In the span of just a few years,
YNW Melly went from posting tracks online to rap superstardom to being locked up, potentially facing the death penalty for the alleged murder of two friends. The Florida rapper's debut studio album,
Melly Vs. Melvin, was released while he was in jail awaiting trial, and follows the melodic yet raw style of his earlier mixtapes, 2018's I Am You, and
We All Shine, released in January of 2019. The album includes single "223's" featuring
9lokknine, which was released several months in advance of the mixtape. That song represents the livelier side of the album, which tends more toward contemplative and relatively subdued tones.
Melly's signature blend of fluid, sung melodies and airy rap flows is at its most distinctive on tracks like the sulky "Killuminati" or the party-ready "Bang Bang." It's unclear how much of
Melly Vs. Melvin was written during the rapper's murder case, but the uncharacteristically bright pop instrumental and pleas for forgiveness of "Waitin' on You" sound like the last-ditch effort of a lost soul seeking salvation. Compared to his earlier material,
Melly plays things relatively safe on
Melly Vs. Melvin. The unhinged, dangerous energy and boundless confidence that once fueled larger than life songs are transformed here at times into a heavy-hearted weariness. ~ Fred Thomas