Philadelphia’s Meek Mill, whose actual name is Robert Williams, has developed a rather distinct sound at this point in his young career.
High energy and heavy beats with braggadocious street-based lyrics fill Mill’s mixtape.
Considering the high Internet traffic that came with the release of “Dreamchasers 2″ caused the servers of datpiff.com, a website used to release free mixtapes including Mill’s, to crash, it is hard to argue with the formula thus far.
The mixtape’s intro track, appropriately named “Intro,” announces its full energy right away with a Mike Tyson quote: “I’m the best ever/I’m the most brutal and vicious and most ruthless champion there’s ever been. There’s no one who can stop me. I’m Alexander, he’s no Alexander…”
The Fugees-sampled second track, “Ready or Not,” maintains the “takeover” theme and serves as a standout track. The sample works wonderfully with Mill in a focused state as he rhymes over the driving beat, “The Meek shall inherit the earth / So I’ma own this b—- until I’m buried in dirt.”
The message that Mill is chasing his dreams with determination is evident two tracks in.
“Burn,” another standout track includes a strong feature from Big Sean as the two trade verses over a heavy type of beat. “Lean Wit It” provides another example of the lane in which he functions best.
Kendrick Lamar is always a welcome addition to a track and “A1 Everything” benefits from his strong work, as usual.
The rest of the features are a mixed bag.
Overall, Mill combines his signature high energy style with tracks that show depth that I had not heard from him before. The tape could have benefited from fewer tracks which would have streamlined the listen, but as Mill builds toward his debut album this year, he only added to his buzz with this release.
Grade: B+
