GRIPAZEEM BE LIVING MOTIVATION – Manifest Destiny
GRIPAZEEM BE LIVING MOTIVATION – Manifest Destiny – Album Review + Bonus Track
Alright y’all…take this to heart…if you’re going by the name of GRIPAZEEM BE LIVING MOTIVATION you probably DO NOT need ALL CAPS to get that across, you feel me? It’s plenty memorable as a name as it is, I promise ya. We’re not about to get the guy confused with Gripazeem The Encyclopedia Salesman or Gripazeem The Resident Math Genius. We know which Gripazeem is which – feel free to try and prove me wrong. Anyway…that’s what’s up…we’ll be digging right into this dude’s music two times this week, starting with his album Manifest Destiny from last year, and his latest called Applegarth Academy later on down the road at some point, both featuring their own self-titled singles released independently too.
We go through the “Point Of Entry” on our way into Manifest Destiny. First impressions…I’ll be real with ya, like I always am…there’s some good here, but there’s also plenty of room to evolve in his craft as well, which makes sense given the fact that this dude is only two records into his career at this point. For example, when you listen to the very beginning of “Point Of Entry,” you can hear a few lines that are basically coming atcha straight from an old-school realm of the Rap game that have long been left behind…and while it’s not always a bad strategy to learn from what’s been done, GRIPAZEEM is also walking a very fine line that feels like we’ve heard what he has to offer before as well. “Fuck that bitch,” as he says…you get where I’m goin’ with this…you’ve probably encountered that statement before at some point in your travels throughout the Rap & Trap genres…and if that’s how you feel about something, don’t get me wrong, say it with your chest and spit it as such – just understand there’s less opportunity to make a first impression memorable when you’re saying things like others have before you, that’s all I’m saying. Embrace the uniqueness GRIPAZEEM! You certainly did it with your name, so don’t be shy about doin’ it with your lyricism as well. Other spots like “then grab a bite at Wendy’s” feel a bit forced in the metering, or later on in the hook, where you can hear him speeding up and slowing down to stay in time with the beat before you’re even thirty-five seconds in…it’s concerning. It all depends on what you’re going for of course, but “Point Of Entry” shows the signs of an artist’s early work and that missing fluidity you find in an artist’s career later on. Nothing wrong with that, it gives GRIPAZEEM BE LIVING MOTIVATION the opportunity to continue to grow as an artist, and obviously that’s a good thing. If you come straight outta the gate with nowhere else to go but down, that’s where I’d be way more worried…GRIPAZEEM has plenty of room to sharpen his craft from here on in. Music & beat-wise, I dig what I hear…and he’s got some really solid lines along the way too…it really just sounds like a matter of getting that time & experience under his belt to refine his methods, and he’ll be all good.
“I do what I wanna do” – and so he should! Perfect way to make my case GRIPAZEEM – if you had started out Manifest Destiny with the kind of uniqueness we hear in “Kuroihona Flow (Black Flames Freestyle),” I would have had precious little to criticize – this is the way to go about making a memorable impact. That being said, there’s not a doubt in my mind that with the sheer amount of repetition that rampages throughout “Kuroihana Flow (Black Flames Freestyle)” that a song like this has a very limited shelf life in terms of how long it’ll hold up for, but make no mistake, it’s still absolutely memorable. Using the call and answer approach, with each line being spit answered by “that’s flames, that’s fire” definitely carries risk with it, but there’s a rhythm that works here too. I’m of the mind that things all circle back to the roots of the genre – Rap…it’s rhythm AND poetry…and in that respect, I advocate for taking every opportunity you can find to add more words instead of less, but I ain’t hatin’ on “Kuriohana Flow (Black Flames Freestyle)” either. It works well enough, and I could see people digging something like this…y’all know me, I just call things like I honestly hear’em, every time. I know that for myself, I’ve probably got a little more patience for the repetition found in a track like this than the majority of listeners likely will, but I dunno…tracks that come outta left-field in an innovative way like this track does can also become viral hits or find longevity through their uniqueness too. In any event, I think there is no question whatsoever that this second track makes a much more noticeable impact, and comes out with a more confident, stronger performance from the main man on the mic from start to finish as well.
