In an age in which the market feels more saturated than ever, the lengths and moral code surrounding an artist’s claim to fame has never felt so ambiguous. Whilst this is by no means an abrupt marketing formula, it feels like a demand that within the musical landscape of now, it is the world of media gimmicks that either make or break the inaugural acceptance of the next era of stars. No artist has ever been so prone to the polarising motto, all publicity is good publicity, then New York native 6ix9ine. Making himself a household name through essentially adopting the token title of hip-hops villain, in the age of internet virality and streaming, it felt as if the mogul had cracked the code. Irrespective of one’s opinion on 6ix9ine as a person, though damning an image that may be, no artist has ever had the ability to turn heads quite like him. Whilst I often find myself offended by his inability to separate product from its maker in the least flattering way possible, it is his enigmatic theatrics and bizarre conduct that leaves me intrigued every time.
6ix9ine’s latest album ‘TattleTales’ comes after his glorified release from jail. The result of his careless ignorance and constant tease, 6ix9ine, sonically or otherwise, allows his brash actions to bleed into the medium. That element of his life has always had precedence and influence in his music, yet on his latest body of work, I struggle to find his progression. As is the case for most of these gimmicky, flash in the pan artists, there comes a point in which style is lost and the thinly veiled lack of substance is exposed. ‘TattleTales’ feels like 6ix9ine’s ‘hitting the wall moment’ as he struggles to juggle his synonymous exhilarating antics, with a newfound squeaky-clean sound. Everything from his persona, to his appearance, to the album’s art, precedes his reputation, yet I struggle to catch even a glimpse of that same colour and unapologetic attitude anywhere on the record.
Granted, the opening track picks up from a place of familiarity for its performers. ‘LOCKED UP 2’, the revitalised remix of Akon’s ‘Locked Up’ sees both 6ix9ine and Akon reflect upon the troubled undertakings that led to each demise respectively. Revisiting the paths littered with mistakes that would eventually lead to the pair being locked up. Toying with this idea of suppression, the instrumental bears a luxurious frame initially with its piercing keys and serene string refrains, only to be ultimately muted by the violent thrashings of warped descending synths. Whilst the idea in which we understand and sympathise with 6ix9ine’s sorrows feels a little far-fetched and ignorant, it’s as close to a heartfelt and insightful moment of relief we get.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jV1v2Cy1w30
Things immediately plummet following 6ix9ine’s defining moment of pitiful honesty on the follow-up track ‘TUTU. Whilst the favouring of these tropical, colourful instrumental palettes is nothing new within the 6ix9ine catalog, no rendition prior has sounded quite so cheap and shallow. It is almost a given that when the production is so shamelessly toothless, the expectation falls upon the shoulders of the performer to engage. Yet here, 6ix9ine reels back his usual presence to unfold an equally one-note and forgettable vocal performance. Regardless of how unstomachable 6ix9ine’s emphatic rage often is, it’s at least a recognisable style, here, 6ix9ine fades all too deviously into a sea of unidentifiable crooners. These same issues become a recurring plague on the track ‘CHARLIE’. With its lifeless clunky pan flutes, and a chorus with perhaps the most perplexing lack of cohesion ever, composed as if it were 6ix9ine’s personal shopping list, the track demonstrates Tekashi’s willingness to recycle these generic and inorganic tropes and shamelessly flog them like a dead horse.
‘Highlights’, a term that is relative to one’s perception and ability to separate Tekashi from his music, are few and far between. Those familiar and inclined to the synonymous 6ix9ine sound are likely to be scratching their heads and wincing at more than a handful of the cuts present on the record, but it is the inclusion of ‘GOOBA’ which acts as a safe haven for his unfiltered, trademark style. Vocally 6ix9ine evokes an unbridled rage through his brutish inflections. Reaching an unparalleled sense of monstrous eruption, it is outlandish cuts like this that make 6ix9ine such a contentious figure. The track’s lyrical content captures that provocative tease and childish jest the 6ix9ine formula entertains. An almost landmark return, as the phenomenon directly taunts and gaslights his haters. Whilst, not a sound I exactly care for, this is pinnacle 6ix9ine and I struggle to deny just how bold and daring it is.
