Future - SAVE ME (2019)

Since at least the days of Future's Monster mixtape, his fans have feared that the self-destructive tendencies he rapped about would be his undoing. Myth-making or not, his catalog is steeped in a brand of nihilism so reckless that some of the fun of listening stems from anticipating just what he might say next. The answer this go-round, though, is a request for help. Or maybe just an acknowledgment of his issues.

SAVE ME, the seven-song EP that follows Future’s last full-length (January 2019’s The WIZRD), is a tallying of the MC’s misdeeds but less a formal apology than an extended moment of vulnerability. He details his issues with substance abuse on “XanaX Damage,” and then womanizing on “St. Lucia” and “Government Official.” He confesses a seemingly insatiable ego on “Please Tell Me,” but makes time to detail just how good a potential lover would have it riding with him on “Shotgun.” He’s distorted his voice on closer “Love Thy Enemies” in a way that makes it sound like he’s rapping from the center of a codeine haze, but the detail with which he recounts the intricacies of a failed relationship seems like it could have only come from a sober mind.