Tory Lanez : Memories Don’t Die : Album Review
A shorter version of this review appears in CLASH Magazine
Tory Lanez first garnered mainstream attention in 2015 through certified hits in the form of “Say It” and “LUV” which sampled “If You Love Me” by Brownstone and “Everyone Falls in Love” by Tanto Metro and Devonte respectively, leading to his debut album “I Told You”, that did reasonably well commercially, hitting number 4 in the Billboard 200 charts and earning him a Grammy nomination for Best R&B song. Critically however, the album was riddled with problems such as the confusing nature of the overall sound of the album and the excessive run time due to skits. This time around, Tory seems to have taken everything on board, making “Memories Don’t Die” his most complete project to date (including his mixtapes).
“Them boys hated, they gon’ feel it this year/I bought a ‘Rari, I only drove in it once, I’m movin’ different this year”
Coming in at 18 tracks long, the album marks his first full release in over 12 months, and contains elements of soul, R&B, trap and rap, never settling on one sound in particular, but forming an amalgamation of them all. In the past this has been his downfall, however on this, his sophomore album, Fargo manages to seamlessly navigate between the genres. The manner in which he knits together the various songs is a nod to his versatility, in that he has the confidence to try any sound and do his thing on it without it sounding forced. Those who prefer his rapping over his singing or vice versa may be disappointed, but for those who appreciate all facets of his artistry, “Memories Don’t Die” is significantly better than his debut.
The album uses minimal samples, and has Tory flexing his artistic arsenal, rapping and singing to an equally high standard, all held together in cinematic fashion using intros and outros expertly with no track overstaying its welcome. Songs like “B.I.D” and “48 Floors” make you want to get up and dance while the 50 Cent featured “Pieces” is a technical, lyrical exercise including storytelling at its very best in the vain of a Nas or a J.Cole. Some features feel unnecessary and don’t add anything to the song with lacklustre verses (Wiz Khalifa, NAV), only really serving to show that he has the star power to hold his own with the best in the business. However, the overall content of the album delves deep into his past experiences and his introspective feelings towards them, from the death of his mother in “Happiness” to even more recent events since he hit the spotlight like his beef with Drake and an altercation with Travis Scott in “Hate To Say”, which the album benefits from as a result.
“My scent smells like Michelle was touching Barack’s clothes/ Presidential, my flow is so evidential”
Aesthetically Tory Lanez has always been on point from press shots to music videos, and even in his previous musical endeavours like “The New Toronto” mixtape series in recent times have encapsulated his street side with hard rap flows and beats while “The Chixtape” series saw him flip classic R&B songs from across different generations and put his own spin on them showcasing his softer side. With this latest effort he manages to combine the two, and stake his claim as to why he arguably has the talent and the potential to one day reach his goal and be considered the greatest artist in the world. He still has a long way to go, and the Drake comparisons aren’t going anywhere anytime soon, but his second album definitely consists of all the ingredients necessary to push on and become a force, not only in Hip-Hop but in the music world globally. Debuting at number 3 on the Billboard 200 charts, “Memories Don’t Die” shows growth and is perhaps what the debut should’ve been, but nevertheless, he “ain’t going backwards” and he’ll be here “until the story over like there’s no more chapters.”