On July 16, Logic took to social media and announced his retirement from his decade-long rap career. According to the posts he made, he plans to focus on being a father to his newborn son.
For many, this news was a huge surprise to hear but with the release of the rapper’s latest project, “No Pressure,” this was a strong and respectable way to say farewell to the industry and his fans.
Logic’s farewell record appears to be directly correlated to his debut album, “Under Pressure,” released in 2014. Both are produced by influential producer No I.D., who has also worked with artists like Kanye West and Jay-Z.
The hour-long album pays homage to Logic’s career, fans, influences and family. It features soulful yet solid beats that nod to classic hip-hop and interpolates from musical geniuses that he credits to be some of his major influences such as West, OutKast and Erykah Badu.
Logic’s projects are known for their creative lyrics and originality from start to finish and “No Pressure” far from disappoints in this arena.
If the rapper’s career could be summed up in a song on the album, “Amen” would be it. In this anthem-like track, he expresses sincere gratitude to his fans for their unending loyalty to him throughout his career. He brings attention to the fact that he “finally made it out the hood” and “where the grass is greener” but ultimately, he is saying he is lucky to have found good success as a rapper.
The rapper praises his own accomplishments multiple times throughout the album in tracks like “Perfect” and pays his respects to the culture of rap in posing the rhetorical question— “What’s rap without a little braggadocio”— in the fourth track “Celebration.”
In “5 Hooks,” Logic gives himself props for only writing five hooks on the album itself with the rest of the project having solid lyricism. He also reminds everyone how throughout his career, he has worked with legends like Wu-Tang Clan, 2 Chainz, Killer Mike and Gucci Mane, which serve as receipts to prove his legendary status.
“No Pressure” is not the first time fans hear about Logic’s struggles with anxiety as he has been very vocal on previous albums like “Everybody” and “Confessions of a Dangerous Mind,” to name a few. However, in this album, he opens up, even more, sharing intimate moments of his story, coming from the rough parts of Maryland and making it to the top, being the triumph of it all.
In “No Pressure” Logic uses his story to empower listeners. In tracks like “Heard Em Say,” “Hit My Line” and “GP4,” the rapper issues a call to listeners to rise above adversity.
Logic encourages listeners to be open about their mental health by saying, “it’s okay to be sad sometimes and tired of sh–t” in “Dark Place,” a song about his battle with anxiety. In this song, the rapper also says, “rap used to fill me with joy, but now, it’s nothing but pain,” hinting at a different reason for his sudden retirement.
The sentiment behind the album showcases the gratitude the Logic has for his fans and before he retires, he puts specific pieces of advice throughout the project to bring hope to listeners such as “People gon’ tell you what to do for as long as you live/ Break the cycle and shoot for the stars, moonwalk like Michael/ To be a leader, first you gotta be a disciple,” in “Celebration”.
In tracks like “DadBod” and “OpenMic/Aquarius III,” Logic talks about how he is dedicated to being a great husband and father. “DadBod” is a humorous song about his daily life as a parent while in “Open Mic/Aquarius III,” the rapper talks about being focused on finding happiness by being present for his family rather than achieving more fame as a rapper, saying, “Trying to be the greatest, that sh-t been dead/ I’m trying to be the happiest that I can be instead.”
In “A2Z,” Logic shares lessons he learned as a rapper and as a man. As he teaches his son the alphabet, each lesson is paired with each letter. His son makes an appearance on the record and is also credited as a writer on the song, Logic said on Twitter. This track also includes footage of Logic rapping his first song in 2005 highlighting to listeners how far he has come since the start of his career.
Logic is known for making references to the classic Hollywood era in his records and throughout the album, he uses sampled narrations and commentaries from Orson Welles films. The last track of the album, “Obediently Yours”, is a fully sampled track of Welles speaking about race, privilege and urging others to become aware of their privilege in order to use it for the good of those facing oppression.
Although the Black Lives Matter Movement has been trending as of lately, Logic always spoke unapologetically about being biracial and being a Black man. “Obediently Yours” serves as a phenomenal way to end his farewell album. being released in the middle of a fight for racial justice, with words spoken many years ago remaining relevant.
To solidify Logic’s ultimate message in “No Pressure,” the rapper said it best at the end of “Amen,” the second to last track on the album.
“This is the last one, then I’m done/ Time to conclude the incredible true story and transformation/ Salutations.”