6ix9ine has made his interest to transcend genres and merge definitive barriers no secret throughout his career. Constantly opting to fuse together elements of hip-hop and Latin pop, or one step further, inviting and appearing on predominantly Spanish speaking artists tracks. As expected ‘TattleTales’ refuses to interrupt this fascination and harbours a few of its own stylistic splices. We have the cut ‘YAYA’ which may in fact be the most migraine-inducing track within the 6ix9ine discography. With its manipulated chipmunked vocal phrases and Tekashi’s grotesquely strenuous lead refrain it feels as if the song is a tandem bonanza poised with the task of slowly eating away at my sanity.
Where ‘YAYA’ seeks to assault my ears through its rancid production, 6ix9ine ventures elsewhere stylistically to champion his abusively excessive vocals. Similarly sickening and an additionally abhorrent display of complete unambitious incompetence is Tekashi’s effort to toy with the tropes of dancehall on ‘NINI’. Where featured artist Leftside boasts a real smokey and dance feverish flair to his infectious delivery, 6ix9ine is the complete antithesis. Sticking out like a sore thumb, Tekashi lacks the suave, minimalist traits to even remotely do his rendition justice. It is simply mind-boggling to me why anyone, Tekashi included, would see himself fit to appeal to such an otherworldly demographic when his efforts are so blatantly unfit.
Though the album exclusively welcomes recurring names within the Tekashi repertoire, for the most part, 6ix9ine struggles to find virtually any chemistry with his collaborators. Living up to its creator’s namesake, the track ‘TROLLZ’ exhibits a point of contention forged from too much personality. Yet again 6ix9ine waters down his sound to create this flavourless melodic crooning that feels far too reserved to leave a lasting impact. Without his sustained audacious presence, he is simply left in the dust by Nicki Minaj who runs circles around him with her witty, personality-filled attitude and delivery that oozes with confidence. Where too much personality spoils the equation on ‘TROLLZ’ it is the removal of pronounced presences that leads to a vapid and sparse listen on ‘LEAH’. With its violently invasive distorted synth line that acts as the enveloping blanket that devours anything and everything beneath it, a somber Akon and 6ix9ine feel all but lost in the reverb-heavy abyss. The two sing of giving in to their primal erotic desires with unnamed partners and indulging in lustful activities, yet nothing is given the necessary treatment to sound sincere or intimate. It all feels so surface level and one-note. So much so, that I am left feeling baron and cold with just how much blank space is left through underwhelming performances.
6ix9ine manages to continually underwhelm and flaunt a lack of creative substance throughout the project’s entirety. Yet it isn’t until the back end in which he truly flaunts his blasé and repetitive habits. ‘GATA’ is a prime example of the style over substance formula the Tekashi brand has so rigorously relied upon. 6ix9ine interpolates and calls back to many a past track of his own whilst boasting a truly tasteless sense of independence in which he states his unwelcoming nature towards an undescribed ‘ho’. Its lines like “I won’t save her, I won’t breed a ho, I don’t need a ho, I just fuck her and mislead the ho, I mistreat the ho” that truly capture the vile, downright misogynistic nature of Tekashi’s devoid moral compass. Yet another instance in which 6ix9ine references his own canonical arc is on the track ‘GTL’. Sampling the album’s opener, the track is yet another installment in the niche trend of phone recorded songs. Whilst it plays out as a case of insightful recollection in which 6ix9ine comes to the realisation of his bad company, regressing over his misplacement in trust and loyalty amongst those that would eventually turn on him, I fail to see the appeal in such an amateurish and inaudible mix. A part of me hopes that this is the nail in the coffin that finally condemns the ambient-filled phone recorded track to the depths of the drawing board.
I truly and honestly struggle to understand the direction and decisions leading up to 6ix9ine’s construction of the album. 6ix9ine is a head-turner, yet a majority of ‘TattleTales’ feels constructed to go in one ear and immediately out the other. Whilst his synonymous sound is admittedly a hard to swallow pill, his newfound appreciation for an overly pristine and calculated layout sucks any and all originality and life from his sound. Let’s face it, 6ix9ine isn’t exactly a poet or wordsmith, so when his boisterous and over the top personality is removed from the equation I find his craft to become redundant and if anything, a grueling chore. The surface-level enjoyment to be found on ‘TattleTales’ asks more of its listeners than it does 6ix9ine, as I find myself scrambling to draw positives from its creator’s input. ‘TattleTales’ is not the eye-catching, snazzy project we’ve come to expect from Tekashi, as it instead feels like the result of the watering down of one’s already insufficient craft.
TattleTales – 6ix9ine – 2/10
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