Released December 17th, 2022
Written by Ryan Henderson
Opinion Before Listening:
I love to analyze the tracklist before diving in, to see the features, amount of tracks, and song titles. Only 1 of 17 tracks on How Did I End Up Here by Duvy has a feature, but it has two features making this album clearly about Duvy showing off his individual skillset! Very similar to how GRASSWAYZ only has one feature! Duvy has been focused on giving himself as much exposure as possible not allowing many features to steal from his spotlight since his debut album on Spotify Jane Babies. This direction is definitely working for Duvy at the moment but I think all of us fans would find it much more exciting for him to collab with others from his city! I do see Duvy on a lot of other songs as a feature on other artists from the city though. So he is working with lots of artist’s but seems to like keeping his projects almost only him! Tapping in with artists from maybe even different countries or places could be a good idea for as his sound would be very new to them and most likely spread like wildfire.
Tracklist Ranking:
#1: ‘For My Camp’ – 8.4/10
#2: ‘6 AM Geekin’ – 8.3/10
#3: ‘Hold On’ – 8/10
#4: ‘Glxck N Roll’ – 7.8/10
#5: ‘Forgive Me’ – 7.7/10
#6: ‘Life Of Da Party’ – 7.2/10
#7: ‘Feel Different’ – 7/10
#8: ‘For The Slums’ – 6.9/10
#9: ‘Barcelona’ 6.7/10
#10: ‘Take A Look’ 6.6/10
#11: ‘Found Love In The Trenches’ – 6.5/10
#12: ‘417’ 6.3/10
#13: ‘Lone Survivor’ 6.1/10
#14: ‘Till The Suns Up’ 6/10
#15: ‘Letter To My Loved Ones’ 5.9/10
#16: ‘Hard 2 Live’ 5.8/10
#17: ‘Money Guns Drugs’ 5.6/10
Top 5 Tracks Strictly Based On The Performance:
(trying to analyze bars, singing, and energy put into the music alongside the beat.)
#1 For My Camp – “For the times I couldn’t sleep, my belly was aching. Brother respect my grind, he know it’s so hard for me to stay patient” On the tracks where Duvy seems to starts with a chip on his shoulder by stating what he’s come from it tends to make a much better track! I’m not sure if it alters his mindset but this is a recurring thing I get from Duvy’s music! Lots of statements making it seem like if you put the work in you will achieve. This beat is simple, but it’s allowing Duvy to flow stupid effortlessly and even try things I feel like I haven’t heard from him before which really impressed me seeing as this is my fav track on the album! Also that flow when he says “They say ‘you too gangsta, you asshole’” is stupid catchy it’s been in my head the whole time writing this
#2 6 AM Geekin – I love the uses of his melodic capabilities throughout this track! Duvy’s melodies are so exciting for some reason it captures my attention immediately no matter what I’m doing. “And that first N– who died, gave him a birthday wish” This part stands out for his melodies but this bar is quite extreme at the same time. Meaning they ‘blew his candles out’. A metaphor for murder.
“We know that death is promised” A harsh reality of life many don’t care to face for a long time but as a famous quote says ‘your second life begins once you realize you only have one’. You live life with a different level of ferocity for your goals and what you really want out of life. I think Duvy learned this valuable lesson young.
#3 Forgive Me – “They say legends never die, but shit, I’d die for ’em (Die for ’em). Lil’ N– scared to slide, but say he ride for me (How?). Drugs, murder, and guns, that shit so normal” A crazy intro that really sets the pace for the rest of the track. So many lines articulating his cruel upbringing in the streets and some glaring differences from what anyone I know would call normal. Here’s a few examples;
“I ain’t never went on a school trip, they gave me no form. I was stuck up in the streets, I just had a shooting form. Guns, drugs, and murder, yeah, that shit so normal”
“And free my N–, we was just ’round slidin’ ’round on bikes”
Crazy to think of the life Duvy has come from to become such a success because so many end up folding to the stress and pressures of that life and are stuck in a cycle for life! It’s a true testament to Duvy’s strong mind and work ethic to have gone through so much and continue to work this hard. Shows some of us our biggest struggles are really nothing in comparison.
#4 Glxck N Roll – “They say “You never ’round no more”, gang do you see my life?” When you’re elevating the ones you’re leaving behind are gonna start complaining they don’t see you staying comfortable being down on that level forever. People envy when they see someone doing better than them when they don’t believe that person deserves it. Best way to deal with it is usually to just cut ties because you don’t want a leech in your life.
#5 Hold On – Love the message he’s sending with this track on how he’s the back holding on and putting in the work for all of those around them while holding them down emotionally. It takes a strong man to deal with everyone’s problem but strong men prosper! This track inspires me to be a stronger man myself and deal with all the problem of life cause “all of this pain you told me it’s gon pay, it’s part of the game so you know I’m always having faith” That faith he has is paying off and I think it will continue to!
Overall Rating of the Album: 6.9/10
The highlights of How Did I End Up Here is easily his melodies. There are very few but it’s what would catch my attention and snap me back into this review! His verses tend to have a multiple lines that either get me thinking or get some sort of reaction out of me! Extremely interested in seeing Duvy grow into a complete artist cause he’s definitely on his way!
Follow Ryan Henderson
I’m impressed with beat selection on this album there was a lot more variety of instruments and I felt more risky beat choices than on his previous albums! He really ended up making it work in his favour because those tracks came out to be some of the best! I’m not too impressed with his growth in flows or rapping if I’m honest as it does have the same feel as GRASSWAYZ but since that album is great I can’t say it’s a knock. I just hope he gives us something a little more with his next project! I think adding features would be a great move for him as the competition on Life Of Da Party led Duvy to create the most catchy hook of the album! Whether it was competition or multiple minds working together it improved his work noticeably! If he keep this same work ethic while working with more artists it’ll grow his sound and brand indefinitely!
Check out ‘How Did I End Up Here?’ for yourself and form your own opinion!
