Typically when writing these introduction paragraphs, I will give some background information on the artist’s past work, as I feel like that provides the best context for their new music. Unfortunately, I can’t do that with Atlanta Trap superstar Gunna and his new record, a gift & a curse, as the context around his recent arrest and release from prison are more relevant to this album than his previous releases. If you somehow did not know(which I would assume is unlikely if you’re reading this), Gunna was arrested last year along with Young Thug, his mentor, and quite a few other members of YSL, their record label. YSL was accused of being a criminal organization, with many of its members being accused of racketeering, narcotics distribution, and even murder. Towards the end of last year, Gunna took an Alford Plea, resulting in him being released from prison while Young Thug is still locked up. Because he got released in this way and Young Thug didn’t, a lot of people think he snitched on Young Thug to get out. In fact, some of his frequent collaborators such as fellow Trap star Lil Baby and producer WheezyOuttaHere have been talking badly about him for months. Up until last week, Gunna was quiet on the subject, hardly appearing in public and not making any music or statements. Seemingly out of nowhere, Gunna decided to drop his first single since being incarcerated on June 2; he also announced that he would be releasing a new album the following week. This project was highly anticipated by so many people in the music industry, because so many people wanted to see what he would say about Young Thug and how he got out of prison. In that regard, listeners got what they wanted from this record, as Gunna does discuss everything that Hip Hop fans wanted him to discuss. Now that he has been able to get his side of the story out, we just have to wait and see what happens in Young Thug’s upcoming trial to really know what happened to him, Gunna, and the rest of YSL that got arrested.

As far as the quality goes for a gift and a curse, this album feels a lot like most of Gunna’s full-length projects. Gunna is an artist that has always had massive potential; he has been able to put out so many hits over the years and inspire so many younger artists. Apart from Gunna’s acclaimed record DS3, though, Gunna’s projects are typically a mixed bag. They always feel a bit bloated, with a bunch of good-to-great songs being drowned out by quite a bit of mediocre tracks. Unfortunately, to me, a gift and a curse feels the same as most of his projects. Gunna does sound more focused to me on this project than some of his other work, but there is still a lot of filler on this record. If this record would have been cut down by 5 songs or so, I feel like I would enjoy it as a whole overall. Instead, there are just too many non-satisfactory songs on the record that drag it down too much. With that being said, a gift and a curse does have quite a few songs I like, including a couple that are easily among my favorite Trap songs of the year so far. Here is a list of my favorite songs from Gunna’s a gift and a curse. Please let me know in the comments below what your favorite songs are from this record as well as how you feel about it as a whole. 

back at it

‘back at it’ is such a poignant and intense way to start this record for Gunna. To be honest, when i first heard this one, I got really excited for the rest of the project. If this album would have capitalized and built on the harsh and scary energy that this song has, it could have been Gunna’s best project ever because this is such a cool and unique type of song for Gunna. This song has a bold, menacing melody that is driven by an 80s-esque Hard Rock guitar riff and a keyboard riff that is just as threatening as the guitar riff. The song has a slow and deliberate beat that adds to the overall large and sinister energy of the melody. Gunna’s vocal performance on this song is awesome as well. His tone has a raspiness that fits the feeling of the instrumental nicely, and his vocals are constantly being distorted in a way that makes the song sound even more intimidating. ‘back at it’ is a really cool song that puts Gunna out of his comfort zone; I would love to hear him try this sound more in the future because he excels at it on this track. 

back to the moon

‘back to the moon’ shows off a side of Gunna’s artistry that I have not heard before. This song has an emotional, sultry Soul melody that is super cool. It reminds me of the kind of music that artists like Rod Wave or 6LACK are known for making. The melody is driven by an R&B acoustic guitar riff complemented by synths and a woeful electric guitar riff that skates along in the background. This melody is put over a high-octane Trap beat that sort of contrasts the melody and gives the song such a fresh feeling. Gunna’s vocal performance, which is excellent, matches the beat more than it does the melody. He raps with much speed and fervor, and the raspiness in his vocals make amplify the already mournful feeling that the melody gives the song. This is such a unique song for Gunna, and it shows that he has a lot more range than he usually indicates. ‘back to the moon’ shows that Gunna can hop on any trend he wants to hop on, including types of music one would never expect him to be into. 

