By THOMAS MCDONALD
Following the release of his latest mixtape, Cabin Fever 2, Wiz Khalifa’s sophomore album, O.N.I.F.C., finally debuts.
The 17 track album (20 tracks on deluxe version), O.N.I.F.C., starts with a 40 second intro that has a generic sound to it and sounds as if it was thrown together at the last minute.
“Paperbond” proves to be a catchy song with an interesting beat. The following songs, “Bluffin (feat. Berner)” and “The Bluff (feat. Cam’ron)” sound strikingly similar and are easy to confuse.
“Work Hard, Play Hard” is the most notable single from the album with over a million digital downloads in the U.S. alone, is the “Black and Yellow” of the album, both catering to the charts rather than his fan base. “Work Hard, Play Hard” is surprisingly catchy and more interesting than “Black and Yellow”, but certainly not as infectious.
The album deviates into a few more songs lacking features that are not notable. Then it debuts its customary 2 Chainz feature with “Its Nothin (feat. 2 Chainz)” which sounds like a typical 2 Chainz track, catchy and daringly simple. Fellow Taylor Gang member, Lola Monroe, appears in the up-tempo “Initiation (feat. Lola Monroe)” where Wiz Khalifa serves up a track that fans would expect to hear on one of the Cabin Fever mixtapes. The song ends with a heartfelt yet slightly awkward voice mail of Amber Rose, Wiz Khalifa’s fiancee and bearer of his son, talking to him while he is presumably on tour.
The voicemail leads the progressive and addicting track “Up in It” with an glitchy hook. Piano melodies, hard bass lines, and an above par performance from Khalifa helps create a stellar track. Taylor Gang and Three 6 Mafia rapper, Juicy J, makes a well needed appearance on “The Plan feat. Juicy J”. The boring beat creates an average track and is neither of the rapper’s best work.
The Weeknd and Khalifa link up for “Remember You (feat. The Weeknd)” which sounds like a Weeknd song with Khalifa rather than The Weeknd featured on his album. The track is impressive with Khalifa offering a contrast to The Weeknd’s R&B style. After the song concludes and listeners are refreshed from the usual sound of the album, the big names of the Taylor Gang, Juicy J and Chevy Woods jump on the final track to make a catchy outro that leaves the listener with good impressions of the album. “Medicated (feat. Chevy Woods and Juicy J)” starts with a simple loop and slowly builds with the help of each MC rapping about his success from hard work and that the only way to celebrate is to get high.
O.N.I.F.C. is another solid showing from Wiz Khalifa, but is more like Rolling Papers than the mixtapes that have helped him establish his fanbase. Constant themes of marijuana, money and women fuel every song as expected. Production on the album has a pop feel, and though beats within the album are similar at times, others make up for it.
Khalifa combines the perfect mix of solo tracks with a wide variety of features including everyone in the Taylor Gang. Khalifa creates a good album with a few notable tracks, but overall the album is not much more than a Rolling Papers 2.
Title: O.N.I.F.C.
Release Date: Dec. 4
Stars: 3.5
Medicated Feat. Chevy Woods and Juicy J