While Watch The Throne was almost gaudy in its opulence and My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy was sincere in its projection of artistry, imprint compilation Cruel Summer comes across as Kanye’s idea of what a modern rap record sounds like. That means awkward “God of rap”/”holy crap” rhymes and DJ Khaled getting a credit for shouting names, but it’s fun for the most part. Pusha T wins, if it’s a competition, but Kanye, obviously, collects any plaudits.
