Steve 'Flash' Juon“I don’t give not one fuck ’bout what these niggaz think at all” – YoungBoy
I doubt there’s a better introduction to YoungBoy Never Broke Again (a/k/a NBA YoungBoy) than that, but it does make “I Rest My Case” a little bit ironic. Despite vowing he has no fucks to give what anybody thinks on “Louie V,” he actually changed the cover art for this album following a backlash to the original cover’s religious overtones. The updated and current version shows Kentrell Gaulden surrounding by women in matching black lace bra and panties, wearing ski masks and little else. His own personal drip is so shiny he could be mistaken for Bad Boy era Ma$e. It’s certainly in keeping with the image of a rapper whose very name is a reminder he refuses to ever spend another day poor.
“I want to kill all my opps… they ain’t coming back”
The Baton Rouge emcee is not only well known for his materialistic name and image but for his constant legal woes. It’s more than fair to say YoungBoy would be a much bigger artist than he already is if he hadn’t spend half of the last ten years fighting charges, getting probation, violating probation and getting NEW charges. I want him to be Never Broke Again but even more than that I want him to Never Be Locked Down Again. The bass heavy “Bitch Yeah” from Timmy Da HitMan is the kind of music he can make without other distractions. It’s loud, rapid-fire, and has the kind of Lil Weezy pitch correction one can enjoy.
“I got more money, you lil’ boys, y’all some bitches (bitch yeah)
I can’t even drive and got more cars, your shit is leased or rented (bitch yeah)”
It’s also indicative of the one note Mr. Gaulden hits repeatedly lyrically. He’s rich, he has a lot of opps, and he’s looking out the window like Malcolm at all times. He must constantly defend what he’s got. A laundry list of producers (Sinaki, BeatsByTrain, ProdbyJeff & Prodalek) laced “Double Cup” and you might think they gave him enough of a vibe to relax and sip some lean out of his Styrofoam. Wrong. He still sees death around the corner no matter how hard he tries to po’ up and relax.
“Know you off that ‘ron, now sit your ass down
You gon’ stop that bad-mouth
No Smirnoff, straight lean raw
Clean from my brain down, grab her, push her brain down
Now you know I’ma leave a stain ’round
Them fuck niggaz gon’ get banged down”
As fun as the music might be, the drama in YoungBoy’s life manages to boil over from his lyrics and bubble right up to his song titles. “Rage.” “Not My Friend.” Even when they’re “Clear” it’s clear he’s just clearing out the block. The only time he sounds the least bit off edge is on the album’s finale “Hey Pops” and even here the anger is still palpable. “Are you proud of me? I DON’T CARE.”
With so many grievances to air out personally, professionally and legally “I Rest My Case” implies he’s made his closing statement in court when in fact this came out in 2023 and he’s had many more dates before a judge since then. I sincerely want him to move past this phase of his life and start enjoying the fruits of his labor instead of spending most of his hard earned money on lawyers — that’s the quickest way of going broke again I could possibly imagine.