Pop Smoke and those at his label have yet another project out, keeping Pop’s legacy alive and well. Faith is the newest release of Pop Smoke’s unheard or unfinished works before his death.
The 20-year-old with a rusty baritone mix of snark and smarts was murdered during a robbery in February of 2020. Both of Pop Smoke’s albums — The 2020 debut, Shoot for the Stars, Aim for the Moon, and this weekend’s release, Faith— have come out after his untimely passing.
Shoot for the Stars Aim for the Moon happened to be 2021’s most popular hip-hop album, according to MRC Data and has been doing crazy numbers. After 53 weeks the project is still No. 12 on the Billboard 200 and shows no signs of slowing down.
Although he never got to see the impact of his success, the legend of Pop Smoke lives on in this project. The whole project is sewn together from volumes of verses the rapper left behind to create a reimagined Pop. Faith features the classic drill we know and love from him, as well as some music genres he experimented with.
He doesn’t do it all alone either. The folks at Pop’s label, Victor Victor Worldwide pulled out the big checkbook for this one. With over 20 features, it seems the 20-track album got a lot of help from those that Pop left a lasting effect on. With big names like Kanye West and Pharrell to Kodak Black and Chris Brown, Pops got everyone.
And despite the hurdles, while making this project, it was very well put together as far as production goes.
The Pop Smoke Hasn’t Cleared
This also may be the reason some people aren’t receiving the album all too well. Just shortly after its release video on social media resurfaced of Pop Smoke saying he prefers not to work with anyone. This had many people questioning if Pop Smoke would’ve wanted this many features on his album.
We are glad to hear ore from a legend gone way too earlier, but some of this release looks like a money grab by his label that didn’t get a full payout.
Either way, the beloved Brooklyn rapper and face of the New York Drill Rap still does his thing. With a few gems in the rough, the smoke definitely hasn’t cleared since his passing.
