Yeat's new album 2093 is dropping in just a few hours, and the young hip-hop world waits eagerly for its hopefully impactful arrival. Following about eight projects since 2018, a lot of hyped singles, unprecedented fan engagement from zoomer rap fans, and collaborations with the biggest stars in the game, the Portland rapper has a lot to live up to here. We have a 22-song tracklist, no confirmed features (yet plenty of rumors), and only some IG Live song snippets, leaks, and billboards to go off of. So all this begs the question: just how big will this new project be for the rage pioneer?
Speaking of rage, this musical style is already phasing out a little bit, kept alive mostly by Yeat, the Opium label, and smaller but equally artistically minded imitators and inspired MCs. Even Playboi Carti, one of the artists who made it a prevalent style, is moving into other areas. So this might be the 23-year-old's last chance to not only reach commercial peaks, but evolve the style that he influenced, championed, and took to the forefront of new-gen hip-hop. Compared to his previous output and what's been teased from this new phase, these are the most important elements that we want Yeat's 2093 to showcase that would make it a massive moment for not just his career, but for 2020's rap. It's too late to update the LP, but let us know whether you share our thoughts, too.
Yeat's Unique Musical Identity
First want: please, Yeat, indulge in what you do and know best above all else. Looking at his last album, 2023's AftërLyfe, and also big singles like "bigger thën everything," this saw him playing with more traditional and "by the books" rap verses and performances. While we're never against experimentation and branching out of your comfort zone, this pulled the "Shmunk" hitmaker closer to his contemporaries than ever. Considering how homogenous and sterile a lot of rap in this style can be, this wasn't the best sign for die-hards.
Therefore, we hope that 2093 involves more bizarre lingo than ever, more pitch-manipulated deliveries, and more unintelligible ad-libs and cadences... Basically, we want everything that makes old heads complain about the state of hip-hop today. Own up to it, make it colorful, and switch up the energy between each idiosyncratic expression, and you'll get a wholly un-compromised experience. We don't need introspection, lyrical miracles, or storytelling, but we're not opposed to it, either. All we ask is that Yeat delivers things in his signature sauce and invents new ones to express himself with rather than falling closer to the rap blueprint of today.
Consistency & Intent
2093 is reportedly 22 songs long, which is the expected and average length of any given Yeat album, more or less. While this hasn't hampered varied and fun album experiences before (as AftërLyfe was his best so far), it's still a really big risk. This gets even riskier when you look at the variety of features that are rumored to guest on this LP, which we'll get to in just a little bit. It seems like this could tap into a lot of different aesthetics, approaches, and appeals... which is as scary as it is exciting.
On that note, things that could make it less scary and more holistic are what we're hoping for on 2093. These could be seamless song transitions, sequencing that doesn't repeat the same vibe for more than two tracks, a strong emphasis on switching up song structures and moods, and above all, making sure that each track stands on its own and fulfills a unique purpose in the tracklist. Yeat can certainly wear a lot of hats, but there's only so far one can go before the sound becomes repetitive. So we hope that everything on this album has a unique purpose and identity, or at least that its organization makes the listening experience a well-flowing, varied, and consistently engaging one.
2093's Features: Tread With Caution
As far as 2093's features, there are no confirmed ones at press time, but there are plenty of rumors. Drake, Future, Childish Gambino, and Lil Wayne are all names that people are throwing around based on social media teases, snippets, and more. But if you've heard a lot of Yeat, you know that rappers who try to play in his lane alongside him almost always fall short (I mean... can we admit that "IDGAF" was a Yeat song with a useless Drake feature?). Unless you're similarly expressive and eclectic from a vocal standpoint (such as Young Thug on "My wrist"), it's really hard to fit on a song with the man who made "Rich Minion."
Since we'd really rather not hear Donald Glover try to do his best Tonka voice and flow, here's a proposition for the features. Either you fully embrace becoming a Yeat clone with your appearance on 2093, which will not make much of an impact, or you try something completely different that the album doesn't display. Maybe Weezy goes absolutely ballistic with his pen with a feature, or Drake comes through with some melodic R&B flips. But the frequent Cole Bennett collaborator's musical style and appeal should remain untouched, or at least, always on his own terms. If these link-ups are as bizarre and mismatched as they sound on paper, it would actually make for a unique, and surprisingly fun experience. For the record, we'd be more than happy with zero features, too.
Pushing Rage Forward
As alluded to before, rage music is not where it was when Whole Lotta Red changed the game during the 2020 holiday season. Playboi Carti is moving into darker, more minimal sounds, Opium is seemingly following suit, and no other underground artist inspired by rage or indulging in it is reaching the same highs as Yeat is. As such, there's a good chance that the subgenre will die out soon. With that in mind, we think 2093 has a crucial mission: to define the style's legacy for the next few years, much like Whole Lotta Red did.
Yeat is unquestionably one of the new generation's favorite leaders, and rage is the movement's soundtrack. As it teeters on the edge of phasing out in favor of more clubby aesthetics and rhythms, he has the unique opportunity to redefine it, evolve it, or leave it in the dust. Perhaps more layered instrumentation, unique song structures, or specific lyrical content could help give the style its new identity for the foreseeable future, or the 2 Alivë rager will simply move onto other trends and more accessible sounds. That would be a waste in our eyes, and we hope he can prove that he can become an even bigger artist and an even more definitive voice in the 2020s while sticking to the sound that made him who he is.
The Elusive But Always Coveted No. 1 Spot
Finally, this is less of a "want" and more of a prediction or hypothesis. The only way that 2093 can truly have the impact that we want and predicted with our earlier points is if the album or a song finally lands him a No. 1 spot on the Billboard Hot 100 songs chart or their albums chart. We don't think that commercial success is all that important, but it is the one piece that's missing in Yeat's arsenal right now. If he can truly assume this leadership role and become an undeniable industry face after so much build-up, then he will survive the battle for attention online no matter what style he plays in.
A No. 1 spot would not only cement the California native as a threat to music's upper echelon, but would also solidify his influence and unique style, which is mostly visible right now solely in the underground, in production styles, and with Internet virality. It will also define rage as either a passing fad or a truly influential and important chapter in the 2020s' musical history. Of course, a No. 1 doesn't solve all these problems immediately, but it does open up a lot of doors and, if this album is a significant change of pace, would also prove his longevity. 2093 has a lot riding on it, but if all these puzzle pieces come together, Yeat could easily be considered one of the decade's most emblematic artists by the halfway mark of the 2020s. Fingers crossed that this album will keep us just as excited for the second half.