Logic - No Pressure

I’m as surprised as you are. This is Logic’s final album, and it’s almost sad to see him go, as… this is a genuinely good album. I went into this for a laugh considering I hated his previous album, and wanted to see what his final words were, I left it feeling incredibly positive and uplifted, the album had genuinely left an impact on me that wasn’t “that was shit”. I genuinely really enjoyed listening to this, and while there were some dud points, and some bars that were subpar, over all this was actually, really fucking good.

Logic at this point is usually the butt of a joke, you look at his discography and you really don’t see much good music, besides maybe his debut and a couple mixtapes, most of his albums don’t give much to you, most of them are dumb, unfunny fast rap albums that have little to no substance to them, the worst offender being his 2019 release Confessions of a Dangerous Mind, but, on No Pressure Logic seems to strip back that persona he’s built up, that unfunny cunt that we all hate, and I can tell you I really dislike this persona he’s built up, especially from the stuff he said on his last album. Logic gives us a genuinely personal rap album that deals with themes of depression and struggling and how he’s coped with it, it’s an album that both sounds amazing, the production is brilliant on this thing, and Logic’s lyrics range from meh to really good, some of the songs on here I can actively see myself listening to normally, in fact, I can see myself listening to this full album again, I liked it that much.

The album opens with a title track that left me very worried for what was to come, featuring a comparison to Rosa Parks and a “cameo” from Solid Snake, I was left scared as to what he would pull on the rest of the album. I did not want to sit through another Confessions of a Dangerous Mind. Honestly though, by the second song it already became a lot more serious. Hit My Line is a song about Logic wanting to do some good in the world, and quite literally asking God to help him. While at first glance it can be considered a bit ehh, and I can’t help but compare it to what Kanye is doing currently but, on multiple listens of the song I’ve really grown to like it, it’s a song that feels from the heart and I do think that Logic means what he’s saying on this track, as well as on the rest of the album. There are still some iffy lines scattered about like “Evil politicians, people on Twitter bitchin'
Hashtaggin', but in real life, they never pitch in”
But overall this song has a really good message and for the most part, Logic doesn’t fuck it up, he actually gets his point across and sets a precedent. From this point on I was feeling more optimistic about what this album might hold, and I’m glad I did, because there wasn’t really another point where I felt like this was subpar, besides one or two tracks. GP4 is one of those tracks unfortunately. It wasn’t enough to bring down my enjoyment by this point as the song was genuinely still ok, I liked the beat and some of the lyrics were solid, but it felt a lot blander than the other songs so far, and the rest of the songs in comparison. It also has what I feel is the worst bar on the entire album
“Here come the cops
Shooting up the hood like black ops”
While this isn’t as bad as a lot of the things Logic has said on his previous album, I still feel like it’s not really up to standard with half the lines on this album alone. I also find it a little insensitive? But that’s just me.

As we progress further into the album things only seem to get better. Celebration was a song I genuinely really enjoyed, from its amazing production and solid flow. It’s another song that while Logic is rapping about his success and things along those lines again, it feels more sincere, especially given the context of the rest of the album. It’s a song that doesn’t come off as pretentious, it instead feels sincere and humble. I’m not trying to make it out to be something perfect, it’s not, there are definitely better rap songs than this but, it’s a highlight from this record, and a song I can see myself returning to a lot.

One major thing I noticed was the album got more serious the deeper you got in, by track 5 Logic was rapping about alcoholism and abusive parents, things you wouldn’t really expect from him. Track 6 then Logic quite literally says fuck these punchlines and starts to tell quite an interesting story, a story he made up obviously, and one that’s made just for fun, but it doesn’t feel dumb or contrived, it instead feels engaging and Logic’s flow helps that as well, while again, there are some dud lines, over all this is another hit rather than miss.

