Written by: Jayme Stewart
Nf’s fourth studio album The Search, dropped on July 26th, and it was a lot. Just from the first glance it packs a punch- including 20 songs that total for an hour and sixteen minutes, a length that is rarely seen in studio albums.
From that alone, it would be expected to assume there are going to be weak songs. With 20 songs, there is a lot of room for error, especially coming off of his last two albums Perception and Therapy Sessions. He gained a following from those two albums with singles How Could You Leave Us and 3 AM even reaching many radio stations and gaining a lot of traction.
He had a big name to live up to- and fans are going to be wondering if he was actually able to do it. Was he?
The opening track is the one the album is titled after, The Search, so it already has a lot to live up to since it is the album’s namesake. The opening line, "Hey Nate, how’s life?" carries a lot of meaning and shows the direction the album is going. The album is about going inside of his mind and seeing the changes and growth and searching he has been doing- so the topic of how his life is going is something that is going to be heavily explored. The Search was released as a single, so fans had more time to sit with it- and as soon as I heard it it was instantly a favorite. It has a fast tempo, solid lyrics and the typical NF meaning and emotion in it. It is definitely worthy of being the album’s namesake, and right away it gives the album and energetic and emotional vibe to it.
The second track is titled Leave Me Alone. This track is a bit darker than the opening track, but that is what is so alluring about NF’s music. He is able to put out record after record of this emotional music that sparks a match inside of listeners of all ages and backgrounds- and this track is one a lot of people would be able to relate to. The lyrics in this track are some of my favorite that he has ever done, and it is all around extremely impressive. The flow is very catchy and has a lot of changes so it keeps the song interesting.
The third track on the album is called Change, which is referenced in The Search (‘been making a whole lot of changes, wrote a song about that you should play it’). The beat of this track is a bit more subtle, but it fits to the theme of the song since the focus is on the lyrics. At the chorus, there is an interesting effect with the beat getting more intense and it works very well. This song isn’t on my top off of the album, it’s not bad but it doesn’t stand out quite as much as some of the other tracks.
The fourth track is titled My Stress. This song is different from the start, he starts off singing making it much more melodic. This song is a bit comparable to 3am in the sense that it will more than likely be the radio single off of the album-which isn’t a bad thing, the song is very good after all. The lyrics are good, the flow is very catchy and the song is full of emotion that a lot of his audience is going to be able to relate to. His songs that lean more on singing usually are not my favorite, but this one works really well and I think that him making the chorus melodic was a good idea. It helps to break up the album and show more of his versatility.
The next track is titled Nate and it is one of my personal favorites from the album. This song is Nate talking to his past self, and it provides a very emotional journey and shows a lot of his emotions. The flow is good, and the lyrics are extremely strong and very impressive- and it makes a very good song and one that a lot of people are going to enjoy. The beat is a bit on the simplistic side, but the lyrics are so good that it makes up for the beat not being as intricate as some of his other beats are. The only thing I don’t like about the song is the chorus feels a little bit repetitive after a few verses, but it does not take much away from the song.
The sixth track is titled Time and was a single released a few days prior to the album dropping. This song also features singing, and again I like it a lot. The flow is great, and it ties in well with the rap and the beat. The song is a bit more mellow, while still being emotional- so it features a good reprieve from the fast paced rapping. This song is really good, and I think that it could be a lot of people’s favorite from the album because it mixes so many cool elements.
The next track is Returns. This song starts off with a faster pace than the previous song, the flow is amazing and the lyrics are so solid. One of the things that stands out to this point is that he has been able to write song after song with all of these amazing lyrics, none of them are lacking lyrics wise so far. Returns is a very catchy song, one of the most catchy off of the album because of the way he was able to flow such good rhymes.
The eighth track is When I Grow Up which was also one of the singles from the album. This song is one of my favorites off of the album- he paired fast verses with a catchy chorus and solid beat and it makes an all around good song. The topic of the song is good as well, the topic of growing up being something a lot of his fans are going to relate a lot to. This song is one I have listened to the most from the album, and no matter how many times it is played I do not find myself getting tired of it.
The next track is Only featuring Sasha Sloan, one of the tracks fans were looking forward to. It lived up to the expectations, his verses are solid and the flow is so good, and Sasha’s singing matches really well. He has done a few songs featuring female vocals, and each of them is always so solid- so seeing him doing it again is great. The lyrics are still extremely solid, and the flow before the chorus is very catchy. This track is a bit more melodic because of Sasha’s feature, so it helps to break up the album since it is a bit of a longer listen.
