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The boys made a choice that day. “Ameer is no longer in BROCKHAMPTON,” begins the statement the rap group released May 2018, following allegations of sexual and physical misconduct by the band’s vocalist, Ameer Vann. “We want to sincerely apologize to the victims affected by Ameer’s actions. We were lied to, and we’re sorry for not speaking up sooner.” Hip-hop group Brockhampton boasts a diverse 13-member crew that embraces the label of “boyband.” Since their formation in 2015, the group has released five albums, played at Coachella, and starred in a T.V. show. Brockhampton, however, has since had one of their most tumultuous years following the exit of Ameer Vann—a fan-favorite vocalist, Houston-native, and original member of the group. The release of Vann resulted in the group’s hiatus, delaying their entire release schedule. And now, less than a year since the release of their last full-length album, iridescence (2018), Brockhampton is back with GINGER, a record that strays from the tone fans come to expect from the group. GINGER is not the goofy, youthful, banger-friendly sound of Brockhampton’s early work. Instead, this album is a careful meditation of the negative emotions pent-up by the band these past months. The album is sad and angry, but a focused catharsis for a group whose image formerly relied so much on their chaos, their joy, and their brotherhood. GINGER features tracks on being lost and going through a dark place. This is a “mood” album, and that mood is blue. These choices Brockhampton has been forced to make (both creatively and ethically) have cultivated into an album begging listeners to consider: what does it mean when someone you love has done something egregious? And what happens next?
The Internet’s Boyband and Toxic Masculinity Boyband. Brockhampton is a boyband. This term typically draws the image of five (or six) polished white boys who sing and dance, carefully curated and planted for popular appeal as an image of masculine perfection. Part of Brockhampton’s charm, however, comes in large part from their outcast origin story. A group of misfit teens finding each other on a fan forum dedicated to Kanye West, where front-man, Kevin Abstract, asks if anyone wants to form a band with him and his four friends from Woodlands High School, Ameer Vann being one of them. The misfits would go on to move in together, dedicating all their time to creating music and movies that reflect their unique vision. Brockhampton, by embracing this title of “boyband,” acknowledges the phrase is available to a group of gay, black, white, ambitious, and sometimes unruly young men. Deconstructing this term leads to conversations about how boys and young men can take charge of defining themselves. These young men do so boastfully, often referring to themselves as the “best boyband since One Direction.” As well, the band emphasizes that its non-black fans and vocalists should not and do not use the N-word, even when singing along to the band’s lyrics. Brockhampton has established itself as a musical act unafraid of their social responsibility. So, when one of their own is accused of heinous crimes (including sexual and mental abuse as well as emotional manipulation) by multiple women, Brockhampton felt a duty to not ignore or enable Ameer Vann’s behavior, as they are members of an industry that so often does not believe victims of abuse and allows violent entertainers to continue having careers.[1] In their decision, Brockhampton decided not to take part in perpetuating this cycle.
Ginger and Forgiveness (or Lack Thereof) With the weight of this responsibility, Brockhampton was faced with the creative choice of exactly how to continue creating music without one of their most prominent members. Ameer’s face is featured on the album covers of some of their most successful projects. How would the boys address and acknowledge the stress they have been under, not only from internal problems as a group, but from individual members dealing with grief differently? Brockhampton’s latest release is just that, a release. These negative emotions held in by the band release, not in an explosion of rage, but instead carefully undoing itself in a sound that is raw, while also being also more focused and mature than anything the band has released before. With an abundance of religious imagery, there is an indictment of Christianity going on in this album, possibly in reaction to the fact Ameer Vann was the most overtly Christian member of the group. In the opening track “NO HALO,” Joba’s verse details his difficulty using religion to cope, rapping: “Went to church for the hell of it, stumbled in drunk as shit / Been goin’ through it again / Been talkin’ to myself wondering who I am / Been thinkin’ I am better than Him.” The band has never seen themselves as saints and this unsureness of what is to come is frustrating for them. “HEAVEN BELONGS TO YOU” and “IF YOU PRAY RIGHT” respond to each other—both referencing Nina Simone’s “If You Pray Right (Heaven Belongs to You)” and both featuring the same sample from Three 6 Mafia’s “Break the Law.” In the former, English guest-rapper, slowthai, features lines like: “Fuck God, I’m a dog backwards / Backwards, I don’t smoke Backwoods.” In “IF YOU PRAY RIGHT,” on top of a heavy beat of funeral horns, Dom McLennon shouts out Judas in reference to Ameer. My favorite and guilty pleasure on this record is “SUGAR.” The track features a slow, acoustic guitar beat, and the prettiest autotuned harmonies on a radio-friendly chorus that leans towards romantic R&B. Meanwhile, the verses on this track feature a nostalgia for the time when a loved one and heavy-drug use could make things feel better, but it no longer can. It also features a relatable shout out to Texas’ hundred-degree heat. GINGER’s climax comes from “DEARLY DEPARTED.” This song has features from four of the band’s vocalists and is mainly about loss. Kevin Abstract begins the track acknowledging the grief he feels from no longer being able to call Ameer his best friend. Joba and Matt Champion use their time to reflect on the recent deaths of their respective grandparents and how they wish they could have been better to them. The ending verse from Dom McLennon is the showstopper. His verse in the track is his side of the Ameer situation. In a now-deleted tweet, Dom claims Ameer set his friend up to be robbed and beaten while they were in Texas. In his verse, Dom expresses his feelings of extreme betrayal and details him kicking in a door to save his friend’s life, not knowing Ameer’s involvement. Dom’s anger builds with each line: “I do not feel obliged to dismiss the truth because of how I feel about our time […] That’s your cross to bear / You could talk to God / I don’t wanna hear.” The verse ends in an explosive reaction of Dom screaming in the booth, breaking his recording headphones, and slamming the door of the studio.
Conclusion GINGER is not Brockhampton’s former idea. They are no longer the same boys who met on Kanye West fan boards. This new sound and direction touch on themes beyond what would have been expected of them even just a year ago. I’m enthusiastic about this boyband’s adult future, but I’m mostly fascinated by what this record is saying about tragedy and responsibility. [1] And as such, since his release from the band, Ameer Vann has continued his music career and released a solo EP in September 2019. |
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Gabriela Torres is an undergraduate student at the University of Houston. She lives in a yellow house in Northside Houston, TX. |
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