Jack Harlow’s new album Monica is getting rinsed, and he deserves it for this reason

Rapper Jack Harlow has released a new album called Monica, and it’s getting made fun of all over social media for some very valid reasons.

After blowing up in 2020 with his song What’s Popping, Jack Harlow has maintained a fairly consistent place on the charts for over half a decade now. The 28-year-old has collaborated with many major hip-hop artists, including Drake, Lil Wayne, and Doja Cat. His solo music also receives decent praise. However, one criticism some people have had of Jack’s music is that it’s too “bland” and shows a shallow appreciation of hip hop as a genre.

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For his new album, Jack has decided to switch it up with an R&B influence and try out singing instead of rapping. It’s been hit with really catching reviews from most of the major music criticism sites, getting a 3 from Needle Drop, a 52 from Metacritic and a 3.1 from Pitchfork. Yikes.

The main reason Jack Harlow’s album deserves this level of criticism is that it’s overly derivative. Just because Jack gives credit to the black artists that inspire his music doesn’t make it any less soulless, especially when he’s got nothing new to add to the genre. There’s nothing wrong with getting inspiration from music outside of your culture, of course, but if you have literally nothing to add to the conversation, then what’s the point?

In an interview with Popcast, he gave an in-depth response on how music by black artists influenced Monica, even after he got called out for seemingly having a surface-level appreciation.

“I love Black music. I love the sound of Black music. And of course, I’m hyper-aware of the politics of today, that safer landing spot that a lot of my white contemporaries have found,” he said.

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“And of course, it appealed to me to do something that I felt, at a time when there are certainly people who expect me to take the routes y’all are taking, to take the route that not only might not be expected but is also the route that I genuinely want to take. So all the stars aligned in that way for me, to be honest.”

Here, Jack’s referencing the wave of white rappers like Post Malone and Jelly Roll who later switched to country music.

Jack continued: “I’m not gonna pretend that what you’re talking about, I was like, ‘Huh, I guess you’re right!’ I know that there are multiple things appealing about this route, but I also came to the decision, I’m proud to say, off of what feels good in my ear. I love R&B music. I love the sound of soft, intimate, melodic music. So I want to be understood. I want to write melodies that invite people to sing along.”

Well, from the way Jack is getting dragged right now, it looks like this R&B shift was a questionable move.

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