Young Thug

JEFFERY

Jeffery’s immediacy is what makes it make such an impression the first time around, and it’s a break from the increasingly experimental leanings of hyped pop releases.

That he keeps getting better is just frightening, as he’s had a song that’s suggested a peak every year since 2011. And yet, here we are, continually marking the progress of Young Thug.

On his third mixtape release of the year, iconic Atlanta rapper Young Thug makes his big artistic statement. Following Slime Season 3 -- itself an equally competent and Zeitgeist-defining collection -- Thug's JEFFERY ... is thrilling and essential, one of the best rap releases of 2016.

On Jeffery ... he's a singer who raps. Try as he might, Thugga can't rap more than a few bars here before the melody overtakes him. He's got a song in his heart, and he just has to let it out.

As usual it's Thug's own sound that predominates: the heroic howls, rasps, mumbles and wheezes of a man who is as captivating a vocalist as any in pop.

Young Thug is still one of the most distinctive voices in hip-hop, and Jeffery lives up to the best moments from his Barter 6 and Slime Season mixtapes.

From the jamming intro to the sublime closer, Jeffery is a testament to the rapper’s carefree spirit.

Despite the name change and alleged new musical direction, Jeffery serves as just another notch on Thugger’s YSL belt.

Whether he’s going by Young Thug or Jeffery, the artist formerly known as Thugger has carried on his run with a mixtape that features gems among run-of-the-mill trap fodder.