Jaden Smith made a major splash with a 2014 New York Times interview that proved to be both unusual and enlightening at the same time. The then 16-year-old artist talked about the existence of time, prana energy and finding a higher consciousness. It was clear from the jump that he was no ordinary teenager.
But was that option ever really possible? With The Fresh Prince — otherwise known as actor Will Smith — as his father and actress Jada Pinkett-Smith as his mother, Smith’s life was bound to be unique from the moment of conception. Now 19, his maturity shines through on his debut full-length album, SYRE.
Full of soaring harmonies and dark, moody production, the first four songs, “B,” “L,” “U,” and “E,” slowly build before erupting into meticulously layered rock-infused ballads sewn together by a tender delicateness. Smith passionately raps about love, relationships and heartbreak, with an on-point delivery that flows like a gift from God — or his dad (maybe both).
One of two features on the 17-track project comes from A$AP Rocky on “Breakfast,” which instantly switches up the vibe. Rather than an introspective Smith, we get a strange mix of bravado and humility, especially with the nod to Kendrick Lamar (which is just one of many on the album).
“You don’t deserve my respect/ When I talk to Kendrick, man I sit on the ground,” he spits. He goes on to casually mention the Illuminati and how all these other rappers are just a “nuisance.” Mid-song, it veers completely in another direction and morphs into a seemingly different track with Rocky providing an eerie interlude. The song also properly introduces Syre, who seems to be a young man on a mission. An ominous voice ends the song with, “So you think you can save rap music?,” perhaps defining Syre’s objective.
Moments later, the six-minute, politically-charged “Hope” kicks off, leaving the listener wondering what’s next for the story’s protagonist. As Smith wrestles with the idea of selling his soul (“No, no, no/ Never sellin’ my soul), he continues painting pictures like he’s writing a poem.
Throughout the album, Smith routinely flexes his penchant for musicality — it’s less about technology-driven beats and more about live acoustic guitars, intricate melodies and simple drum patterns that allow Smith’s vocals to take centerstage.
Album highlight “Falcon” is no exception. Coupled with Raury’s soulful singing, the track shows Smith’s ability to constantly keep his listeners guessing as he flips from more trap-flavored production to simplistic song structures.
This pattern of flip-flopping from high octane tracks like “George Jeff” to the quiet album closer defines the record. It’s like Dorothy in The Wizard of Oz, when she’s swept away by a F5 tornado and plopped down in an entirely different, magical world. The stark contrast between each song keeps the ambitious effort exciting and unpredictable.
The title track easily serves as the project’s defining moment and essentially sums up the album’s thesis. Syre, as Smith describes, is like a “beautiful confusion,” the story of a boy who’s stumbling along the path to enlightenment.
One of the project’s glaring weaknesses is that it might be almost too deep and complex. A lot of the otherworldly iterations might make it difficult for some of his peers to grasp, especially if you don’t have the time to properly digest it. SYRE requires patience, a thorough listen and acute attention to detail otherwise it’s just going to sound like a strange pontification on existentialism that the casual listener simply doesn’t have the time to decipher.
While Syre is a kid who’s floating around in limbo, Smith has seemed to have found his footing.
This album is incredible bruh wtf, exceeded all my expectations surprisingly
It doesn’t matter whether this is a good/bad project. What matters is that this album came out today and we already have a review LOLOL!!
They get the albums earlier then we do
Are you 10? “They get the albums earlier THAN we do.” “If they get the albums earlier, THEN they can release the review on the release day.”
Is it REALLY that hard? It’s almost 2018, but people never learn these basic things. Also the album does not suit my taste in music.
Solid project!
Wow
Garbage.
I need you to listen to the vision (Woo)
All your verses sound like dirty dishes (Gross)
I’m about to clean ’em in the kitchen (Woo)
And we making money by the minute (Woo)
I’m about to do it way different
This album is dope. Great production. Great lyrics. Great music. Excellent
Paid 5/5 comments typed by Tel Aviv trolls
STRAIGHT FIRE. On another note, he looks anorexic, looks like he’s been abusing some drugs.
Breakfast sounds like No heart but simplified (I didn’t know it was possible) along with a 21 like flow. The whole project seems to have other people flows, on beats they would of probably have. No creativity here folks, move on
also his hairline is kinda fucked, who cut his hair lmao
To everybody who told me to put down the Mic, enjoy this project nobody asked for!
Jaden is so cute i wanna put my penis in his anus then swallow his warm cum when he ejaculates all over my face then repeat it all again,so lovely..where does he stay?
The album is better than them lil young rappers out, a little soft and the last track is a filler. He got the sauce, no ketchup just sauce! haha
5/5. I took my shower and relaxed in bed and waited for this album to drop. Prepared to be lifted and transported to another place I was totally open for this project. SYRE did not disappoint. I felt like I was floating while listening to this album and at the end I felt lighter as if my spirit had some how been cleared and cleansed.
Easily a 5/5.. very impressed
Very impressed by this project
great album, took me by surprise tbh
what u call an icon livin?
