Donald Glover has chosen to say goodbye to his music moniker “Childish Gambino” through a final album released this Friday, July 19. The album boasts 17 songs, featuring well-known artists like Jorja Smith, Amaarae, Yeat, and more. While we can be sad to see the familiar moniker go, it’s exciting to see the direction of Glover’s future with his own name.
Review of the Track List In Order
Gambino’s first song, “H3@RT$ W3RE M3@NT TO F7Y” feat. Amaarae, started off experimental with a clash of instruments and noise, muffled voices, and barely a melody. Just as you wonder where the song’s going, the tone shifts about halfway (around 1.19) into a soulful rendition of the title. But just when you’re about to lose yourself in it, Gambino yet again shifts the tone back to a noisy, light beat with boastful lyrics, crescendoing into a heavier, catchier beat. These fun little twists in just the first song of the album to a wave of anticipation for listeners.
“Lithonia,” already released earlier this month, has a much steadier melody with heavy pop-punk influences. It’s one of my favorite tracks in the album and reminds me of “Wurli” by Dominic Fike, another great punk-indie song. Read more about our review on “Lithonia” here.
Track #3, “Survive,” features popular actress and singer Chloë. In this track, Gambino once again reminds us that rap doesn’t have to be fast to be good. The verses in this track are slower-paced, steadier, with a heavily auto-tuned chorus accompanied with Chloë’s adlibs, which continue to interweave more consistently throughout the rest of the song. It’s really Chloë’s voice that elevates this song to a higher dimension, along with what appears to be light synths and a pleasant, retro saxophone break that eventually bleeds into an outro.
“Steps Beach” is deceptively acoustic with the simple strum of guitars and harmonizing vocals over an R&B beat. The chorus, however, is anything but. There’s a similar but separate melody playing to Gambino’s repeated phrase “steps beach”––I’m no music expert whatsoever, but it sounds almost like synths. Towards the end, listeners get a bit of a surprise when a woman asks him, “Can you fish? Can you start a fire? Can you hunt?” Gambino replies: “I can sing.” (And rap. And produce. And act. In fact, what can’t you do, Donald?)
The next track, “Talk My Shit,” features Amaarae and Flo Milli. Gambino’s rap is more pronounced in this track, with a trap beat and maintaining that slower rap––faster than his verse in “Survive” but still steady. Amaarae’s high-pitched singing voice contrasts greatly with Gambino’s lower flow and Flo Milli’s confident, playful flow. Overall, I would say this is one of the more weaker songs in the album but it’s a fun one to put on.
“Got To Be” starts with Gambino’s crooning, artfully auto-tuned with heavy synths before abruptly shifting into what almost seems like a completely different song. Heavy beats and what seem like hi-hats (again, not a music expert here so take this with a big grain of salt) and a sudden organ synth playing in a minor key. Then we’re back again to the heavy beats, and it almost feels like a certain genre of electric rock. Certainly one of the more experimental tracks in the album.
Onto lucky #7, “Real Love” seems to be more palatable for the mainstream audience. Predictable chord progressions, a catchy beat, fun bass synths, and a nostalgic tune that sounds impossibly like summer. And don’t get me wrong––predictability can be fun, refreshing even with the unpredictable turns of the previous song.
The next track, “In The Night,” features Jorja Smith and Amaarae. It has a fun synth bass, and the drums and beats in this track sound more organic, less trap. Jorja Smith’s voice as always sounds like melted butter, running beautifully in the chorus. But in my opinion, it’s really Amaarae that takes the cherry on top. Her tone, pitch, and flow create a fun little element to an otherwise steady and consistent song.
Speaking of fun, “Yoshinoya” was a track that I didn’t expect to enjoy so much. After reading Genius’s analysis on his lyrics, there appears to be a shot taken at Drake by referencing Kendrick Lamar’s now infamous “Not Like Us.” But anyway, Gambino gives us no time to breathe: the beat shifts and it’s this delicious, almost crunchy instrumental in the background while he steadily keeps rapping.
In “Can You Feel Me” featuring Legend is, for lack of better word, fun. We have a running theme here, folks. Gambino makes fun music, fun lyrics, fun gaming sound effects, and apparently––according to Genius––fun digs at Drake (“We made a child, you made a mistake” referencing Pusha T’s diss forcing Drake to publicly reveal Adonis).
The 11th track of the album, “No Excuses,” starts with an echo; someone saying “sing” with a few seconds of silence before what sounds like a xylophone (maybe? whatever it is, it’s gorgeous) and harmonizing vocals. Then the synths hit, the deep bass, the strings, the saxophones, and the harmonized vocals. If you can’t tell, this is one of my favorite tracks from this album. I want to listen to this in a beach during sunset. This is just one of those vibey night tracks that you know is going to be a certified summer hit. And yes, it’s 7 minutes long, but trust me––this track will not bore you.
“Cruisin'” feat. Yeat is another banger with experimental sound effects (something that almost sounds like a frog’s croak) and a synth wave chorus. Around halfway to the song, when Yeat enters, sounds like you’re being transported into another dimension. Wearing headphones is a must for this song, not a suggestion. The strings, Gambino’s almost desperate scream-singing––and the end, when a child’s voice counts down to jump, the track seamlessly transitions to the 13th song.
“We Are God” feels breathless. There are intakes of breaths and never exhales. The beat and drums are simple and bare, and the crescendo and decrescendo of wavering instrumentals with autotuned vocals create an otherwordly feel. The simple lyrics are poetic, straightforward in its exploration of existentialism and the universe and, well, God.
The next track, “Running Around” feat. Fousheé, starts off with a pop-punk feel. The introduction of the electric guitar and heavy bass cements this feel. The bridge tapers off in volume with less instruments, more vocals, but everything comes in a full circle during the chorus. I felt like something was lacking––maybe I wanted something louder, something more to make the chorus feel a bit less empty.
“Dadvocate” sounds a bit more laid-back, indie pop rock, and reminds me heavily of Dominic Fike’s tracks in his 2020 album “What Could Possibly Go Wrong.” There’s nothing to hate: twangy guitar, heavy drums, and a catchy chorus. Overall, it’s an easy listen but feels more mainstream.
We’re nearing the end with “Happy Survival” featuring Khruangbin. There’s something beach-y about this song, islandic with the way the bass plays so clearly and melodically with the guitar over catchy drums the only repeated phrase in the whole track: “happy survival.”
Finally, the last track on the album is titled “A Place Where Love Goes.” Groovy and upbeat, the contrast between Gambino’s voice in the verse and bridge is nothing short of amazing. The chorus feels a bit like club music, but it’s really Gambino’s musicality in his voice that carries the song. I wished the vocals in the end of the song was present throughout, but I understand the effect it has on the entire album––a final, strong finish to Childish Gambino.
Check out the album here:
Final Thoughts and Favorite Songs
Overall, this was a unique Childish Gambino album––a psychedelic, dystopian pop-punk and hip-hop album. There were a lot of strong tracks in this album; my favorites included Lithonia, Talk My Shit, Real Love, No Excuses (yes, all 7 minutes of it), and Yoshinoya. As I added the songs into my playlist, I mourned the fact that this would be the last of Childish Gambino. While we will miss Childish Gambino’s music, we wish Donald Glover the best in his future endeavors.
