13

Basic Info

Name: 13

​Artist: Denzel Curry

Type: EP

Release Date: June 26th, 2017

Features: Ronny J & Lil Ugly Mane

​Tracks: 5

​Runtime: 13:14

About "13"

"13" is Denzel Curry's second EP released by PH Recordings and Loma Vista Recordings. This EP serves as the bridge between his sophomore studio album and his third studio album, Imperial and Ta13oo. It was leaked on June 24th, 2017. Before the release of this project, Denzel released 3 promotional singles including Equalizer, Hate Government, and Zeltron 6 Billion.

Tracklist of "13"

1) Bloodshed - By: Denzel Curry

2) Hate Government - By: Denzel Curry

3) Equalizer- By: Denzel Curry - Featuring: Ronny J

4) Heartless - By: Denzel Curry

5) Zeltron 6 Billion - By: Denzel Curry- Featuring: Lil Ugly Mane

Review of "13"

When I first heard this album back a few years ago I truly did not like it because of the features, note at this time I disliked literally 99% of music. Now after listening twice than waiting two years I have come back to it and I enjoy this EP a lot. This EP grew on me a lot and I'm glad I didn't overlook it again. This EP is by far one of my favorite EP's that is shorter. When this released it was between his Imperial phase and his Ta13oo phase. This EP acts as a perfect bridge for those two albums. It makes you want to hear more of his old work while still making you excited for his future work. The easiest thing regarding this EP to breakdown is the lyrics, which I never thought I'd say for a Denzel Curry project but this just shows how this EP is all around a great project. The first bar Denzel speaks in this album is a entertaining reference to the Soviet Union. This opening to the EP just makes me want to hear more as he raps these lyrics over a mystifying beat with a harsh but some how monotone flow. Throughout this EP I don't see many weak bars other than the opening bars off of Heartless where he makes a cringe worthy line about diarrhea. If you overlook this weird bar, your left with very entertaining and sometimes meaning filled bars like the entire verse on Hate Government where he just keeps going and going with references towards political events, religion, and still somehow references Winnie the Pooh without that taking away from the previous bars. Another example of Denzel Curry firing lyrics at you is the chorus of Equalizer where he raps "Equalizer, synthesizer/Ultimately, I will brutalize ya/I got the shit that could take out New York/I do not fuck with the population/Contemplation killing competition/Confrontation, reevaluation/You don't want to see the revelation/Straps looking like a lederhosen, stop". The rhyme schemed used is just so entertaining. Overall the lyrics in this EP are nothing crazy for Denzel but they are still somewhat meaningful and entertaining, but sometimes even funny at the same time. He somehow can pair funny bars with serious bars and not even make you think twice about it. The production on this album ranges from a mysterious and eerie beat on Bloodshed to a distorted mess that sounds good on Hate Government to a boom bap beat on Zeltron 6 Billion. This perplexing production is achieved with a mix of producers including Eric Dingus, FnZ, Ronny J and Vae Cortez. All the producers create interesting beats that pull in the listener. The only downside with the production is on Heartless because the vocal effects and style Denzel uses does not fit that well with the beat and makes the track feel like it's missing something until the second part of the first verse. The delivery Denzel uses on this EP can range from a almost monotone but menacing delivery on Bloodshed to a harsh delivery on Equalizer than somehow to a delivery that makes you feel somewhat sympathetic and pondering your ideas on Heartless. The flows Denzel uses throughout the album are similar but are so well masked by the constant change in Delivery and Production that even if I cared alot about what flows he used it would be hard to focus on them without taking into account the Delivery and Production. On this EP Denzel pulls in his Imperial style while mixing it with a almost generic soundcloud style and even bringing in some Ta13oo styles to fuel is creativity. This EP works as a bridge between his second and third studio album. This EP's name also has a backstory, which is commented on in a interview. "The ideology behind 13 the number is actually the representation of B and B is the letter beginning of the word Black (13LACK). 13 is seen as an unfortunate and unlucky number due to superstition that's plagued society for generations. I'm considered misfortune due to the fact that I'm not only a black person but I've always felt that my heart and soul was black due to certain circumstances in life that I have yet to get over and you don't have to be African American to feel that way. 13 is all around us, for example 13 is a difficult age for most because it's our path to adult hood. Jesus and 12 disciples make 13 according to big rube and lastly the 13th floor was always seen as something to be afraid of world wide. 13 is the part of an unfortunate distorted life." This quote alone is more thought than a lot of artists even put into a full album and that's why on this EP Denzel's creativity flourishes even in such a short EP. In this EP Denzel shows use his many different deliveries, lyrics, production and styles. However in the future I would like to see him use more flows and incorporate different genres possibly. This EP has two features, both features sounded misplaced. I never enjoyed Ronny J's rapping and I still don't. He doesn't show anything different than his usual generic rapping. This is one of the first few songs I have heard from Lil Ugly Mane and I didn't really enjoy his part that much so I don't know much about him. I don't think these two artists were the best choice but Denzel outshines them so much on each song I can pass over there verses and still enjoy the songs. Personally I enjoyed this EP a lot and would like to see more work like it in the future. I don't think this is his best EP or in his top 4 projects but I can't overlook it as a great project in his discography. Overall this was a great project that I think Denzel created. I think he released it at the right time and I really enjoy how he merges multiple styles together. From his lyrics to the production this is a well rounded Extended Play.

Stream "13"