The 2020 XXL Freshman Freestyles, Ranked From Worst to Best
Pitchfork writer Alphonse Pierre’s rap column covers songs, mixtapes, albums, Instagram freestyles, memes, weird tweets, fashion trends—and anything else that catches his attention.
Ranking the XXL Freshman Freestyles
The XXL Freshman list may not mean as much as it once did, but I still can’t help but watch—and judge—each and every a cappella freestyle.
12. NLE Choppa
Booo! I’ve been patiently waiting for NLE Choppa’s meditative, third-eye tweets to be reflected in his raps, but it’s yet to happen. C’mon Choppa, we can’t get one basic conspiracy theory? Maybe a “Tupac is alive” or a “JAY-Z is working for the illuminati” bar? I tried to get over my disappointment by attempting to figure out if his Saint Laurent jacket was also worn by Will Smith in the Bad Boys for Life motorcycle chase scene. Sadly, it’s a no.
11. Baby Keem
On a list that already features Rod Wave and Polo G, a third miserably sad rapper is just too much.
10. Lil Tjay
If you’re going to sing, really sing. I’m talking Usher-slamming-on-the-glass-window-in-“Burn” singing. Omarion-wearing-Timberlands-and-dancing-in-the-street-on-“Touch” singing. Ne-Yo-throwing-a-tantrum-on-a-snowy-mountain-in-“So Sick” singing. Here, Lil Tjay does none of that. There’s no emotion or heart.
9. 24kGoldn
Probably Cole Bennett’s favorite freestyle.
8. Mulatto
Whenever I listen to Mulatto I can never get past that her name is Mulatto. Were there no other options? Anyway, she can rap just fine, but I kind of wanted her to be true to her plight and say, “Too Black for the white kids, and too white for the Blacks.”
7. Fivio Foreign
The only things that would’ve made this feel more like a classic NYC high school lunchroom freestyle is if I had a frozen beef patty in my hand and the verse was laid over the “Get Lite” claps.
6. Lil Keed
Every year, there’s one Freshman Freestyler that’s endlessly clowned. Last year, it was Lil Mosey. This year, the honor goes to Lil Keed. Asking a Young Thug disciple like Lil Keed to rap an a cappella verse without the polish of a studio engineer is like asking Jean-Claude Van Damme to perform Shakespeare in a park.
5. Jack Harlow
This probably should be higher, but I’m annoyed that Jack Harlow took this time to get deep, because now it’s harder to make fun of his verse.
4. Calboy
Calboy knows that freestyling is all about the hand motions.
• The prayer hands
• The dramatic point
• The “I’m saying some deep shit” pose
3. Chika
Someone tell Knx, we need the remix!
2. Polo G
A lifetime’s worth of trauma is seemingly poured into every single Polo G verse. “Ain’t go to see a therapist, I just start talkin’ to them beats,” he raps here. Each line is probably destined to become a future Tyler Herro IG caption.
1. Rod Wave
• “I finally got a smile for all the frowns”
• “They were laughing at me, but it wasn’t funny”
• “I used to wanna be a firefighter or a teacher, until niggas came through on 22s and booming speakers”
• “Lookin’ for love, but it was gone/Thank God, I found my passion in these songs”
Rod Wave comes through with a freestyle that rivals the first 10 minutes of Up in sadness, which is exactly what you want from Rod Wave.
BA PACE: “333 (Ragu)”
When the New York sun sets, it’s time to listen to BA PACE. The Bronx rapper’s five-song After-Hours EP has been the soundtrack to summer’s end, when there’s not much to do at night other than drift through a silent park or drink something sweet while rooting against the Lakers. EP closer “333 (Ragu)” has that feeling, too. BA PACE roams his city, sorting through thoughts that keep churning. “I need the bread I’m here to stay/I ain’t seekin’ validation,” he delivers with his heavy voice, on a Jimmy Stubbs beat that feels as if it were made for a surreal psychedelic sequence in a ’70s exploitation movie—maybe Larry Cohen’s Black Caesar. It’s music to play when you’re sitting alone, waiting for morning.
Five things we want to see from Amazon’s UK drill musical series Jungle
• A dance number in the style of 1967 French classic The Young Girls of Rochefort, but everyone is wearing Nike Tech fleece
• Drill muppets
• A West Side Story-influenced fight scene
• A musical number about Stone Island
• Choreography that includes hitting the “Gun Lean”
Please, someone play pool with Nav
A reminder that Big Sean is a Detroit rapper
Big Sean has always paid homage to Detroit—even naming his best mixtape and its new sequel after the city—but he’s never really had a big connection to the sounds and styles coming out of his hometown. Until now. His new “Don Life” video was shot by one of Detroit’s favorite cameramen, Jerry Production, and “Friday Night Cypher,” a track on the back half of Detroit 2—which features Eminem, Doughboyz Cashout’s Payroll Giovanni, and Sada Baby, among others—unites three generations of hip-hop in his city. I would have loved to see him get crazy and throw Kasher Quon on the album, but it’s still refreshing to see Sean embrace Detroit more than he ever has.
Yg Teck: “Flood Da City”
In the video for Baltimore rapper Yg Teck’s “Flood Da City,” dirt bikers do wheelies and speed through residential neighborhoods. The anthem was made for such rowdiness, and Teck turns up on Brooklyn-drill-like production. The energy in the video reminds me of Fivio Foreign’s “Big Drip,” and its recklessness feels fitting for the end of a stolen summer. If this same song were made in New York, it would be inescapable right now. But even if the song’s distinctive lingo and swag keep it local, at least Baltimore and its bike life have a soundtrack for the next several months.
Is Hype Williams directing the Instagram videos for French soccer star Karim Benzema?
Shawny Binladen and Bizzy Banks: “Wockhardt”
Since he comes from the far outskirts of Queens, Shawny Binladen is typically removed from the rest of New York’s rap scene. But on “Wockhardt,” he connects with one of Brooklyn drill’s fast-rising names, Bizzy Banks, for a video posted on WorldStarHipHop, a platform that still holds some weight nationwide. It’s easy to see why Shawny chose “Wockhardt” to push beyond his borough: His whispery delivery sounds punchy over production that’ll ease you into a daydream. Bizzy Banks’ characteristic verse displays the attention to locality that makes him stand out in a crowded scene: “Bad lil bitch and she go to a CUNY,” he breezily raps, referencing the colleges throughout the five boroughs. The song is still carried by Shawny, who lets the rest of New York know that Queens won’t be ignored.
Originally Appeared on Pitchfork
