By Giacomo Kuzma, Reporter
On Friday, Jan. 27, the rap trio Migos released their sophomore album C U L T U R E. The group consists of Atlanta-based rappers Offset, Quavo, and Takeoff. Peaking at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 and R&B/Hip-Hop Albums charts, C U L T U R E has received an 82 out of 100 rating from Metacritic, and Allmusic gave it four and a half stars. The album’s hit single “Bad and Boujee” topped the Billboard Hot 100 chart. Critics and consumers alike are considering C U L T U R E a success.
“I feel like Migos will never not be good,” sophomore Naomi Blausapp said. “They are only getting more and more influential [in hip-hop culture] and aren’t going anywhere soon.”
Sophomore Elijah Nichelson was in Atlanta, Georgia when C U L T U R E dropped.
“It’s on the radio constantly. People on the subway, in the streets, and lots of people downtown are all playing it,” Nichelson said.
In terms of what Migos is doing for hip-hop’s culture, Nichelson recalled a term which rapper Donald Glover, known by his stage name, Childish Gambino, bestowed upon the group recently:
“They are very innovative,” Nichelson said. “They are said to be ‘today’s Beatles.’”
He praised the trio for their chemistry, influential music, and for “coming out with fire.”
Sophomore Kai-Rese Duff has contrary views of C U L T U R E. He believes the album’s general sound is homogenous.
“[While] I did find the pauses they take after every few words to be interesting and their own unique way of rapping, [it became] repetitive after awhile,” Duff said. “I didn’t like the lyrics of the album much because they lack depth and single words and phrases [are] repeated often.”
Duff did think the lyrics merged well with the instrumentals, but he saw C U L T U R E more as background music.
“[It’s] something to listen to when you really don’t feel like listening to the lyrics and just want to feel the beats,” Duff said. “[But, Migos has] a shot to be innovative.”
Sophomore Lewis Kanagy was perhaps the biggest critic of Migos’ music.
“They’ve peaked and will be forgotten in three months,” Kanagy said. He concluded, claiming that the group “doesn’t compare to” southern rap artist, Lil Wayne.
Despite C U L T U R E’s promising ratings and critical reviews, it doesn’t meet the standards of all. To form your own opinion of Migos’ C U L T U R E, stream or download it from any standard music platform, including iTunes, Spotify, Google Play, and Pandora.