Wisely enlisting 2MarchBaby to provide the hook for “When I Win,” GRIPAZEEM ends up with a track that more listeners are likely to respond to as a result. I might still argue that something like “Kuriohona Flow (Black Flames Freestyle)” still has more uniqueness to it, but I would guarantee a cut like “When I Win” will make a much stronger case for itself in the court of public opinion. It’s a pretty easy track to like overall…and I feel like there’s certainly single-worthy potential being revealed here. That being said, a large part of that is thanks to what 2MarchBaby supplies “When I Win” with…as for GRIPAZEEM’s part, he’s definitely got moments that work extremely well, like the beginning of the opening verse, and others that end up falling a bit more flat like the very end of that same verse as well…”gotta stay legit, but you won’t quit” – spots like that can end up feeling choppy when we listen, like GRIPAZEEM is rhyming for the sake of rhyming, as opposed to spitting out what’s really on his mind without worrying about finding the matching sound of the word that ended the line prior, you know what I mean? That’s the kind of thing that naturally improves and gets more creative over time…I ain’t here to judge this guy too harshly on his debut effort – everyone shows cracks in the armor at the very start, but that all ends up highlighting the opportunities for growth. Again, I personally consider that a good thing, and if pointing those moments out makes me a critical villain…not sure what else to say other than that’s always been me. I’ll give the advice others won’t – you’re all still free to take it or leave it as you see fit. Regardless, I feel like “When I Win” would still make for an excellent gateway into GRIPAZEEM’s music. The hooks totally work, and you do get a lot of character on the mic from the main star of the show too.
“Stackin’ bread since the teenage years!” Great line! And you see what I mean? If that’s the case, then he doesn’t need my advice anyway…he’s already making money moves, and he doesn’t need any further confirmation from me or anyone else. What I would tell him about “Commercial” on the whole, is that he’s got something that works brilliantly from start to finish here…there’s nothing I’d change, there are no notes from me on this one – I feel like GRIPAZEEM pretty much nailed this track, and reveals a lot more noticeable swagger in this performance where a flashier vibe genuinely called for that. All-in-all, it’s a great match between the energy and the concept, and I’d be lookin’ at this track as the blueprint for the way forward if I was GRIPAZEEM…his lyricism is on-point, the imagery in his words is great, and all-around, he puts in the kind of stylistic performance required to make a track like this work perfectly. It’s essentially high-fashion come to life in audible form, and these words were meant to walk the runway straight onto your playlists. “Commercial” will reveal the most potential in GRIPAZEEM’s future – “invest in Gripz cause he’s that guy” – well said my man, but more importantly and to the point, it’s the mix of pure confidence and precision that has us believing this line is built on FACTS and not fiction.
Call him GRIPZ, GRIPPER, BLM GRIPAZEEM, GRIPAZEEM BE LIVING MOTIVATION…he goes by many names, and to be honest, ALL CAPS or not, as long as the music comes out with quality, I really don’t care what anyone out there wants to go by as far as monikers are concerned. 2MarchBaby comes back around for “The Come Up” – and it’s clear this collaboration between him and GRIPZ produces the right kind of results. You get another solid hook, and another one of what I’d tell ya is GRIPAZEEM’s most notable performances. Make no mistake, I might feel like he started off on fairly risky terrain with the opening two tracks, but he’s really shown that Manifest Destiny continually raises the stakes and seems to get better as it plays on. “The Come Up” is another great example of finding the right way to move to the music and find the right space on the mic to complement the sound overall. When you’ve got moments like what you hear in the beginning of the record where it seems like GRIPAZEEM is searching for the right spots to spit or the right cadence, tone, and timing to do it – you end up feeling that struggle with him as you listen. When everything snaps right into place where it should be, you end up with songs like “The Come Up” where everything sounds like it was truly meant to be from the very first seconds of the track all the way through to the end. This collaboration between GRIPAZEEM & 2MarchBaby definitely brings out some of their most significant highlights…there’s no doubt these two work strongly together.
