Man, how the heck can we go 2 and a half years without a new Lil Uzi Vert project, then get two projects in back to back weeks without any warning of when the first one was coming out, or that there was even a second one coming? I do not know if Lil Uzi Vert had planned to drop Eternal Atake and its mixtape length “Deluxe Version” in consecutive weeks or if he just decided to do it on a whim, but I have to say that I am always very happy to get a chance to listen to some new Uzi music(the conspiracy theorist in me wants to think that he was going to drop a couple of songs after EA came out as a deluxe version regardless of when it came out, but when he realized people would have to stay inside because of the Corona-Virus, he decided to just release an album’s worth of new music that he had never originally planned on dropping. He is one of those artists that is known to have up to 100s of songs that he has not put out and probably never will, and I think he may have jumped on the opportunity of people being forced inside and just released a ton of music to get more streaming numbers and money). Even though this new deluxe edition of EA is being billed on a completely separate new mixtape called Lil Uzi Vert vs. the World 2, to me this new project feels more like a compilation of random songs. Don’t get me wrong, most of these songs are great; in fact, I would even say that the quality of the songs on LUV vs. the World 2 is on par with the songs on Eternal Atake, which is saying a lot because EA is one of my top-rated albums from this year so far. But like I said, this feels more like a compilation of great Lil Uzi Vert music and not like a themed album. Because of this, instead of reviewing it and giving it a rating like I normally would, I am just going to talk about all of my favorite tracks from this record. Let me know down in comments if you love these songs as well, as well as what other songs you love from Eternal Atake(Deluxe Editon) AKA LUV vs. the World 2.

Bean(Kobe) feat. Chief Keef

For quite a few reasons, ‘Bean’ has become one of the biggest crowd favorites from this record. First of all, it pays respect to the late Kobe Bryant, and anything showing love to him is obviously going to get a lot of love from people in 2020. Also, this is one of a few songs on this tape that are produced by Pierre Bourne, who is one of the biggest producers in the game with one of the most unique and most identifiable sounds, and who also has a track record of creating some crazy bangers when he makes music with Lil Uzi Vert. And finally, ‘Bean’ features the great Chief Keef; I am always so excited when anyone includes Chief Keef because he still has that signature gruff and intense sound that he is known for, and it just gives so much damn energy to this song, Lil Uzi’s flows on this track are insane, the melody and beat for this song are insane, and Chief Keef’s performance on this track is insane. If you a fan of any of these artists, or if you love Kobe, there is no way that you would not/will not be a fan of ‘Bean.’

Strawberry Peels feat. Young Thug and Gunna

‘Strawberry Peels, ‘ which features the prime collaborative duo of Young Thug and Gunna, actually has a pretty similar energy to most of the music on the first half of Eternal Atake; in fact, the beat and energy of this song are so similar to songs like ‘Pop’ and ‘Silly Watch,’ I almost guarantee that it has to have been a throwaway from that record. I wonder if it was just not included to follow the theme of no major rap features that project has because it like I said it would fit into the sonic pattern of Eternal Atake so well. Regardless, I love the fact that we get to hear this track on the EA Deluxe Edition because this track is just such a banger. “Strawberry Peels’ is the perfect track to throw on when you are playing basketball or working out; this song has so much damn energy, and it makes me want to get up and move. One of my favorite things about this song is how fast the rappers jump on this track; as soon as ‘Strawberry Peels’ starts, Young Thug begins yell-rapping in a way that gives the listener no time to think or breathe. If you are a fan of super high energy and fast-paced trap music, ‘Strawberry Peels’ is definitely a song for you.

Trap This Way(This Way)

Considering the underlying musical theme of EA and the fact that it had almost no features, I wonder why ‘Trap This Way(This Way)’ was not included in the original version of the record. I definitely could have seen this track being inserted into the second half of the album, where the melodies are more vibrant and the energy is very confident and cocky. Regardless, I’m glad that this track was released on the Deluxe Version because it just goes so hard. My favorite thing about ‘Trap This Way(This Way)’ is how many flows Uzi raps with on this song and how often the flows switch up; his rapping constantly keeps listeners on their toes because of how often the sound and vibe is continuously changing. I also love how Uzi’s energy oozes all over this track. It is obvious from the vocal performance that he had a ton of fun making this song, and that feeling his attitude gives to the track makes it so fun and enjoyable too. I feel like this track will go unnoticed because of all of the great features on Deluxe Edition, so please make sure you do not sleep on ‘Trap This Way(This Way).’

