On its surface,
Flipp Dinero's
Love for Guala follows the sing-rap album formula to a near-parodic level. An introspective, struggle-based opening track makes way for a mesh of anthems (the big feature hits slotting in at the number two and number four spots), with the middle-to-late spots reserved for a few relationship-centric ballads. Of course, the final two songs are the "bonus track" (read: the artist's biggest hit for inflated streaming numbers) and the closer, a sunshine-glazed song about what the future holds. At face value, the record seems destined for mediocrity. Yet the project's flair lies in its execution, not its design. What
Flipp does with
Love for Guala is demonstrate his promise in the scene as a whole, touching base on a plethora of sounds from anthemic street rap to lamenting R&B. And each one lands -- flute-trap anthem "How I Move" is an instant hit, "Looking at Me" embodies the summer trap sound, and "Hills" demonstrates the rapper's proficiency on more brag-centric material. That's to say nothing of standout "Westside," a brooding cut that perfects the hazy, semi-gothic ethos of
Travis Scott's early material.