Trust Fund Babies

### **Producer(s)**

808 Jayy \ Bloublood \ Cheese \ Diem \ Greedo \ Hurt \ Jason "Diet" Silver \ Koncept P \ Lab Cook \ LunchMoney Lewis \ MonstaBeatz \ Murda Beatz \ Smash David \ Swauv \ Swede \ Tay Keith \ Timothy on the Beat \ Wavy Wes \ West

***Trust Fund Babies*** is a collaborative mixtape by American rappers Lil Wayne and Rich the Kid. It was released on October 1, 2021, by Young Money Entertainment, Republic Records, and Rostrum Records. It contains a sole guest appearance by American rapper YG.

## Synopsis

What fun is a collaborative hip-hop album if the MCs involved aren't going back and forth in rhyme over the course of any single song? It's not until "Still," the seventh track on Lil Wayne and Rich The Kid's *Trust Fund Babies* project, that the two capitalize on the opportunity, but they also take things a step further by performing as hype men for each other, doubling up the last few words of each other's bars. Will their fanbases ever get to see this live? It's hard to say. Both MCs are established enough in their own right that it's unclear what a co-headlining tour would do besides lessen each one's payout, but as *Trust Fund Babies* proves, Wayne and Rich have fun together. The pair just seem happy to be around each other, with Wayne sounding particularly inspired across "Feelin' Like Tunechi," "Still," and "Buzzin'." As far as airspace is concerned, Rich sort of yields to his OG, but the younger MC shines on "Admit It," doling out hilarious observations like "She f\*\*ked me so good that I woke up late."

## Background

Wayne told Apple Music how to collaboration came about: "First of all, Rich is like my little bro from day one. Me and Rich had been rockin' for years and we always said we were going to do something. We might do a song here and there, but we locked it in, got in there, and said we put our mindset and did it. As far as, as much as I gave on that, I do that every time I do anything."

## Critical reception

Antoine-Samuel Alavo of *Exclaim!* praised, "both artists can address the naysayers while having fun and focusing on the music. It's this visceral sense of relief and the quality of the bangers they cooked up that make this farfetched team-up much more than a throwaway mixtape." AllMusic's Fred Thomas described it as not too serious and "doesn't achieve anything monumental," where the record was experimental and varied in ideas. He concluded, "Given that the mixtape format was the domain where Wayne made some of his most exciting breakthroughs as he was developing his style early on, it's great to hear faint echoes of that excitement on the strongest moments of *Trust Fund Babies*."

Alphonse Pierre of *Pitchfork* wrote in less positive assessment, "So much of the space here is filled with Rich hooks and verses that could have easily been recycled and no one would know it. He continues to have no identity of his own [...] The only reason to care about this mixtape is Wayne, even if it often sounds like he’s being held captive in a studio by Rich and has to rap his way out." *HipHopDX*'s Anthony Malone was similarly unimpressed, opining, "Wayne exudes exuberance in the opening verses and chorus, whereas Rich The Kid fumbles the layups. [...] Rich and Weezy have little to no chemistry at all. Instead of trading bars and witty wordplay to keep the momentum going, verses are thrown together in a sequence that feels boring and uninspired." While they added of Wayne being prominently stronger, he criticized certain songs for its vapid rhymes and added that the record should've stayed in the archives.

## References

1. ↑ Caldwell, Brandon (October 3, 2021). "Lil Wayne & Rich the Kid's 'Trust Fund Babies' Headed for Colossal Flop - If Projects Hold Up"". *HipHopDX*.
2. ↑ Alavo, Antoine-Samuel (October 5, 2021). "Lil Wayne and Rich the Kid Invest in Each Other on 'Trust Fund Babies'". *Exclaim!*
3. ↑ "Trust Fund Babies Review by Fred Thomas". *AllMusic*. October 1, 2021.
4. ↑ Pierre, Alphonse (October 6, 2021). "*Trust Fund Babies* by Lil Wayne / Rich the Kid". *Pitchfork*.
5. ↑ Malone, Anthony (October 27, 2021). "Review - Lil Wayne & Rich the Kid Trust Fund Babies Is Held Back by a Disparity in Talent". *HipHopDX*.

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