Travie McCoy wants you to feel good. The opening track on his debut album Lazarus is equal servings groove and funk sprinkled with party hop and mixed in a blender laced with Dr. Feel Good’s special sauce. You can’t help but bob your head and sway along to infectious beat. The chorus, belted out in true soul-funk fashion, says it all: Doctor (Doctor), Won’t you come and help make take this pain away, away, away. / Oh, doctor, give me what I need to make it through the day. / I want that feel good, that feel good, that real good… Yeah.
And, believe me. You feel good listening to this album. The everyman daydream of Billionaire, with lyrics like: I’d prolly pull a Angelina and Brad Pitt / And adopt a bunch of babies that ain’t never had s-*t. and I’d prolly visit where Katrina hit/ And damn sure do a lot more than FEMA did, is quite a breath of fresh air, considering the hip hop airwaves are saturated with songs about who has the most money, the nicest cars, the hottest girls, or the biggest guns.
On the song Akidagain, Travie reminisces of his youth, touching on the pop culture references that have no doubt touched and shaped the lives of most of audience members who are around his age. Trading Garbage Pail Kid Cards for some sweet pickles, owning the original Storm Shadow, back when Rap City used to play the jams, this is how I first heard about the Wu Tang Clan, Travie hands the chorus over to a group of children, who sing out in school yard fashion, Back in the day when I was young, I’m not a kid anymore. But some days, I say I wish I was a kid again. How can you not roll your windows down and turn this song up?
We’ll Be Alright is Travie’s late night party anthem. You know the kind of song. It’s the end of a long night of dancing, you’re trying to close out your tab, you’re sweating and your feet are aching, and just as you’re about to turn and push your way through the crowd and head for the door, this song comes on and the entire place bounces back to the dance floor for one more. Produced by The Smeezingtons and The Stereotypes, the song sounds like what it would be like to hang out with the Black Eyed Peas on their tour bus during a “jam” session.
If you only know of Travie McCoy because of the song Billionaire, do yourself a favor and pick up this album.
That is, if you want to feel good.
Yes! This is exactly how I feel about this record too. You are so spot on with this review.