ca$h $hit

‘ca$h $hit’ is one of the songs that I think is potentially one of the best Trap songs of the year to this point. This song is Gunna at his absolute best. It has the kind of otherworldly and wavy instrumental that he is known for, and his performance on it is as good as it could be. This song is driven by an ethereal and atmospheric melody that is very complex and is driven by a distorted guitar riff and a flute and is complemented by various synth and keyboard sounds. The beat on this song is so tough and bold, with the bass punching the listener in the track and the hi-hats driving the song along in such a rhythmic and catchy way. As I mentioned above, Gunna’s performance on this track is excellent. He constantly switches up his flow, keeping the listener on their toes and giving the song a level of texture that makes it so great. ‘ca$h $hit’ is the type of song that got Gunna so famous in the first place, and it shows he is still the best at what he is known for.

fukumean

‘fukumean’ is the other song from this record that is definitely one of my favorite Trap songs of the year. Stylistically, it is not very different from ca$h $hit.’ The song is driven by a gloomy and celestial melody that is driven by a melancholy keyboard riff and a flute. Like ‘ca$h $hit,’ the song has an intense, forceful bassline and a steady, addicting beat that fits the melody so well. Unsurprisingly, Gunna skates over this beat, showing his rapping prowess through his switches in flows and vocal tones. The ad-libs in this song are so great and drive the song along perfectly. I can just imagine hearing this song in a club this summer and hearing the whole scream “Yuh!’ as this song progresses. It is interesting that my two favorite songs on this record are so similar to what Gunna has always been known for. Gunna knows what he is great at and knows that he can always go back to this sound and create hits that the public will love. 

rodeo dr

Similar to ‘ca$h $hit’ and ‘fukumean,’ ‘rodeo dr’ is a song that feels inspired by some of the Trap music that was popular 5 years ago or so when Gunna was on his meteoric rise to stardom. Instead of sounding inspired by his music though, this track sounds influenced by two other rappers that were becoming Trap superstars at that time. When I hear ‘rodeo dr,’ I immediately think of the trippy and cloudy Trap music that Playboi Carti and Lil Uzi Vert came up on. This song has a desolate and supernatural-sounding melody driven by very distorted synth and keyboard sounds. The song has an intricate and fast beat that matches the weird energy of the melody. Gunna’s low, gruff tone and his rapid-fire flow go so well with this melody and beat, adding to the already unearthly sound of the instrumental. ‘Rodeo dr,’ is a cool track where Gunna shows that he can be just as good as the kinds of music some of his peers are known for as they are. 

go crazy

Just as ‘back to the moon’ does, ‘go crazy’ shows a softer side to Gunna that we usually do not get to see. This song has a light R&B Trap sound that I never would expect to hear from Gunna. This is the kind of instrumental one would expect to hear artists like Toosii or Yung Bleu on. This song has one of the most simple-sounding instrumentals on the record. The song is driven by a relaxed Trap beat and a doleful melody provided by a murky piano riff. Gunna raps with a low, hoarse tone that contrasts the melody superbly. The way that his harsher tone meshes with the melody gives the song such a downtrodden effect in the best way. ‘go crazy is another example of Gunna showing that he can expand his horizons as much as he wants to and excel at any kind of Trap music when he is at his best. 

bread and butter

‘bread and butter’ is the aforementioned single that Gunna dropped with no warning much to the world’s surprise back on June 2. The song will always hold a lot of importance due to the implications surrounding it. On this track, Gunna addresses the topics that so many people have been wanting him to address; he states that he did not snitch on Young Thug despite what anyone thinks, and he calls out fellow members of the industry who have been talking badly about him in his absence. ‘bread and butter’ is not the most innovative or exciting melodic Trap song, but it still a solid and enjoyable track in my opinion. It has a dark and ominous melody that is put over a steady, bass-heavy beat. Gunna’s flow on this song is as smooth as ever, and the light and serious tone that he raps with fits the energy that the instrumental has so well. ‘bread and butter’ was a very good return to the rap game for Gunna, and it proves that he is still one of the top dogs when it comes to Melodic Trap.