Although Guapdad 4000 has only officially been making music as a career since late 2017, he is already one of the more exciting rising stars in the game right now. His first mixtape, Scamboy Color, which has most of the production being handled by Guapdad himself, was received with critical acclaim in the underground rap community, with many people comparing him to Bay Area legends like Mac Dre and E-40. His musical style is so diverse that he sounds like a different artist from one song to the next, and his personality is super vibrant and fun. Guapdad 4000 has stated that he was a petty criminal and scammer for money before he started to take music seriously, and this silly trickster sort of vibe oozes into his music. Scamboy Color was such a hit within the music community that Guapdad 4000 was invited by J. Cole to contribute to the collective Dreamville Records album Revenge of the Dreamers III and form a “supergroup” of sorts with JID, Smino, Buddy, and Earthgang, who all have quirky and weird musical styles like Guapdad. Dior Deposits is the latest project and debut album from Guapdad 4000, and it is a piece of music that I have been anticipating for a while. I really dig a lot of the artists that are considered to be associated with or similar to Guapdad 4000, so I figured I would dig his debut album, and I was right. Dior Deposits is so colorful and fun, and I would recommend it to anyone who like funky and jazzy new age hip hop.
Shout out to my old thing, I know she hate me. Shout out to my new thing, she goin’ crazy. Settin’ all the trends people taking. I might crash tonight, I’m not breaking…
Dior Deposits gets off to a super smooth and spicy start with the opening track, ‘Doing Too Much,’ which features fellow rising Bay Area MC Slimmy B, who’s quick-fire bars and high energy demeanor remind me a lot of Boozie Badazz. Slimmy B’s energy and style mash-up very well with the silky delivery provided by Guapdad 4000, and this is a duo that I think definitely needs to make more music together in the future. Instrumentally, until the switch up at the end of the track, this song has that G-Funk trap vibe that sounds a lot like something Shoreline Mafia would make. I really love this new age idea of blending old school West Coast funky hip hop beats with trap because it makes the instrumentals sound super tough while still having a good tempo to dance and vibe to. The next track, ‘Stuck With It,’ which features Tory Lanez, also has that danceable G-Funk vibe to it, this time without an underlying trap beat. The beat on this song is a lot more R&B sounding than it is trap. In fact, the style and sound of this song actually sort of reminds me of some old school Usher or Pharrell. Once again, the feature on this song is excellent, as the singing voice and flow of Tory Lanez sounds really nice next to the musical stylings of Guapdad 4000. I have a feeling that I am going to be saying that quite a bit, for Guapdad is a chameleon with his sound and will probably make most of his collaborations sound super nice and natural. ‘First Things First,’ which features G-Eazy and Reo Cragun, slides into that R&B lane even more, with instrumental on this one reminding me a lot of music from the late 2010s to early 2010s. The sound of this track is so retro, and this flavor fits the vibe of his features very well. Once again, every artist contributing to this track sounds so natural; there is something about Guapdad 4000 that seems to bring the best out of all of the artists around him. Speaking of great collaborations, the features on ‘Gucci Pajamas’ are probably my favorite from this whole album; Chance the Rapper and Charlie Wilson both make excellent contributions to this track. Chance’s high pitched voice and off the wall-flow sound perfect on this jazzy and funky banger, and considering the instrumental for this track does not sound that far of from something Charlie Wilson would make himself, I am sure you can imagine that his contribution is awesome as well. Guapdad 4000’s funny and quirky personality really shines through on this song. I love this line from the chorus: I got options, at least I thought. I can’t find all the shit that I bought. Did I actually buy the shit? Nah… The tongue in cheek nature of this song is funny and awesome. Obviously, as annoying as it is, no guy is going to be that mad when a pretty girl is stealing all of your clothes, because that means she probably likes you or at the very least means she hangs with you a lot. That being said, I do hope Guapdad got back those Gucci Pajamas, because those things are way expensive, man.
