Out The Blue

the take

After seeing videos of Playboi Carti and his crew dissing Benji Blue Bills, I decided to check his music out. I started with Campaign Blue, and while it wasn’t the most innovative, it was a fun listen that showed how the rage sound can work with more gangsta-leaning lyrics. It makes sense that Benji would link with BNYX®. BNYX brings his mainstream-friendly take on rage production, which works for the most part. Benji matches that energy by sticking to what he does best—rapping his lifestyle from his perspective. Lyrically, it’s nothing I hadn’t already heard on Campaign Blue, but you can tell he’s having more fun here. Sonically, Out the Blue feels more accessible, which shows his growth. “Aye Rage” is still my favorite since it reflects his earlier sound, but “I Wonder” and “All the Way” are just as strong and show BNYX experimenting a bit more. This could’ve easily been one of those albums that exceeds low expectations—until “Down Girl” comes in and completely throws things off. It’s easily the most out-of-place track here and leans way too far into a generic mainstream sound. Credit to Benji for adapting, but the song is rough enough to drag the album down a tier. Weak outro aside, I still enjoyed the project overall.