On April 3, the Florida born rapper Rod Wave released his fifth studio album “Pray 4 Love.” After the release of his hit song “Heart On Ice” from his 2019 album “PTSD,” many of Wave’s fans were wondering what was next from the up and coming rapper.
In releasing his two projects “PTSD” and “Ghetto Gospel” just five months apart. Wave’s hit songs from these albums were “Heart On Ice,” “Popular Loner” and “Green Light.” His songs have spent over five weeks on the Billboard’s Hot 100 charts. Since the release of some of his most popular songs last year, he still gets plenty of air time on radio stations like 96.3 and 98.3.
“Pray 4 Love” features 14 songs and spans just 39 minutes. Usually, in Wave’s music, he highlights his pain and sufferings through deep cut rap lyrics but also adds in some r&b as well. This style of music has been mainly paired to artists like Drake and Trippie Redd. These rappers are known for putting melancholy lyrics onto catchy beats while also adding some singing to the song so the audience can feel their pain.
Before the release of “Pray 4 Love,” Wave used “Thug Motivation,” “Thief in the Night,” and “Pray 4 Love” as his big singles in promotion for the album. These songs highlight the struggles of coming from nothing and being in the new light of a celebrity. He also talks about the betrayal and mishaps between him and another person. The betrayal and struggle rapped in these songs makes it relatable for his audience as well as keeping a catchy tune.
Wave’s raspy voice makes it easy for his message to be conveyed in his music. Songs like “Ribbon in the Sky” display his ability to raise his voice in a way that may seem like yelling but quickly switches to his smooth singing voice. The switch between these two styles show his contrast between the importance of life and death. He says, “These demons want my soul, life is too short to be living in a lie, It’s too much pain to be living just to die.” Also in “Roaming” and “No Weakness” Wave focuses more on his singing ability to convey his message. The smooth sounds of the piano add to the intensity of his singing voice.
All in all “Pray 4 Love” consistently highlights what kind of artist Rod Wave is. He brings together two genres for one message and does it successfully. The album is poetic and unique. Although his music is not on a broad spectrum, the consistency he gives is what makes this album the masterpiece it is. This album gets a 4 out 5 stars and is available to stream on all platforms.
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