Rich Brian’s second explicit studio album The Sailor, released on July 26th, 2019, is one to remember. Rich changed his style in numerous ways. He went from a generic hip hop artist with simple beats and even simpler flows to someone entirely new. The Sailor features songs with a full orchestra, adding even more emphasis to Rich’s much improved vocals. Furthermore, the multiple movements in the songs keep listeners on their toes. Similar to YBN Cordae’s album, The Lost Boy, this is the most orchestrated hip hop album you will ever hear.

The first stand out track is “Yellow,” featuring Beckon. It’s the third song on the album chronologically and it’s also when the orchestra first presents itself in outstanding fashion, creating Rich Brian’s fullest sound ever. Rich has never expressed himself in this kind of way and the opening lines say it all. “How do i disappear, without anybody knowing. Will anybody even miss me when I’m gone?” Although the lyrics are sad, the music is happy and it creates the perfect contradiction to make a masterpiece.

The very next track “Kids,” brings rap fans a glamourous banger that blesses the ears of those who listen to it. The bars that Rich Brian spits hit harder than Mike Tyson, but watch out, because the trumpets hit even harder, bringing a different level of emphasis to the beat. It’ll get your head bobbing back and forth. On top of this, Rich Brian’s flow and lyrics are astonishing. It all wraps up to create a banger that comes to close contention with anything on the hot 100 billboard.

The 9th track on the album, “100 degrees”, sparked a sensation on one of the most popular social media apps of all time, Tik Tok. Rich made an appeal to the youth of today with “100 degrees,” sharing his poppy side and leaving us with an unforgettable chorus, “It’s a hundred degrees, why you feeling down what’s the problem?” Songs that blow up on Tik Tok are a lot more likely to really make it somewhere because the simple videos spread like wildfire.

The Sailor presents a side of Rich that nobody knew was even there. He diversifies his sound from complete orchestras to bangers that will get you up and moving, The Sailor earns a solid 9/10 rating. There is not a bad song on the album, though some stick out more than others. The Sailor left fans eager for what’s to come from this completely new side of Rich Brian.