Centricity Music
Release Date: August 14th 2020
Reviewed by: Joshua Andre
PEABOD– Heavenly Father (Single) (Amazon mp3/iTunes)
Track Listing:
- Heavenly Father (feat. Cochren & Co. and Resound)
In February 2019, I undertook a major risk musically. I faced my ‘fear’ of rap music (not really a fear, but an apprehension!), and reviewed an entire album of the unique genre. Jonah by KJ-52 doesn’t really count when I reviewed that project back in 2017, as at the time, KJ was ‘singing’ or at least trying to, on a few tracks, so it wasn’t ‘pure rap’ if you know what I mean. So as I was listening to and reviewing rapper Peabod’s debut album Healthy Snacks– I gave the record an unexpected high review (which you can read here!), and hence I went off and check out both of Isaac’s new singles “Anti-Social” and “Left Out” as well. I concluded that these songs were crazily awesome and that Isaac is a pretty ingenious songwriter (don’t believe me? Check out both of the reviews I wrote about Peabod here and here!); and that Isaac is one of the best rappers in my opinion of this generation (and maybe destined to become the next KJ-52!). I was positive that he was due to release a new album in 2019 (which actually eventuated into Backpack EP and featured “Antisocial” and “Left Out”, plus “Side Hustle” (which I also reviewed) and “Hoodie”, a pop tune through and through, about the love for his girlfriend spurring him onto wear her favourite hoodie all the time!), but if you want more of your PEABOD fix, then never fear, cause even if you’ve listened to “Big Feelings”, which dropped as a single a couple of months ago; now we have a poppy radio friendly melody “Heavenly Father”, which released just this week.
Featuring Cochren & Co. and Resound, we are glimpsed into Peabod’s singing instead of rapping… and it’s pretty good. The subject matter is still dark (it’s about depression and feeling down- just listen to the lyrics and you can tell!), but the song is more palatable and accessible than “Big Feelings” because of that radio friendly atmosphere. Adding Cochren & Co. on the chorus is very seamless as the duo sing in perfect harmony here I’m not that well versed with Resound- is he a remixer or an instrumentalist? If he’s a singer, I can’t hear him. Regardless, “Heavenly Father”, though masked as a pop song, is a track that is lyrically quite deep. As Peabod fervently relays to us that he needs to pray to Jesus daily and sit in His presence daily in order for him not to feel so down and despondent, as ‘…I feel too close to this…I’m in the thick of it…’, we are reminded that we can call on God, especially when we are feeling low and sad.
So…after listening to Healthy Snacks, Backpack EP and now “Big Feelings”; do you reckon PEABOD has encouraged me to listen heavily to rap and review all of the other Christian rap albums this year? Nope…just Isaac’s music and ‘happier rap’ like Hollyn and Steven Malcolm. But the inescapable truth that PEABOD will be big this coming year or two still remains. So what are we all waiting for? Let’s dive in and be antisocial together so that we’re not left out together, while we do some side hustling on the side while wearing our favourite hoodie and carrying our favourite backpack. While we’re also being real with each other and talking about our big feelings, and praying to our heavenly Father. Well who are we kidding? We’ll probably just sit at home eating some healthy snacks too! Broccoli flavoured shepherd pie anyone? Chocolate coated fruit? What about a dairy free and gluten free chocolate cake?
Score: 5/5
RIYL: Lecrae, Group 1 Crew, KB, Andy Mineo, Steven Malcolm, Hollyn, KJ-52, Propaganda