Following up the Grammy nominated album, Malibu, would not be an easy feat for Anderson .Paak, but Oxnard proved to be another well orchestrated body of work for the California singer/songwriter.
We all have particular expectations that we make a mental note of prior to a music release. There is an exclusive group of great musicians who not only deliver on our expectations, but also introduce a new component that we had never consciously considered. Identifying the intricacies within an enjoyable record is essentially the holy grail of listening to music, and I often found myself in this state when I first ran Anderson .Paak’s Oxnard album.
.Paak gave us a masterpiece with his Grammy nominated, second studio album Malibu, in 2016. We were introduced to a gumbo of Jazz, R&B, Funk, Soul, and Hip Hop in a form that we had never heard before. With the voice of an old blues singer, Anderson .Paak showed a range of infinite vocals that were sharply executed in a controlled tone, with no bar or word going to waste. It's not easy to arrive at one particular genre that identifies his music, as he possess a bag full of melodies and cadences we'd never thought were conceivable. This is one of the many things that make him a virtuoso in creating music.
Tracking back to when I first heard of .Paak: I was listening to the long awaited Dr. Dre album that we all thought would be Detox. For years, Dr. Dre teased us with a follow up album to The Chronic and 2001. What we ended up getting was a soundtrack to the N.W.A film Straight Outta Compton. When I first heard that a new Dr. Dre album was not actually Detox, but a musical soundtrack to a film, I wasn't upset, but selfishly, I felt slighted. As it came to be, Compton: A Soundtrack by Dr. Dre, ended up being a phenomenal album, perfectly curated to listen to in the car, as it maximized all of the pleasures within the body of work . Compton couldn't have been more of a Dr. Dre record even if it wasn't titled Compton. Among the many artist who were featured, Compton introduced me to Anderson .Paak.
The Oxnard, California native capitalized on his opportunity to be on a much anticipated album, created by one of the legendary producers in all of music. He stole the show as he was featured in 5 records on the 16 track album, and aside from Dr. Dre himself, .Paak was the driving force in most of the heavy hitting records on the album with his scintillating voice that caught our attention every time he came on. This was certainly one of the key factors in Dre signing .Paak to his Aftermath imprint, which includes the likes of Eminem, Kendrick Lamar, Jon Connor and Justus. Capitalizing off his work on Compton and delivering a classic album such as Malibu is one of the more important things Anderson .Paak could have done for his music career. It's also why he's respected by so many legends in his field.
Aside from the usual elements to look for in a new album, the usage of a guest feature is massively important in value, yet it's always underrated. As brilliant as the entire composition of Oxnard is, what is thoroughly fascinating is who .Paak chose to call for a feature, as well as the individual record chosen for said collaboration. A few Hip-Hop artist have recently went as far as releasing multi-track collaborative projects, and most of them have been really poor in the production, as well as the glaring lack of chemistry between the two artist. The only notable two-artist collaboration project I've enjoyed in 2018 has been Fetti by Freddie Gibbs and Curren$y, which was fully produced by The Alchemist. It's fair to note that both Gangsta Gibbs and Spitta are seasoned veterans in hip-hop, and it would be an immense crime to perform poorly on an Alchemist production.
To expect a good album feature, or even an entire collaborative project in the modern music climate, is relatively equivalent to finding a needle in a haystack. Within my dissertation of the well thought out guest features on Oxnard, in no way am I slighting .Paak’s individual efforts on the album—as they are isolated within their own brilliance. Records such as “6 Summers”, “Saviers Road”(Produced by 9th Wonder) and particularly “Smile/Petty” and “Left to Right”, are on par with the lineage of the performances .Paak showcased on Malibu. As it pertains to the features, we have to start with the Kendrick Lamar guest appearance on the first single off Oxnard, “Tints”. The two west coast heavyweights delivered on their anticipated collaboration on an up-tempo production, and they complemented each other well in their verses.
But one of the records that automatically stands out on the track list is "Brother's Keeper" featuring Pusha T, and you're almost inclined by nature to listen to it before anything else. The title of the record alone somewhat hints at what you're about to listen to, but as Pusha begins to speak after the beat bridge following .Paaks verse, you start to understand why this feature made perfect sense. Before he even rhymed a single bar, Pusha shed some light on the state of his group, Clipse, stating “9am L.A time, my brother just turned down a half-million dollars, for being one half of one of the greatest duos in hip-hop history. I couldn't love him more”.
