4 out of 5

Label: Stophouse

Produced by: Jacob Andersen (recorded by, beats by)

Did Prof need to redefine himself after his ousting from Rhymesayers?

Right before the release of the preceding Powderhorn Suites, Prof (aka Jacob Andersen) was part of some controversy at the Minneapolis imprint, in which a few of its acts were called out for questionable behaviors and / or their lyrical content. While I shouldn’t speak as someone wholly informed – I’m not – my reading of the scenario felt like RS was being a bit prophylactic with Prof: allowing that his party boy persona maybe didn’t fit their backpack ethos overall, and taking that mixed in with some abuse accusations regarding one of Prof’s DJs (whom I believe had already been let go, but again, I’m not wholly informed), the label responded and Prof was dropped right before the album was.

Moving past the What Happened, Prof also seemed to be the only one amongst the several rappers accused to actively respond: acknowledging the accusations (and again, either the DJ was let go or had already been let go) and even slightly reconfiguring some of Powderhorn’s more misogynistic language for a self-rerelease.

There are some things that could’ve happened for his eventual followup: Prof could have trudged forward, not really changing anything beyond those tweaks; he could flip the other way, and react by lashing out; or he could take it in stride, and iterate. Happily, he went that third path, though Horse isn’t necessarily the grandest iteration. Still, in a genre where personas tend to stagnate, it’s interesting how Prof has allowed / made his “Gampo” larger-than-life self shift ever so slightly along the way, as it is a real side of his personality, and thus logically maturing alongside the creator – but it’s not like that is ever required in the scene, as we often find with some of Prof’s guest stars, who sometimes miss the mark of the tone. (Though, arguably, they are stars because they’ve maintained their personas… it’s a weird genre.)

Anyhow.

Horse’s narrative is an interesting one. Fear not by my usage of the word ‘narrative’: this is still end-to-end bangers with some ballads, and is mostly party anthems. But: the iterations are there. There’s a layer of self-awareness tickling the undertones of hype tracks that makes the album’s whole last third – almost all more serious fare – not seem out of place. I mean, also, I mentioned the iterations aren’t grand, and that’s plenty true as well; the tickling is just a slight sensation, some bite to Andersen’s tales of Being the Best, though they occasionally rear their vibes more directly on tracks like Snake Skin Leather, or the snarky Subpar. Elsewhere, expect Prof’s alternating rapid-fire, sing-song flow expertly jumping between some killer rhymes and tip-toes through nonsense that sells the right braggadocio, leaving plenty of room for the rhymes from his guests to shine.

Production-wise, Prof is all over this thing’s credits, and I gotta say: he knows his craft. While the digital, doot, da-doot kinda circus beat is bread and butter that can get a little samey, the hooks are always unique, and it’s only the first few notes that get a track going that can be confused with other tracks here and there. But once the various pieces of the songs are in place – which are always layered with wild percussion, and lots of vocals – the things shine, and become near-instantly memorable. As to those guests: they are definitely well-selected to juxtapose Prof’s style but slide in to the track‘s style quite perfectly. End-to-end, I’d say this is the most consistent Prof disc yet.

…Especially given its dive into weightier fare, with Louisiana and Tombstones particularly heartfelt and literate without being cloying, somewhat exposing how much Prof is playing up the silly aspect of his persona when he does. Then closer Creek Boy is just a perfect mic drop: a swaggering, prideful stomp that expresses pride for having earned his place while expressing thanks to those that’ve helped him along the way.