The Atlanta rap scene looked way different when Lil Baby dropped his last project. Back in 2022, the city was shook by Young Thug and Gunna’s RICO arrests, and you could hear that heaviness in Baby’s It’s Only Me album.
But now? Atlanta’s buzzing again. The underground’s heating up, vets like Future are back in full force, and Lil Baby’s new album WHAM is kicking off 2025 with a bang. And get this – he’s not stopping there. A deluxe version is coming, plus another album called Dominique dropping next month. Talk about starting the year strong!
WHAM – which stands for Who Hard as Me – feels like a love letter to that late 2010s Atlanta sound Baby came up in. The album’s got that first fresh Young Thug verse since he got out, plus appearances from Atlanta heavyweights Future, 21 Savage, and production from Wheezy and London on da Track. But Baby’s reaching beyond the A too, linking up with Rod Wave, Rylo Rodriguez, and GloRilla.
The big questions now: Did Baby deliver? And is this the start of Atlanta’s next big wave? Let’s break down what WHAM brings to the table.
Young Thug’s big comeback wasn’t your typical “fresh outta jail” track. Instead, he linked up with his Atlanta brothers Future and Lil Baby on “Dum, Dumb, and Dumber.”
Everyone brings their A-game, but Thug’s verse? Pure fire. He shows he hasn’t lost an ounce of that magic during his time away. Wheezy cooks up a beat packed with wavy synths and thumping bass, while Baby kicks things off with a flow that clearly shows Thugger’s influence. The student paying homage to the teacher.
Thug keeps it pretty chill about his time behind bars, only dropping a few lines about it. He flows smooth when he says: “I don’t even believe I was locked up, for real, for real/ I was having my way the whole time, fool, you know what I’m saying?”
Though he did stir up some drama with his bars about “bad girls,” leaving fans scratching their heads. He had to jump on X to clear things up – but hey, that’s just Thugger being Thugger, always on his own wave. —Will Schube
The shadow of Gunna looms
Gotta keep it real – while Lil Baby’s got bars for days, it’s those infectious melodies that always pulled me in. The way he whips up those catchy hooks seems almost effortless.
But WHAM hits different. With all this Gunna drama in the air, I found myself hanging on every word Baby spits, trying to decode what he’s saying about his former partner in rhyme. While he’s not as direct as he was in that Charlamagne tha God interview where he straight up said things were done with Gunna, the hints are there.
Baby’s always been vocal about hating snakes and folks who switch up on their loyalty. Though he never calls Gunna out by name on the album, his pre-release interviews painted a pretty clear picture. And this beef? It’s far from over.
Just Friday morning, we saw Gunna’s attorney, Steve Sadow, jumping in to defend his client against snitching claims after a Young Thug track leaked. —Will Schube
There’s not a lot of features here, but they all shine
WHAM keeps the guest list tight – a switch-up from Baby’s usual packed features. Could be because it’s a shorter album, but whatever the reason, he’s letting his solo tracks do a lot of the heavy lifting.
This strategy makes each feature feel extra special, and nobody came to play. Young Thug and Future snap on “Dum, Dumb, and Dumber,” Travis Scott brings that old-school Travis energy to “Stuff,” and 21 Savage shows out on “Outfit.” GloRilla comes through swinging on “Redbone,” dropping that confident bar “My youngest ho like thirty-six” – showing everyone she’s here to compete.
You know how it goes in hip-hop – when you hop on a track with a big name, you better bring your best. These features prove Baby’s got that respect in the game, with everyone showing up to show out. —Will Schube
Introspective Baby shines on “By Myself”
Lil Baby isn’t always the most emotive rapper. In fact, his steely presence is one of his defining strengths. That’s why it’s always a compelling contrast to hear him collaborate with artists who are the opposite—rappers who wear their hearts on their sleeves, like Rylo Rodriguez and Rod Wave.
They team up on “By Myself,” one of the standout tracks on the album (though the energy of “Dum, Dumb, and Dumber” still keeps it at the top spot). The song—which basically functions as the “Emotionally Scarred” of WHAM—features particularly vivid verses from Baby, where he reflects on a friend who betrayed him. He raps:
“Can’t believe they turned their back on me, Now my life in shambles I got money, thought they’d be happy for me, They’d rather see me in shackles”
Baby always shines when he taps into his introspective side. Hopefully, we see more of it this year. —Dimas Sanfiorenzo
There’s not a lot of Lil Baby songs that sound like “So Sorry”
We all know and love Lil Baby’s signature style – those triplet flows over heavy bass, with melodies that hit just right. But on WHAM, he’s switching things up in some pretty dope ways.
Take “So Sorry” for example. Baby rides that bouncy dance beat with a whole new energy, playing with the rhythm in ways we haven’t really heard from him before. It’s like he’s freestyling with the beat, creating this fresh, unpredictable vibe that stands out from his usual approach.
While he mostly sticks to what’s made him one of the game’s biggest stars, these experimental moments on WHAM show what Baby can do when he steps outside his comfort zone. If tracks like “So Sorry” connect with fans, we might see him get even more creative with his sound down the line. —Will Schube
It seems like the setup for something more.