Im so impressed that this is 5/5
fav tracks are Icon george jeff watch me lost boy the passion
great concept album that was very unexpected
The album is a little too long in my opinion, but definitely good, very genre-bending, and more than half the tracks were either fire or contributed to the narrative. The problem is that a few of the tracks were just unnecessary and ultimately brought the album down from a 5 to like a 3.9. Overall though, this album seemed very promising as to Jaden Smith’s potential for the future.
very impressed with the album, flows very well from the more downplayed concept of the first half into the more hpye party of the second half. There is still improvement to be made for on future releases, but overalll great for his firts full legnth
I was very skeptical when I went listen to this album and god damn was I wrong. It’s not only full of solid, well crafted tracks, but also has a concept that holds your interest. He’s definitely heavily influenced by Childish Gambino, likely because of his involvement in Bino’s previous projects. He also credited Cudi and Frank Ocean as major influences, and I was surprised how much that showed throughout the project, both in style of music and in his ability to make songs that have a feel similar to what is currently popular, while staying true to the experimental nature of his own unique sound. The fact that he’s figured out how find the balance at such a young age makes it even more impressive. It will be interesting to see what route he takes over the next few years and where his focus ends up landing. If he decides not to follow in his father’s footsteps and opts to primarily pursue music instead of going into acting as aggressively as he did, he could very well end up being a top tier artist. Pair that with a level of recognizability that would get him airtime on every radio station in America, and his chances of becoming a household name for the decade seem very high. Who knows, maybe I’m way off. But based on the quality, diversity, and complexity of his debut studio album, I’m standing by that theory until I see evidence that proves otherwise.
Stunning debut from the 19 year old, does not lack heat, clean production and has such a beautiful vibe to it. Maybe should be shorter and should’ve had more hype behind it, other than that, very surprised and hugely enjoyed it.
With songs like Lost Boy, L and Rapper, Jayden has really shown a very intense passion and talent for hip-hop.
The production on this is crazy! One of the best prodjects Iv heard this year. Maybe he could work a bit on his voice and delivery. On some tacks he sounded a bit uncomfortable.
I’ve had this album on heavy rotation for two days now. As soon as I saw the video for Icon, I was hooked. Like others, I was also skeptical at first. But I think the production is outstanding. Love the melodies, the guitar hooks, his raw emotion. I’m beyond impressed and grateful that this kid dropped this intelligent and passionate album in the midst of this mumble rap radio climate.
This kid is fire. A young YEez operating on that Kid Cudi world view.
For a debut album, this is pretty incredible. The depth, the continuity, and Jaden’s skills make it perfect. Only two features and 70 minutes long, he oozes talent.
The flow and the sound way simply amazing. The rage in his voice really got you hyped up. Reminded me a young ye. Some lyrics could be better however was a great album.
sick
Really sick flow. Crazy production. Brings something different to the table for sure. Very talented guy.
5 stars
Jaden stop writing reviews of your own album in the comments lol. You get a 1 for that shit you little bitch
Innovative. Best Rap/Rock fusion album since MBDTF
The only “best”-award this crappy album ever gets is this one: “The Best Paid Comments”. That’s it. Fucking lame trying to write positive comments on your own album or have your people do it for you!
Gucci Gang was an all time low for this generation of hip hop, Jaden swooped in and gave me hope.
Dope production. Good flow mediocre lyrics
Dient know dx is Selling Reviews now
Wait…is everyone serious? People like this? It’s horrible. This is Will Smith’s son…getting Jiggy with it?
This album is definitely overrated. There are some boring songs on here. I’m being generous giving this a 3/5.
How much did The “Church” of scientology pay HipHopDX for this “review?” How can a blatant piece of vanity publishing justify a >4/5 rating? Is HipHopDX seriously, honestly claiming that one of the best rap albums of the year is this 2017 Paris Hilton/Chilly Tee/Shaq Fu noise? Is this whole review some 4D chess trolling?
:/
Why is this album getting so much hate? Good flow, Good production, and Creative. 4/5!
Great production, decent lyrics, overall good vibe. Impressive debut, can’t wait to see what he has in store for the future.
Wtfff
Pretty good.
Album of the year, say something and suck a D
Terrific album. Great work young man.
At first, I thought this album is going to be cringeworthy. But I think most people give it bad reviews because of the fact he’s Will Smith’s son. But this album is pretty frickin good!! I think he’s pretty talented and waaay better than most so called hip hop music out there!
It’s eclectic, magnificent, and meta as hell, and I think it’s about the only time I’ve felt that my generation’s attitude and angst has been captured in music. I listened to it once and kinda skipped through it, thinking it was a good album but not really getting it, but once I listened to it all the way through, no skips, no distractions, my mind was blown.
DJ Xenu plays this in our club while John Travolta tears up the dancefloor and Tom Cruise uses his witchcraft on us. It’s great. It took me to a whole other plane of existence, and now my body thetan level is at an all-time low. Also, getting paid for this review was cool.
My FAVE record of the year. Could be considered a classic one day.