"Weight & Glory" by KB View All Reviews

The two things that originally drew me to KB were, number one, how fast he raps. The dude can rap faster than anybody else I have ever heard - expect maybe Canon; they're both pretty fast. The second thing was his lyrically ability. Lecrae has always set the bar for me as far as lyrics go in Christian rap, but KB is almost on his level already.

The album opens with "Weight Music," which I feel is a very important song for the album. It sets the tone for the whole album, and it shows the theme of the record, which is being so overwhelmed by the weight of God's glory that you want to do anything you can to further His kingdom. The song has a very nice beat, with some sweet keys, and awesome background vocals, that make for a great opening track. The second single from the album, "Zone Out," follows that up with a very fast-paced track, that is easily one of my top two or three songs on the album. The concept of the song is that we should be so zoned out for Christ that all we see is Him and all we desire is to glorify Him in everything we do. The song has an amazing message, but it also sounds so good. The verses are spectacular - KB definitely did a great job with that. The chorus is phenomenal - I literally cannot get it out of my head. I have been singing it since it was released in January; I am addicted to this song, and its message.

"Anomaly" deals with God's nature and how it is against everything this world possibly thinks is right. Christ died for all of us - who in the world does that? He never changes; he is constant in everything he does - who do you know that is that way? I love this song, and its concept. "Don't Mean Much" really surprised me. I think mainly the sound is what surprised me, because it sounds a little different than the rest of the album, and different than really everything else released on Reach. It is nice to have Sho Baraka on another Reach song though. Baraka is what I would call a "smart man's rapper;" whenever I listen to him I feel like I am going to be a smarter than before I listened. His vocabulary is stellar, and the way he raps just feels so educated and civilized.

The final single from the record, "Go Off," really had to grow on me. I was honestly not a huge fan of it after listening to it three or four times. Now after listening to it probably 20 times, I am in love with the song. I love hearing Andy Mineo singing, and I love the fact that the song is super fast from almost the very beginning, but Mineo comes in on the chorus and really slows it down. At first it felt weird and unnatural, but now it sounds so clean and almost perfect. On a side note, Tedashii killed it on his verse. I have never heard him rap like this; he literally raps so fast on his verse that I feel like he is going to need an oxygen tank afterwards. His verse, and really the whole song, is so dope. Even the concept of just going off for Christ and being souled out for Him is awesome!

In so many ways I feel like "Mr. Pretender" is speaking to me. The lyrics talk about that guy who goes to church and acts like he is the greatest saint in the world, but he really does not have a solid relationship with Christ. Sometimes I feel like my walk with Christ is not as good as it should be, but on the outside I seem like I have everything together. I guess we are all not as close to Christ as we could or should be, and in that case this song is really for all of us. The lyrics are a great reminder for all of us. "Open Letter" is one of the best songs Reach Records has ever released; there is no doubt in my mind about that. In the song KB and Swoope each open up fan letters that each deal with lust, and then at the end Trip Lee prays for the people writing the letters. Most Christian rappers try to stay away from any controversial topics, and in the process their songs come off as cute and fuzzy. The lyrics to this song are fantastic, and are very relevant to young Christians today. I have very quickly fallen in love with this song, and I think it will be an instant hit from the album.

If I had to pick a least favorite song on the album, it would probably have to be "Heart Song." Even though it is my least favorite, it is still a pretty good song, it is just that compared to the rest of the tracks on the album, it is not quite as good. The song talks about a baby girl with major heart issues, and it ends up being a very emotional song from start to finish. "Angels" picks the pace back up, with another great song. I think one of the things that drew me in with this song was the sweet beat; it is so simple, but the bass is killer. Flame killed his verse on the song as well, and really showed me why I love his music so much (it reminds me a little bit of his album Captured).

"Tear it Down" is one of the few songs without any guest artists on it, and the first since the sixth track. The song talks about tearing down all the false notions about Christ and showing who He really is and what the Christian walk is all about. Overall, it is just a great hip hop song. I was so anticipating the song "Church Clap" with Lecrae. It seems like when Lecrae and KB come together they always create a masterpiece, and that certainly seems to be the case with "Church Clap" as well. I could see this song becoming the next Christian anthem; it just has that anthem feel to it. The song talks about churches that are not focused on the right thing: bringing people to know Christ. If churches really listen to the lyrics on this song, they should easily be convicted if they are not doing their duty as a church.

"Hello" was the first single released by KB, and it was easily my least favorite single ever released by Reach Records. It has grown on me some, but I still hold that it is my least favorite single they have ever released. It sounds nothing like the rest of his music, and almost sounds like Group 1 Crew, especially when Pablo was still with them. The song is all about the joy of being freed from sin and having total forgiveness in Christ. I love the concept of the song, but I am still not a huge fan of the sound. "Here We Go" picks back up with another great song though, this one featuring PK - who always seems to deliver a stellar performance on whatever song he is on. The amped remix of "Zone Out" then finishes off the album very nicely. I have missed the amped remixes so much, so it was great to hear another one from Reach. If you like how this one sounds, you will definitely want to check out 116 Clique's whole Amped EP. The remix stays pretty true to the original sound, but at the same time brings a sweet rock influence to it.

After looking at the tracklist for Weight & Glory I was a little disappointed. Three of the songs had already been released - four if you count the "Zone Out" remix - that leaves ten new tracks. I had this sinking feeling in my stomach it was going to be a watered-down and simple album that did not take too many risks. I could not have been more wrong. The lyrics to some of these songs are not what people want to hear, because they will truly convict you. The beats are better than I thought they would be for a debut, much better. And of course the rapping is stellar; there was not a thought in my mind the album would lack in that category. I have had this album on constant replay since I got it, and have probably listened to it at least 10 times in the past four or five days alone. I think I would go as far as to say it is my favorite Christian rap debut since Lecrae's Real Talk. I am very excited to see what the future holds for KB; God is going to use him in great ways, and I have a feeling his music is going to get even better. This is rap at its finest.

Favorite Song: Open Letter (Battlefield)

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