A decent attempt from Jack Harlow to return to the kind of vulnerable and honest rap that got him to where he is now
Kentucky-based rapper Jack Harlow is back with the surprise release of his latest project titled Jackman.
Released on April 28, 2023, the project contains just 10 songs and runs for just over 24 minutes. It’s certainly not a full album in the traditional sense and listens almost more as an LP rather than an EP.
Harlow is new to being one of the leading artists in the rap industry and a surprise album with no lead singles or features is certainly out of character for him.
The songs here almost come off as demos due to their length, lack of choruses as well as their lack of features. This however is not to say that they are bad demos by any means. In fact, this short collection of tracks sees Harlow attempt to return to the kind of rap that got him to where he is now; soulful, insightful and clever storytelling.
His last album was a bit of a sad attempt at creating music to maximize his views on tik tok, rather than the kind of introspective and insightful bars that drew people to him in the first place.
Through Jackman Harlow attempts to paint a picture of what drives him, what has brought him to this point and the challenges he faces. Harlow’s storytelling abilities shine here as he broaches a range of topics including familial relationships in need of repair, friends with rape charges and a look behind the smooth bravado he portrays himself as having.
The weakest track is easily No Enhancers. Sporting one of the weaker beats on the album combined with pretty empty lyrics about how Harlow prefers women without plastic surgery or as he says with “no enhancers” there just isn’t much to this one.
It Can’t Be and Ambitious are the next step up both dealing with Harlow speaking to the things he did right in order to get him to the level of fame that is has achieved. In Ambitious Harlow splits the song into 3 different stages of his life as he has progressed in his career. With a decent 90’s style grandiose beat, it’s certainly not the most novel idea but done proficiently well.
It Can’t Be is a satirical approach to the same concept as Harlow raps over a beat that sounds like a sports videogame loading screen. The song is about how people constantly discredit his status in the industry as it being due to the colour of his skin rather than his hard work, loyalty, skill, humility, charisma etc.
Common Ground, They Don’t Love It, and Is That Ight? all display that more confident side of Harlow. The production on Jackman overall is quite good and these three tracks all feature great beats, mixing and vocals.
Gang Gang Gang is an interesting take on how no relationship is unbreakable. Through the song, he details how he’s known friends who have done unspeakable things and were thus, cut out of his life to preserve appearances. As Harlow puts it: “unconditional love suddenly becomes very conditional when push comes to shove.” The song is a jab at how artists, especially rappers, love to flaunt their loyalty to those they came up with and the seemingly unbreakable bonds they share. While the idea of unwavering loyalty is certainly appealing, Harlow illustrates why there are certain things that can be done to erode any bond.
Featuring the best storytelling on the project, Blame on Me is Harlow at his most vulnerable. A beautiful glimpse into Harlow’s upbringing this song is split into three different people: the first verse is from the perspective of Harlows younger brother, the second is from Harlow’s own perspective and the last is from the perspective of his father. The song is about the mistakes made by each man, the regret afterwards and how each blames himself. Every verse is ended with how they don’t want to even mention the subject out of a false sense of pride, something a lot of men can relate to. It’s a touching and self-aware song that leaves listeners hopeful for reconciliation between the three men.
If there was a feature to be released before the album it would certainly be Denver. Probably the most well-rounded song Denver combines a catchy sample and well-produced beat with introspective lyrics. It’s about dealing with finding fame meaningless and beginning to believe all the negative things said about him to finding a healthy balance of criticism and praise. He does this by staying “sober and focused” as well as connecting more with his family. It’s a down-to-earth and relatable track with tons of “re-listen” value to it.
Questions finishes off the album on a somewhat insecure note. Harlow flips back and forth between being critical of his life decisions and allowing himself to make mistakes. The beat is a bit bland here, especially after the simplicity of the previous one.
Overall this is a solid piece of work. I think the ceiling for Harlow’s potential is much higher than what he has shown us thus far. I really hope he continues developing this sort of music rather than the stuff we got on his last album as I think it’s what suits him best. Jackman certainly could have benefitted from being longer and more personal but at the very least it’s worth listening to and has some catchy beats and solid story-telling in it.