Pitchfork
Calling all Hot Girls! Megan Thee Stallion reassembled her stan army one last time before the end of the year to share Good News. Announced merely a few days before its November 20 release, Good News is an ode to hood femininity, body positivity, and infectious confidence. The surprise 49-minute record revisited the “Houston Hottie’s” acclaimed bar-to-bar ferocity with a sprinkle of well-deserved clapbacks and obscenity. The album, featuring a list of reputable collaborations like DaBaby, City Girls, Lil Durk, SZA, Popcaan, 2 Chainz, Big Sean, Beyoncé, and Young Thug, puts Megan Thee Stallion’s rap game on a pedestal for all to see.
This is Megan Thee Stallion’s second release of the year, following the long-awaited Suga, which dropped in March. Despite both albums being meticulously spread out, both record releases generated a considerable amount of unnecessary drama. Back in March, Megan Thee Stallion found herself in the center of a legal battle against 1501 Certified Entertainment for withholding her music. The long drawn-out hearing ended in Megan Thee Stallion’s favor as the judge re-granted her access to her music, in what we would later find out was Suga. This time around, Megan Thee Stallion found herself in a year-long dispute against Canadian rapper Tory Lanez. The rap-duo sparked a chummy friendship after Megan Thee Stallion was featured on Lanez’s ‘Quarantine Radio’ Instagram Live back in April. What began as an innocent friendship quickly turned sour when Megan Thee Stallion was shot in mid-July at a Hollywood Hills party. Speculations surrounding what went down took a disturbing turn as Lanez quickly went on the defense to discredit Megan’s accusations that he was the perpetrator. A few weeks following the initial dispute, Lanez was charged for the crime. Cancel culture arrived swiftly for Lanez, despite his poorly-executed album staged to protect his name. With little said from Megan Thee Stallion as she recovered from foot injuries and trauma, fans were left bewildered and concerned for the status of the beloved female rapper.
Well, fans can look no further because “Hot Girl Meg” has re-entered the chat. In the gut-wrenching opening diss track, Megan Thee Stallion annihilates any remaining reputation Lanez may be clinging on to over a sample of “Who Shot Ya” by Notorious B.I.G. She went on to detail the truth behind the incident which included a catalog of bribes, clout chasing, and flat-out lies from Lanez. Following the first verse, I had to pause the track all together to take a deep breath and collect myself. Months of pent-up anger and hostility was unleashed as she described Lanez as “a pussy n*gga with a pussy gun in his feelings” and a “broke ass out a rich b*tch business.” The second-hand embarrassment for Lanez was real; a gentle reminder that his 17-song “diss” album could not withstand the one song Megan Thee Stallion dedicated to her assailant off Good News.
One of the most admirable decisions made by Megan Thee Stallion was featuring a slew of samples backed by an ensemble of producers. Outside of the iconic Biggie Smalls sample, the southern rapper reworked songs from Jasmine Sullivan, Webbie, Naughty by Nature, and N.W.A, to name a few. The seemingly obvious samples were masked by hard-hitting Houston beats produced by none other than Lil Ju, Juicy J, DJ Mustard, Tay Keith, Buddha Bless, and more. This super team of rappers, singers, producers, and engineers naturally took Megan Thee Stallion’s already distinct and attentive style to the next level.
WEUPONITHIPHOP
Well on its way to becoming another trending song on TikTok, Megan Thee Stallion’s track titled ‘Body’ has taken similar optics as her smash hit ‘WAP’ featuring Cardi B. Through a combination of hypersexual lyrics and a chorus with enough redundancy to make your head spin, the rapper built a track destined to hit the charts. The eighth track on the album also offered the first visual off Good News. The video held no other purpose but to lionize Megan Thee Stallion’s infamous “Megan knees” through staggering choreography and sleek fashion moments. In yet another star-studded performance, the music video also featured Jordyn Woods, Blac Chyna, and Taraji P. Henson, proving Megan Thee Stallion is at the top of her game, and everyone wants a piece of it.
This review would not be complete without honorably mentioning the following tracks which will be on repeat well into 2021: “Movie” featuring Lil Durk, “Cry Baby” featuring DaBaby, and “Do It On The Tip” featuring City Girls and Hot Girl Meg. Despite all three songs featuring prominent rap artists, each one expressed a different element of Megan Thee Stallion that is fresh and one-of-a-kind. “Movie” is a strip club anthem strong enough to possess any woman into thinking she’s capable of headlining Magic City. The unexpected feature from Lil Durk puts a Chicagoan twist on the Houston-heavy rhythm, completely satisfying my appetite towards this ass-shaking ballad. “Cry Baby,” the third track off the album, ventures into unknown territory with a DaBaby type beat. This calculated, symbiotic triple entente is finished off with none other than DaBaby. The two effortlessly battle bar-for-bar, continuing their streak of natural chemistry on the mic. Lastly, “Do It On The Tip,” was so vile that Megan Thee Stallion had to place this song under the alias “Hot Girl Meg.” Fueled by the dominance of the City Girls, the rapper’s wordplay left me begging for mercy. Then again, if Megan Thee Stallion’s songs don’t leave listeners skin crawling… she is not doing her job.
In an unfortunate turn of events, I had the displeasure of subjecting my ears to “Don’t Rock Me To Sleep.” This mundane attempt at electropop is likely the only song off Good News that can be played around your grandparents. Or, maybe featured in a Target advertisement. Either way, I was both terrified and perplexed to hear Megan Thee Stallion make music for JoJo Siwa fans. The other two disappointing tracks, appearing on the back end of the album, were “Intercourse” and “Don’t Stop.” “Intercourse” featured Jamaican DJ Popcaan in an attempt to showcase Megan Thee Stallion’s versatility as she entered the realm of dancehall reggae. It was a weak execution, in my opinion, but she showed effort, nonetheless. “Don’t Stop” was one of three previously released singles featuring Young Thug that went viral on TikTok. Truthfully, without social media, I cannot imagine this track would have gotten as much credit as it did. The beat genuinely scares me, and not in a good way.
NME
After careful consideration, Good News is worthy of a 4/5-star rating. With less than a handful of unattractive songs, Megan Thee Stallion has once again established her chokehold around the industry’s neck. Megan Thee Stallion still remains one of the coldest female rappers in the game today, and she will continue to hold the title. And, if listeners pay close enough attention to the messages presented on this album, they too might be able to summon enough bad b*tch vitality to come out on top of this lousy year.
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