On Oct. 13, famous rapper Kiari Kendrell Cephus, professionally known as “Offset,” released his sophomore album, “Set It Off.” The rapper collaborated with many famous names, such as his wife Cardi B, Travis Scott, and Future. However, after leaving the hip-hop group Migos, alongside Quavo and the late rapper, Takeoff, things fell apart.

Losing Takeoff had been especially hard on Offset, and it had almost stopped him from dropping his first album since 2021. Fortunately for him, his family, including his five children and wife, Cardi B, supported him in dropping the album.  “It was like they were giving me more life when I felt like I was draining,” Offset said to Billboard. “Hearing my boys be like, ‘Dad, man, we want to hear your new music? When is your new album going to drop? You need to come on.’ It just sparked the juice.”

Offset started working on his album earlier last year, and it was originally called “Blame It On Set” and was going to be released November of last year. Unfortunately, Takeoff was tragically shot and killed, halting the release of the album. 

“Set it Off” consists of 21 tracks and has a vast array of tones, ranging from playful and joyful to more serious and self-conscious music. Robin Murray, a critic at Clash Music, complimented the album’s vulnerability. “‘Set It Off’ doubles as an emotional mirror, in the  form of an autobiography. All that glitters isn’t gold – and very often, the finest moments on this album are its most humble,” Murray wrote. 

The song “Say My Grace,” featuring Travis Scott, documents Offset’s losses which have affected his career. The song briefly mentions that Takeoff was lost due to a shooting and how Offset’s grandmother died due to cancer. 

The album has a unique twist to it, one that appeals to listeners, but also has a deeper meaning. Not only does it go over his recent losses, but also it covers his journey to riches and success. “This album has so many different aspects, everytime I listen to it, I hear a different meaning to the song and album,” junior Ayden Dorsett said.  

In the song “Upside Down,” the listener gets glimpses into Offset’s mental state and his consciousness. “It’s a necessary moment on the project that leads to the closer, ‘HEALTHY,’ where Offset balances his vulnerabilities and his braggadocio tendencies expertly,” Paul Barnes, a writer for HotNewHipHop, said.  

Overall, the album is phenomenal, scoring a Metacritic rating of 66/100. The album has a wide range of diversity, from songs with  deeper meanings, like “Say My Grace,” to songs that are playful and fun, such as “Princess Cut.” By incorporating new styles and genres of music in some of his songs that he has never used before, Offset has improved as an artist with this album. Unfortunately, the album did have some flaws, such as a lack of creativity and originality in his music. “Though it at some point sounded the same, it was kind of just his thing, which I guess some people didn’t like,” Dorsett said. Despite having new tones, many of the songs were similar to songs in his previous album, “Father Of 4.”

Isaac Fontes from HIPHOPDX had mixed reviews on the album. “There isn’t enough substance to distinguish [Offset] as a solo artist,”  Fontes said. These factors unfortunately decreased the metacritic rating of the album. Overall, the album had some diversity in it, but it was unoriginal in regards to its immense similarities with “Father of 4.” 

Offset’s ability to flow his music and match the tone definitely was able to save the rating of the album, adding on to the amazing flows of other rappers, such as Travis Scott.  While the rating from Metacritic was deserved, Offset still set his album off the charts.