‘Full Speed’
Kid Ink
Grade: C-
Kid Ink has the formula figured out, if you ask me.
In his third album, “Full Speed,” the Los Angeles rapper continued his climb up the pop charts. Kid Ink puts below-average lyrics on above average dance club beats and collaborates with popular stars, such as Usher, Chris Brown and Migos.
It’s a game plan just crazy enough to work.
“Full Speed” isn’t particularly impressive. Most Kid Ink songs sound relatively the same. You throw a bunch of synthetic sounds with a bit of bass, snapping and horns, and congratulations — you have a Kid Ink track.
I’m not trying to throw Kid Ink under the bus. Because let’s be real, I could listen to “Body Language” repeatedly without getting tired of it.
The upbeat sounds and simple lyrics give you just enough to start bobbing your head until your friend catches you and goes, “Hey, is that Kid Ink featuring Usher that you’re jamming to wearing that Tupac sweatshirt?”
“Um, no man, you’re crazy,” you respond, laughing it off as you quickly try to shuffle your iPod.
Don’t worry though, you’ll go back and listen to it again later. Because once you get hooked on Kid Ink, it’s hard to stop.
Kid Ink knows that. He’s obviously studied his previous success with singles such as “Main Chick” and “Show Me.” It feels, and sounds, as though he basically tried to replicate those songs 12 times to make an album.
“Full Speed” has only 12 tracks and lasts for about 40 minutes. It’s a quick listen that mostly blends together until Migos randomly joins the fun on the eighth track, “Every City We Go.”
“Every City We Go” was the track I had to return to more than the others. If I had to guess, I’m assuming it shows the route Kid Ink will be heading down the line because it doesn’t sound entirely like a cookie-cutter hip-hop track.
The album, like the title would prompt you to believe, is mostly fast-paced. The majority of the songs finish in less than three minutes and 30 seconds and sometimes blend together.
“Body Language” feels like the standout song on the album, which makes sense considering its success on popular radio. If you’ve already heard the track featuring Usher and Tinashe, you can get the picture for the rest of the album.
Kid Ink is approaching 30 now, and soon “kid” will begin to fade like the tattoos he’s got covering his face, arms, hands and torso.
I’m not entirely sure he’s got the lyrical ability to mature and stay relevant much longer unless he continues to get carried by the likes of Usher and ?Trey Songz.
So I guess you could say Kid Ink got his money’s worth in “Full Speed.” There’s a certain point in life where you can’t continue rapping about all the attention women give you at the club.
That point is rapidly approaching for Kid Ink.
