{"id":491859,"date":"2019-11-04T15:17:13","date_gmt":"2019-11-04T22:17:13","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/www.rollingstone.com\/?p=907889"},"modified":"2019-11-04T15:17:13","modified_gmt":"2019-11-04T22:17:13","slug":"rod-wave-sings-like-an-angel-and-raps-like-a-demon","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/alwaysmountaintime.com\/kqzr\/music-news\/rod-wave-sings-like-an-angel-and-raps-like-a-demon\/","title":{"rendered":"Rod Wave Sings Like an Angel and Raps Like a Demon"},"content":{"rendered":"
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Gravel or velvet, jagged edges or curved slopes, coarse scales or soft fur: A voice generally contains one or the other. But Rod Wave<\/a> plays between extremes. His singing voice is gentle and yearning, while his rapping is akin to DMX after taking ineffective cough medicine. The Florida rapper plays with this dichotomy throughout last week\u2019s Ghetto Gospel<\/em>, but it\u2019s on \u201cClose Enough to Hurt\u201d that he employs the ability to vocally switch gears most effectively.<\/p>\n

Over the mellow strings of the Drum Dummie and Ashton Sellars-produced beat, his performance seesaws. The first line of the chorus erupts like a growl (\u201cIn this life I\u2019ve been\u2005scarred\u201d), while the second half settles into a sweet coo (\u201cSo\u2005I walk around\u2005with my guard, guard\u201d). As far subject matter goes, \u201cClose Enough to Hurt\u201d is well-worn territory. It\u2019s a song dedicated to the ones who deserted Rod Wave<\/a>, don\u2019t deserve Rod Wave, and hurt Rod Wave. The trope isn\u2019t new, but the color he adds to it makes the journey worth it.<\/p>\n