Andy Mineo released his sophomore album last Thursday titled “Uncomfortable.” The album is executively produced by “!llmind” (producer for J Cole and 50 Cent). This is huge for Andy Mineo’s career as he attempts to bridge the gap between rap and Christian music.
The thirteen-song album begins with a single that was released early. It has the same title as the album, “Uncomfortable.” It lays out the main idea of the album, which is to challenge the listener to feel OK with being uncomfortable. The song ends with a memorable quote saying, “If you want to live a comfortable life, make sure you never love nobody, be selfish, and never sacrifice.”
Phrases like that are to be expected when listening to Mineo’s music. He often questions social norms and will leave you perplexed and challenge you to grow in ways you might not have expected.
Mineo continues to try to push the boundaries for what hip-hop/rap symbolizes. He follows fellow 11Six rapper, Lecrae’s call for rappers to speak more about personal and social issues rather than about exploiting women, drugs, and money.
It is apparent in this album that as Mineo gains more fans he is starting to move from songs that make heads bang at concerts to songs that are lyrically dense. In an interview on Saturday Morning Cartoons (a series of YouTube videos Mineo made to show how his albums are made), he refers to his new album as, “ a body of work, rather than a string of singles.”
The beats and flow of each song are unique as Mineo uses different styles of hip-hop that have influenced him in his life. From the mellow beat of “Uptown” to the lyrically driven “Desperados,” Mineo leaves his own comfort zone to create an album that fully represents his experiences in life.
In his first album, “Heroes for Sale,” Mineo put his own struggles on display for the world to see and it was well received. He even has a song dedicated to his sister. The song is called, “Hear My Heart,” and shares the story of his relationship with his sister growing up.
Mineo has successfully created an album that has thought-provoking lyrics complemented with creative beats. His lyrics cover politics, relationships, hip-hop culture and more. If anything, I wish he were more thorough in sharing his specific views about certain social issues rather than simply pointing out the inconsistencies of how culture depicts the issue. As an avid fan, I know how his experiences have shaped his beliefs. I now want to know what those beliefs are. In another interview Mineo mentions that he wants his songs start the conversation on issues, rather than giving an answer.
In regards to the impact, Andy has hopes for his album.
“I want this album to disturb the comfortable and comfort the disturbed,” he said.
Songs to look for include: “Uptown,” “Desperados,” and “Rat Race.”
