On his second album, “Watching Movies With the Sound Off”(Rostrum), he’s threatening to become a great rapper himself, a startling turn of events. Mr. Miller reveals himself to be witty, self-depreciating, gauche and technically accomplished. His drug and sex raps are cut through with occasional bolts of emotional clarity: “I still don’t got the heart to pick my phone up when my dad calls/Will he recognize his son when he hears my voice?”
What’s more, there might not be a better sounding hip-hop album this year, as Mr. Miller extracts great, luscious beats that are 1990s-minded but modern, from producers like Clams Casino, Flying Lotus and others. (He also produced several songs himself.)
That said, he doesn’t have a “Power Trip” or a “Bad.” Hip-hop radio will not flock to him. This is at least in part because of his race — even though he’s a firm hip-hop classicist, he operates outside of the current boundaries of hip-hop radio.
But white privilege is the darnedest thing, full of backdoor opportunities for success. As successful as Mr. Miller’s album may be, almost certainly more people have lately heard him rapping on “The Way,” a breezy pop single by Ariana Grande, a Nickelodeon star making a foray into music. While Wale and Mr. Cole have catapulted themselves into territory they must now fight to stay in, Mr. Miller is free to avoid that fate, and instead embark on another stealth attack.
J. Cole, Wale and Mac Miller Return With New Albums - NYTimes.com
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