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- August 3, 2021
Yeah KSI, the Youtuber, the one of the Sidemen, and the rapper? The third descriptor might find people surprised, but if there’s one think KSI ( a.k.a Olajide “JJ” Olatunji) made a career and name for himself as being one of the “old guard” of original YouTuber’s reaching a million subscribers in 2012, when the concept of being a YouTuber was still new. He currently has over 10 million subscribers on his main channel.
None of this gives credit to making an album but as a Youtuber who has also been in the boxing ring, he is someone who refuses to be put in a box. KSI has been open in having to work for everything he has, putting out increasing quality content that attracts people over an extended period of time, and his sophomore album All Over The Place (AOTP) is… really good. Only to emphasize the difficulty of putting him in a box, this album’s sound is exactly as the album title explains, its all over the place in the best of ways.
From hip-hop, to UK drill, pop, and “EDM”, the only thing consistent throughout this album is the skill level at which he raps. He’s flexible, raps about various topics, over different rhythms and keeps a consistent quality throughout. He has his hands in everything. He can rap over the electronic boosted soundscape of Digital Farm Animals, talking about falling in love, to picking up hard bars keeping up with “the professionals” like 21 Savage and Polo G, and knows how to accentuate the talents of artists like Lil Durk to one goal, making good songs.
If understanding the assignment was a person, that would be KSI. Fitting with any track thrown at him while still giving his trademarked personality and references.
Above all, this album sounded like he enjoyed making it. With messages in his raps, it doesn’t feel like he had anything to prove, he took making an album seriously and it came from a place of authenticity. None of the tracks feel forced. From being a kid on his computer to rapping with some of the biggest names while growing as a person, AOTP is a delight to hear.
