For readers of a certain age, it may not feel all that long ago when Sheck Wes flirted with household name status on the back of “Mo Bamba,” likely because of the song’s staying power in the years since then. However, that inescapable single where the Harlem native seemed poised to be the next hip-hop superstar is in the rearview by the better part of a decade. We’re still awaiting a follow-up record to his debut album, MUDBOY, but maybe that’s closer than initially imagined, as Sheck Wes unites with label boss Travis Scott for “ILMB.”
Tabbing Travis Scott Allows Sheck Wes And “ILMB” To Turn To Gold
Built on driving bass sections and a chanted/repeated chorus, “ILMB” immediately carries the grandiosity expected of a “Rap Caviar” style song, backed up by its performance in the days since release. That mantra-style hook provides a sticky, easily digestible crux for the song. Wes and Scott’s sections are equally palatable, providing select wordplay highlights even within a song that isn’t begging for them in the first place.
To that point, perhaps it’s a losing battle to want for heady conceptual fare in this sort of arena, but it’s hard not to imagine “what could have been” with one of the NY rapper’s early lines: “I love my b*, but we don’t look at love the same.” Honing in on that idea would have been a sensible home base without necessarily needing super deep reflections, perhaps multiplying the chemistry between Scott and Wes if that parallel stayed constant between their sections. Alas, it remains a one-off bar and the song is plenty replayable in its absence, but food for thought as Wes’ “rollout” continues.
Projecting the future of the Sheck Wes endeavor post “ILMB,” Scott teased in a recent Complex interview that JACKBOYS is very much back on the menu. Despite six years elapsing since their sole LP to this point, he, Wes, and Toliver remain the north stars for the imprint, but the collective star power of the imprint is at an all-time high. Getting headline position next to those well-established icons should help the NY product pick up momentum once again, whether the second Sheck Wes project comes in close proximity to it or not.
Elsewhere in our coverage, catch up on Central Cee – Can’t Rush Greatness, among the biggest rap debuts released in 2025.
