“And Then You Pray For Me” is a direct sequel to Westside Gunn’s 2020 project, “Pray for Paris.” “Pray for Paris” is near and dear to my heart as it’s easily my favorite project from Westside. It’s also his first album in a year, which typically is normal for artists. For Westside, however, is a large gap in time considering he releases new music at least two times a year.
After the introduction, “FLYGOD DiD,” the album kicks off with “Mamas PrimeTime.” This track was underwhelming from the beat to the artists’ performances. While none of the verses were bad, there wasn’t anything compelling about them. Westside rapped with his usual flow, but JID and Conway the Machine missed the mark in terms of their usual work. Because of this being the opener, I was expecting much more.
The next track, “Kostas,” is even more unbearable as the beat just doesn’t match Westside Gunn at all. The features, Conway the Machine and Benny the Butcher, do quite well here. The song just doesn’t seem to really care for the same kind of vibe that was given off from the prequel to this album.
The project starts to increase in quality with “Suicide in Selfridges.” The instrumental was created by Conductor Williams, a long-time collaborator with Westside Gunn. I’m so glad he’s helping out with this record because the beats were getting boring and nothing like “Pray for Paris” tracks. DJ Drama helps out on the track by being Westside’s hype man. I truly love whenever he’s there just to shout stuff. It’s subtle but adds a lot when you realize. Gunn’s performance here is great as well, one of the best verses so far.
Possibly the best track on the album is “KITCHEN LIGHTS.” From the orchestral instrumental, to the amazing chorus sung by Stove God Cooks, to his and Westside Gunn’s fantastic verses. Everything about this track is perfect. My favorite part of the song is the outro, which is the isolated instrumental, letting the listener digest it for what it is.
“DunnHill” showcases another dip in quality. The beat is recognizable as a Rick Ross one, as he’s on the track. However, it doesn’t fit Westside’s usual style or the rest of the album. When Rick Ross does eventually come over the beat, he’s painfully average. The chorus includes a guest appearance with Estee Nack whispering the lyrics and is barely audible, so it just seems like a bunch of mumble over the beat. What could have been one of the best on the album if executed correctly, turned out to be one of my least favorites.
The next track, “JD Wrist” is my guilty pleasure song of the project. Objectively, I think this song is decent at best. I personally love this song, however. This track is a throwback to classic trap songs from the 2000s, even offering ad libs and such from DJ Trap-A-Holics, a staple in the early trap industry. My only dislike about this song is the runtime for it. It’s just over six minutes, which is way too long for a song like this.
A personal favorite of mine is “LL BOOL GUNN.” A lot of critics dislike this song for being unrememberable and lazy to some. While I get their point of view, I cannot disagree more. The track is one of the shortest songs clocking in at roughly two minutes. The instrumental is great and I love Westside’s approach to his performance, slowing things down a lot compared to the rest of the album.
“Jalen Rose” offers one of the worst features on the album. Boldly James’s verse is the most boring verse I have ever heard from an artist. He keeps the same monotone voice throughout his whole performance. I’m almost certain he’s even rapping off-beat. The sound selection is painfully average as all it is is just a basic piano beat accompanied by snares here and there. Westside’s verse is decent but not something to brag about. Overall, this song is certainly a lowlight of the project.
The album is saved yet again with “The Revenge of Flips Leg.” Conductor Williams is behind the production yet again, thankfully. I truly did wish that he was utilized more on this project as my main dislike against this album is the soundscape as a whole. Rome Streetz and Westside offer pretty good verses as well. Nothing really stands out about the track, but I’m glad it’s good at least.
The title track and outro, “AND THEN YOU PRAY FOR ME,” is a decent ending to close out the album. My only complaint is that Westide Gunn isn’t even on his own song. The feature, KayCyy, is on the entire song. He does really well with his singing and rapping performances, it’s just odd to not have yourself on your own last track.
From the abysmal feature performances, the subpar sound selection and even the decent-at-best Westside Gunn verses, this album fell flat pretty early on for me. What upsets me even more is the speculation that this may be Westside Gunn’s last album as he decides if he wants to retire or not. At the end of the day, this album is decent at best.