Today (February 20), Baby Keem dropped his long-awaited sophomore album, Ca$ino. To celebrate, the California-born artist hosted a listening party in Los Angeles last night. The event was also livestreamed on his YouTube channel, allowing fans around the world to get a taste of what was to come.
At one point, Keem brought out Too $hort, who's featured on the track "$ex Appeal." Attendees were excited to see him, as evidenced by a clip shared by The Hip-Hop Wolf. Other features on the album include Che Ecru, Momo Boyd, and of course, Kendrick Lamar. Kendrick makes appearances on two tracks, "House Money" and "Good Flirts."
So far, reactions to the new LP are mixed. While many believe Baby Keem and his collaborators delivered, others question whether or not it was worth the long wait. Kendrick's features in particular have sparked some debate on social media, with some even accusing him of nearly ruining both songs.
Kendrick Lamar Discusses Baby Keem's Creative Evolution
Kendrick also appeared in the three "Booman" documentaries Keem released ahead of Ca$ino. In the latest one, he praised his cousin for his impressive creative evolution.
“Was I surprised? No, I wasn’t surprised," he said of Keem going from producer to rapper. "You know why? Because it started off with beats. And I was like, ‘Okay, I see what went down here.' When I think of the gamers, it just makes sense. You have to be locked in to sound and tech; it all goes hand in hand. So when he started first sending me beats and sh*t, I was like, ‘Okay, I can see you do this,’ and he was really good."
"What I was surprised at was when he started rapping," he continued. "I was like, ‘Damn, you actually good at this too.’ That threw me for a loop, because he understood melodies and patterns more than any young cat that I’ve heard."
