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Part II: Breaking down Supa Bwe and his new project ‘Jaguar’

An in-depth analysis, review of second half of Supa Bwe’s latest project
Part+II%3A+Breaking+down+Supa+Bwe+and+his+new+project+Jaguar
Courtesy of flickr user Dan Garcia

Supa Bwe maintains high quality while continuing to expand his vocal and production ranges in the second half of this project.

The fifth track of “Jaguar” is also the lead single, with a feature from Qari and a music video from company Lyrical Lemonade.

“Look” is a hard-hitting song with sirens and 808s that harken back to the days of Chicago Drill, and the unedited aggressive tone Supa Bwe adopts assists in propelling that sentiment forward. The chorus sounds surprisingly like the chorus in XXXTentacion and $ki Mask “the Slump God”’s single “R.I.P Roach ‘East Side Soulja,’” but in a good way.

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The anger in Supa Bwe’s voice is palpable, and it’s hard to not want to pour your milk before your cereal hearing this song. Qari comes in with a magnificent feature, delivering smooth bars that serve as a wonderful contrast to the yelling that dominates much of the rest of the song.

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“Animal” is a wild deviation from the song that precedes it, but the groovy track is welcome after such an assault. “Animal” is properly titled “Animal (In My Dreams Freestyle),” and I’m starting to wonder why all of Supa Bwe’s freestyles are his best songs.

Regardless, we’re back to talking to his love interest, this time serenading in an impressively smooth voice between vocalizations quite similar to The Weeknd’s in “The Party & The After Party.”

About halfway through the track he begins to sing in a much higher pitch about needing change and space, as well as singing that, “Honestly / We been over / ‘Cause you still slip in my dreams.” Tough breakup.

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“I’m Not Special” is the penultimate track, and it’s an ode to all of the materialism that impacts Supa Bwe’s life.

It’s obvious that he’s torn between his commercial success and his need to be humble, with lines like, “All this Gucci on me make me feel better,” in stark contrast to lines such as, “These Off-Whites don’t make me special / You drip harder / And get wetter.”

The production is upbeat, with a periodic horn that adds a bit of a flair that’s missing in the other tracks. As is customary for Supa Bwe, about halfway through the beat shifts and his voice is pitched up, with the production slowing and Supa Bwe singing about how all gladiators belong in stadiums.

The closing track of “Jaguar,” which shares a name with the title of the album, features Gu$to and is immediately signaling to you with its distortion that it’s going to be another track similar in tone to “Look.” The jaguar roars also don’t hurt the atmosphere. The 808s are toxic sludge, and Gu$to’s voice is in its natural deep state as he speaks on typical hip-hop fare.

Attractive women, expensive cars and quite a few murders build up into Supa Bwe singing he “Can’t take this shit no more,” and life is “night and day.”

It’s a profoundly somber ending to the album, where Supa Bwe may not actually have everything he’s ever wanted despite all his success.

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“Jaguar” is an album that demands to be listened to. Supa Bwe proves his mettle by exploring a variety of both production and vocal styles, while still delivering an album that is relatively cohesive.

Right now, “Jaguar” sits at less than 3,200 views on Genius in total, the jaguar’s share of them coming from “Look.” Some of the official Supa Bwe videos on YouTube — where you can listen to the whole album for free — have less than 1,000 views.

With such talent and such a diverse assortment to choose from, most every hip-hop fan will find at least one song to add to their playlist. No Chance the Rapper features required.

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