Editor’s Note: Some of the songs mentioned below may contain profanity. 

By Nicholas Chambers

The modern-day music industry is one of the wackiest, unsystematic, and whimsical enterprises in the world. Your favorite TikToker could wake up one morning and have the number one song in the world, before performing at Rolling Loud and signing a record deal with Universal, all in a month’s time, because enough people sitting on their couches tapped their screens. 

Rightfully so, this new wave of advertisement can be an acquired taste for many juggernauts of the hip-hop movement, who have seen the rise of rap music as a collective and lived through countless releases of albums that have truly told a story. From Good Kid, M.A.A.D City, and To Pimp a Butterfly by Kendrick Lamar, to Jay Z’s American Gangster and A Prince Among Thieves by Prince Paul, the concept album has been a staple in hip-hop for decades. Yet in 2023, it has come to near extinction. But there is some hope.

Metro Boomin at a 2021 pre-album photoshoot. Photo credit: All Hip Hop.

The hero here is “Metro Boomin.” Young Metro. Leland Tyler Wayne is a 29-year-old record producer out of St. Louis. Since his entry into the music industry as a 16-year-old, he has completely transformed the trap music scene. Collaborations with 21 Savage, Gucci Mane, Nav, and Big Sean headline his discography, and with the works of a start-up to a budding trilogy already out for the fans, the announcement of Metro’s second studio album, Heroes and Villains, became a highly touted and anticipatory event. Undoubtedly at the top of his field as a producer before the album, Metro would only further exceed his “already cemented” legacy upon the release of another project. Hence the main concept of Heroes and Villains: the idea that “there’s far more to being the hero than the glory that comes with it…it’s choosing to risk everything for the people, expecting nothing in return.” 

Metro Boomin and Morgan Freeman overlooking the city of Metropolis in Heroes and Villains (Short Film). Photo courtesy of Metro Boomin.

Narrated by Morgan Freeman, a short film version of Heroes and Villains debuted three days as a visual attraction before the album officially dropped on Dec. 2, 2022. The album trailer, centered around a flame-throwing fire truck burning the city of Metropolis in an expeditious manner, was enticing to a viewer like me, who watched in awe as the symphonic snippets of Metro’s new music harmoniously fit into every aspect of the film. But when the scene shifted to Metro Boomin himself overlooking the catastrophe on a rooftop, with the mellow voice of Freeman motivating him to be the hero in the background, that’s when I knew this album would be extraordinary. How a fifteen-song tracklist, highlighted with features from the likes of 21 Savage, Future, Travis Scott, Young Thug, Gunna, Don Toliver, and The Weeknd, could be embodied so well in a six-minute trailer was beyond me. I was star-struck!

This early glimpse of greatness caused me to feverishly refresh my phone screen, three days later, at approximately 12:00:01 a.m. in sheer excitement. 

I knew I was indeed “On Time” when I heard the melodic chorus of John Legend and company 30 seconds later. A contrary sound to Metro’s overall style, I was a bit enticed upon first listen by the placement of this song as the intro to the album. At around the minute and a half mark, when the lighthearted choir sounds transitioned to a catchy trap siren, I picked up my phone, thinking that prime Metro Boomin’ had taken over on the second song. I was indeed very wrong. Voiceovers from Freeman and A$AP Rocky began to flood the speakers, along with one of the most creative samples of Metro’s career: a fight scene rendition from superhero character Homelander, shouting “you need me to save you… cause I’m the only one who possibly can.” Truly masterful. 

The album cover for Heroes and Villains, which evokes the burning man album cover for Pink Floyd’s 1975 album Wish You Were Here. Image courtesy of Boominati Worldwide.

An amplified version of the same sirens began to play in the background, suggesting that the song had finally switched. The pioneered mumble of Future soon became the voice behind this extraordinary sound. Hip-hop fans across the country would soon be singing to the same lyrics, “turned me to a superhero.” “Superhero (Heroes and Villains)” will forever be known as the most memorable track on the album. Propped up by its fortified build-up on “On Time,” this song was designed to be the star. With a beat so catchy that the lyrics don’t even matter, and an artist like Future who still delivers when there is no pressure at all, “Superhero” was a perfectly executed song. Add in the change of pace at the end that included a Chris Brown solo, and there is no secret why this song is already platinum within three months of its release. 

Metro Boomin (right) and 21 Savage at photoshoot for collab album Savage Mode II. Photo credit: John Canon via Complex.

On an album full of hits, some of the more melodic performances include “Creepin” and “Trance,” great change-of-pace songs that differ from Metro’s overall style but provide a necessary versatility to propel the album. Some of the more catchy songs include “Too Many Nights,” “Metro Spider,” and “Walk Em Down (Don’t Kill Civilian).” But out of all the songs on the album, my personal favorite is “Umbrella.” Metro delivers on a magnificent piano solo that seamlessly segues to a chilling piano beat, right in the wheelhouse of feature artist 21 Savage, whose pioneered villain-like brand gets personified through his deep lyrics in the song. Additionally, Young Thug’s verse adds a spiritual complexity to the song, one that would leave me with no choice but to play “Umbrella” if the world was ending and I was tasked to save the planet.

In a day and age where digital distribution is at an all-time high, and algorithms on social media are tailored to a viewer’s interests, storytelling with entire bodies of work, such as concept albums, has become a lost art. With a new generation of egocentric listeners and genre-specific fans, the resurgence of the “one-hit wonder” has plagued the internet, putting the creation of timeless collections of music to a near extinction. 

Metro Boomin, on the other hand, will be remembered for his entire catalog of psychedelic tracks situated on one album, with a plot line that served as an awakening to any listener who experienced this masterpiece in his order. The Metro Way.

Featured image credit: Ashlyn H. Ramirez via MXDWN Music.