G Herbo - 25
Entering rap’s A League on his own terms...
Billed as a coming-of-age venture, ‘25’ displays *G Herbo* in full 360 – moving from introversion to braggadocio across some ice cold beats. The Chicago rapper laid down a marker on his 2020 project ‘*PTSD’*, featuring bars hewn from life on the wrong side of the tracks; indeed, it’s these experiences thar puncture ‘25’, alongside the promise of something better.
Opener ‘I Don’t Wanna Die’ sets the tone for an escapee from Chi-Town’s cauldron, and it moves quickly from there. ‘25’ is stacked with stellar collaborations, a sign of G Herbo’s accelerating reputation – ‘Cry No More’ grabs Polo G and Lil Tjay, while 21 Savage bolsters ‘T.O.P’ with exhilarating rays of his experience.
It remains a showcase for an innovative rap artist, however. ‘Cold World’ and ‘Whole Hearts’ ramp up the personal revelations, with G Herbo switching up his flows to illustrate the emotional nuance of his work. Gang culture is never far away, however, permeating the language of ‘Loyalty’, say, or the cut-throat directness of ‘Pray 4 My Enemies’.
Refusing to offer a reductive viewpoint, ’25’ provides space for its author to lay out the truth in all its contradictory ugliness. ‘Turning 25’ is a reflection on times passed, a growing awareness that his life is being transformed; yet the set ends with ‘Break Yoself’, and a promise that some aspects of his being will never truly be transformed.
‘25’ illustrates an artist impinging on the mainstream, while still tethered to the underground. It’s there that G Herbo’s dynamic speaks most profoundly – he’s a reluctant star, almost. It’s no surprise, then, that perhaps the most personal song on here is titled ‘Trenches No My Name’.
A record of breadth and distillation, ‘25’ finds G Herbo entering rap’s A League on his own terms.
*8/10*
Words: *Robin Murray*
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