Aminé ONEPOINTFIVE Review

Rating- 6.5/10

There was not an anthem much bigger than “Caroline” back in 2016. And unlike many party bangers, this one deserved all the attention. The quirky Portland based rapper came onto the scene very strong with the perfect song to match. “Caroline” served as a great foundational marketing piece for what was a strong 2017 debut album, Good for You. The offbeat instrumentals and colorful aesthetic made this project and Aminé as an overall artist standout against the brooding trap songs that were saturating the music industry. A little over a year later, Aminé’s second album, ONEPOINTFIVE, drops much more casually. There haven’t been any hit singles or many verses since his first project and this time around ONEPOINTFIVE serves more as a mixtape. Updating fans on the life of stardom is a common theme for a sophomore album and Amine executes his version with less detail and charm than what he famously put himself on with.

It would be unfair to say that ONEPOINTFIVE is any less compelling than a Travis Scott or Lil Uzi Vert project, but its mixtape nature is apparent and usually serves more as a lyrical flex than a compelling character. Aminé showed himself to be at least slightly different from the rest of the pack in his rookie year as noticed by XXL in adding him to the freshman cover. His lyrics were nostalgic, creative, and refreshingly juvenile. It is not that he takes himself too seriously on his second swing at an album. He just loses a bit of that charisma on clichéd tracks like “Hiccup” or “Blackjack.” While these songs maintain the same rapping prowess you would expect, their lyrical shortcomings kill any replay value that one could get from pretty.. much.. any song out already.

The lyrical content is not entirely disappointing. It is just very inconsistent as if he felt obligated to make a couple modern day trap songs to test the waters. The album opener, “Dr. Whoever” is a stronger moment where he gives himself therapy rapping “Man. I’ve thought about suicide a hundred times But, I’d hate to disappoint and see my momma cry. Birthdays these days the worst days ‘Cause I know I’m gettin’ older and not happier.” Compare that to a money praising track like “Dapperdan” where he raps “You don’t ever see my ridin’ no Acura” and you can sometimes feel that you are listening to two different people.

The production remains pleasant and minimal throughout though. Aminé proves again that he can flow just as well on the funkier instrumentals of “Why?” as he can on the sporadic and off-kilter beats we were used to on Good for You. While producers such as Pasqué and Tee-WaTT have done a nice job complimenting the Portland-rapper’s vibe, the tracks tend to become repetitive. Much like a mixtape, the beat switch ups are rare and the song structures call for nothing more than conveyer belt three minute raps.

ONEPOINTFIVE doesn’t suffer sonically. The production is one of the better for trap albums this year and just like a year ago, Aminé still knows how to rap and find serviceable melodies. It just seems apparent that the upbeat rapper is testing the waters of current moody trends and superficial lyricism on a project that plays as a pit stop for a grander third album.