Released February 21, 2020
Track Listing
- Mr. Grace (Intro)
- Dope Man feat. Emanny & Cedric The Entertainer
- I Don’t Age
- Pendulum feat. Ashley Sorrell
- I Play Forever feat. Grafh
- Ice Cream (Interlude)
- On the Block feat. Oswin Benjamin & DJ Premier
- Generation Is Broken
- Overcomer feat. Westside Gunn
- Ms. Grace (Interlude)
- Thou Shall feat. Kid Vishis
- FUBU feat. Conway the Machine
- A Black Man’s Favorite Shoe (Skit)
- Upside Down feat. Ashley Sorrell & Benny The Butcher
- Perspective (Skit)
- Tricked feat. KXNG Crooked
- Black People In America
- Black Savage feat. Sy Ari Da Kid, White Gold, CyHi The Prince & T.I.
- Rhinestone Doo Rag
- Young World feat. Vince Staples & G Perico
- My People Free feat. Ashley Sorrell
- Hero feat. White Gold
Review
It’s been so fun to watch Royce catch a second wind of artistry.
Looking back, I would pinpoint the 2016 mixtape, Tabernacle: Trust The Shooter as the beginning. Layers and especially Book of Ryan before had Royce being introspective and open and it resulted in great music. But where does one of the best lyricists in hip-hop do when they themselves admit that the last album had everything you need to know about them? In Royce’s case, you start producing.
It’s hard to ignore the body of work here. For someone who works to be as precise in their lyrics, that attention to detail translates to the beats as well. By doing so, the songs have a sharper focus and execution of his ideas, which brings the entire album to another level. Whether he’s rapping about generational responsibility, the variety of ways society has lied and distracted people, or even apologizing to his father, Royce’s production elevates his already high level of writing.
I’ve had The Allegory in heavy rotation, and I can’t imagine it not making it on my year-end article. It’s been inspiring watch Royce publicly share his growth and I can’t help but think about what’s the next thing Royce will end up doing.
