A rapper ever cared less by Larry June? For 15 years, the San Francisco native has been using melodic G-funk beats—courtesy of either Cardo or one of Cardo's many imitators—adorning them with autopilot rhymes and the most tiresome ad-libs (“Oh my god!” “Oh my god!” “Well done Larry!) known to man. June travels by instinct, his casual feel mirroring the languid rhythm of his producers. His penchant for luxuries big and small, Supras and smoothies, lends him something of a human quality, but even that runs counter to the silly mantras of his culture. When he breaks into motivational platitudes (“Keep it up, Larry!”), you find yourself preparing for an Herbalife pitch.
To do it for me (who else would he?) brings together the usual roster of A-list producers: Harry Fraud, Cookin Soul and Jose Rios are all on board. It's some of the best music June has put together to date, further exposing his subtle tendencies. “Magnum PI” weaves a fuzzed-out guitar, strummed bassline and gurgling synth into a rich, evocative wash. June arrives in a Rolls-Royce drinking jasmine tea and it's over in less than two minutes. She's here purely to fill space: “I'm on FaceTime with her, I kind of feel this bitch/I love that bitch talk, it's so attractive and shit.” Anyone else would consider this a reference piece.
A lot of rappers owe their success to proximity, to being in the room every time a great beat comes on: Mack 10, Le$, any number of LA County weeders who lucked into Battlecat's tracks. (J Worthy can't rap like Nash, but Nash doesn't pick beats like J Worthy.) The job is to stay out of the way, and June has a rare knack for messing things up. “Where I'm Going” and “Real Talk, Pt. 2” are aggravatingly simplistic, rhyming with the same words for lyrics each time. “Cleaning My Spot (Interlude)” is a three-minute low, June captures all things in his house that he has to dust off. His bulleted diaries are static and repetitive, evoking incredible loneliness: He wakes up to the bank account movements, sends a few texts, checks his oil meter and drinks orange juice. There is not a single guest across the street To do it for me's 15 tracks—June has a house full of toys and no one to play with.
If he's a lone wolf in the story, June's holiday-rap philosophy has been adopted by a growing group of rappers that stretch from the Gulf Coast to Texas and point west. Featuring '80s soul samples with 808 drums and semi-improvised lifestyle bars, they're prone to stock imagery: palm trees, turn-of-the-century imports and Diamond Collection sportswear. Producers Tavaras Jordan and DJ Mr. Rogers are disciples of Houston legend DJ Screw, adapting the raucous beats and lyrical structures of his '90s work. But the beginnings of the movement date back to 2004, when Lil Wayne they boasted finished writing rhymes — to hear him tell it, everything from Carter it was a glorified freestyle. The Curren$y protégé took the baton with an assembly-line approach, putting out low-overhead projects credited to individual producers, often just weeks apart.
from our partners at https://pitchfork.com/reviews/albums/larry-june-doing-it-for-me