Now I could go on and on about every song on this album, and discussing why each one is either a hit or miss but I feel like the real meat of this record comes in the second half, starting from the track Dadbod. This is the first song where I feel we see the real Logic, the curtain is pulled and Logic is brutally honest with us. He starts the song quite normally, rapping about his life and what he’s doing now, saying how he was scared to originally talk about this stuff but now he’s comfortable enough to do it. The song then switches at around the midway point where Logic practically does a callout to everyone asking him to rap about his life, and does it in a tongue and cheek way that both surprised me and amused me. While *again* there are some dud lines, and some laughably bad ones too, overall this is a song that I really enjoyed, and the beginning of when I really started to appreciate this record. And it only got better from here. 5 Hooks is a major highlight too, having one of the best beats on the entire album, best flows, and just overall having the best production. This is one of the happiest songs on the album, and honestly just puts a smile on my face. It’s stupidly positive and I mean that in a good way.
“Some days I'm happy, some days I'm fucked up
Some days I tell the voice in my head to shut the fuck up”
Dark Place is probably the darkest song on the album (hence the name). It’s a song in which Logic really opens up about his mental health and how all of this has affected him. It’s definitely one of Logic’s most personal songs and in fact, Logic was even reluctant to release this song, as it was so dark by his standards, but the people around him told him to share it with the world, and I’m glad he did. It’s songs like these that makes it almost sad to see Logic go as it's shown here that, he does care, he cares a lot more than he lets on. Going from his previous album where all he did was gloat and make jokes, we see Logic at a vulnerable state and at a place where we see the true Bobby. He’s a person too with weaknesses and vulnerabilities, he’s self conscious and he gets depressed. He isn’t some high and mighty millionaire rapper.
“I'm tired of searchin' for Logic on Google on purpose just to read that I'm worthless
I remember makin' music alone, just a pen and a microphone
But nowadays it's hard to get in the zone
Writin' rhymes was easy before the fame
Now I'm constantly overthinkin' every line, it's a shame
Rap used to fill me with joy, now it's nothin' but pain”

A2Z is probably then the weakest track on the album, and it’s a shame it comes in so late considering the excellent run we had up to this point, but it is what it is and I can appreciate it for that. It’s a song in which Logic basically teaches his son (Little Bobby) the alphabet through rapping, you can probably guess it’s not done too well. While it’s not terrible and I can definitely stand to listen to it, it’s not something I would choose to put on, and it comes off as just a bit cringy and not fun. I get the incentive but it doesn’t work. The song does end on an interesting note though, the song closes with a demo from 2005, one of Logic’s first verses he wrote and recorded, showing how much he’s progressed, coming from quite literally the bottom to the top. The tape was from when he was 15, and he’s now 30, and he’s definitely improved since then. We then get two of the best tracks on the record by far, Heard Em Say and Amen. Both songs are incredibly uplifting tracks and really put a smile on my face for the end of this album. Heard Em Say by far has my favourite sample in it, the incredibly catchy chorus getting stuck in my head as Logic raps over this luscious beat. It feels like a song where Logic finally accepts himself, and let’s himself free of the standards he’s set himself and the media have set him too.
“Fuck the bullshit, I'ma just write what I'm feelin' (Write what I'm feelin')
I'd rather be hated for who I am than loved for who I'm not”
It’s Logic’s uprising song, where he sets himself free and relishes in it, in something he’s ultimately deserved. Whether you like his music or not, he has come a long way, and this victory is somewhat deserved. This album does what Confessions tried to correctly, it takes the bragging that Logic likes to do but makes it feel worthwhile, at points during this album I felt genuinely happy for Logic for overcoming these things, and when he did speak about the things he had and the things he’d done I was happy for him, I didn’t feel annoyed or angry, I felt happy. Amen then takes this to the next level and feels like Logic’s grand goodbye song, it’s a song basically detailing Logic’s farewell and it’s probably his best song. It’s the song that made me feel sad that Logic was actually going, because he does have talent, he does have skill, this album proves that. This song feels like a callout to every aspiring rapper, every aspiring artist to keep trying, and while it may be cliché it feels heartfelt. It feels genuine.

And with that the album closes on a 6 minute speech from Orson Wells on racism and why we need to abolish it, and while normally I would find this sort of thing tacky, I feel like this one works, coming off of the positive Amen, the song that fills you with good spirits and inspiration, comes a speech to empower you about the issues going on in the world. While I don’t think this was as effective as something like RTJ4 was, I do still think Logic is trying to do his bit and spread this important word. Logic has a good heart, and whether you like it or not, he does have talent.
I hope you have a good life Bobby, as harsh as we’ve all been on you, we still believe in you.

Favourite Tracks: Hit My Line, Celebration, Open Mic\\Aquarius III, DadBod, 5 Hooks, Dark Place, Heard Em Say, Amen
Least Favourite Tracks: GP4, A2Z