SAVAGE MODE II by 21 Savage + Metro Boomin

The impending arrival of 21 Savage’s *SAVAGE MODE II* was announced with a trailer directed by Gibson Hazard and narrated by Morgan Freeman. The takeaway, aside from the fact that Savage and collaborator Metro Boomin were emerging together from separate and presumably unrelated periods of inactivity, is that the project was much more than just two pals hanging out. With *SAVAGE MODE II*, the pair have effectively reached back to the era when 21 Savage wanted nothing more than to let rap fans know he was a “Real Ni\*\*a” with “No Heart.” *SAVAGE MODE II* follows 2017’s *Without Warning*—also featuring Offset—as the third collaboration between the pair, the first being 2016’s *Savage Mode*. Savage and Metro would go on to become exponentially more successful in the years following, but *SAVAGE MODE II* songs like “Glock in My Lap,” “Brand New Draco,” and “No Opp Left Behind” effectively recreate the us-against-the-world energy of the original. Elsewhere on the project, Savage is every bit the rap superstar we know in collaboration with Drake and Young Thug on “Mr. Right Now” and “Rich N\*\*\*a Shit,” respectively. But whether he’s talking about “Snitches & Rats” (with Young Nudy) or opening up about a relationship gone sour on “RIP Luv,” 21 Savage sounds like he\'s at the top of his game while he’s back in the saddle with Metro. Or as Morgan Freeman puts it in the trailer, “When someone is in Savage Mode, they’re not to be fucked with.”

6.6 / 10

The sequel to the canonical Atlanta mixtape is meant to be a legacy-defining stamp, but despite all its glossy guest stars (Morgan Freeman!), it never rises above “just fine.”

7 / 10

The duo leave nothing chance on this near-perfect sequel, a cinematic odyssey of sound from two artists at the top of their game

8.8 / 10

The highly anticipated second installment of the 'Savage Mode' series with Metro Boomin does not disappoint.

21 Savage and Metro Boomin’s 'Savage Mode II' is a Near-Perfect Sequel to a Trap Classic

6 / 10

Following over a year of teasing and four years of public demand for the follow-up to the rapper-producer duo's breakout album, Savage Mode,...

8 / 10

When 21 Savage and Metro Boomin unleashed ‘Savage Mode’ back in 2016, they could hardly have known the impact it would have. Arguably a

The album is a ratification of “bigger and better,” an example of steady improvement through impeccable craft.

67 %

The seventh track on Savage Mode II – the second full-length collab between 21 Savage and Metro Boomin - is called “Many Men”, borrowing its name and a sample from a track off 50 Cent’s Get Rich Or Die Tryin’. It’s a fairly bold move, even with (or perhaps because of) the era of 50's