DJ Khaled is like the hip-hop version of Jim Ross. He has a lot of commentary, never actually gets into the action, but yet somehow remains ingrained in the culture. Major Key is the ninth studio โalbumโ by Mr. Khaled and like all of his previous releases itโs more of a compilation than an album. But for all the flack he gets for not actually rapping or producing or writing, he does do what very few people in the industry can do.
He has an uncanny ability to bring together the biggest names out there and get them to hop on a song together. He makes a lot of dream collaborations happen and whether or not they live up to the hype is questionable, but itโs easy to get sucked into the hype at every track listing reveal. Iโm almost ashamed to say it but I definitely got pulled into that vortex this go around. I mean, how could a song with Future & Jay Z not be good right? Big Sean & Kendrick? J. Cole? Nas!? Sign me up! Thereโs no way this could disappoint; right? Right???
โStraight up, late nights mixed with early days
Itโll probably be that way until the pearly gates
Stress weighing on me, they want me to nervous break
These hoes showing fake love when I prefer the hate, man
Sheesh, at least if you real then I have to respect itโ
Wrong! Damnit, he did it again. He pulled me in with false promises that heโs never fully lived up to before and ย I walked away disappointed. Again. Now Iโm not saying that the songs are awful or that thereโs no value in Major Key. Iโm just saying that overall I found the album to be highly forgettable. Letโs take for example โDonโt Ever Play Yourselfโ. Itโs a song that features, Fabolous, Fat Joe, and Busta Rhymes; no slouches lyrically. I was expecting a five and half minute lyrical onslaught set to a maelstrom of fire, a la โSix Minutes of Deathโ. But I was left with no feeling, good or bad, just meh. Thatโs the problem with most of the songs onย Major Key, and with all of his โalbumsโ, they provide so much potential but are never able to maximize it. I canโt tell if itโs the production or the artists faults, but all parties seem disinterested. Like Lorenzo said inย A Bronx Tale, โThe saddest thing in life is wasted talent.โ
I know Iโm being harsh (and rightfully so), but like I stated before there arenโt any necessarily โbadโ songs onย Major Key. โI Got the Keysโ, while I didnโt think it lived up to the hype will still get plenty of play in my car and the clubs. โFor Freeโ is a certified club banger and โHoly Keyโ, โNas Album Doneโ, and โJermaineโs Interludeโ were all great songs; with โNas Album Doneโ being my favorite out of the bunch.ย Major Keyย was a decent DJ Khaled album that once again couldnโt live up to the massive potential, but there are a number of songs that will still get play for a few weeks at least.
โLast time I checked I was still breathinโ
My neck was still freezinโ
Now everybody got an Escobar Season
To every baby on the album cover existinโ
This trend I was settinโ, it came to fruitionโ
Did you findย Major Keyย as forgettable as I did? Whatโd you think about the album? Were you expecting more or got exactly what you were looking for? Let me know in the comments down below and leave a rating forย Major Key.
EDITย Sheesh Big Sean, Nas, Kendrick, and J. Cole absolutely went in!!!