Cry Baby - Vince Staples (2026)
A rapper with a live band behind him is no big thing. A rapper with a lean, snarling post-punk guitar-bass-drums setup behind is a little bit more notable. At least if you don’t listen to hip hop from Minneapolis.
Staples has never stuck to one particular sound. After his first EP and LP of atmospheric high-tech beats, we got the dancefloor-tuned and footwork-heavy Big Fish Theory, the pirate radio / mixtape vibe of FM!, and a series of deeply autobiographical and musically diverse deep dives of his most recent 3 records, still leaning into soulful and funky beats in most places.
This first self-relased record picks yet another direction, leaning heavily into a bracing rock sound that doesn’t fit easily with other live-band rap coming our lately. There’s no funk, no boom bap, really nothing but fuzzed-up guitars and a tight backbeat.
The lyrical themes are the bridge to what Staples has done in the past. We get his extensive thoughts on various ways the American system has failed black folks, and the rage that can sometimes inspire.
Nearly all of it is as terse and angry as the music.
Staples is always fearless and never afraid to do something you didn’t expect. Maybe this release is announcing that he’s done playing by the rules entirely.
