Donald Glover, more known as Childish Gambino, is an actor and musician who started his music career with a couple of mixtapes in the early 2000’s. Eventually he dropped his first full length album in 2011 titled ‘Camp’. Two years later he released his second studio album ‘Because The Internet’ in December of 2013 which was followed by critical acclaim. In the years since he has continued his musical endeavors with 2 more albums and possibly one more on the way.

This was one of the first albums I can remember actively listening to growing up, and now revisiting it made me realize how great it is and how much better than I remember. The album is a tale of how the internet affects people’s aspects of life, specifically love and loneliness. It tells the story of ‘The Boy’, the character that we view the story’s lens through, navigating his life as a rich kid that realizes what his lifestyle is leading to, specifically a feeling of crippling isolation, a feeling that’s all the more crushing in the age of the internet. For example, in songs like ‘I. Crawl’ and ‘IV. Sweatpants’ it has themes of The Boy having to fend for and know himself regardless of his family’s wealth status. While in songs like ‘3005’ and ‘III. Telegraph Ave.’ The Boy deals with feeling alone even among his friends and attempting to get back with an ex-girlfriend to rekindle an old flame. It’s an album I love very much due to my personal connection to it and after listening to it and really understanding what it means, it hits more now than ever. It is an amazing, experimental, thought provoking album that I think deserves at least one listen.

If you’re looking for music similar to Childish Gambino’s, I advise checking out Outkast, Tyler The Creator, Funkadelic, and even Kanye West to experience similar but equally as unique sounds.

Track Ratings of “Because The Internet”

1. The Library (Intro) – 8/10
2. I. Crawl – 10/10
3. II. Worldstar – 9.5/10
4. Dial Up – 10/10
5. I. The Worst Guys (Ft. Chance The Rapper) – 10/10
6. II. Shadows – 10/10
7. III. Telegraph Ave. (“Oakland” by Lloyd) – 10/10
8. IV. Sweatpants – 10/10
9. V. 3005 – 10/10
10. Playing Around Before The Party Starts – 10/10
11. I. The Party – 8.5/10
12. II. No Exit – 9/10
13. Death By Numbers – 10/10
14. I. Flight of The Navigator – 10/10
15. II. Zealots of Stockholm (Free Information) – 10/10
16. III. Urn – 10/10
17. I. Pink Toes (feat. Jhene Aiko) – 10/10
18. II. Earth: The Oldest Computer (The Last Night) [Ft. Azealia Banks] – 10/10
19. III. Life: The Biggest Troll (Andrew Auernheimer) – 10/10