Testing
| ASAP Rocky
Testing
Testing (stylized in uppercase letters) is the third studio album by American rapper ASAP Rocky. It was released on May 25, 2018, by ASAP Worldwide, Polo Grounds Music and RCA Records. The album includes guest appearances from Frank Ocean, Kid Cudi, Skepta, French Montana, Kodak Black, Dev Hynesand FKA Twigs, among others, and was produced primarily by Hector Delgado and ASAP Rocky himself, alongside a variety of high-profile record producers. -Wikipedia
Critic Reviews
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Pitchfork
Rocky’s anything-goes tests come up short, but they feel like his alone.
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Consequence of Sound
The Harlem rapper's latest is loud, frenetic, and about as vibrant as hip-hop gets.
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DJ Booth
TESTING' displays how much Rocky loves the art of music and his struggle to be a compelling rapper.
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Hot New Hip Hop
That’s not to say he’s tired of music. He simply came to terms with his process. Take it or leave it.
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The Gaurdian
The rapper’s aversion to the mainstream takes his third album to some glorious heights.
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High Snobiety
Point towards the idea that the states of transition, the periods of in-betweens and unsureness, are every bit as beautiful as consistency.
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Verge Campus
I’d listen with the hopes of being impressed only to leave thinking “not bad.”
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Independent UK
Quite the collaboration. A dynamite 10-track album here.
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Vulture
Fascinating but disorienting mood music and good, solid druggy rap music.
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Study Breaks
Yearning for something better, not material.
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The Breeze
Stands out from mainstream rap. Being the trailblazer he is, this album could ignite trends in the future. Test it out.
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Hip Hop N More
Testing is your brain on drugs.
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The Gateway Online
It’s a carefully put together piece of hip-hop and I recommend it.
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Now Toronto
Testing’s title might suggest experimentation, but it delivers more on tentativeness, with a smattering of solid songs mixed into aesthetically interesting but unresolved experiments.
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Brooklyn Vegan
If Testing seems disappointing now, maybe this one just needs a little time to settle in too.
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The Young Folks
For better or for worse, the leader of the ASAP Mob shows he can still be great, but also shows he still has some work to do.
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Ratings Game Music
The one thing that has remained unfazed throughout A$AP’s career is his pen game.
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Hip Hop DX
Instead of creating a new wave, A$AP Rocky has drowned himself in his own ambitions and lost his identity along the way.
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The Musical Hype
Testing has its moments, but it’s a truly demanding listening experience.
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Spill Magazine
This album has some real staying power with all the guest appearances and incredible talent put into it.
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Vulture Hound
It’s the lack of substance he brings to the songs that ultimately brings down his work.
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On The Scene
Testing is a great album, I think A$AP Rocky has fallen short of his first mixtape.
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What Went Right With?
This a possible summer classic to revisit in years to come.
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Medium
Testing turns into two conflicting sounds clashing into each other; culminating into an inconsistent and disappointing project.
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Vashtie
In addition to his usual cockiness, he briefly shows that he’s capable of real vulnerability and contemplation.
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Pop Dust
His bravado is commendable since no other rapper sounds like him—that much can be said.
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Spin
The full album includes a dizzying list of guest features from artists like Skepta, Dev Hynes, FKA Twigs, Frank Ocean, and more, and looks to take the rapper into more experimental terrain.
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Soflosound
I felt that the project wasn’t really testing a whole lot of quality ideas, but testing my patience.
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Sound Digest
When the experimental sounds pay off in a song, they pay off in spades.
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Sidelines
Rocky is certainly talented enough of an artist with a distinguishable voice to excel at both, but this album just isn’t it.
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Focus Hip Hop
The writing is mediocre, and the production is honestly really hit or miss too.
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Exclaim
An experimental project.
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We Unplug Good Music
Certainly his most ambitious, personal and experimental project to date.
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The Demo Tape
Rocky went too far left as to lose his audience, and fell in moments where he could have shined.
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Beat Media
It’s all over the place, and Rocky lacks the conviction to see his undertaking through to the end.
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The Ringer
Greater than the sum of its parts
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Spex
ROCKY ACTS ON "TESTING" LIKE A VERY ECLECTIC ART COLLECTOR
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Meteor Media
As far as looking into his artistry, I believe this is A$AP Rocky’s best project to date.
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The Title magazine
Is the Drama-Free Hip-Hop Record You Need Right Now.
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Kanye to The
A$AP Rocky has achieved his goal of 'testing new sounds' to decidedly mixed results. Whether or not he deserves praise simply for trying remains to be seen.
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FBK Online
Spotty and inconsistent, at best. The album has too many songs that minimize his strengths.
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Sound Venue
Rocky is once again able to supply with charismatic cross-pollination of his earlier works
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Tom Network
The album generally sees A$AP reminding the world that he's still a formidable rapper and I'm sure he has passed his message across with a wide variety of sounds and not so much wordplay.
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Spectrum Culture
For every bad track on this frustrating album, another one offers a distinctive flair and ability unlike anyone else.
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Hot 97
What Rocky set out to do, experiment with new sound, is exactly what he did. He ingeniously devised a unique nuance within a familiar context.
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Musik Express
A $ AP Rocky dares to do a lot of hip hop experiments, but a conclusive album will not work out in the end.
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Hit Up Ange
Overall the album has several impressive songs that will be a staple to many hip-hop playlists but the album could have been improved by removing some of the slower melodic songs that Rocky has not mastered stylistically.
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Daily Cal
Undeniably A$AP Rocky’s weakest outing to date.
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Music Plug Now
The album title, TESTING, shows his thirsts for experiments and for the records, This album isn’t a failed experiment after all.
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Nice Listen
Many songs seem too bloated or lacking the crucial significance it seems Rocky wants them to have.
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Medium
It’s still easily Rocky’s worst project yet
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