The third studio album from St. Louis rapper/singer/songwriter
Smino
continues his blend of several generations of rap styles, R&B, neo-soul, and even hints of psychedelically bent pop, delivering some of the strongest articulations of his sound to date.
Luv 4 Rent
draws heavily on a
Kendrick Lamar
influence for its vocal performances and melodic structuring (the R&B proclivities
Lamar
started showing on
Good Kid, m.A.A.d. City
are apparent on songs like "No L's" and "Settle Down," and
even titles a particularly woozy track "Ole Ass Kendrick"), and the album experiments with combining electronic production elements and melodic R&B hooks on tracks like "Modennaminute." Lyrical themes of love, intimacy, and fraught relationships carry the majority of
, and
adds extra sparkle to his songs with excellent features like a breathless verse provided by
J. Cole
on the
OutKast
-modeled single "90 Proof" and
Lil Uzi Vert
's contribution to the summery and feel-good track "Pudgy." ~ TiVo Staff