Rapper Cardi B’s debut studio album, “Invasion of Privacy,” hit hard last week.
I was initially skeptical. Albums that generate dramatic tabloid headlines often offer more flash than substance, and I really wasn’t too interested in an album that needed a catfight with Nicki Minaj to get attention.
But Cardi B proves herself over and over again on this album, which is, probably not coincidentally, one of the album’s overarching themes.
“Invasion of Privacy” hit No. 1 on the Billboard 200 albums chart, making Cardi only the fifth female rapper to top this list. She joins Nicki Minaj, Eve, Foxy Brown and Lauryn Hill on this exclusive list.
“Bodak Yellow,” “I Like It,” and “Bartier Cardi” are some of the standout songs from this album. These tracks perfectly encapsulate Cardi’s understandably brazen attitude, but there are also tracks like “Ring” and “Be Careful” where she changes the mood a little, slowing down the music and letting listeners in a little.
The album draws from Cardi B’s own rags-to-riches story. Lines like “I been broke my whole life, I have no clue what to do with these racks,” from “Money Bags,” aren’t hyperbole. Cardi worked her way from poverty and domestic violence in the Bronx to international acclaim as an artist at the age of 25. Of course her lyrics mostly celebrate her victories. There have been many.
And I think it’s safe to bet that she has many more to come.
