Lil Yachty is a striking figure physical figure, with his bright red beaded dreadlocks and rainbow colored grille. Clearly, Yachty is not an artist who takes himself too seriously, and that means that you shouldn’t take him too seriously either. Most listeners will have heard of Lil Yachty by now, likely from his feature on DRAM’s smash hit single “Broccoli” in 2016. “Broccoli”’s signature light hearted tone, featuring flute sampled in the background, is present in much of Lil Yachty’s solo music. Since then, Yachty has released singles like “One Night” and “Minnesota” with much success. Much of Yachty’s music is made first and foremost for entertainment, with message taking a back seat, and his debut album is no exception. Lil Yachty’s “Lil Boat” is a fun and lighthearted project packed full of features and glitzy beats.

Not only is Lil Boat a super catchy and fun album, but an alter ego complex present throughout the album does add some level of complexity to things, however shallow. The album’s opening track “Intro” begins with a narrator introducing both characters in the album. Lil Boat is the first character introduced, who has a temper, as the narrator notes. This means that throughout the album when Lil Boat makes an appearance he is typically rapping and making braggadocious claims. The second character introduced is Lil Yachty, who is the sunnier side of this pairing. Lil Yachty can often be heard crooning and singing with heavy amounts of autotune. These two characters interact throughout the album in often funny ways and add some level of intrigue to the project.

Highlights

Wanna Be US

One of the lead singles for the “Lil Boat” mixtape, “Wanna Be Us” has an infectious sense of positivity. Yachty kicks off the track with “Bitch you know it’s Lil Boat,” so you know you can expect some brash rapping. Lil Yachty boldly proclaims that everybody wants to be like him and featured artist Burberry Perry, and you get the sense that he couldn’t be happier about it. The synth-heavy beat used here helps to add to the sense of positivity and carefree attitude that this song gets across.

Minnesota

“Minnesota” one of Yachty’s most commercially successful records, and upon first listen, it is easy to see why. This song is essentially Yachty talking about how great it is to be rich now, and his excitement and happiness are contagious. The piano looped in the background here really adds to this sense of almost childlike happiness. Features from Young Thug and Quavo lend this song some star power as well and switch up the pace.

Up Next 2

Easily the best technical rap song on the record, “Up Next 2” is not just a good rap song for a Lil Yachty album, but is actually a good rap song, period. Of particular note on this track is a feature by Byou that features several quality one liners. Lines like “Raising bars like bench press,” and “Imma catch a body like a cheerleader” give this song good replay value. The happy go lucky attitude of Byuo’s verse fits in perfectly with Yachty’s overall aesthetic and makes for the best feature of the album.

Lowlight

Out Late

This song is one of the few times on this album that Yachty’s happy-go-lucky attitude comes across as corny as opposed to genuine. Lines like “You my favorite boo” are more cringeworthy than funny. Yachty’s typical fun loving attitude doesn’t come across as well as it normally does because he tries too hard to be serious on this track.

Conclusion

Lil Yachty’s “Lil Boat” is a fun listen. When evaluating this album, I think it’s important to not take yourself too seriously. Yachty is not trying to make a technically groundbreaking project, or comment on ongoing social issues. He is just a 20 year old newly rich rapper who is enjoying living the high life, and this sense of joy is contagious. Personally I had not heard this album in a few months, and when I revisited this album to write this review I was reminded of what a fun listen it is.

Score: 7.5/10