Fivio Foreign Releases His Debut Album “B.I.B.L.E”
Fivio Foreign continues his impressive run with the release of his latest project “B.I.B.L.E”. The album serves as a strong progression for the Brooklyn rapper.
Foreign simply cannot lose at the moment. His hit song “Big Drip” garnered him mainstream attention in 2019 and since then he has collaborated with Drake and spit his best verse in his feature on Kanye West’s “Off The Grid”. He extended his winning streak with the release of the first single off this album “City of Gods” which features West and Alicia Keys. The single is the latest New York City anthem with drill drums and a terrific synth melody. The chorus sung by Keys is pleading for the city to not be too harsh.
New York City, please go easy on me tonight
New York City, please go easy on this heart of mine
'Cause I'm losing my lover to the arms of another
New York City, please go easy on me
Album Production
The album is executive produced by West and his footprints are evident throughout the project from the first listen. The tracklist has gospel samples that are laced with drill beats with songs like “Through the Fire” featuring Quavo.
Though, typical drill beats that Foreign usually murders for fun are present (Feel My Struggle, Confidence, Slide Them), he steps out of his comfort zone and raps on more mellow and chill beats where he presents his melodic side (“For Nothin”, “Left Side”).
Being from Brooklyn, Foreign hops on the city’s “sample drill” wave with the song “World is Watching” where he raps on a drill beat that samples Ellie Goulding’s mega-hit “Lights On”.
Album Features
“B.I.B.L.E” has 16 features which are more than what most artists would have on a project excluding Kanye West or a posthumous album. Some features excel and uplift the song while others fall flat on their back.
Lil Tjay (“World is Watching”) and Vory (“Changed On Me”) both perform well as their track’s chorus singers while Ne-Yo’s hook on “Love ongs” that samples his song “So Sick” is bland and makes you wonder why he did not sing the original chorus.
Lil Yachty (“Slide Them) and Yung Bleu (“World is Watching”) were the most surprising features due to how well they both performed on drill beats. The two artists are extremely talented but have never shown their gifts on a drill track and they both hit it out the ballpark. This cannot be said for other features such as Coi Leray (“What’s My Name”) and Chlöe (“Hello”). Their respective tracks were essentially ravaged once their parts came in.
Fivio Foreign’s Performance
Foreign’s flow and subject matter do not significantly alter throughout the album. Nevertheless, there are some tracks where he gets introspective. In “Feel My Struggle” he looks back on his rise to the top and speaks on not responding to people dissing him and retaliating through his success. He talks about how he still goes through pain while tasting success but he fights through it.
I never responded when they starting dissing me
(I never responded when they starting dissing me)
I just started shi----g, I knew they were sick of me
(I knew they were sick of me)
Foreign has lost friends because they were jealous of his success. He voices this in “For Nothin” where he wonders why they were close with him when he was impoverished but did not keep the same energy once he became wealthy.
Verdict on “B.I.B.L.E”
“B.I.B.L.E” was an enjoyable listen with a lot of highlights that outshined the low lights. Foreign showed exceptional beat selection that made up for his flow that rarely changes. The sky is the limit for the Brooklyn rapper and fans can’t wait to see how Foreign progresses his sound with his next projects.