Brent Faiyaz: Fuck The World

After his Grammy-nominated feature on Goldlink’s “Crew”, Brent Faiyaz continues to make his niche as an upcoming R&B sensation. He’s created his own fan base as an independent artist, and with his new album, Fuck The World, he’s looking to make a big push in 2020. The album blends catchy melodies with braggadocios honesty. It’s not that he’s being overconfident, in fact, he himself calls it a “narcissistic empathy”. This is definitely the perfect way to describe his approach to this album and the personality he’s built for himself.

For some comparisons, the album mixes the persona of the Weeknd with the sound of a modern-day Ginuwine. High praise, but he fits the bill. The Weeknd comes to mind when hearing the balance between the topics of sex, drugs, and fame, that Brent Faiyaz touches on throughout Fuck The World. On “Been Away”, which debuted at the Pyer Moss fashion show during the New York Fashion Week, the refrain states, “I know I been away / I’m just tryna get my paper straight, girl”. Here, he struggles with the reality that although he values this girl and her time, his time is spent making money and music. On the title song, Fuck The World, his pitch and flow are also very similar to the Weeknd and he mentions strippers and having an affair with a girl that loves coke. Both the topics and his writing approach show comparisons to the Weeknd.

This song resembles the melody and brash lyrics of The Weeknd's song "The Morning".

Ginuwine is the second person that comes to mind when listening to this album. During a time when it’s popular for R&B artists to rap over trap beats (initiated by Bryson Tiller’s critically acclaimed debut album Soul Trap), Brent Faiyaz harmonizes over a mix of soft pianos and 808s. Many may not know this, but Ginuwine built his career off of Timbaland and Missy Elliot beats. His most popular song, “Pony”, was produced by Timbaland, and he is definitely one of the pioneers of singing over Hip-Hop beats. Brent’s vocal tone and the layering of his background vocals are very similar to Ginuwine’s signature style on songs like “Anxious” and “In Those Jeans”. Parts of his songs feel like he’s almost ad-libbing harmonies. There’s a very nostalgic 90’s feel to this album and it sheds light on Brent’s influences and the potential longevity of his career.

Overall, Brent Faiyaz has definitely established a style and sound that fans can consistently expect from him. We should all anticipate him being seen in the lineups of many festivals this year, and for many years to come.