‘Going Through It’ may be super short and pretty much the length of half a normal song, but it still packs one of the hardest punches of any track from this record. It features Bay Area Legend E-40 and his prodigy Net the Pharaoh, who obviously both give the song a strange and in your face sort of energy that you would expect from anything that has E-40 on it. It is obvious that E-40 had a lot of influence on this song from the instrumental; the whole vibe of this song is so 90s and it honestly sounds like something that E-40 would have made himself back in the day. After that trip into 1997 Oakland, we hit the banger section of the record, starting with the song ‘Scammin’ featuring Mozzy. The melody and overall vibe of ‘Scammin’ is just as dirty and grimy as you would expect of a song with this title. The deep and dark piano keys on this one make me want to round up the boys and go hit a lick. The gruff voice of Mozzy really compliments Guapdad 4000 a lot on this track; Guapdad seems like the smart more sinister one, and Mozzy sounds like the enforcer who is there to kick your ass. Speaking of enforcers, ‘Izayah,’ features three of the boldest and toughest rising stars in the rap game right now, Maxo Kream, Denzel Curry, and Key!. If you know me or have been paying attention to this blog for a little while, you have probably figured out by now how much I dig those three artists, so it is not surprising that I really love this song. The instrumental of this song really sound like something Maxo would rap on himself; it is sludgy and bass-heavy and hard as hell and makes me want to get turnt. It definitely makes sense that this song is produced by Kenny Beats because it totally sounds like a Maxo and Kenny collaboration. Following the intensity and crime from the last few songs, Guapdad figured that we could use a little conversation with God, and he gives us that with the skit ‘Jigga Juice’s Prayer.’ Guapdad 4000’s hilarious personality really shines through during this little “prayer.” I love this line where he is describing the woman he is hanging out with to God: When I hop out the whip they know that’s a stripper from Magic City. But we know she goin’ to school and working at a call center like she said she do… Good on that stripper for going to school to get her degree. You have to respect the grind. It is pretty evident that Guapdad’s prayer for the bigger bust down must have come to fruition, as the song that follows this prayer is called ‘Iced Out Gold Chain.’ This track has that Southern R&B melodic trap feel that has become popular due to artists such as YNW Melly or Pnb Rock, and Guapdad 4000 totally excels at this sound. I think I am required to be really into this song because the first line of the first verse is an homage to the legendary song ‘Wanna Be a Baller’ by Lil Troy. Also, Guapdad 4000 tells the girl he is with to wear something sexy from FashionNova, which is hilarious and awesome, so yeah, ‘Iced Out Gold Chain’ is a pretty awesome song. Guapdad continues to inform us of his love for the lavish life on the next song, ‘Can’t Stop Finessing.’ This track is a bit of a slow burner; the sound of this one actually reminds me a lot of 6LACK, which is sort of funny to me because there is a song featuring him coming up on this album. I love the middle of this song where the beat stops and Guapdad starts to tell a story in a manner that is almost like spoken word in a way. This is just another example of how many talents Guapdad 4000 has in his repertoire.
These n****s don’t want me to be great (Nah, nah, it’s cool, dawg, it’s cool). These bitches don’t want me to be great (Nah, don’t even trip, n****a, ay)…
After the slow ride of that last track, we could use a little energy, and ‘Rolex Rockstar,’ featuring Buddy, definitely provides that energy. This track is an absolute banger. The beat is so weird and futuristic sounding; it sounds like it came straight out of an alien rave or something. As you can probably tell from the lyrics above, ‘Rolex Rockstar’ is full of angst and energy. On this song, Buddy and Guapdad are informing us of all the shit they have that we don’t, and it is basically a big “fuck you” to their haters. The next track, ‘Prada Process,’ is the track features 6LACK; you probably could have guessed that just from the instrumental, though, because this track totally sound like one that 6LACK would make himself. This track is very and somber and dark, as Guapdad and 6LACK let everyone know why no one should fuck with them. My favorite thing about this song is this line making fun of Russ: You doing right but we don’t care, we call that doing Russ… Despite his success in the rap game, no artists within the industry really care about Russ’ music or want to make music with him because they think he is a bitch. With this line, Guapdad is basically saying his rival may be doing well for himself, but since he is a little bitch no one will ever care or be on his side. On the last song from Dior Deposits, we get to see a softer and less cocky or in your face side to Guapdad. ‘Stunt on Ghosts,’ which features Mansa, is definitely one of the most chill and almost sweet tracks on the record. It does not have that heavy party banger feel that most of this album has; this song must be meant more for a kickback setting because it feels like it has that kind of vibe to me. ‘Stunt on Ghosts’ is actually a love track, with Guapdad 4000 and Mansa singing about how they want to spend all of their money on a lady they want, essentially buying the love that they require. I think this is a pretty cool way to end this record, as it shows that Guapdad 4000 has a serious and loving side to him as well as that goofy and super high energy character that he typically puts on in his music.
Guapdad 4000’s Dior Deposits is an excellent debut record from a very diverse artist that I am positive will be around for a long time. Guapdad’s musical style is not very unlike his scammer or trickster personality that he typically exhibits; this guy is like a chameleon, adapting to and excelling in every musical situation he is put in regardless of his own preference. One of my favorite things about this album is the fact that Guapdad 4000 almost seems to change his style and flow according to the artists that are featured; I mean ‘Prada Process’ literally sounds like it could be on a 6LACK record, and ‘Izayah’ literally sounds like it could be on a Maxo Kream or Key! record. There is something for every hip hop fan on Dior Deposits, and I think that is the coolest thing about this record. Stream it below and let me know what you think of it yourself!
EAST SIDE VIBES 