There are a few great rappers who have teetered on the borderline of the underground and mainstream over the last 10-15 years who I have always felt deserve more credit. Rappers like J.I.D., JPEGMAFIA, and Freddie Gibbz have flirted with mainstream success and have always been loved by those within the industry. They are considered “rapper’s rappers,’ because although the mainstream-listening public may not know them as well, fellow Hip Hop artists and Hip Hop Heads around the world appreciate them on a major level. Danny Brown has always been an artist who fits this mold perfectly. Ever since I discovered him in the early 2010s, I have always thought he deserves so much more notoriety and credit. From his quirky tone to his introspective and witty lyricism to the risks he will take with his instrumentals, Danny Brown sticks out in the best way in many regards. After gaining some traction online through several mixtapes, Danny Brown released his first album, The Hybrid, in 2010. He followed this up with his second album, XXX, in 2011; this album received major critical acclaim, leading to him winning “Artist of the Year” in multiple music publications. Danny Brown released his most popular album to date, Old, in 2013. I would say this record is the most “typical” sounding release of his career, which is probably why it was more popular commercially. Danny Brown dropped his next album, Atrocity Exhibition, in 2016. This is my favorite album of his; in fact, it is one of my favorite Hip Hop albums of the 2010s. Atrocity Exhibition has a deep and raw component to it that hits me and so many listeners so hard. U Know What I’m Sayin?, came out in 2019. Like his first four albums, this one was met with massive acclaim and was on many end-of-the-year lists. After dropping an experimental Industrial-Rap album with the aforementioned JPEGMAFIA earlier this year called Scaring The Hoes(which is one of my favorite albums of 2023 so far. Go read my review of that record after reading this if you have not yet), Danny Brown has returned with his second album of the year, Quaranta. Because of the reception to all of his other releases to this point, Quaranta is an album that had massive expectations from Hip-Hop fans and critics around the industry. With that being said, here is how I feel about Danny Brown’s Quaranta. Please let me know in the comments below what your favorite songs are from Quaranta, and also please comment on what your feelings are as a whole about this record.
Danny Brown starts off Quaranta on a calm yet somber note with the title track. This is the kind of instrumental I would have never expected to hear from Danny Brown. He is usually known for more eccentric music with Industrial qualities(as we saw on Scaring the Hoes). Instead, ‘Quaranta’ has a downtrodden sound driven by a Funky instrumental with a Southern Rock element to it. The melody for this track, which is provided by an electric guitar and complemented by a bass guitar and synths, always has a Country Western feeling to it. This melody is put on top of a slow yet poignant beat that enhances the somber element of the song. Danny Brown’s vocal performance on this track matches the energy of the instrumental perfectly. It is just as solemn as the instrumental, enhancing the heavy feeling this track has. On ‘Quaranta,’ Danny Brown is rapping about how his mental health has not gotten much better since he has gotten rich. He thought that money could cure his problems, but it led to different problems that are equally as tough to deal with. ‘Tantor’ is a song that picks up the energy of the record in a major way. This song has a closer feeling to the music that most people would know Danny Brown for. ‘Tantor’ is an off-kilter Skate-Punk-esque song that sounds like it was made by someone on a ketamine trip. The instrumental for this song is so simple, yet feels so convoluted. The melody for this track consists of a tough and dark guitar riff that keeps repeating over and over again after 8 notes. The drums for this song are bold and intense and are timed in a way that puts the melody off of the beat. This song is full of crazy sound effects and ad-libs that add to the chaotic nature of the melody and beat. Danny Brown raps with a level of fervor that meshes with the instrumental nicely. His vocal performance on ‘Tantor’ is as crazy as the instrumental is, making the song feel larger-than-life. On ‘Tantor,’ Danny Brown is rapping about honing your craft and getting better at what you are passionate about to make a better life. ‘Ain’t My Concern’ is a song that feels like a blast from the past. This song has an old-school Hip Hop feeling and sounds like it came straight out of the mid-to-late 1990s. ‘Ain’t My Concern’ is like a fusion of the boom-bap rap made popular by artists like the Wu-Tang Clan and the Rap-Rock made popular by the Beastie Boys. There is something very off-putting about this track. The melody, which sounds like it is provided by chimes, has a creepy element to it that makes it sound like it should be in a horror movie about ghosts. The boom-bap/Rap-Rock fusion this beat has does not mesh with the melody well, making the song sound a bit weird to me. Danny Brown’s vocal performance on