Russ Maintains His Nauseating Course on ‘Shake the Snow Globe’
by Isaiah Anthony
Russ, the rapper/egoist hailing from Secaucus, New Jersey, and the favorite artist of that guy from your high school that you never wanted around your sister, is really successful.
But it’s more than that.
Russ is more successful than you. That’s understandable and nothing to be ashamed of. He is Russ after all, and you’re... well... you. You never stood a chance.
He’s Russ.
He’s got “the money, girls, fans, etc.”
He put a logo on his pool! His logo! The Russ logo! The Russ logo on the Russ pool! The Russ logo on the Russ pool, paid for by the Russ money, where the Russ girls and Russ fans hang out… etc!
Russ. Success. Russ. Fame. Russ. Deus.
But being the alleged most talented, skilled, hottest rapper in the game wasn’t enough for Russ. On his third studio album with Columbia Records, Russ cements himself at the top of another mountain in the hip-hop field. On Shake the Snow Globe, Russ proves how incredibly, excruciatingly humble he is.
Shake the Snow Globe is painful. It would benefit from being worse - it would probably have more personality that way. This is not an ounce of substance to speak of. Every track is the same: Russ is successful, Russ is the hardest working guy in the business, Russ sees through the fakers, Russ is real, Russ could have sex with your girlfriend very easily. If this repetition is annoying, imagine listening to the album.
Russ is the toxic runoff leaking from the nuclear reactor of the hip-hop industry, threatening the nearby community’s water supply.
In an attempt to ‘humanize’ himself on Shake the Snow Globe, Russ peppers the album with notions of humility and awe for his accomplishments. However, it becomes clear from the get-go that this is a farce; Simply a new filter of ego for the Atlanta rapper who had become synonymous with self-aggrandizement.
At no point is this more evident than on “GUESS WHAT,” where Russ sprinkles in a brief, non sequitur, tribute to the late Nipsey Hussle, an inspiration to Russ who died last year. There is no question that Russ mourning is genuine, but his message is self-sabotaged with bars like “I got many checks, I’m swimmin’ in it / Henny sex, we hittin’ different / Heavy chest, when Nipsey didin’ / make it through, give me a minute, yeah.” Couldn't there have been a slight buffer between these statements?
On “ASSHOLE,” Russ dances with the idea of self-awareness before deciding against and validating the track title. With a mentality especially poignant for current times, Russ assumes jealous underlies all criticism, which in turn fuels his egomania. Proclaiming “when I say the truth, it’s like they fear that shit / Cool, drown on their boats, I’ ma steer my ship / Just watch, they gon’ try and ride the wave / They gon’ double back on statements, tryna hide the hate, fuck it.” Whether Russ wants to believe it or not, some people just don’t like him.
In a Twitter post explaining the album’s title, Russ explained, through a photograph of a crumpled piece of paper, the negative headspace that he overcame in the past year, where he was somehow doubting himself. Luckily, he remembered that he was Russ, found happiness by means of his wealth and material possessions and is right back at it! He’s back, baby!
While Russ has definitely had sexual intercourse (he is Russ, after all), his ghostwriter appears to be a virgin. No lyrical example is needed for this claim - it’s omnipresent.
The one song on Shake the Snow Globe that doesn’t feel completely devoid of originality (low bar) is “CIVIL WAR - Bonus.” That’s right - It’s a bonus, B-side track. That’s right - Russ’s 43-minute, 14-track album has a B-side! Where he placed the only good track on the album! That’s Russ, baby! “CIVIL WAR” is the sole track that has any semblance of personality, with a playful, almost Teenage Dream era Katy Perry production from Boi-1da and a fun, light vocal delivery from Russ that gives a glimpse at the music he could be making if he had any self-awareness.
Russ’s music sounds like the result of an AI computer being fed the past five year’s Billboard 200 list before being unplugged and thrown in the trash.
When fascist regimes rise to power, one heartbreaking tactic employed by the party is the dissemination of harmful ideologies and ideas onto the youth of the nation. The mass-validation of ill manners of thought and behavior onto a susceptible community that doesn’t know any better is devastating to see.
That’s Russ, baby!
Okay, that last one was a little much. His influence, however, is undoubtedly nauseating, as he preaches egomania, narcissism, and a toxic perceptive on handling critique wrapped in a guise of ‘self-confidence.’ Until now, this was sustainable. A little ego is essential in making art and flashing it can be charming. When Drake raps about getting D1 basketball scholarships, it's great. It’s inaccurate - Drake was never scouted by Kentucky, but the listener feels Drake’s zealous with the essential degree of separation that makes it not obnoxious. Additionally, drake has other things to say. This is the only material Russ has, and he fully stands behind his message, so much so that he took to the presses to further spread his gospel.
This led him to write and publish a self-help book late last year titled “IT’S ALL IN YOUR HEAD,” which contains the following excerpt:
Music is an intangible embodiment of ideas that can permeate a room in this beautiful harmony of emotion and sound. It can fill space and enter bodies and minds. It can transport people too. My body is certainly not in the room while you are listening to my songs, and yet I am. Making music is a kind of manifesting. To make music, you take nothing and turn it into something. When you walk into a studio, it is dead quiet; there is nothing going on. There aren’t any chords. There aren’t any drums. Yet, with your imagination, your work, and your belief, you can have a song that changes the world. That in and of itself is manifesting--albeit a little bit quicker ROI (return on investment) than manifesting and entire career, but the same rough concept.
TL;DR - music is made when you make it. He’s got a point. Unfortunately for Russ, on Shake the Snow Globe, there is just as much ‘nothing’ in the manifested product as there was in the quiet studio.
Russ might one day make good music. He undoubtedly has shown potential and skill. Even his tenacity is admirable with a long-spanning career of albums released before ever tasting success. He has all the tools, now all he needs to do is take his own advice, get out of his own head, and make something unique.