Benny the Butcher, fresh off of one of the hottest years for a “rising” emcee in recent memory, carries with him the Burden of Proof: the obligation to prove one’s assertion. For Benny, his assertion is simple: he is the best. If not the best, he’s close, and will do whatever he needs to do in order to carry the title belt of rap. On the aptly named “Burden of Proof,” Benny showcases his past, present, and vulnerability towards his future; all over menacing and perfectly constructed Hit-Boy beats. While I am generally not a fan of single producer albums, Hit-Boy is on a streak unlike any other and has proven his ability to conform to the artists tastes and styles.
Opening the album is a tremendously placed soulful loop that transitions to a slappy, bouncing East Coast beat. Benny’s vocals are the cherry on top. He doesn’t miss a step and is quick to deliver punchlines that cause me to grimace with delight. Among his assertions is a pronounced growth from being the best in the cocaine selling business to being a businessman in all endeavors, legal or not. He reminds us that while other rappers may spend lots of money on guns or diamonds, but Benny “spent a bunch on guns, and a lot with the jeweler.” Reminiscing his dealing days, he recruits Rick Ross to detail where the two would be without the drug game. Again, Hit-Boy creates a perfect symphony of samples that encapsulates both Benny’s gritty New York sound AND Rick Ross’s Maybach Music extravagance for both to shine. I could not have been the only one to melt hearing both tags, Maybach and Griselda, next to each other at the end of the track.
This album is New York. For those younger rap fans who missed the renaissance period of Roc-A-Fella records, this is what it sounded like. Hit Boy and Benny encase this era brilliantly in the beats, flows, and material. The replay value of each sound and deep-cut entendre are impressive to say the least. Lil Wayne and Big Sean continue the star-studded guest list on “Timeless.” Freddie Gibbs raps about his time in the rap game, coke game, and times with women on “One Way Flight,” the best song of the album. Again, the glue is Hit Boy, who constructs samples that are both unique and ubiquitous to each artist’s roots.
A divisive and introspective Benny the Butcher is what we have come to expect, but on Burden of Proof, he steps up to bat in the big leagues as a top-tier emcee. Outside of some designated legends or his own elite label mates, there is no stopping or slowing the Butcher’s current run. This complete and precise of a project is rare in 2020 and the resurrection of classic 2000’s New York is the perfect injection of grit and power the world needs. 8.9/10