Naod "The Opening Act"

6/10

Lyrics:

You get a taste of how it was growing up in San Jose and going to USC for Naod, as he gets very personal with his lyrics. Most of the album consist of storytelling songs such as "I Cried" featuring Nate Poetics (from The Beat Advocate) and Zig, and one of my favorite's from the album "Cross Your Mind." Although the very personal lyrics allow the listener to understand Naod's life, some songs lack appeal to keep the listener interested. Many times the songs were too personal, which made it hard for a listener to relate. For the most part, I like the smooth delivery, and Naod's ability to ride his own beats.

Production:

The majority of the project was produced by Naod, using a lot of samples and 808's. The production that consisted samples were probably Naod's best songs such as "Be Together Soon." I like the samples, but I felt like this sound is a little outdated since it was very popular over 10 years ago. There are others songs such as "Haters" featuring That Fool Al and Marc Payne, which don't consist samples which show another side of Naod's production. Again, since it is Naod's first project I think it is great he can produce his own music, but I think with time he can get comfortable with his production and create music that can remain appealing and still have it's own originality.  

Overall:

I think this is a good start for Naod, and he has the advantage by being able to produce his own music. I think that if he continues working hard he can become a successful producer/artist. I think overall the project lacked by not having a strong single, and not much appeal to the consumer. It expresses a lot of personal experience and emotion from Naod which I like a lot. He is still a young artist who has a lot of potential to continue to grow, so support this Bay Area Native who is pursuing an education at USC and maintains true to his music.  

To purchase album:

Bandcamp

Music Video: "Gassin" feat. Young Mix and OMG (Ice Cube's Son)