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The return of Logic with 'Bobby Tarantino III'

By Arianna Sergio Sir Robert Bryson Hall II, a.k.a Logic, is back. It hasn’t even been a year later before the rapper traded his mundane retirement in Montana for his classic bars and studio sessions. Back in July 2020, Logic released what was seemingly his final studio album, No Pressure. He took to Twitter and Instagram to announce his departure from the music industry, leaving fans from across the globe rattled by his decision but, at the end of the day, respected his choice. It was a wistful and heartbreaking moment for Logic and his fans alike, but as he said in an interview with Complex News, he just wanted to, “focus on his son [Little Bobby] and his family, because that’s what makes me [Logic] the most happy.”   Bobby Tarantino III is the third installment of the Bobby Tarantino mixtape series. The mixtape that started this journey was Bobby Tarantino, and it was released in July 2016. He announced on Twitter that, “This mixtape is for my fans. I wanted to give u something for the Summer. Thank you for always supporting me. Enjoy.” And enjoy fans did. This mixtape had singles such as “Flexicution” and “Wrist,” with “Flexicution” generating a whopping 176 million streams and instantly becoming the most well-known track from the mixtape. Then, in March 2018, he released Bobby Tarantino II. This mixtape had singles such as, “44 More,” “Overnight,” and “Everyday,” which features American DJ Marshmello. This mixtape is arguably one of Logic’s most popular pieces of work to date charting at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 Chart, following the success of his third studio album, Everybody. With this track record, Bobby Tarantino III was destined to be a smash hit. 

How does the third installment compare to the others?

Bobby Tarantino III kicks off with “introll.” This song shows Logic’s humorous side and he’s doing what it says in the title: trolling the listener. Logic starts by rapping, “Hey, I didn’t see you there, I’m back,” and then he proceeds to warm up his voice like he’s going to start spitting some bars, but ends the song before he can even start.  Logic only has one feature on the mixtape and it’s from award-winning actress Cynthia Erivo on the song “Inside.” Before listening to this song I had never heard music from Erivo, but now that my ears have been blessed by her effortlessly alluring voice, I crave more from her. She enhances the quality of this song and takes it to a whole new level with her voice evoking such emotion and passion. Logic tells the listener about his problems that caused him pain and ate at him, yet they remained inside, because on the outside he continued to make music for the fans and put on a happy face.  “Flawless” is a homage to his wife. I admire Logic for showcasing not only the physical love for his wife, but also his emotional love for her. He raps, “
I only want a good girl who give a f*** less 'bout all this / So I wrote this song for you, 'cause you're so f******—Flawless ( Flawless, yeah )...” In the middle of the song, the song begins to fade out with Logic rapping “Oh you thought I was done?” I appreciated the cheekiness of this line, because it shows that he could rap so many more bars about her, which is a nod to not only his immense love for her, but his talent.  I’m usually not one for interludes in albums/mixtapes unless they add more context to the storyline that the artist is trying to convey, but “Stupid Skit” is an exception. This song authentically displays how much carefree, fun Logic had while making this mixtape. Whereas, with most of his past projects, he felt so much pressure from everyone around him. (Hence, why his retirement album was titled No Pressure .) “Theme For The People” carries an extremely similar sound to “Indica Badu.” Both songs have a relaxing and soft beat that is easy to listen to. They each make you want to unwind, with Logic’s lyrics flowing smoothly and freely.  “God Might Judge” is hands down the best song off the mixtape. It has excellent beats! Hats off to 6ix , with the first beat being reminiscent of Drake’s “Nice For What.” This song has the smoothest beat transitions I’ve ever heard on any Logic song. Having the beat switch from the second beat back to the first in the last 40 seconds is the cherry on top of an already masterful sundae. The lyrics are superior in this song and are some of Logic’s most catchy.    Logic ends the mixtape with “untitled.” This song is the reason why Logic made Bobby Tarantino III: to have a blast and cater songs to his fans. 

Weekly singles

Leading up to the release of Bobby Tarantino III Logic teased the mixtape by releasing 4 songs weekly—on every Friday. The first single he released was on July 1st titled, “Vaccine,” with his second being “Get Up,” then “My Way,” and lastly “Call Me.” In comparison to all four singles, “Vaccine” is the strongest one. “Vaccine” packs the biggest punch for the listener. “Get Up” and “My Way” fall flat. They weren’t memorable whatsoever. Now, listening to the mixtape countless times, they’ve grown on me a bit, but on the first listen they were nothing special; the beat along with the lyrics were just bland. “Call Me” is a sweet and endearing song. It’s about how people can always count on him when they need him and how he’s just one call away. Similar to what I said earlier,  “Call Me” is like “Theme For The People,” with a sound that is similar to “Indica Badu.”

So why did Logic come back?

“See You Soon Space Cowboy” starts off as a fast-paced song showing off how fast he can rap and how cunning and clever his lyricism is. At 1 minute and 17 seconds, gunshots go off and the beat switches to a more slow-downed, honest, stream of consciousness.  In the last minute and a half of “See You Soon Space Cowboy...” he explains his return to the rap industry by saying, “Alright, well I guess I just—I woke up one day and I was like ‘You know what? I kinda feel like rapping again.’ You know what I'm saying? So I did. And I been chillin' with Little Bobby and his fine a** momma and we out here in the country. Shooting guns, riding dirt bikes and s*** and I was just like ‘Man, I want to do this.’ So I invited all the homies in the middle of nowhere. And uhh we just decided to do this Bobby Tarantino EP, three-peat, off the cuff just for fun, just for the summer, just for all the homies.” If this is Logic impromptu, just having fun, I am extremely eager and excited to listen to his next piece of work.  With that, he also reveals that he’s working on his last album with his current record label, Def Jam. Logic ends the song by saying that he’s doing all of this for his fans, because they wanted him to come back to rapping so badly, so he finally decided that it was time. 

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