this track is solid, but it does not make up for the way the instrumental pushes me away. I guess ‘Ain’t My Concern’ just is not a song for me. On ‘Ain’t My Concern,’ Danny Brown raps about how he does not like the current state of the Rap game. He does not like how the game focuses on fads and trends instead of authenticity, and he applauds himself for being able to carve a career in the way that he did. ‘Dark Sword Angel’ is the first track of the album that has a sound that is very reminiscent of the music Danny Brown is known for. ‘Tantor’ did have the energy of some of his past work, but ‘Dark Sword Angel’ sounds like it could have straight up been on one of his last couple of albums. This song has a wild and brash sound that is driven by its hard-hitting and distorted beat, which has an early 2000s underground Hip-Hop feeling to it. The melody for this track, which is pretty understated, has a menacing quality. This track is full of quirky sound effects and ad-libs that add to the harsh feeling ‘Dark Sword Angel’ has. Danny Brown’s vocal performance on this track is eccentric and fierce, giving ‘Dark Sword Angel’ so much potency. In ‘Dark Sword Angel,’ Danny Brown raps about his unusual come-up and how he was able to conquer the rap game on his terms. He never changed for anyone and was able to have a ton of success despite how different he was from everyone else.
‘Y.B.P,’ which features Bruiser Wolf, is a song that I keep going back and forth on. I can not figure out how I feel about this one. Somehow this track feels retro and modern at the same time. The beat for this song constantly switches back and forth from having a modern Trap tempo and a funky tempo that almost has an R&B feel that kind of reminds me of The Neptunes. The melody for ‘Y.B.P.,’ if you can call it that, has a sound that i can only describe as squeaky. I kind of love and hate it at the same time. Although it makes me feel weird to listen to, I can not get enough of it. Danny Brown’s vocal performance on this track is good, but Bruiser Wolf steals the show. Not only does his tone contrast Danny Brown’s in a cool way, but his flow slides on this strange beat in a way that enhances the song so much. On ‘Y.B.P.,’ Danny Brown and Bruiser Wolf are rapping about their poor and treacherous upbringings in the city of Detroit. ‘Jenn’s Terrific Vacation,’ which features Kassa Overall, has the most intricate and tangled-sounding instrumental of the record so far, which is saying something. Like the last track, this one sounds old-school and current at the same time. I would even venture to say that this track almost sounds futuristic. The melody for this song is simple yet powerful. It consists of a simple, Jazzy piano riff that packs a punch. The Drum pattern feels like a mix of a marching band beat and an old Jazz beat. There is something about its tempo that has an Industrial Hyperpop feeling to it as well, which is what makes it so fresh. Danny Brown’s(and Kassa Overall’s performance on the chorus) vocal performance on this track is lively and vivid, pairing well with the peculiar instrumental. On ‘Jenn’s Terrific Vacation,’ Danny Brown raps about the gentrification of the hood and the fact that rising rent prices make it harder and harder for people to survive. Danny Brown slows things down and lightens the mood with the song ‘Down Wit It.’ After the intensity of the last few tracks, this softer one is welcomed. Even though this instrumental is not as rough as most of what precedes it, ‘Down Wit It’ still has a very heavy feeling. ‘Down Wit It’ has an ethereal sound that seems to be inspired by 1980s New Wave music. The melody is driven by chunky synths that remind me of New Order or Depeche Mode, and the distorted drums from this song make me think of the music from those bands as well. Danny Brown’s vocal performance on this song is very faint and focused, pairing superbly with this instrumental. The combination of this instrumental and Danny Brown’s vocals on ‘Down Wit It’ makes the song feel so weighty. On ‘Down Wit It,’ Danny Brown raps about losing the only woman that made him feel complete. He knows that he should not have let her go, as she was the only one who understood him. ‘Celibate,’ which features MIKE, is a song with an underground Old School Hip Hop feeling that true Hip Hop heads will truly appreciate. This song has a sound that reminds me of the underground Rap music from the early 2000s. When I hear this instrumental, I think of artists like Atmosphere or Aesop Rock. This instrumental is so easygoing and calming. The melody is provided by a high-pitched synth that sort of sounds like it is coming from a xylophone and the beat is very subdued and has a classic Hip Hop feeling to it. Danny Brown’s vocal performance on ‘Celibate’ is honestly very strange. In fact, his tone is so different from what he normally does that I didn’t even recognize him at first. MIKE raps with a forceful and gruff tone on this track that gives it a layer of texture and emphasis. On ‘Celibate,’ Danny Brown and Mike rap about how they used to sell drugs and how they had to spend time in prison for it. They describe how they will not go back to this lifestyle because the ends don’t justify the means at all.
