Logic “College Park” Album Review

College Park

Logic

• Genre: Hip-Hop/Rap
• Date: 24 Feb, 2023
• Content: explicit
• Region: NGA
• Track(s): 17
• ℗ 2023 Three Oh One Productions, LLC under exclusive license to BMG Rights Management (US) LLC

“College Park” is a true testament of Logic’s musical taste. If you consider yourself a true hip-hop enthusiast, you will at the very least enjoy the project from every perspective. This album serves as a reminder of what hip-hop should be in general. It’s a very well-planned, peaceful, and laid-back record with a subject that he developed the music around. There is a tale being told underneath everything, from the skits to the sound and imagery. This album is not what you’re looking for if you’re searching for big, mainstream radio hits. Check it out if you’re looking for timeless music and an album you can listen to from beginning to end while reflecting on your own life’s path.

Album Cover Art

Logic is pictured in a dimly-lit and somewhat stuffy room, where he is seated on a wooden chair, surrounded by a couple of antique electronic appliances and an equally old-fashioned picture of an old-fashioned car hanging up on the wall behind him. And from the way the rapper appears in the picture—younger with less BMI—one could easily think this was one of his memorable moments from back in the day, one possibly captured in his College Park.

Tracks and Features

The album’s opening track, “Cruisin’ Thru the Universe,” features some acoustics and a futuristic boom bap instrumental as Logic and RZA discuss traveling through space in their spaceships. In contrast, “Wake Up” follows a more upbeat path while describing the artist’s journey over some kicks and snares. C Dot Castro joins the 2-part “Lightsabers” with a jazzy opener & a delicate switch-up calling out those who made this music shit for the money leading into the dusty “Clone Wars III” letting you know what this culture is actually about.

Going on to “Redpill VI,” Bobby describes his flow as non-binary and boasts that he never misses shortly before “Playwright” takes a more drumless tack and discusses juggling the lives of a recording artist and a father. For the trap posse track “Gaithersburg Freestyle,” which represents the name-brand city, C Dot Castro is back with ADÉ, Big Lenbo, and Fat Trel. However, “Insipio” has a moodier tone to it, discussing how true wealth is measured in experience rather than gold.

On the Statik Selektah-produced “Self Medication,” Redman teams up with Logic to inform those who didn’t know that they now do, while Joey Bada$$’s “Shimmy” pays homage to the late Ol’ Dirty Bastard over an atmospheric beat with some piano chords that are similar to those used during “Shimmy Shimmy Ya,” the song’s obvious inspiration and which is interpolated during the hook. Although “Come Down” is a triumphant trap smash showing his desire to have it all, “Paradise II” is a jazzy/neo-soul crossover that picks up where the first “Paradise” left off.

As “Highlife” ventures into more pop rap area expressing how he feels about getting blown on a daily basis, “Village Slum” returns to the boom bap with a melodious vocal loop discussing alcoholism. Big Lenbo, C Dot Castro, and others pay tribute to the starting point of their careers in the song “38.9897 °N, 76.9378 °W,” which features a piano instrumental. Bun B, Lil Keke, and others collaborate on the jazzy penultimate track “Ayo,” which samples the late Pimp C’s “Knockin’ Down Doorz,” and which is about keeping to oneself. The 8 and a half minute closing “Lightyear” flips one of my favorite Kendrick songs, “Rigamortis,” and declares that nothing will ever change.

Another aspect of this album that stands out is how many skits there are, which is regrettably a lost art in hip-hop. On College Park, Logic transports us back to that time, heightening the album’s nostalgic atmosphere.

Tracklist

NO	TITLE	TIME
1	Cruisin’ Through the Universe (feat. RZA)	3:09
2	Wake Up (feat. Lucy Rose)	2:58
3	Lightsabers (feat. C Dot Castro)	4:50
4	Clone Wars III	3:45
5	Redpill VII	4:12
6	Playwright (feat. Andy Hull)	3:20
7	Gaithersburg Freestyle (feat. C Dot Castro, Big Lenbo, Fat Trel & ADÉ)	3:01
8	Insipio	3:02
9	Self Medication (feat. Seth MacFarlane, Redman & Statik Selektah)	5:15
10	Shimmy (feat. Joey Bada$$)	2:35
11	Paradise II (feat. Norah Jones)	6:14
12	Come on Down (feat. Jordan Harris)	2:41
13	Village Slum	3:28
14	Highlife	2:38
15	38.9897 °N, 76.9378 °W (feat. C Dot Castro & Big Lenbo)	4:16
16	Ayo (feat. Bun B & Lil Keke)	3:35
17	Lightyear	8:19

Album Theme

Logic returns to his roots as a musician and a person on this album.

Production Credits

6ix, Boi-1da, Conor Albert, Eugene Tsai, Jahaan Sweet, Kaelin Ellis, Kal Banx, Keanu Beats, Logic, monte booker, PoST, Soundtrakk & Travis Stacey handled the album’s production.

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