A Faithless Rendition
The second posthumous album in Pop Smoke's name is an unfortunate example of when an artist's legacy should be left untouched
The second posthumous studio album by Pop Smoke, Faith, was released on Friday as a follow-up to the slain rapper’s momentous Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon, which dominated hip-hop in 2020. Directed by label head Steven Victor, the new project lit a fire under fans, who claim that it steers away from Pop’s unmistakable style and desecrates his legacy.
Faith begins with the narrated “Good News,” where Pop Smoke’s mother dedicates the album to his vision for greatness. As one progresses deeper into the tracklist, however, countless red flags go up about the decisions taken by Pop’s management in his name. For starters, the Brooklyn-born rapper was the face of a rap subgenre called “drill,” known for its distinct percussion and aggressive lyrics. So why is Faith stuffed with so many lazy fusions of R&B, slow trap, and ballad rap?
Moreover, Pop was always selective with features, revealing in an interview that he prefers to show us “straight New York Pop Smoke.” But on Faith’s 20 songs, only five are solos, with one of them being a 30-second interlude. Instead of giving us straight Pop, the album is treated as a platform for Pusha T to throw shade at Drake, Kanye to chant vapidly, and artist after artist to pay their respects to Pop and then try their hand at a good verse. At least we know Pop meant to collaborate with 21 Savage on “Bout A Million” from the namecheck (“Twenty-one, I’m a savage”), and it’s believable that he might’ve sought to work with Dua Lipa on “Demeanor.” But it should’ve been on a smaller record, perhaps an EP, where he was the dominating force, rather than an overstuffed, underproduced compilation where he’s just another guest artist.
Besides “Bout A Million,” highlights include the solo banger “Coupe” and “30,” the latter of which contains a genuine back-and-forth chemistry with Bizzy. But by and large, the team behind Faith appears to have grafted his vocals onto deliberately offbrand instrumentals, forcing a poorly mixed, experimental final act into the career of the late artist. The biggest offender? “Top Shotta,” which sounds like an insufferable cross between reggaeton and Mario tunes. And they didn’t even bother producing a beat for “Woo Baby Interlude,” branded as an interlude but obviously an unfinished demo that didn’t find its way onto a full song.
It’s unfortunate, and honestly perplexing that Steven Victor would put out such a shoddy record after the herculean effort undertaken to complete Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon, which was widely celebrated for its production quality and respect for the artist. Taken with the controversy that has loomed over XXXTentacion’s posthumous Skins, the hip-hop industry faces a broader reckoning with how to treat the unfinished material of artists that can no longer make the final calls themselves. The opener on Faith pledges that “the smoke will never clear”—one can only hope that Pop Smoke’s label won’t torch his legacy in the process.