Over Kanye West's vintage breaks on "Testify," Styles channels Donald Goines, attacking the mic with gangster poetry. Then, on the simmering Sizzla duet "Fire & Pain," he eulogizes: "When I pass the cemetery where my little brother is buried / All I can do is salute, pound on my chest / God got his army, and we all his recruits." And with help from Scott Storch and Lil Jon ("One Cup, Two Cup" and "Can U Believe It," respectively), he finds a happy medium, mixing his grimy raps with dance floor-rattling bass.
Occasionally, there are missteps, like the lukewarm response to 50 Cent's "Piggy Bank" ("Shots Fired"), where Styles obsesses over and old beef. Time's best moments, though, come when the Ghost drops his fists and focuses inward for inspiration.
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