Gambino Sherpa
Look. Many of these songs have bad words. Many songs have certain words that are not for a person like myself. I acknowledge that and try to enjoy the music as a cultural expression of the artist, but in the end I know nothing.
Onto the music.
2011 "EP" (I actually listened to this album in 2011)
These are two tracks from the first album Glover released that was not a "mixtape" (where he would take existing samples and beats from the likes of Kanye and Adele and rap over them). I would have loved to put a couple mixtape tracks on here, but Spotify says nah. Anyway "EP" is aggressive and bragadocious but also nerdy with references to Goku and Blogspot vs. Tumblr and him being a writer on 30 Rock.
-Freaks and Geeks. I maintain this is the song that every Gambino fan should know and cherish. It is extremely not for the kids or the family, but I know every word and I love this song. He fully had me with the line ending in "you are just a dog walker."
-My Shine. A different vibe from Freaks and Geeks, but still some great lyrics and flows.
2011 "Camp" (yes, two albums in one year)
The album that put Gambino on the map. Still hangs out mostly in the bragadocious era, but he works with Ludwig Göransson on this album (and most of his early to mid 10s albums) and starts to really put together some unique beats and vibes that crossover between hip hop and R&B.
-Bonfire. The bragadocious song for the masses. He performed this on Fallon and it was a great intro to the world.
-Heartbeat. Standout song from the album for me. Crazy energy and production. This song on Conan was amazing. Also this was my contribution to SRHOF.
2013 "Because The Internet"
Still mostly in the hip hop zone, but starting to branch out a bit. This is maybe my least fav album as a whole. The two picks below are the way better than the rest of the album if you ask me.
-3005. An anthem rap if there ever was one? Great chorus. Great hook.
-Sweatpants. A much more creative and unique track. And the famous line about Fiskars.
2014 Kauai
My favorite Gambino album by far. I've listened to this album start to finish as much as any album by any artist in the last 10 years. An incredible combination of hip hop and R&B. Chef's kiss on every track.
-Sober. A TGP submit. A 6-star song on iTunes if such a thing were possible.
-The Palisades. The R&B lean-iest song on the album, but they're all bangers.
2016 Awaken, My Love
He takes R&B and somehow throws it back in time. Moves away from hip hop almost entirely and really tries some stuff out here.
-Redbone. His most popular song on Spotify by a factor of 3 over any other song of his. You can see why this song did well with the masses.
-California. A mostly weird song but the one that catches my ear the most from this album. And fully doing the time machine thing.
2018 This is America
A single that was never put on an album. The video must be taken in along with the music. A masterpiece in both mediums, says me.
Also the song works live. All his songs work live. Which is not a thing for many hip hop artists.
2018 Feels Like Summer
2 songs were released at once. Both representing what has become Gambino's trademark of mixing hip hop and R&B beautifully. Feels Like Summer is another pretty mesmerizing video that celebrates (in most cases) the great contemporary hip hop artists.
We'll if see Atavista has some songs worth sherpa'ing.