Isaiah Rashad just dropped “It’s Been Awful,” and it is truly an album that has fluidity and passion.
For nearly a decade, Isaiah Rashad has been a ‘therapist’ for the hip-hop scene. He never asked for the job, but when you spend three albums rapping about suicidal thoughts (“Cilvia Demo”), substance abuse (“The Sun’s Tirade”), and public humiliation (“The House Is Burning”), your fans stop seeing you as a celebrity, they see you as proof that survival is possible.
Isaiah Rashad went ghost for four years. No album, no tour, just old tracks for fans to reminisce on during hard times. When fans begged for new music, he stayed silent because silence is safer than admitting you are scared you have lost it.
“It’s Been Awful” isn’t a comeback, it’s a representation of flaws and heartfelt confessions. Rashad doesn’t rap about surviving his dark past, he raps about how it still lives with him and how far he has come from before. ‘It’s Been Awful’ is his most comfortable, honest, beautiful work yet, a record that proves awful can be a synonym for genuine.
Rashad’s relationship with his fans is built on a foundation of shared vulnerability. Most artists come off as invincible or untouchable, Rashad built his career by admitting he was struggling, and that honesty created a powerful and positive bond with his listeners.
Now, onto the review, these are my favorite songs from the album:
This is one of the best songs on the album. Featuring SZA, “BOY IN RED” fixates on love and how pain from the past slowly goes away. Rashad and SZA have a long history of collaborations; their first collaboration was on Rashad’s “Ronnie Drake,” and they never miss. A lover’s quarrel turns into something real. “Back and forth, late nights beside you, I don’t know no pain, I’m here kissing nirvana.”
“GTKY”
This track highlights the remembrance of relationships and friendships and how they slowly fade away. Rashad intertwines the realization and underappreciation of relationships together in this track, trying to fix things before it’s too late. “And prayed when I started to leave, you would stop and ask.. Baby, where you going?” This song is definitely worth listening to.
This track is the opposite of the other two. Rashad talks about post-breakup depression, addiction and distance from others emotionally. This track embodies lost love. For everyone that experienced a breakup that should have lasted forever, then you already know where this vibe is coming from. “The heart craves for what we had when we part ways, I’m still reaching for your hand on my dark days, I text a letter and deleted it for our sake.” Give this track a listen.
This track resembles Rashad’s old pieces, talk of rehab, focusing on greater things other than the norm, and being self aware of his maturity. This track flows smoothly, the jazz aspect to the song does wonders and listening to it feels calm and down to earth. I absolutely enjoyed this listen.
This is a more upbeat track. This has a view on alcohol abuse and past mistakes, the sound is different than most of the songs on the album; however, it still embodies the traits of what Rashad is trying to tell us.
“Chasing money, love, and all of the amphetamines, It’s getting spiritual, them spirits chasing after me. At night, might I feel like I ain’t worthy, Of them blessings laid upon me Got me burning down my house again. Right in the low lights, the low lifes, the pills and junkies.”
A lot of individuals struggle with drug abuse and are in constant battles with themselves to fight the urge. Rashad openly talks about his past drug usage in his songs, which makes us even closer to him and makes us understand that he was also in a position where he was not in control. This is an inspiring track.
Rashad embraces his growth in his personal life and lays it all out in the song. The title is literal. Rashad raps about success, not the fear of falling, but the fear of realizing how high he has climbed and how far he could drop.
Isaiah Rashad has spent 12 years building a relationship with his fans. This album is the result of that relationship, it’s his most trusting album. Ever since “The House Is Burning,” which was released in 2021, fans have been waiting for another album. We finally got one, and this album will be on repeat for a while.
