What "Detroit" presents is the introspect of a post adolescence man becoming successful and how he still connects with his city. While when people are introspective they tend to be "emo" and depressing (ie Drake) this is more positive. He's admitting his has faults but focuses more on his growth than his mistakes. He talks about relationships ("Sellin' Dreams" ft Chris Brown), swooning women ("How It Feel"), being thankful ("Woke Up") desiring more "(24k of Gold ft J. Cole,) and hope for the future. ("I'm Gonna Be"). Of course the mixtapes it filled with party songs and the quintessential stripper song "Do What You Gotta Do". While these themes do occur frequently in hip hop, he does share a different point of view, one that I think is more relatable. I personally can't connect to selling drugs, but I sure remember being jobless, and just working toward something that seems so far away.
The album also features people's experiences in Detroit, such as Common, Snoop Dogg (I'm ignoring the "Lion" until I see some longevity), and Young Jeezy. While these are a great feature, I think it would have been great if Sean talked about one of his experiences in Detroit. No rapping, just a confessional.
I view Big Sean as the most improved rapper. He experiments, sticks with what works, lets go of what doesn't, and always willing to try something new. It takes a humble person to realize that they can grow, especially with every rapper saying that they are "the greatest rapper alive." This mixtape will tide fans over until the new album comes and but does something that a lot of mixtapes don't: having you expect improvement and not a complete change.
Favorite cut: "How It Feel"
Click here to download the mixtape.
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