Album review: “Sremm 4 Life”

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Credit: Kevin Cortopassi on Flickr

WSPN’s Bowen Morrison discusses Rae Sremmurd’s latest album “Sremm 4 Life.”

Bowen Morrison

Rae Sremmurd is growing into one of rap music’s most iconic duos because of the chemistry between brothers Slim Jxmmi and Swae Lee. The brothers recently released their fourth studio album, “Sremm 4 Life,” featuring artists such as Young Thug and Future on April 7, 2023. Their album received 18,179 streams in the first week after release.

The opening song of this album, “Origami (Hotties),” sets the tone for the rest of the songs. This song talks about the duo’s life together making money, flaunting it and living for themselves.

A song that has a similar theme is “Mississippi Slide.” In this song, Swae Lee raps about making money and having the freedom to spend it wherever he pleases. Slim Jxmmi also jumps in with a verse that highlights how he made it to fame and fortune from poverty.

Their newfound fame has changed them a lot, for the worse and for the better. Songs like “Sexy” and “Royal Flush” talk about their new sense of confidence from their new looks and wealth. “Royal Flush” opens with Swae Lee singing about playing the hand he was dealt as an up and coming rapper and turning it into a “Royal Flush,” which is a winning hand in Poker. “Sexy” starts with a brief Slim Jxmmi interlude boasting about his looks and how he is very confident. After the interlude, Slim Jxmmi goes back to flaunting his looks and shouting out former WNBA star, Lisa Leslie.

On the other hand, songs like “Activate (feat. Future)” and “ADHD Anthem (Too Many Emotions)” mention the harder aspects of fame they’ve experienced. In “Activate,” Swae Lee and Future rap about foreign cars and their fast paced lifestyle. They repeat the line “I’m not human no more” due to their alienating lifestyles as popular artists. “ADHD Anthem (Too Many Emotions)” is the final song on “Sremm 4 Life,” and it’s kicked off with a techno beat that catches your attention. Swae Lee talks about his negative emotions as a famous artist despite the upbeat sounds of the song. Slim Jxmmi begins his verse with a similar tone. He talks about his emotions and how he doesn’t always understand himself.

Another song whose rhythm contradicts its message is “Something I’m Not.” This song is fast-paced, opposing the sorrowful lyrics. In the second verse of the song Slim Jxmmi briefly pays tribute to his father. He says he wishes he could go into the past and spend more time with his father, but he doesn’t dwell on the grief because he knows that he can make his late father proud by gaining even more fame and money.

“YMCA” and “Something I’m Not” are two very different songs with similar themes. Both of these songs focus on the drawbacks of being as famous. Swae Lee has recently become bored with women that he used to chase when he was an up and coming rapper, and Slim Jxmmi feels that he can’t live the life that he wants to because he is still hung up with grief and self doubt. “YMCA” also talks about the duo trying to be role models for young aspiring rap artists.

The beginning of the fourth track, “Not So Bad (Leans Gone Cold),” starts slower than the other songs. Swae Lee kicks off the song rapping to the tune of “Stan” by Eminem. Swae feels lonely and isolated from reality. He highlights this when he talks about how his “leans gone cold” and without it he feels that he isn’t ready to face reality, and that he would rather go back to bed.

“Tanisha (Pump That),” once again, starts off with Swae Lee with an EDM beat laying over the song. Slim Jxmmi and Swae rap about a woman named Tanisha who they are pursuing despite her being of their leagues.

Contrary to the other songs on this album the eighth track, “Flaunt It/Cheap” starts with Slim Jxmmi. He raps about women, his party-filled lifestyle and his brother, Swae Lee. After his verse, Swae jumps on the track quickly with a slow-paced rhythm and a change in beat.

Swae Lee starts off “Torpedo” with a catchy rhythm that’ll be sure to get stuck in your head for the rest of the day. Swae begins this song with a monotone rap that lasts until Slim Jxmmi jumps on the song halfway through with more animated lyrics and tone to finish the song.

“Sremm 4 Life” is a great encore to brothers last album, “SR3MM,” released in 2018. This new album is a signal to Rae Sremmurd fans that they have no intention of slowing down anytime soon, especially with performances at Coachella 2023 and multiple concerts in London and Dublin, Ireland.