Dave East has definitely taken the ‘more is more’ approach when it comes to his music, both in releases (which have been coming at a steady clip over the past 2 years) and in the amount of songs he crams into each project. At 19 tracks long, Karma 2, is another long listen and while it’s all generally solid hip-hop fare it does drag on a bit too long. Many critics of him label East as ‘boring’ and while I never really agreed with that assessment, a lot of his music does start to feel a bit ‘samey’ and although he’s a technically gifted rapper with a solid flow, his lyrics often travel down well worn territory. Karma 2 alleviates some of those criticisms with a more varied song variety and subject matter, but it doesn’t completely conquer those demons; I still find myself struggling to remain interested through the back half of the long track listing and outside of some phenomenal storytelling he still falls back to some tired tropes. Karma 2 doesn’t do much in terms of pushing his craft forward but it is another solid project that delivers on that signature gritty NY sound that his core fans expect from him.
Imagine I never got a deal
You met me on the block, first thing I said to you, ‘I got the pills’
Niggas dumb hard in they raps, meet em, they not as real
I did the Reeboks, had to see how Balenciaga feel– “Going Hard”
Have you heard Karma 2? What’d you think about it? Would you like to hear Dave East really challenge and push himself more? Let me know in the comments below and be sure to leave your own ratings and reactions for the album.
