Clipse return to rap after 15 years, all to 'Let God Sort Em Out'

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Clipse, one of hip hop’s best duos, has returned with a new album after a 15-year hiatus.

Pusha T and his brother No Malice, formerly and perhaps currently still known as Malice, have linked up with the primary beat provider in Pharrell Williams to present you with Let God Sort Em Out.

WHY THIS CLIPSE REEASE IS AN IMPORTANT RAP OFFERING

In this era of TikTok-friendly, trend-based rap music, the true essence of this art form has been plundered by corporations and buried by algorithms.

This veteran duo represents a resurgence and reprisal wherein the old guard in rap music is looking to see the game return to lyricism and originality. Let God Sort Em Out goes beyond in this regard. It also serves as a necessary reminder of how crucial the hip-hop and R&B from Virginia has been.

This state has given us legends like Clipse, Pharrell Williams, Chris Brown, and Missy Elliot.

FEATURED ARTISTS ON THE NEW CLIPSE ALBUM

There are 13 tracks on the album. It boasts a dark sonic backdrop in which Pusha T and No Malice use the perils and thrills of drug dealing as a vehicle to explore motifs like luxury, pain, suffering, remorse, and the running theme involving the loss of their parents.

The album is laden with an assortment of noteworthy guest appearances. Artists like Tyler, The Creator, Nas, Stove God Cooks, Kendrick Lamar, The-Dream, John Legend, Ab-Liva and of course Pharrell Williams. Williams produced the entirety of the opus.

LUXURY RAP AND A LAVISH ROLLOUT

A large part of an interesting release is all in the rollout of an album. Clipse crafted this album at Louis Vuitton’s headquarters in Paris. This is a genuflection to William’s who is the men’s Creative Director at the famed fashion house.

The album cover was done by visual artist KAWS. Clipse also ensured to include merchandise with an array of collaborations with labels like Verdy, Denim Tears, and Carhartt WIP.

Clipse has also been doing the rounds on popular podcasts and internet shows. They have appeared on the Joe Budden Podcast, The Breakfast Club and a suave performance on the popular YouTube show, Colors.

STAND OUT RECORDS ON ‘LET GOD SORT EM OUT‘

The noir nuances this album leans on are remarkably similar to Puha T’s last solo album, It’s Almost Dry(2022). This allows these rugged assassins of rhetoric to sink their teeth into swollen beats while straddling street culture represented by Pusha and notions of God, as represented by Malice. Malice found God and is a deeply religious man these days.

Ace Trumpets is the lead single and remains a thumper. The regal-looking black and white video screams luxury rap.

Chains & Whips features Kendrick Lamar. The duo explores the loss of their parents and shows a rugged vulnerability to their art.

So Be Itwas the second single the public has been allowed to live with before the release. The instrumental to this was toyed with a lot on social media, with people fitting other famous instrumentals to the potent stanzas delivered by Malice and Pusha. The version on the album sees the same verses encased in a different beat to the original offering.

WHAT YOU MIGHT HAVE ON REPEAT

The album has replay value through the roof, and there is more than just a small selection of memorable moments.

All Things Consideredis an interesting track. The production uses familiar elements like a bass that ebbs and flows aggressively with an eerie synthesiser hissing in the background.

Inglorious Bastardsthis street anthem has a vibey and bouncy beat to it. A swollen beat appears and disappears as the duo is joined by a highly skilled wordsmith in Ab-Liva.

F.I.C.O.is a quintessential street anthem. It may have the most commercial slant to it even though it is an astoundingly avant-garde track as far as the current status quo stands. Stove God Cooks is confined to the chorus. Despite the lack of a verse, his ability to add funk to a hook are unmatched.

Let God Sort Em Out/Chandeliersmakes use of a three dramatic beat changes which sees this song play out like a ghetto orchestral movement.

CLIPSE ARE CULTURALLY INAPPROPRIATE

There is a subtle but common thread cleverly woven into the sonics. A robotic voice of a woman can be heard saying, “This is culturally inappropriate” on a lot of the tracks. Exactly like the evil-sounding Joker’s laugh on It’s Almost Dry. This could be viewed as these elder statesmen of rap music thumbing their noses at the current state of this global sub-culture.

It also could be interpreted as a call back to Clipse and their journey, which they have always boldly conceded to having been birthed via the drug trade.

A COMMERCIAL AND LYRICAL SUCCESS?

Hip hop is a stage where the run of constant global hit records is becoming far and few between. A select few rappers from the epicentre of the culture can attain world hit records. This has seen the talents on offer in the world of rap recede.

Let God Sort Them Out does not include any of the “rage”-oriented music that is the taste of the masses. It is nothing like what Travis Scott’s Jack Boys 2 will sound like come July 13. But maybe if rap is allowed to ebb away from the spotlight, a return to artful hip hop music will be realised.