Comeback From Hell

It’s been a long road for Boosie Badazz (formally Lil Boosie) to reach Touch Down 2 Cause Hell. After a few solid albums that proved Boosie had club radio chops and the ability to rap sensibilities on the current state of Black America, Boosie encountered a string of legal troubles that kept him out of the limelight. With Touch Down 2 Cause Hell, Boosie arrives to prove he hasn’t lost a beat.

Boosie may have gone through a name change, but his latest album isn’t a radical departure from his previous works. Some tracks are more somber, a reflection of current affairs and also a result of being incarcerated for half a decade. The J. Cole-assisted “Black Heaven” has Boosie running through a list of black artists and activists that have died too early, while “Window of My Eyes” is a dark introspective on life behind bars. It’s not all doom and gloom though. There’s a streak of underlying optimism and positivity displayed on many tracks too.

Boosie brings his tried-and-true formula of using catchy and simple choruses to undercut darker themes, allowing him to cover a swath of problems without bogging down his style. He also recruits a few old and new faces for the album, including longtime collaborator Webbie and newer superstars Young Thug and Rich Homie. Hearing all of them on the same album is a little jarring, but it helps create a little diversity.

Touch Down 2 Cause Hell is a new start for a troubled artist. While some of the songs lack a strong personality, like “She Don’t Love Me,” where Chris Brown morphs the track into a generic radio jam, all the tracks are unified by a sense of honesty and even bluntness from Boosie. The project might be a little rough around the edges, but its heart is in the right place. And for Boosie, that’s good enough.