Because the Internet

by Childish Gambino

Overview

Having left his full-time role on the hit comedy Community to concentrate on music, rapper Donald Glover aka Childish Gambino gets broader and bolder on his 2013 effort Because the Internet, an indulgent kaleidoscope of studio tricks and celebrity problems that's still wildly attractive thanks to its smarts and ability to swing. That latter bit comes courtesy of primary producers Glover and Ludwig Goransson, who mix the edgy sounds of indie rap and indie pop with the best the mainstream world of R&B has to offer. Cool, radio-friendly crooner Lloyd shows up on the creamy West Coast dream called "Telegraph Ave.," while "3005" comes with a chorus so uplifting and bright, it makes the nerdy stay-at-home wallflower at its center sound epic and sexy. The booming influence of the A$AP Mob is felt on numerous cloudy cuts like the grand "Worldstar," where popping pills at Coachella, a Martin Scorsese reference, and a twisted sax solo all congeal into a dank glop of hip-hop hash oil. Then there are all the instrumental interludes that divide the album into chapters or suites, because this one reaches for art with some interruptions for getting flashy on "The Worst Guys" (where Chance the Rapper is merely Chance the Hypeman) and crashing on the couch for either a spliff, or maybe spliff and a sweet snuggle, with Jhene Aiko's "Pink Toes." All of it flows splendidly and Gambino's wit, hipness, and lyrical dexterity are all still strong points, with "I got more tail than Petco," "More green than my Whole Foods/And I'm too Fly, Jeff Goldblum," plus a reference to the "Ain't Nobody Got Time for That" meme being some examples. Still, even with all these strong points, Gambino often frames his angst and anger with the burden of being born rich (something he mentions quite often on the album), providing plenty of "we should all have such problems" bait or "hierarchy of needs" ammunition, depending on the listener's viewpoint/bank account. Even the short "The Party" finds him inviting friends over and then yelling at them to get the "F" out, but there's long been a wide gap between the life experience of rappers and their fans, something supported by the growling background vocals on "Crawl" provided by Mystikal, an MC who did plenty of hard time when most of his fans have not. Connecting with the album is nearly impossible, understanding it is difficult, and often enough, its inflated ego is irksome, but Because the Internet is too free and fascinating to be dragged down by these complaints, so if a Yeezus with more flash and fun is what's required, Gambino's got the good stuff. ~ David Jeffries

Product Details

Release Date:	12/18/2020
Label:	Glassnote Entertainment Group
UPC:	5056167124528
Rank:	2714

Album Credits

Performance Credits

Childish Gambino   Primary Artist
Jhene Aiko   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Azealia Banks   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Chance the Rapper   Primary Artist,Featured Artist
Swank   Vocals (Background)
Mystikal   Vocals (Background)
Erik Arvinder   Strings
Macklemore   Featured Artist
Ludwig Goeransson   Guitar
Thundercat   Bass,Vocals (Background)
Miguel   Vocals
Donald Glover   Featured Artist
Kilo Kish   Vocals
Doc Allison   Cello
Jason Martin   Vocals
Rochelle Jordan   Vocals (Background)
Edvin Nahlin   Fender Rhodes
Jens Filipsson   Sax (Alto)
Yesi Oritz   Vocals
Chris Hartz   Drums
Steve G. Lover   Vocals,Vocals (Background)
Erik Arvinder Orchestra   Strings

Technical Credits

Chris Athens   Mastering
J. Martin   Composer
Pop Levi   Composer,Producer
Riley Mackin   Engineer
Stephen Bruner   Composer
L. Robinson   Composer
K. Muhammad   Composer
C. Bennett   Composer
Andrew Dawson   Mixing
Sam Spiegel   Additional Production
Ruben Rivera   Engineer
Ludwig Goeransson   Composer,Producer
Brian Roettinger   Art Direction,Creative Director
Autumn de Wilde   Photography
Thundercat   Producer
Childish Gambino   Creative Director,Executive Producer
S-X   Drum Programming
Christian Rich   Producer
Donald Glover   Composer,Producer
Azealia Banks   Composer
Stefan Ponce   Composer,Producer,Drum Programming
Jason Martin   Composer
Rochelle Jordan   Composer
Fam Udeorji   A&R,Creative Director,Executive Producer
K. Hassan   Composer
R. Jordan   Composer
T. Hassan   Composer