Over the course of Kodak Blackโs Hip Hop career, the artist has been marred with controversial takes, conspiracy theories, and incarceration. Once cheered as the future of Florida, Kodak carried with him the cult-following of SoundCloud rappers like XXXTENTACION and Juice WRLD, delivering blood-soaked raps with squeaking zeal.
Between stints in jails and prisons, Kodak unleashed hellfire through tracks such as โNo Flockinโ,โ โZEZEโ and โDrowning,โ captivating audiences in the Sunshine State and beyond with his unique voice and broken-hearted ballads filled with memorable one-liners and hellacious deliveries.
Haitian Boy Kodak arrived this past May and marks the first project Kodak has dropped since being released after serving his latest jail time, a 46-month bid which ended upon former President Trumpโs commuting of his sentence. With eight tracks coming in at just under 22-minutes, Haitian Boy Kodak breaks from the trend of long Hip Hop albums and turns the focus inward, setting features aside for a more holistic portrait of Kodak as a person and artist.
Unfortunately, the portrait was rushed and poorly drawn.
There are attempts to wrangle Haitian Boy Kodak into a tightly bound exploration into his heritage. Born to a Haitian immigrant (the Z Queen makes an appearance in the accompanying video to Lil Yachty and Kodakโs โHit Bout Itโ), Kodakโs not previously gone into any particular detail about his upbringing.
On โDejanbem,โ Kodak sings in Haitian Creole, pleading for Heavenโs guidance as he recalls the perils of incarceration and the misery of heartache, resulting in one of the albumโs strongest offerings. But aside from โDejanbemโ and the albumโs title, Haitian Boy Kodak hardly scratches the surface of his lifeโs story, leaving unanswered questions and little context.
Of course, there are moments on Haitian Boy Kodak when the Dade County rapper shows signs of the lyrical spontaneity and stream-of-consciousness which brought him to the forefront of his generation earlier this decade, but instead of the nuanced, clever bars found in projects such as 2018โs Dying to Live or even 2017โs Painting Pictures, weโre left with a scattered assortment of half-built ideas.
Sure, thereโs โRound The Rosesโ and โZ Look Jamaican,โ two tracks which will likely rack up some streams and receive some radio play, but those songs canโt hold a flame to Kodakโs previous hits wonโt stand as meaningful offerings in the โLockjawโ rapperโs discography.
Undoubtedly, Haitian Boy Kodak received a paltry reception, but instead of dwelling on the albumโs core issues, Kodak ranted on Instagram about receiving little playlisting or industry support. Perhaps Kodak will break free from the rut heโs occupied since last yearโs Bill Israel, weโll be waiting.
Until then: The Z Looksโฆunfocused.
