On November 13, Ty Dolla $ign will release his debut album Free TC. He release a 10-track prelude Airplane Mode this week, but it's hard to tell if that was a sign of things to come on the album or simply a dump of all the tracks that didn't quite make the cut.
At 16 tracks, Free TC is longer than any of his best-know projects; the Beach House mixtapes were both 13 songs long, Beach House EP was 8, Sign Language was 11, and Airplane Mode was 10. As an artist who excels on features, Ty Dolla $ign's debut album is the biggest test he's faced yet.
Diverse production
DJ Mustard and Ty Dolla $ign are a natural pairing, but there is a limit on much Mustard can contribute to a Ty Dolla project. Admittedly, he produced "Paranoid" & "Or Nah," the two biggest hits on Beach House EP. He's produced two of the Free TC singles to come out so far, and it's a split decision. "Only Right" was forgettable and "Saved" has club smash written all over it.
His other singles have yielded quality results -- "When I See Ya" marries pop/Mustard-esque sensibilities with a thick, soulful, jazzy chord progression. It's produced by Cardo and Johnny Juliano, and indeed it's not so far from The Game's "100," which they also produced. "Blasé," produced by Cardo, is an infectious trap banger that is the audible manifestation of what it feels like when you walk in the club.
Basically, Ty needs his pop, soul, and trap influences in his production to tease out his different sides. And he should also bring back that violinist who went in on Beach House EP's "Work" and "Never Was the Same."
Lots of D.R.U.G.S.
Lots of D.R.U.G.S.
The identities of the producers on about half the album's songs are still unknown, per the tracklist Ty Dolla $ign released yesterday. Hopefully, many of these songs were assembled by the production collective known as D.R.U.G.S. (Dirty Rotten Underground Sound). D.R.U.G.S. helmed by Ty and comprises of the massively talented ensemble of DJ Dahi, Fuego, Buddah, James Koo, Nate 3D and Chordz 3D, among others. They produced the bulk of his breakout Beach House mixtape. Free TC is the culmination of Ty's career to date and these dudes deserve to be on it.
LA Better than Game
A better "L.A." than The Documentary 2's "L.A."
Possibly the most infuriating track on the The Game's The Documentary 2 is its closer, "L.A." And not because it's a bad song. Game and Snoop Dogg both deliver vintage verses, and Will.I.Am brought his production A-game. Unfortunately, he neglected to bring his hook A-game, as he (with Fergie's help) manage to crater the entire song with a cringing chorus that, in the words of Patrick Lyons, "sounds like it belongs in a Mary Kate & Ashley movie set in Los Angeles"
Free T.C. opens with a song called “L.A." that features Kendrick Lamar, Brandy & James Fauntleroy. A promising guest cast, and unlikely that Ty would fuck up the hook like Will.I.Am did.
Lyrical Diversity
Occasional brooding lyrics
"Never Be the Same" is one of the best tracks on Beach House EP, for three reasons: Jay Rock's fire guest verse, Ty's wistful production, and the fact that Ty shows a little vulnerability for a change. His voice is so damn good but he tends to limit himself by talking about sex 90% of the time.
He doesn't need to go full-"Marvin's Room." A little bit goes a long way. "Never Be the Same" is both a celebration of his success and an admission that fame has its drawbacks.
"Now I done seen a lot of things/
Know the trouble the money and fame brings"
A single that cracks the top 10 of the charts
Ty has writing credit on Wiz Khalifa's "Young, Wild, and Free," Rihanna's "FourFiveSeconds," & Chris Brown's "Loyal," all of which cracked the he top 10 of the Billboard Hot 100. Somewhat surprisingly, he has yet to crack the top 10, let alone the top 25, with one of his own records.
"Paranoid" is his biggest hit yet -- it peaked at #29 on the Billboard Hot 100 and #9 on the US R&B/Hip Hop chart. It seems as though his singles from this year haven't performed as well as Ty and his team had expected. "Blase" peaked at #80 and "Drop That Kitty" feat. Tinashe and Charli XCX didn't even chart.
Granted, there are many factors that contribute to a record's chart performance, but with Ty's radio-radio tenor and Mustard's, you'd think he'd have an undeniable smash hit by now. His two new singles still have chance. Month-old single "When I See Ya" is blessed with Fetty Wap's Chart-Topping Magic Beans™, and Mustard club banger "Saved" feat. E-40 just dropped yesterday and certainly has "IDFWU" potential.
Another path to the top 10 -- one of the viral gems Ty surely has waiting in the wings. We'll know soon enough.