I recently finished reading the Autobiography of Malcolm X (which I strongly recommend), and given the inspiration behind the cover and title of this mixtape, I couldn't help but write a review of this mixtape. For context, the cover resembles Malcolm X and 'By Any Means Necessary' echoes a iconic quote of Malcolm X concerning Black Civil Rights, and how he wanted to secure rights and freedoms for African Americans, by any means necessary. Granted, the relationship between Malcolm X and Jeezy's ideas seem somewhat confusing: it's a little odd that Jeezy would quote someone who reformed his life, and who disavowed his previous life as a street hustler and drug dealer, when almost all of Jeezy's projects involve him rapping about... street hustling and drug dealing. Jeezy said this about the cover:
'I know a lot of cats are trippin’ off the cover. I tell ‘em like this: You had Martin Luther King, you had Malcolm X. One thing I respected about Malcolm X is that he believed in what he believed in. He died believing in it. That’s how I am. I would never compare myself to the great Malcolm, but I will die believing in what I believe in.'
To be honest, I have no idea what Jeezy is saying here: does trapping and street hustling count as a belief that one can die for? Perhaps he's referring to his motivational role. In any case, does Trap or Die 2 have anything important to say? Does Jeezy have a social angle in his project, like he did in The Recession and The Recession 2?
Not really, no. There isn't even too much of his usual motivational angle, largely rapping about drug dealing and braggadocio. But it's an solid project, with particularly strong songs towards the beginning and towards the end. This is more or less the story of the album actually: the strong, muscular, trap beats is always where Jeezy has felt the most comfortable, and this is true on this mixtape too. The less trap songs like Ill'in aren't particularly strong, whereas heavier trap songs like first two, the Intro and Stop Playin' with Me go really hard! As usual for Jeezy, it's rarely a matter of clever lyricism: it's his bombastic trap beats and uniquely gravelly voice that draw the listener in, in conjunction with a motivational message (I'm slightly pushing the drug dealing message to one side). And this is done to great effect on much of the mixtape, especially the last three songs.
My favourite songs are 'Introduction' and 'I Remember', for they leans into Jeezy's core strengths. The solid beat choices, catchy and exaggerated ad-libs, and Jeezy's rapping make a solid combo. Don Cannon's hosting adds lots of hype, such as on the first two songs, and even his producer tag is a nice addition on I Remember.
The thing is, this project is a solid album, but it could have been significantly better. The first reason is that the mixtape's mid-point, from around songs six to twelve, isn't amazing (with the except of song nine, 'Takeover', which was a fun ride): these beats don't suit Jeezy – and they aren't great – and I don't love the Clipse feature on 'Ill'in'.
But secondly, returning to the civil rights theme, it seems like somewhat of a missed opportunity. On 2008's The Recession Jeezy rapped keenly about the financial crisis, Obama's presidential run, and Bush's presidency, all wrapped in his motivational drive. Given how Jeezy chose the Malcolm X theme, why didn't he rap about Civil Rights? Trap or Die 2 could have looked at how Jeezy viewed the early years of the Obama Presidency, or delve into civil rights and his take. In trap music, there's the stereotype that the subgenre of trap has little to say about social issues, and I like to highlight cases where trap does comment on these issues, even in indirect or uncommon ways. Granted, I do feel like hip-hop artists often have unfair pressure upon them to rap about social issues and civil rights, but I feel like my question is justified in this case, given that Jeezy himself chose the Malcolm X theme. A different version of Trap or Die 2 could have been an interesting way to look at these issues, even by looking at the title. He did look at Civil Rights on The Recession 2, but it would have been interesting to hear Jeezy rap about the struggle for some young Black Americans – where some have to trap (whether in the drug dealing sense, the motivation sense or the musical sense) or die.
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