Money Spread feat. Young Nudy

‘Money Spread,’ which features Young Nudy, is another absolute banger produced by the great Pierre Bourne. This song probably has the craziest instrumental of any on this Deluxe Version of Eternal Atake; I do not know how it is possible, but this dude somehow made a melody and instrumental that sounds like a trap version of a mixture of elevator music, a song that would play during a fight scene in an Anime, and some sort of futuristic electro-pop song. I know that this description does not make any sense, so you will just have to listen to it to understand what I mean(trust me, qas weird as that description sounds, it is such a great instrumental). Young Nudy, who has been a very frequent collaborator of Pierre Bourne’s in the last couple of years, as his style of rapping and voice goes along so with the weird melodies that Pierre creates so well. This track is just as weird and wild as one would expect a song by this trio to be, and it is definitely one of the biggest highlights from LUV vs. the World 2.

Got the Gwap feat. Young Thug

If you could picture in your head right now what the perfect song from a collaboration of Lil Uzi Vert and Young Thug would be, I really do not think that it would be very different from the song ‘Got The Gwap.’ Instrumentally, it sort of follows a somewhat similar pattern and energy to their collaboration on Young Thug’s album So Much Fun; ‘What’s the Move’ sort of has a country-trap feeling to it that is driven by a banjo that is super damn catchy, and ‘Get the Gwap’ definitely follows a similar pattern with its style of melody. If ‘What’s the Move’ is more a “traditional” sounding country-trap song(all of the instruments sound pretty natural in this track), ‘Got the Gwap’ is more of a futuristic country-trap joint, with the banjos and instrumentals having very synthesized and computerized sounds to them. One of the reasons that this song is so great is because the chemistry between Young Thug and Lil Uzi Vert is so great; these two just vibe off of each others’ sounds so well. They are both known for having some of the best vocal ranges of any artist in rap music and also having some of the craziest flows of any artists in rap music right now, so when they get on a track together it obviously always complete insanity. ‘Got the Gwap’ is no different in that regard, and this song is an embodiment of everything that makes them both so great individually and collectively.

Yessirskiii with 21 Savage

‘Yessirskiii’ is a masterpiece if you are a fan of either Lil Uzi Vert or 21 Savage, and that is really all I need to say about that. If it is not the best trap song to come out this year so far, it is in the top three. ‘Yessirskiii’ is an off the wall cloud-trap banger that is definitely unlike anything you will normally hear 21 Savage rap on; the instrumental and melody have a similar energy to some of the more colorful melodic trap bangers on Uzi’s album LUV IS RAGE 2, such as the song ‘Neon Guts’(in fact, wouldn’t be surprised if this track was actually made in that era and that it’s a throwaway from a couple of years ago he decided to drop for extra content). Regardless of the context of this track, and regardless of what 21 Savage’s typical instrumental preferences are, ‘Yessirskiii’ is so great. Both rappers sound like they are having so much fun on this one; they both are rapping with extreme focus, but Lil Uzi Vert and 21 Savage have this sort of freestyle energy on this track which makes it so fun and awesome. The relaxed but still super tough rap performances mixed with the goofy but still hard instrumental make this song a slam dunk. I will he bumping ‘Yessirskiii’ on the regular for many months and years to come, I’m sure of that.

Leaders feat. NAV

Anyone who knows me would probably be surprised to see me put the song ‘Leaders’ featuring NAV on this list because of the feature. I have been very vocal with how I have felt about NAV’s music and sound in the past, so I do not think many people would expect me to pick the song that prominently features him for this list. I have to say though, NAV absolutely kills it on this track, and ‘Leaders’ is a total banger. ‘Leaders’ is a super warm and pretty synthetic trap banger that has a very similar energy and vibe to ‘pick up the phone’ by Travis Scott and Lil Yachty’s Lil Boat mixtape. The melody has this bubblegum element to it is that is so catchy and fits in with NAV’s voice perfectly. One thing that has always made me dislike NAV is how much his flows and vocal styles completely lack energy and emotion, but this kind of instrumental fits his vocal patterns so perfectly that I do not really notice it. Because Lil Uzi Vert can rap on any kind of instrumental and give it the necessary emotion that it needs, the fact that NAV is lacking in emotion and energy is really not that noticeable. If love music that is similar to that bubblegum trap sound that was popular in 2017, ‘Leaders’ is a track for you.