Better known as Malice, Pusha T's biological brother and the other half of the Clipse duo has made it clear he is no longer interested in rapping, and chose a more spiritual path in his life's journey. Pusha quickly addressed the lingering speculation of a Clipse return and his brother in the first bar. “Am i my brothers keeper?, they still askin’ ‘bout the duo. Applaud his finding salvation, but im still rhyming ‘bout the you know”. This was a pretense to some gritty rapping, carried by horns, an electric guitar, with Pusha staying true to what we love about his raps—the consistent use of drug references in his metaphors and double entendres. Anderson .Paak’s influence on the record is nothing short of amazing, but his decision to call up a lyrical wizard who truly understands what it is to be his ‘Brother's Keeper”, is what took this record to the next level
Another guest appearance that exceptionally elevated the individual record, was Q-Tip from A Tribe Called Quest on a record titled “Cheers”. A personal favorite on Oxnard for various reasons isolated from the Q-Tip feature. The production of the record is credited to Focus, Q-Tip, and Dr. Dre, which is something to marvel at, as its own existence. What started as a G-Funk intro in the instrumentation, later evolved into an old-school hip hop jam with subtle hi-hats, a thumping bass drum and snare combo, and a saxophone in the closing minute of the record.
More importantly, both .Paak and Q-Tip addressed the deaths of two of their closest friends in Malik Izaak Taylor, professionally known as Phife Dawg, and Malcolm James McCormick, professionally known as Mac Miller. With the recent passing of Mac Miller, it was expected of .Paak to shed some light on someone he considered a brother on a record. During the initial creative process of what would be an emotionally driven record, it seems .Paak felt it was important to ask for a lending hand with such a heavy record, from another musician who also tragically lost a brother within and outside of the music business.
Q-Tip delivered graciously in his verse on "Cheers" with smooth bars reminiscing the times he and Phife Dawg had together. As per usual, Q-Tip showcased his sharp penmanship infused with subtle life lessons. Even as he celebrates his friends life, he made it a point to highlight the importance of not taking anything for granted until its too late. Saying "True Confession, breath is a blessing, without a question. But niggas dont get the message ,until they get disconnected".
Q-Tip was the perfect choice here, not only because he was able to relate to such a tragic situation, but more significantly, Q-Tip would bring the necessary mature and introspective emotion to drive home the message of celebrating a life lost, rather than only mourning the tragedy—as well as the significance of not waiting until its too late to cherish the things and people who bring us joy. Surely a difficult circumstance for anyone grieving to try to compartmentalize in general, let alone on a record that the whole world would hear.
The agonizing line that sticks out to whoever listens to this record comes from .Paak himself. In reference to his and Mac Miller's friendship, he sings “How do you tell a nigga slow it down, when you livin’ just as fast as him?”. The line automatically brings you to ask yourself; are you also choosing to keep from advising your loved ones because you're also operating in the same vain? Its a complex question to ask one self, and it reassures the guilt that becomes all of us when we view things in hind site. All things considered, bringing on Pusha T and Q-Tip for these records confirmed the attention to detail we assume Anderson .Paak has when he's in album mode.
The J. Cole feature on a record called "Trippy" allowed Anderson .Paak to lead the direction of the record, while making it easy for a wordsmith such as J . Cole to remain in his preferred pocket within his rhyme schemes. The Snoop Dogg feature titled "Anywhere"was also brilliant in the way the record was structured to allocate the first verse for the Long Beach rapper to lyrically float over a soul sample, before .Paak took it away with his usual smooth vocals. Also, its important to emphasize that BJ The Chicago Kid is an amazing vocalist who cant miss when it comes to guest features. One of the more fun records on Oxnard, "Sweet Chick", gave the Chicago singer/songwriter an opportunity to flex his wide range of vocals, while .Paak proved once more that he could effortlessly rap on a concept record.
Surely, its easy for an artist to simply call up their music friends for a feature, all in the name of having a record together. But it would benefit us all if more artist operated in the manner that .Paak did on Oxnard by, being selective with the features, and also assuring that the art of a guest appearance is intended to elevate a record, and not to elevate the featured artists profile. We usually have to wait until the fourth or fifth album to recognize an artists genius, but Anderson .Paak is an alien compared to other musicians as showcased on Malibu, and now Oxnard. It would be in our best interest to not box him into a particular genre, as that would only limit the definition to his expert level of artistry.
Jon Olangi is a senior editor and writer at TTT Media, where he covers culture.