Rapper Lil Uzi Vert launched his highly anticipated album “Eternal Atake 2” on Nov. 1, creating a sequel to “Eternal Atake,” which was released on March 6, 2020. The new album–now available on multiple streaming platforms like Spotify and Apple Music–peaked at No. 3 on the Billboard 200 the week following its release. Given the respect and love the first “Eternal Atake” album received, all types of Uzi fans, old and new, were hoping for a great sequel.
On Oct. 23, Uzi teased the new album by dropping a 28 second song titled, “Uzi The Earthling! (TV Show Theme),” which served as an introduction to the upcoming album. Uzi proceeded to share the artwork for the song, which spelled out “EA2,” hinting that the next album would be “Eternal Atake 2.” Then, on Oct. 28, Uzi finally released the track list for the album, featuring a surprising collaboration with music group Big Time Rush.
The opening track, “We Good,” addresses how people thought Uzi had lost his touch and no longer had the same musical ability he did during his previous albums. It is a lively song, with lyrics like “They said I was lost / they thought I was a dead guy” and “Everybody thought I was leaning / but I’m really triple beaming.” The second track, “Light Year (Practice),” maintains the same energy with an energetic beat and confident, powerful lyrics talking about their leadership in the rap industry.
“I thought the start of the album really woke me up and got me excited for the full album to keep playing,” senior Michael Cacace said. “Lil Uzi is known for their intro tracks and ‘We Good’ is going to be major.”
While the first two songs are strong and enjoyable, the next two–“Meteor Man” and “Paars in the Mars”–fall short. On these tracks, Uzi experiments with a new style, using a deeper and heavier tone that does not deliver as they had hoped due to its confusing and weird sound. The low and deep voice is suspected to be influenced by Uzi’s longtime friend and famous rap artist Playboi Carti, who is known for using a deep voice in his songs.
Throughout their career, Uzi has demonstrated their talent for turning flexing money into a way of life through music. The album continues this theme on songs like “Mr Chow” and “Chips and Dip.” For instance, in “Mr Chow” Uzi raps “When I hit my dance it makes her smile, I got millions in a file.” Uzi has found the most success in music when rapping about wealth, gaining millions of streams on such songs.
“I think Uzi started the trend of flexing money in rap songs on classic songs like ‘Silly Watch’ and ‘Money Longer,’” senior Ryan Mockenhaupt said.
Uzi shifts from energetic songs to a slower, heartfelt beat midway through the album, successfully proving their talent for producing music of various styles. The song “Chill Bae” begins with a high-pitched voice from a woman talking about love, followed by Uzi’s beautiful chorus and verses.
Uzi continues this theme with the next two tracks, “Goddard Song” and “PerkySex.” The fifteenth track, “Conceited,” demonstrates Uzi’s emotional depth as they explore the complex highs and lows of a toxic relationship. The word “conceited” refers to someone excessively full of themselves and this song serves as an anthem for that in a relationship.
“The album showcases their ability to try different sounds and be very successful,” senior Jaden Zadanosky said. “Their unique blend of futuristic beats and amazing choruses leads to the album defining the new age of his music and personifying their self.”
When “Eternal Atake 2” was first announced, many fans hoped for an exact copy of the first album, meaning a return of Uzi’s old style. On the album’s release day, Uzi joined popular Twitch streamer Kai Cenat’s stream and shared their thoughts on returning to their older sound. Uzi explained that they have been focused on evolving their music style because maintaining the same sound for eight years is boring, leading to the change in sound seen in the album. They also mentioned that they are trying to please both longtime fans and newer fans of their music.
“It’s hard to please all my types of fans, but I don’t want to just keep doing the same sound forever,” Uzi said on Kai’s stream. “It gets boring.”
Fans are now speculating that Uzi’s next album will be a sequel to their 2017 album “Luv Is Rage 2.” With the hype surrounding the return of old albums for sequels, fans hope that this trilogy will satisfy them as much as “Eternal Atake 2” did.
