https://rollingstone.com.br/musica/ty-dolla-ign-tenta-ser-protagonista-em-tycoon-mas-segue-como-eterno-coadjuvante/

https://rollingstone.com.br/musica/ty-dolla-ign-tenta-ser-protagonista-em-tycoon-mas-segue-como-eterno-coadjuvante/

The singer’s new album displays flashes of talent amid shallow and unresolved tracks

It’s better to be a great Robin than a weak Batman. This is perhaps the best synthesis to understand not only TYCOON (2025), new album by Ty Dolla $ignbut the singer’s entire career. Marked by great appearances, the Californian’s sweet voice always gave a special touch to songs like “Work From Home“, from Fifth HarmonySafety Net“, from the Ariana GrandeViolent Crimes“, from Kanye Westand “Cinderella“, from mac miller.

In recent years, however, Tyrone William Griffin Jr. — the artist’s real name — was gaining more and more spotlight. After releasing two albums with himself, Ye, Vultures 1 (2024) and Vultures 2 (2024), it became the main novelty in projects from which it is difficult to get anything good.

With the end of the partnership, Ty he seemed ready to finally assume the role of protagonist that his voice, his ear and his story already justified. The singles were promising, incredible previews were released on their networks, followed by marketing actions showing the big names present on the album and several lives on the Twitch mixing the project.

Everything was going well, but then came postponements, re-recordings and cuts of verses at the last minute. The project that everyone was waiting for lost momentum until it was launched last Friday, the 17th.

An ambitious project that lost its way

TYCOON It has 15 tracks and is 52 minutes long and was released by Atlantic Records and distributed by Taylor Gang Entertainment, the rapper’s label Wiz Khalifalongtime partner of Ty. The album, despite being a solo work, rarely features the singer alone. Most of the tracks feature collaborators who define the current sound of trap and R&B, including Travis Scott, A$AP Rocky, Tyga, Quavo, Leon Thomas and the producer Hitmaka.

The initial proposal seemed clear: to create an album that mixed the refinement of R&B with the grandeur and sonic experimentation inherited from the Vultures Era. The result, however, sounds more like a collection of loose ideas than a cohesive narrative.

Sonically, TYCOON attempts to balance electronic textures and spacey beats with deep bass arrangements and moody synths, an aesthetic that flirts with futuristic minimalism but rarely sustains itself for more than two tracks. The album wants to be aggressive and also pop, adding touches of R&B, house and trap, but without enough cohesion to create an identity.

The production is polished, well mixed, but predictable. Each track feels built to sound big, but it’s missing what it always did Ty Dolla $ign to be special: the feeling of naturalness, that soulful fluidity that transformed occasional appearances into memorable moments.

Isolated hits and forgettable tracks

TYCOON starts aggressively, with “CAN’T BE F****D WITH” and “Don’t Kill The Party” — the latter, the best song on the project and one of the few that really sounds alive. Interestingly, the track even appeared in preliminary versions of Vultures 2which perhaps explains the shine it still carries. The beat is solid, the mix of trap and R&B works, but Tyonce again, is left aside, overshadowed by the intense verses of Quavo and Juicy J. It’s as if, within the album itself, he already accepted the supporting role.

Right away, “DECEMBER 31ST” brings a great verse A$AP Rockywhich instantly raises the level of the album — his flow is elegant and carries a confidence that the Tyhesitant in the chorus. Already “SMILE BODY PRETTY FACE” is the opposite: generic and predictable, a track that tries to sound radiophonic but gets lost in its own sterility.

There are times when TYCOON it almost finds the balance between fun and identity. In “TYCOON$”with Young Thugwhich injects energy and charisma. Or electronic and fun ones “ALL IN” and “TWITCH”which focus on bolder beats and spatial textures, reminiscent of the Ty of Beach House 3 (2017).

For the rest, the album sinks into a shallow and repetitive sequence. The instrumentals seem recycled, the lyrics revolve around the same metaphors of parties and conquests. THE Ty Dolla $ign who once innovated contemporary R&B appears here as just a shadow of his own feats. Same “MIXED EMOTIONS”one of the most anticipated, falls short of its potential — with participation from Travis Scott and Leon Thomasthe song had everything to be memorable, but the lack of energy turns what could be a climax into a tepid moment.

Deluxe: the opera summary

The deluxe, released shortly afterwards, works almost like a summary of the album itself: irregular, curious, but without a defined identity. On the one hand, there is “BLIND DATE”a heavy and saturated trap, clearly inspired by the chaotic style of MUSIC (2025), from Playboi Carti — noisy, energetic, but empty of purpose. On the other, “THOUSAND MILES”a literal reinterpretation of the hit by Vanessa Carltonnow in the voice of Ty.

An artist between eras

At the end, TYCOON it sounds like the effort of an artist trying to prove that he can be the hero of his own story. Ty Dolla $ign I wanted to be Batman, but the burden is too heavy.

It’s an album caught between two eras: emotional R&B that Ty helped to modernize, and that of trap that was overproduced, saturated and calculated for the charts. When the album tries to be lighter, it works, there is soul and swing — even in the 2000s parodies. But when it dives into heavier trap, most of the time, it loses its balance and slips amid generic beats and lyrics that sound automatic.

Not even the interludes — which could provide unity or context — play a clear role. These are confusing interruptions, poorly distributed and without narrative purpose, which reinforces the feeling that TYCOON It is a combination of unfinished ideas.

Kadu Soares is graduating in Journalism from Faculdade Cásper Líbero, and spends the day consuming music, sports, films and series. He has a profile on TikTok and a blog on Substack, where he reviews musical projects.

Source: Rollingstone

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