As the world departed from an awful 2020, the hope was that the new year would bring a lot more happiness and a lengthier string of enjoyable moments. With the first quarter officially in the books, the horizon of relief and normalcy seems to be a bit closer than before, but there’s still a long way to go. However, for Key Glock and Young Dolph, they’ve delivered this thrill in the form of their new project, Dum And Dummer 2.
Key Glock and Young Dolph’s music has always resided in the pocket of braggadocious exuberance. The Memphis rappers brought themselves out of their respective childhood and adolescent hardships to a present-day lifestyle that sees them indulging in the shiniest of diamonds and lounging in a home bigger than their youthful dreams. For what it’s worth, the duo is entitled to enjoy their respective limelights when their worlds were so dark for an extended period of their lives. Dum And Dummer 2 extends this celebration, but rather it being a solo affair, Key Glock and Young Dolph stand as brothers to relish in their riches.
This celebration comes alive on icy tracks like “Penguins” and “Aspen.” The brisk theme of the respective songs brings a harsh punch to the ears of listeners like the wind that accompanies sub-zero temperatures in the Colorado city the duo rapped about. “My neck and wrist is Colorado rocky, yes, I’m havin’ it,” Glock declares on the latter track. “I’m cutthroat to the bone, I hope you n****s understand me, b*tch.” Their shiny jewels produce a reaction similar to their straightforward bars which both fall in line with their nonchalant attitudes, all bringing a chill to their supporters and opponents alike that causes a tight clench of the jaw.
The Memphis rappers are well-in-tuned with their distant approach to the world. A glance into their respective lives and it’s clear that they have no desire to reside in the public eye or get mixy with their rap colleagues. It’s why the law gets laid down from Dolph and Glock on “What U See Is What U Get,” with lines like “I know you never, ever, ever seen a youngin’ flex like this / I’m ’bout my cheddar, mozzarella, never catch me in the mix.” Glock doubles down on this line of thought on “In Glock We Trust,” one of five solo tracks he possesses on Dum And Dummer 2. “ Considering Young Dolph’s near retirement in summer 2020 and eventual sayonara from the game last month, you can’t help but accept their “IDGAF” approach as the farthest thing from a facade.
What’s real and truly undeniable about Young Dolph and Key Glock is their hardships and the often piercing struggles they endured to stand on their self-constructed thrones. They allude to it on tracks like “Sleeping With The Roaches,” which is upheld by a headbanging bass and fluttering keys that produce an erratic and near paranoia-inducing atmosphere. “I used to cut the lights on and all of the roaches started runnin’ through the kitchen,” Dolph raps, but this unsettling experience was only temporary as he updates it just a line later. “Now when I cut the lights on, I ain’t gotta do nothin’ but put on this Richard.”
Key Glock and Young Dolph’s Dum And Dummer 2 continues a streak of presenting their lives as-is in the form of music. There isn’t much to break down nor do hidden themes exist. It’s all delivered clear-eyed and unfiltered with the hope that listeners enjoy it or even get jealous of their possessions and motivate themselves to push further down their own path of success — that is, their definition of it at least. Another thing this project achieves is presenting another dazzling showcase of the Memphis natives’ unbreakable chemistry. For the past four years, the two rappers racked up a long list of memorable moments together. However, with Dolph bidding the rap game a solemn goodbye, it’s only right that he hands the keys over to his protege in the best way he knows how before walking out the door.
Dum And Dummer 2 is out now via Paper Route Empire. Get it here.