21 Savage is nonchalant in his malice and whispering in his intimidation. His lurking style benefits from solitary prowling. So it’s fitting that the 24-year-old Atlanta rapper’s first major label project, Issa Album, is a guest-free endeavor. Though the album sometimes presents moments of lightheartedness and appreciation for his newfound success, 21 is still best when he’s reveling in his angst.

“Bank Account” is the only song on Issa Album that Savage self-produced, and it sounds like he’s been taking lessons from Metro Boomin. There’s a novice’s simplicity to the beat—a melancholy classical guitar riff slides under a barrage of tapping snares and punching bass—but it’s also a fully realized mood-setter. “Bank Account” is familiarly solemn: Savage deadpans through the darkness, never raising his voice or cracking a smile. What might scan as tongue-wagging brags in another emcee’s hands turn into tight-lipped jabs in 21’s, and nearly every mention of his blooming bank account is followed by a stare-you-down threat. “Moncler, yeah, fur came off of there, yeah,” he gloats at one moment, and then snaps immediately back to his resting snarl face, “Triple homicide, put me in a chair, yeah.” On a song like “Bank Account,” the spoils of fame haven’t lightened him at all, and it’s almost as if Savage is reminding himself not to get too comfortable.