Now he joins a surprisingly strong list of famous basketball players who rap, mostly casually: Allen Iverson, Shaquille O’Neal, Kobe Bryant, Damian Lillard, 1994’s often weird compilations.” Stars of B-Ball’s Best Kept Secret ” It’s easy to hear “Tweaker” as a kind of consolation prize, a distraction for Ball while his brother’s NBA glory. collect
And yet. “Tweaker” is deceptively lo-fi and ineffective, but directly effective — art passing as a joke.
The course is fairly straightforward, if a bit colloquial by numbers. Although Ball hails from Southern California, his vocal style, and accompanying production, are reminiscent of the immediacy and style popularized by No Limit Records (later pioneered by Cash Money Records) in the late 1990s. At times raucous New Orleans rap music abounds. The bouncer and less antagonistic side of 1990s Memphis rap. These are styles where the martial stomp of the flow is as important as the words themselves, or more so. (“I ain’t from the south, but kickin’ it with my Memphis twin,” Ball raps on “Tweaker.”)
On the verses, Ball’s vocals are less melodic, a little more screechy and less convincing. Sometimes it seems like he’s rambling on more syllables than space allows. The beat is built around a piano figure that sounds accidental, or drunk, as if played with fat fingers, adding to the song’s legitimate and illegitimate uncertainty.
After all, “Tweaker” has inspired genuine enthusiasm, probably some combination of genuine and opportunistic. Baton Rouge veteran Lil Boosie and the Memphis star Money bag u Both tipped Ball about a possible collaboration on X. And Ball was quickly booked for the March installment of the influential hip-hop festival Rolling Loud.
Rarely has a new artist so effectively (and intentionally?) used the modern distribution system of live streaming to gain initial buzz. used, and then built something stronger on that odd flash of attention. It was demonstrated last year. How broken is the apparatus of stardom in hip-hop. has become There is no reliable system anymore — no radio, no streaming services, no TikTok, no roads.
Instead, it is: a happy accident at the intersection of flagging celebrity and incidental infamy. Apparently, Ball has nailed the impossible pachinko that ends with a potential smash. “Tweaker” is a serious effort. This is a stunt. This is a gaffe. This is Hail Mary. This is a meme. It’s a hit.