Music Review: T-Pain - Rappa Ternt Sanga

A Tallahassee native, an ex-rapper, but more importantly, a talented singer as well, T-Pain – born Faheem Najm – burst onto the R&B scene with one hell of a single in I’m Sprung just a year and a half ago. There are sure to be some who don’t appreciate his Crunk&B approach, but for those that do, they will find that T-Pain is of a new, promising breed of vocalist. He takes the best of his Hip-Hop songwriting and incorporates it into his silky smooth, utterly unique brand of vocoder-enhanced singing. Introspective, romantic, revealing, and infectious; T-Pain’s Rappa Ternt Sanga is not for everyone, but for those that want something a little different from the norms of the R&B genre, this is what you’ve been waiting for.

After a fitting introduction that discusses the reasoning why Mr. Pain no longer feels the need to emcee, the album kicks off with the infinitely catchy lead single "I’m Sprung" and is followed by the even catchier "I’m N Luv (Wit a Stripper)." A majority of the album covers these same topics in a similar revealing, introspective fashion (break ups, meeting the “one,” making love, and even a metaphor track thrown in for good measure) and that is what makes T-Pain and, likewise, the album, so compelling. The vocoder gimmick is also an added bonus as it places further emphasis on his admittedly smooth voice. Although T-Pain is an above average singer and songwriter, without the vocoder gimmick, he would be just another face in the crowd.

The more atypical R&Bish material, akin to what you have probably accustomed yourself to hearing from various R&Bers over the years, is actually what goes down the easiest here. It is the most revealing and also the most compassionate. Pain’s vocals are truly phenomenal at times and his songwriting can be truly off the charts. He’s unbelievably relatable and with the charisma of your average rapper, his lyrics manage to stick with you long after the song is over. I would also be remiss if I failed to mention the vocoder effect during these particular songs. They truly heighten the atmosphere that Pain hoped and successfully captures.

There’s also a healthy dose of introspective and club-ready material. The club numbers, most namely Dance Floor, don’t fair quite as well as the more romantic tracks, but their inclusion was most likely for variety. Not only are they downright convoluted, but I found no sort of enjoyment in them. The introspective tracks, however, are much more worthy of your time. "Ridge Road" is a dedication to a certain somewhere where T-Pain grew up and all of the hardships he faced there. Honest and well sung, the song is one of the best on the album. It’s moments like these that prove there’s more to T-Pain than your average R&B act.

Article Author: Thomas Steenhagen

Thomas Steenhagen is an aspiring journalist and screenwriter residing in sunny Orlando, FL. He has been writing product reviews and worked on numerous screenplays over a vast number of years. You can check out more of his work at Epinions.com.

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