Last year in January, New York rapper Hoodie Allen (or as his fans call him, Hoodie) dropped his album “Happy Camper” and at the time, I thought it would go down as his best album ever. Like always, he has proved me and thousands of other fans wrong. On September 29, Hoodie Allen dropped his album “The Hype.” There’s something for everyone on this album: pop punk rap, slower songs, party songs, and even songs that shows off Hoodie’s singing abilities.
For this album, three singles were released before it dropped. First was “Sushi”, a very fun song that makes anybody that listens to it want to dance and have a good time. (Also props to that Twenty One Pilots reference!) Next was “Know It All”, my personal favorite of the three. This is more of a sexy song, and it is definitely an amazing example of how great Hoodie Allen’s singing abilities are. Finally, the last song released before the album came out was “Ain’t Ready.” This single was actually Hoodie’s favorite single he released, and many fans would say the same. It’s understandable, too: it’s an amazing anti-love song, and there’s some amazing lines and references in it, too.
Hoodie also had three collaborations on this project. The first one on the album is track three: “All for Me” which features Pentatonix member Scott Hoying. I will admit right off the bat, this is my least favorite song on the album. It might just be the collaboration for me, but I don’t see myself coming back to it. The next collaboration I’m going to talk about is easily my favorite song on the whole album.
For a while, I couldn’t pick a favorite, but after giving the album a few listens, I finally picked which song I like the best. That song is “Fakin,” which features Wale. This song is very different for Hoodie, and it’s also different from the songs I usually like. This song is very typical rap, but in the best way possible. It’s got an amazing beat, and not only that, but the collaboration is good, too. Hoodie definitely pulls it off. This is definitely a party song. I could see it playing at a frat party (I’m looking at you, frats at West Liberty.)
Next up we have something that is very different, but not in a bad way by any means. It is a pop punk/rap mashup song. That sounds like something that wouldn’t work or would be very odd, but Hoodie Allen absolutely killed it. Did I mention this song is with State Champs? The song is called “All My Friends,” and it’s basically a huge middle finger to anyone that tries to use Hoodie for his fame. I absolutely love it. This is definitely one of my favorites on the album.
Lastly, we have “Heartbreak,” which is a collaboration with Goody Grace. This song is slower and it is so beautiful. Hoodie also makes a Young Joc reference (“It’s Going Down” if we’re being specific) in this song, which just makes the song even better.
This album as a whole is phenomenal. It is easily one of my favorite albums of the year so far. Out of five stars, I’d give “The Hype” 4.5 stars. This album is full of some many great songs, and it deserves more attention. For anyone that wants to download or buy the album, you can buy it on iTunes, download it on Spotify, or even listen to it on Hoodie’s YouTube channel.
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