Everything from Jefe’s moniker to the title of his latest project, The World Is Yours, reveals that the young rapper formerly known as Shy Glizzy aches to be a Hip Hop bawse without carving out a notable catalog. However, as the title of the EP also betrays, this offering is stock full of clichés that, while catchy, offer little insight into why Jefe is a man the culture should follow.
Paper chasing? Check. Pulling women? Check. Thuggin’ it? Check, check, check, bank vault. Jefe delves into all these topics with abundance, but with little lyrical dexterity. “Got this chain around my neck so you can stare at it/Everything I do is so extravagant,” he rhymes plainly on “One.” Most of his bars are of a similar ilk. This would be more forgivable if Jefe was more varied in his content, but he largely sticks to the same three aforementioned topics throughout. Without poetic ways to get his message across, the entertainment factor is stifled.
Jefe’s saving grace is in his ability to manipulate vocal sonics. He carries an infectious flow throughout songs like “Give It Up” and “Errywhere,” and provides enough energy throughout for The World Is Yours to serve as a suitable pregame playlist for college kids. Jefe’s ear-grabbing delivery can even make head-scratching lyrics like “My bitch so bad she look just like a Powerpuff Girl” passable in the right setting. It helps that he’s aided by candy-painted production, whether it’s the upbeat piano keys on Zaytoven’s “One,” or the relentlessly ominous “Congratulations.” By contrast, the downbeat “Take It Off” and spacey “Love Me” provide a sonic speed bump near the end of the EP.
Neither musical hitches nor Jefe’s lack of lyrical prowess are the biggest problem with this project. The major issue is that after eight tracks of flexing and flossing, we still don’t know that much about Jefe or how he differs from the exiled Shy Glizzy. There is nothing to suggest why he does what he does, or who is under all that bluster. Like so many other up-and-coming rappers today, Jefe seems content with rapping about superficialities without adding his own personal touch or providing much depth. This makes The World Is Yours an energetic but hollow offering that may result in a failure in his attempt to rebrand himself.
