I really wish it didn’t take me so long to write this.
I knew I should’ve reviewed this the minute it came out because I watched Nipsey’s growth from his first mixtape to the self made man he became. I waited years for this album to drop and when it finally did I didn’t give it the spins it truly deserved.
To be fair I had just moved to New York and I was doing my best not to get swept away in a wave of rats and overpriced rum and cokes. But I digress, this month we lost one of the most motivational artists of my generation and I would be remise not to talk about his crowning musical achievement.
So let’s get into Victory Lap.
If you don’t know Nipsey Hussle, he’s a strong believer in the fact that following your dreams isn’t a race, it’s a marathon. So much so that he built a lifestyle around the belief in the Marathon. Now there’s a joke somewhere about a skinny African rapper preaching about the importance of running a Marathon, but that’s for another time. Nipsey’s belief in himself and desire to give all the steps of his journey the weight they deserve has been an inspiration to me since I was in my early 20s. For this reason the title “Victory Lap” is so symbolic because in Nipsey’s mind, the journey has been completed.
Now let’s discuss the music.
I judge gangsta rap by how much it makes you wanna join a gang. Nipsey makes Gangbanging seem so multifaceted, he’s the only Crip I’ve ever seen who could rap about shooting niggas AND give sincere opinions on Roth IRAs in the same song.
I believe everything Nipsey raps. This is a man that lived the life he put on wax, there’s no lies there’s no exaggerations, listening to Nipsey Hussle feels like you’re taking a walk with him. Everything he says happened the way he said it happened.
Every time a song starts I feel a warmth in my chest, like a responsibility to do better. This is music that’ll make you wanna knock Thanos out. No lie I listened to this album with a dangly cross earring in my ear and by the last track the earring was on the ground. Granted it was very fake and cost me 5 dollars but still, we cannot deny the realness of Nipsey. If you wanna get to work early and mean mug all your coworkers, this is the album for you.
I really can’t think of anything bad to say about this album beyond the fact I’ll never be able to tell him personally how dope it was. This album is gonna help get niggas through real stress, whether it be a job search, probation or a baby scare, Victory lap will hold it down.
This is the best body of work Nipsey put out. I honestly don’t think he had a beard before he recorded this, but by the time he was done he earned that shit. I give Victory Lap 10 Blue Flags Hanging out the Left Side (yea that’s the crip side) out of 10.
The Marathon Continues.