The rapper formerly known as Yung Baby Tate manumits her Mani/Pedi album. The Atlanta born and raised is the daughter of musician Dionne Farris, so it’s no wonder Baby Tate chases similar paths.
Mani/Pedi precedes her projects BOYZ, XMAS, After The Rain, and R.O.Y.G.B.I.V. Since her recent signing to Warner Records last year, the colorful artist discharges a 14-track album as a reintroduction to her audience as a signed artist.
“Perfect” gears in as the intro track. Baby Tate unpacks what defines a “perfect” person, by extracting definitions from the dictionary and finally declaring she is the perfect guide for the term. Her words,
“I’m a bossy, glossy b**ch/look at my teeth/I get cheese/I’m a money magnet/I make hella green”
This track is playful, but she greets us with her kaleidoscopic lyrics and engaging metaphors. I particularly like the repetitive catchy hook,
“B**ch I’m perfect/look t/look at me”
Baby Tate skillfully references celebrities to highlight her “perfect” peculiarity. She bites on Megan Thee Stallion (strong knees), Nick Canon (Wild ‘N Out), Beyonce (Flawless), Kelis (bossiness), and finally her Baby Tate (PERFECT). It’s a satisfactory intro track.
2 Chainz joins Baby Tate on “Ain’t No Love” as the follow-up track. 2 Chainz is a heavyweight in the rap scene, so this is a big deal for the female rapper. The track interpolates 2004 Ciara and Ludacris’ “Oh” hit record.
Baby Tate mirrors Ciara’s flow from the original track. She blends her rapping with breathy singing, which complements the beat production perfectly.
The hook switches to “Ain’t no love in this club”, but I’m not quite satisfied with the uniform repetition. If she had changed the repetition to a few notes up each time, it would sound better. She saves it fortunately with her second verse, the storytelling here is vivid and gives you a scope of the club scene.
2 Chainz dives in with a laid-back delivery but a couple of bars stick out.
“Sneakers coming; from Milan/ my drawers are Givechy/ Balenciaga pants and bag/ I mix with Jordan 3’s”
I like that he didn’t take an overpowering approach to the delivery of his verse.
The next song “Do Better” is mostly Baby Tate singing. “Do Better” is evocative of the 2000s R&B era. The track chides about going back to the same person in a romantic relationship, even after they repeat the same mistakes. She is questioning the person she’s talking to—about why they keep going back. Do better, she states. I genuinely love this track.
“Karma” follows through and is on a similar tip as the previous song. The title of the song is exactly what Baby Tate focuses on and talks about.
“Sl*t Him Out Again” features Kali. Here the beat picks up and is a bad b*tch type of song.
“I’m just tryna slut this nigga out (slut him out)/ gargle on his kids/then spit ’em in his mouth (in his mouth)
The beat selection by Hitkidd reminds me of Monaleo’s We Not Humping. The general upbeat tempo and thumping every 10 seconds. Kali and Baby Tate go well together on this track. Kali with her raspy voice and rugged flow, and Baby Tate with her rich and colorful lyrics.
“Differences” comes through after the Kali collaboration. Baby Tate here doesn’t stop pushing her pen. She says,
“I am that b*tch and I know ’cause I said it/ don’t gas me up, sis/ I’m unleaded”
In this song, Baby Tate seems to be disgruntled by people thinking they are on the same level as her. She repeatedly gives clear differences on why they can never be.
“Me and these b*tches ain’t on the same level/ I talk to God and they speak to the devil/ Foot on the gas, they ain’t reachin’ the pedal”
She deviates her flow to a lower tone but faster rapping. A flamboyant switch-up.
“Who the f*ck told you that you compared to me?/B*tch I’m like a million dollars, you like a band to me”
This is definitely my favorite part of the whole song. It’s flawless.
“Mani” gives a slow and calm ambiance. Here she is back to her singing.
“4Lifers” diverts to relationship woes and shares her vulnerable thoughts with this special person. She hopes this time if she falls hard the person will love her back and make it a “4lifer” situation. It’s an intricate song and shows a soft side to Baby Tate.
“What’s Love” is still running on the love train and is basically a song full of questions about this love thing.
“Dancing Queen” is next up and we see Baby Tate transform into a bold version of herself.
“G.O.A.T talk my bag big/ these jealous hoes can’t stand me/lot of O’s in my notebook/it come in handy dandy”
She has the world dancing to her music because it’s that good. Her flow and delivery on this one are crisp, and she enunciates every word clearly. I love when you can hear what the artist is saying. It shows their confidence in the music they put out due to not shying away and being in front of the beat—not hiding behind it.
Here’s a music video to “Pedi”
“Yasss Queen” is Baby Tate showing off her vocal range. The beat selection here has sereneness to it. Yasss Queen on social media is a word of encouragement to fellow sisterhood, female friendships, and so on. Baby Tate does exactly that in this song,
“Girl put your crown on/ and all them haters doubting let em doubt on/ girl lift your head high cause you winning”
In “Honest” Baby Tate is conflicted about being honest with herself on decisions she makes with relationships and life. She says,
“Maybe I’m an alcoholic a little bit/ and maybe I can get too toxic a little bit/ maybe I throw fits when I shouldn’t”
“I Do” wraps up the album and features Slimwav. It’s a decent ending to the album. Overall, the album is polished, and solid with just the right amount of clean vocals, and a variety of beat selections. Baby Tate’s Mani/Pedi rivals a lot of female rappers’ projects this year.
What’s your favorite track from this album?