Review Roundup: YG - 'Still Brazy'

Get your straitjackets ready. The reviews are in for YG’s Still Brazy.

Unleashed two days early via Apple Music, the Compton rapper’s sophomore album is finally out in wide release featuring the Drake-assisted single “Why You Always Hatin?” and appearances from Lil Wayne and Nipsey Hussle. It follows his 2014 debut, My Krazy Life, which received critical acclaim, but was famously overlooked by the Grammys.

Was YG able to win over critics once again? Find out if they’re still crazy over Still Brazy.

The New York Times: Still Brazy is an artisanal, proletarian Los Angeles gangster rap record, less tribute to the sound’s golden age than a full-throated and wholly absorbed recitation. YG is a stern rapper, but a loyal student above all.

The Boston Globe: YG is passionate and direct rather than cool and detached; when he does lash out, it’s with a purpose. … After this impressive album, it’s clear living brazy works for YG.

SPIN: My Krazy Life seemed to look to the West Coast hip-hop canon for inspiration whenever YG and Mustard needed a hook or a song concept—but now that he’s on his own, YG has gone and done himself one better, creating a record that stands tall alongside the full-lengths he once mined. 8/10

All Music: A heavy album that doesn’t pander to what’s PC, what’s on the radio, or what safe, suburban America believes. Alluring G-Funk and infectious songs of strife are what attracted suburban America to Suge, Snoop, and Dre, and while the Game grows older and Kendrick’s music ventures further out, YG offers a West Coast way to keep their heads ringin’, and maybe shake something loose in the process. 4/5

Examiner: A great show of improvement and growth since My Krazy Life while still keeping YG’s original essence and musical character, Still Brazy is perhaps unexpectedly and surprisingly fantastic. … YG has proven here that he is a charismatic, exciting rapper as he’s both political and swaggered, conscious yet groovy. … A year or two ago, most people probably would not have expected this from him quite like it is, but almost everybody will be appreciative of it now for sure. 5/5

You’ve read what the critics have to say. Now, you can stream the album for yourself below.