All good things must come to an end, as they say. Would I toss “Famous” outta this lineup? I mean…this dude has been on an undeniable roll up to this point…and while I might not say anything as extreme as “Famous” takes him back a step in that regard, it’s also harder to argue that this track pushes the record forward either. I’ll admit there is a sliver of a chance that a track like “Famous” could go on to beat the odds and become one of those viral anthems that the Tik Tok generation will clip to add the hooks into their videos in that same way you know from the Thug Life section…and that definitely wouldn’t be a bad thing at all – that could work out real damn well if it were to catch on. “She’s sittin’ on me cause she’s bored of him” is also a killer line that should get at least a few listeners raising an eyebrow to be like, ‘did he just say what I thought he said?’ – and rest assured, the answer is yes, he absolutely did. Do I think there’s enough here to compete with the best material you’ll find on Manifest Destiny? Not really if I’m being honest with ya…”Famous” is noticeably thin in its ideas from the music to the microphone, in my opinion. Performance-wise…that’s probably its best attribute…GRIPAZEEM puts in a solid effort from start to finish, it’s just the material that leaves us wanting a bit more, and especially at this point in the record where he’s just laid down three tracks one after the other that “Famous” can’t quite compete with. “Famous” is catchy, I’ll give him that…but something tells me this’ll burn out quick. I suppose I’d have likely made the same call to include it like he did on this album, but by the same token, I feel like years down the road in hindsight, “Famous” will definitely be looked at as an ‘early’ cut in his career. Ain’t nothing wrong with that – every artist & band under the sun has those same tracks in their own catalogs somewhere. Execution-wise, it’s pretty damn good if I’m being real with ya…I might have the vocals come down a bit so the music sounds even larger, but it ain’t bad as it stands right now.
Similarities alert…notice the two freestyle tracks employ the same approach, with the call & answer method on display, and the answer being a completely repetitious part of the song. I cannot express just how much this level of repetition is going to take a toll on the wear & tear of songs like “Kami Flow (Deity Freestyle)” and “Kuroihona Flow (Black Flames Freestyle)” – these tunes are certainly in jeopardy when it comes to what’s going to hold up over time. The effect of repetition can obviously be a great thing in music when it’s done right…but if you’re not too careful, the effect of using it too much can be that it feels like you know a song inside & out by the time you’ve heard it twice, and I suspect that’s going to be a lot of people’s opinion on a track like “Kami Flow (Deity Freestyle).” Like I said earlier, it’s an avoidable thing like an unforced error…rhythm and poetry – stay hungry and seek out EVERY possible opportunity to flex those lyrics, and while repetition can be an essential ingredient of many great hooks out there, it’s still gotta be bulletproof to really pull that method off. So yeah man…I dunno what else to tell ya GRIPAZEEM…look for those moments to stand out and go after’em yo! Rather than get drawn into the repetition of a single line, let that be your cue to get back in the lab with pen to paper in order to create something that always gives us a reason to return, you feel me? A track with the approach like what we hear on “Kami Flow (Deity Freestyle)” is something that listeners will likely pick up on way too fast…which CAN be good, because that’s memorable too – but what continually brings listeners back to the records they love most, is that they still find something new in what they know, even years later on.
OKAY! You see what I’m saying? We have come from a fairly played out “fuck that bitch” at the start of Manifest Destiny, to a much more inventive and impactful line like “I could have me a million hos, but I’d still choose Rubi Rose” – that’s fuckin’ genius! I tell ya folks, I’ve never written a review that’s anything less than honest about what I hear…I might call things like I hear’em, but that’s also how you know when I’ve got something good to say, it’s coming from a very real place. “Rubi Rose” is the kind of track that has the real potential to stand out for all the right reasons. The music is stellar, and even though it stays in the same gear from start to finish, it provides the right kind of dynamics to help assist the main man on the m-i-c to spring off of, which GRIPAZEEM capitalizes on throughout the majority of this track. I still feel like he’s got room to sharpen his metering and the fluidity of his flow, which is revealed in lines like “baby girl why don’t you have some fun” or “she said baby I feel it all in my brain” or “bitches love my vibes, they say I’m so feng shui” – again, it’s there in the metering…split seconds of speeding up or slowing down that make all the different between sounding like you’ve got control of every syllable, or reveal that there’s something getting away from you through the slight hesitations that come with an extra word in the way, or needing another to perfect the line. So yeah…I mean…I’m not here to tell ya that “Rubi Rose” is completely 100% perfect on a technical level, but I will certainly vouch for this track being one of the most engaging & entertaining cuts on Manifest Destiny. GRIPAZEEM will get proudly rude for ya on “Rubi Rose” – he is vividly explicit to say the very least…and I’m here for it. As long as you’re not the uptight type, the relentless swagger and style of this track should be more than enough to get the people’s attention. Ultimately I’d tell ya this cut might still need another run through in the studio to make it completely perfect, but I still think listeners will respond to how “Rubi Rose” came out.
