Blame It on Baby [Deluxe]

North Carolina rapper DaBaby rocketed from up-and-comer status directly into the pop culture mainstream somewhere around the release of his 2019 major-label debut, Baby on Baby. A combination of irreverent charm, charismatic swagger, and raw talent for energetic flows gelled on singles like "Suge," and took DaBaby to viral success. In just over a year since Baby on Baby brought DaBaby legions of new listeners, he moved at a staggering pace, releasing second studio album Kirk six months later, appearing in countless features on other artists' tracks, and then issuing third album Blame It on Baby roughly seven months after the appearance of Kirk. Over the course of Blame It on Baby's 13 tracks, DaBaby falls back on his formula approach for the most part, but he also tries some new styles. Pushy trap beats and high-energy flows full of confidence, lighthearted bragging, and humor are what DaBaby is known best for, and those elements make up tracks like "Jump," "Pick Up," and "Can't Stop." Ashanti and Megan Thee Stallion show up for top-notch X-rated sex rhymes and a slick vocal hook on the appropriately titled "Nasty." All of this is business as usual, but DaBaby switches from rapping to singing on more emotionally driven songs like "Rockstar" and "Drop." The standout production of "Find My Way" makes for an interesting instrumental, and this track's hybrid of singing and rapping allows a new perspective on DaBaby's charismatic lyricism. ~ Fred Thomas