I still believe in A$AP Rocky and I’ve never wavered.
Sure, he doesn’t drop enough. And when he does, his experiments don’t always work. But when he’s locked in, his taste level is unmatched—he’s created some of the most arresting music videos by anyone in his peer group (class of 2011—read into that what you will), he’s curated some of the best collaborations (do remember who the guy behind one of rap’s biggest event albums in recent memory is signed to), and he’s never stopped pushing the envelope sonically (remember the first time you heard that “LPFJ2” beat drop?).
He’s had creative missteps and false starts, and risked audience indifference through indefensible inactivity—but then he’ll drop something like “DMB” that proves he’s still got it when he wants it. And for those of us (read: millennials of a certain age) who were outside in New York for the summer of “Peso,” who witnessed the A$AP wave from its “Purple Swag” infancy, Rocky will always hold a special place in our hearts and minds. At.Long.Last.A$AP is a classic album in my house, and objectively a grade-A album outside of it—one that can go toe-to-toe with 2015’s other, more widely favored releases, at least in terms of quality if not impact—but I’m also going to argue that 2018’s Testing is overhated. Detractors will give “Praise” its props and that’s where it stops, as if “Buck Shots” doesn’t exist, nor “Hun43rd,” or “Purity”…but I digress.
Even when he says he’s like, tripping on acid with Morrissey or whatever in an effort to push the envelope, the intent always rings genuine to me. He and A$AP Yams were avatars of forward-thinking; maybe the pursuit of keeping up that reputation just gets the better of Rocky. But it never seemed unreasonable to me to hold out hope that it could all still realign for him.
And dammit, that day looks like it might actually be on the horizon. I’ll be honest—the handful of loosie singles for his long-delayed album Don’t Be Dumb haven’t quite moved me. But after watching him stand his ground on denying a plea deal, score a not guilty verdict most of the internet assumed he wouldn’t get, and leap into Rihanna’s arms in the courtroom before posing with her outside like John Gotti reincarnated, I’m starting to feel like this extreme aura inflation will supercharge Rocky to put his all into recording an album that matches the moment. He’s been one half of one of pop culture’s most adored couples for the last five years now, still the best-dressed rapper out, and a festival mainstay, but the trial and subsequent verdict made Rocky white-hot again. He could’ve dropped the album a week or so later to capitalize, but personally I’m glad he’s getting back in the lab and channeling this energy into going harder.