‘Shakedown’ is a song with a sound that is very similar to the one that precedes it. If you are into the nostalgic Hip Hop feeling that the last song had, then you should be into ‘Shakedown’ as well. The main difference between that track and this one is that the melody for ‘Shakedown’ has a funky R&B element to it. There is something about this melody that makes me think of late 1990s G-Funk music. The tone of the synths on this track has elements that are reminiscent of some of the music Dr. Dre was producing in the late 1990s. Normally, I would be attracted to this sound, but in my opinion, Danny Brown’s vocals on this song do not fit it well. His vocals on this track are kind of boring, making the song sleepy and forgettable for me. On ‘Shakedown,’ Danny Brown raps about the woman he mentioned earlier in his life who got away and how everything is worse without her. He also calls out his peers in the rap game, stating that he knows he is way ahead of them in terms of their quality of music. Danny Brown sticks with the old-school underground Hip Hop feeling on the song ‘Hanami.’ Out of the three songs in a row with this kind of feeling to them, this one grabs me the most. The melody for this track is so interesting and intricate. This melody is provided by a Jazzy piano riff that is complemented by various synths and other instruments that make it feel full. The melody for ‘Hanami’ somehow feels anxious and relaxing at the same time. This melody is put on a complex yet faint drum pattern that also feels both anxious and relaxing. Danny Brown’s vocal performance on this song is toned down yet poignant. Even though his vocals on the track are understated, they still somehow pack a punch. On ‘Hanami,’ Danny Brown raps about the state of the rap game. He is proud of himself for everything he has accomplished in his career, but he feels like he is getting too old to accomplish things like charting at the top of the Billboard list or winning a Grammy. Danny Brown closes out the album on a soft and very interesting note with the song ‘Bass Jam.’ I would say this song has the weirdest instrumental on the record(considering this is a rap song). To be frank, I do not know how to describe it. The instrumental literally just consists of Heavenly synths that are put on top of a light drum beat that consists of a muted bass drum and some snapping. The synths that make up this melody are pretty distorted and are complemented by sweet female vocals, making me feel like I am floating when I hear it. Danny Brown’s vocals on this track are just as laid-back and hushed as the instrumental, adding to the celestial feeling the song has. On ‘Bass Jam,’ Danny Brown is rapping about listening to oldies with his mom growing up and how his listening habits established through his mom’s influence have helped shape him as an artist and man. ‘Bass Jam’ is a sweet tribute from Danny Brown to his mom, and it is a nice way to end this emotional record.
As I mentioned in the introduction, there were some pretty high expectations set on Quaranta from Hip Hop heads and critics around the industry due to the high quality of all of Danny Brown’s past releases. Even though this album has a sound that goes against everything that people would expect from Danny Brown, I would say that Quaranta mostly hits that mark. If you look at the discourse online around this record, the opinions have been positive yet a bit confused in its sound. This album is so different from anything Danny Brown has put out to this point sonically and lyrically. Danny Brown is usually known for high-energy and off-the-wall instrumentals that will get the listener’s blood pumping when his music comes on. Instead, for the most part, this record is full of more stripped-back instrumentals that show off a totally different side to Danny Brown’s artistry. Lyrically, Danny Brown lets the listener into his mind in a way that is way more introspective and reflective than what most people would expect from him. His lyricism on this track shows a level of maturity and inflection that lets the listener look into his changing perspective on the world. Quaranta is an album that proves Danny Brown is still growing as an artist and person, and it also proves he is still one of the most important and underrated rappers in the game today.
EAST SIDE VIBES 