard this yet, you may dig it, but otherwise, proceed with caution.
Favorite tracks: FYT, New Level, These Days, Imitate
Least favorite tracks: Take Your Time, Surrounded, Lie 2 Me, Ride It
Rating: Bad
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