The next track is called Let Me Go, which is another one of the catchy tracks on the album. The flow is very fast, and has solid rhymes and is broken up with one of the best choruses on the album. The chorus is quiet and emotional, and carries a somber vibe that reflects a lot of the emotions of the album. This song is one of the best on the album, it combines a lot of the elements of NF that make him stand out as an artist.
The 11th track is an interlude that just features him talking- and it is an interesting choice for him to use that to break up the album. It makes the album feel more personal since the listeners get to hear him talking about it and his emotions in the middle of it.
Track 12 is titled Hate Myself, which again features singing. This album has the most of him singing on it, and I think that is a good angle for him to take because it pairs well with his raps and with an album this long it is good for him to show as much as he can so it it not boring. This song is very good as well- the flow is interesting and catchy, and the beat pairs well with everything. The chorus breaks it up very well, and I think that a lot of people would enjoy listening to this song.
The next track is I Miss The Days, and right away this song is very attention catching. The lyrics are so good, and the flow is one of the best off of the album. He manages to tell such a story with this song, it feels like a journey while listening to it. It is a song that is packed full of emotions yet manages to flow very well and has a chorus that is written very well. He does more melodic bits in this song, and it starts to make more and more sense as the album goes along.
Track 14 is No Excuses, and from the start the beat is very interesting. It has a bit of a creepy sound from the beginning and it adds a lot to the song. Lyrically, it is probably the one lacking the most on the album simply from the repetition of ‘no excuses’ acting as a chorus- but it still is a very good song. The verses are solid, and it is a very enjoyable song. It doesn’t stand out as much as the others on the album, but I wouldn’t say that it is a bad song.
The 15th track is Like This which has a melodic sound. It flows well and mixes rapping and singing a lot, and it has a very good sound to it. His singing is good and very emotional, and I think that it adds a lot to the songs. Having these sadder songs mixed in with faster songs makes for a very good album- and I think that this song is one of the more solid on the album. It seems very well thought out, and it could appeal to people who like a variety of genres which is something that is impressive especially for a rap artist.
The next track is Options, which also has the spooky sounding beat. It makes the song sound very interesting, and I think the beat adds a lot to this song. The flow is one of my favorites off of the album- it’s fast and changes up a bit so that it keeps it interesting. He discusses his versatility a bit in this song, and it reminds listeners of the alunt of versatility he showed on this album. The chorus isn’t my favorite, it isn’t bad but it does feel a little repetitive, but the verses are all very solid and unique.
The next track is WHY, which is one the fans have been sitting with a long time. This track was released in June of last year, which was an interesting choice considering the album dropped over a year later. Ever since the single dropped, it has been a favorite of mine, and I think that it is a song that never really gets old. It has a great flow in it, one of my favorites that he has ever done, and even after sitting with the song for over a year it still hasn’t gotten old. I think he chose the best song to release that early, and fans may be surprised to know that he has been working on the album for that long. The lyrics of the song are great, and it is overall a very solid song.
The 18th track is titled Thinking, and the flow is a bit odd at first, but it makes sense more into the song. This is another one of the songs that is really good, has good lyrics and flow- but just doesn’t stand out. That is going to happen when there is an album with twenty songs though- so it doesn’t mean the song is bad, it just gets a bit hidden. It has melodic bits as well, and I like that he included so much of that in the album.
The 19th track is Trauma, which is another one of my favorites from the album. Right away, the song has a somber vibe because of the instrumental, and then his singing that sounds very sad and distressed. His singing on this track is the most impressive so far, it carries so much emotion and makes the track stand out a lot when compared to the others.He doesn’t rap in this song, and I found that it actually worked really well. This song is extremely sad and captivating- it connects so much to the listener and makes you really feel the emotions.
The last track is Time again, the non extended version- so there isn’t anything else to be said about that, other than wondering why he would have included extended and non extended both on the album. It’s a good song, but it is a bit confusing.
Overall, the album is amazing-truly. 20 songs, over an hour of content, and it works. He managed to fill it with so many iconic lyrics and verses that will go on impacting listeners for a long time. I liked that he included a lot more singing in this album, I feel like it worked so well in this album and helped carry on the emotion.
Lyrically, this album was amazing- the songs all connected to this concept of him searching to find out who he is and what to do and where to go and it worked so well. He is known for his albums telling a story and he certainly didn’t hold back at all with this one. It is so impressive that he was able to make so many songs for one album and put so much time and energy into it.
He put an equal amount of energy into each song, some of the songs do not stand out as much but that is to be expected, but all of them were solid in beat, flow and lyrics which is the most important thing. NF is reaching a peak with this album, he really created an album I would call a masterpiece, and it leaves me and other fans wondering where he will take this search next.
See NF in a city near you, tickets are at https://www.nfrealmusic.com/#tour .
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