GRIPAZEEM BLM switches it up on “Come To My Room” bringing the music to a more energetic and uplifting vibe. He’s still rappin’ about “this dick” and that kinda is what it is…don’t get me wrong bro, I ain’t personally opposed to it, but there’s no question that it takes a more accessible sound like you hear in the music on “Come To My Room” and narrows the potential scope of listening audience through the choices he’s making on a lyrical level…as long as he’s comfortable with that fact, it’s his prerogative. I’d likely advise the guy to find those moments of accessibility and broaden it out…like, you know, you can still rap about your dick if you wanna, but maybe refer to it less directly, like Johnson, Salami, or even Meat Stick…you get what I mean…you want your music to fit into more spaces than less, without having to compromise too much of your style and/or what you wanna communicate. All I’m saying is that when you end up in a scenario like “Come To My Room” with the brightened energy of the sound of the music is likely to appeal to that many more people, the closer you can meet the masses on some kind of middle ground lyrically, is likely to your benefit. Anyhow. I personally dig the majority of what I hear on “Come To My Room” and would consider this up there with some of the best on Manifest Destiny for the most part. There’s some clashing in the tones of the vocals and effects laid on’em, but if I’m being real with ya, you can find numerous examples of that happening in modern day music and no one out there seems to give all that much of a shit. Clash away my friends, there seems to be no consequences – but of course, if you want to enhance the appeal of your song, it’s probably still best to avoid conflicting tones or too much contrast in the melody when it comes to the overall accessibility of your material. I do like that he’s flexing a more unique idea here in how this track is structured & using its echo effects.
“Comfortable” sounds like he is! GRIPAZEEM brings back 2MarchBaby, so you know this last track will be on solid ground based on everything you’ve heard from’em so far – and you also get an additional featured guest with Wacks Doe in the mix as well. All-in-all, this works, and it’s definitely one of the stronger cuts on the record when it comes to its appeal & accessibility – “Comfortable” sounds extremely relevant and like the kind of music listeners instantly want to turn UP. To his credit, there has been a whole lotta professionalism to be found throughout Manifest Destiny, and much more that you’d assume you’d find on an artist’s debut record. Auto-tuners are tough-ass pieces of software to use – what I like to hear and what you like to hear out of the same effects on vocals will probably be totally different…we all respond to that sound in our own individual ways. To me, I always hear a combination of what goes perfectly right, and the two percent that still sounds like it’s wild’n’out even in the best of scenarios. Would I stop using it, based on how rarely it seems to come out completely perfect? Hell no! Like they show you on “Comfortable,” when it’s done this well, the positives far outweigh any perceivable negatives…so you betcha, I’m cool with it. They’ve got an excellent combination of talent on this last track from Manifest Destiny though…I’m sure it’ll be noticed by everyone listening, and go on to be recognized as one of the record’s best tracks. Not a bad note to go out on here GRIPAZEEM!
“Exemplary…you can tell from my rhymes…” – hold up there champ, we’re not quite there yet, but he’s right when he says “hard work and determination pays off” – because eventually, it does. What I really like about the single “Manifest Destiny” that was released separately in advance of the album, is when you listen to the man’s words on this track, you can hear him really saying what’s on his mind in a more unfiltered way. He’s essentially flexing that lyricism in the way that I’ve been hoping he would. Just be careful about always minding that fluidity and flow brother-man…the smoother that is, the quicker he’ll find his way to being the “exemplary” artist he’s destined to be. There are moments where you can tell he’s going for something stylistic and a lot of the time it works, but there’s very little room to be found in between a purposeful move on the mic and the kind of split-second timing issues that the listeners will hear as a mistake…I’m simply advising caution and saying that most folks listening won’t know the difference if you’re not too careful in that regard. What I’d like to know is what stopped him from putting “Manifest Destiny” on the actual album itself – this is a strong cut in GRIPAZEEM BE LIVING MOTIVATION’s early catalog, and a great indication of the kind of chops necessary to lead to greatness. All these steps he’s made, from having a name that stands out in the crowd, to a style that shows us the roots of the identity he’ll go on to establish, and a sound that works well in his favor throughout the bulk of the material on Manifest Destiny…it’s all firmly on the positive side & an indication that he’ll have no problem leveling up as he continues on. It’ll be interesting to hear how a year helped expand his music and what he’s capable of when we review Applegarth Academy later on this week y’all – stay tuned.
Find out more about GRIPAZEEM BE LIVING MOTIVATION at his official page at Instagram here: https://www.instagram.com/blmgripazeem
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