Isaiah Rashad IT'S BEEN AWFUL
Isaiah Rashad's IT'S BEEN AWFUL confronts Southern melancholy with naked vulnerability, trading slick polish for intimate reckoning. Critics largely agree the record foregrounds confession over catharsis, and its most affecting moments arrive when spare, slow-ass beats meet blunt lyricism in songs like “ACT NORMAL”, “T
The best song is the opener "THE NEW SUBLIME" because it immediately lays bare Rashad's vulnerability and sets the album's emotional tone.
The album's core strengths are occasional kinetic tracks and breezy, unprogrammatic production, but these are too sporadic to sustain the record.
Best for listeners looking for addiction and fatherhood, starting with ACT NORMAL and THE NEW SUBLIME.
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Full consensus notes
Isaiah Rashad's IT'S BEEN AWFUL confronts Southern melancholy with naked vulnerability, trading slick polish for intimate reckoning. Critics largely agree the record foregrounds confession over catharsis, and its most affecting moments arrive when spare, slow-ass beats meet blunt lyricism in songs like “ACT NORMAL”, “THE NEW SUBLIME” and the haunting duet “BOY IN RED”.
Across five professional reviews that produced a 66/100 consensus score, writers praise Rashad's honesty about addiction, fatherhood, sexual fluidity and family secrets while questioning some tentative production choices and episodic pacing. Rolling Stone highlights “ACT NORMAL” as the album's moral fulcrum and singles out “DO I LOOK HIGH?” and “BOY IN RED” for their emotional weight. Clash Music and Exclaim point to “THE NEW SUBLIME” and “10 STATES AWAY” as essential listens, noting that the record's best songs marry instrumentation to confession. Slant Magazine offers a counterpoint, finding the collection listless at times and arguing that a handful of kinetic tracks such as “M.O.M.” and “Supaficial” shoulder much of the album's impact.
The critical consensus suggests IT'S BEEN AWFUL is worth attention for those drawn to introspective, Southern-rooted rap that foregrounds recovery and nostalgia, even if it feels uneven. Below, the full reviews unpack why the standout tracks are often the record's emotional center and why some production choices leave the work feeling deliberately unresolved.
Critics' Top Tracks
The standout songs that made critics take notice
ACT NORMAL
1 mention
"At the center of Isaiah Rashad ’s third album, It’s Been Awful, is “Act Normal,"— Rolling Stone
THE NEW SUBLIME
2 mentions
"On the cold open ‘THE NEW SUBLIME’, Rashad promises not to lose himself"— Clash Music
DO I LOOK HIGH?
2 mentions
"On “Do I Look High?,” he nods to another era in their career, rapping, “I made this especially for us/To commemorate the Idlewild."— Rolling Stone
See, maybe stay the night, then I could be your boyfriend/And if that doesn’t work, then I’ll just be your girlfriend,
Track Ratings
How critics rated each track, relative to this album (0-100). Only tracks that made critics feel something are rated.
THE NEW SUBLIME
M.O.M.
SAME SH!T
BOY IN RED
SUPAFICIAL
SCARED 2 LOOK DOWN
HAPPY HOUR
DO I LOOK HIGH?
AIN'T GIVIN' UP
GTKY
CAMERAS
ACT NORMAL
10 STATES AWAY
NUTHIN 2 HIDE
SUPERPWRS
719 FREESTYLE
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What Critics Are Saying
Deep insights from 5 critics who reviewed this album
Critic's Take
Isaiah Rashad treats IT'S BEEN AWFUL as a raw reckoning, and the best songs prove it. The opener “THE NEW SUBLIME” immediately bears his soul with confessions that set the emotional register for the album, while lead single “SAME SH!T” pairs cyclical honesty with dark, airy production to become one of the best tracks on IT'S BEEN AWFUL. Reflective cuts like “SCARED 2 LOOK DOWN” balance Southern tradition with fresh perspective, and the closing pair “SUPERPWRS” and “719 FREESTYLE” act as a triumphant sign-off that cements these as standout moments. This record is introspective and hopeful, and those best tracks carry its emotional through-line.
Key Points
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The best song is the opener "THE NEW SUBLIME" because it immediately lays bare Rashad's vulnerability and sets the album's emotional tone.
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The album's core strengths are its poetic introspection and balance between dark subject matter and sunnier sonic moments.
Themes
Critic's Take
Khan lingers on “THE NEW SUBLIME” and “10 STATES AWAY” for their blunt confessions and aching melodies, arguing that the best tracks on IT'S BEEN AWFUL wear vulnerability like armor. The record’s highs come when instrumentation and confession collide, making these songs the essential listening if you want the best tracks on IT'S BEEN AWFUL.
Key Points
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The best song is the SZA-assisted “BOY IN RED” for its chemistry and indie-pop ear candy.
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The album's core strengths are candid vulnerability, Southern musical lineage, and versatile production.
Themes
Critic's Take
In a clear, candid tone Mosi Reeves centers Isaiah Rashad and IT'S BEEN AWFUL on intimacy and reckoning, holding up “Act Normal” as the album's moral fulcrum and best track. Reeves writes about the record's slow-ass beats and Southern blues textures while pointing to the haunting duet “Boy in Red” and introspective “Do I Look High?” as vital moments. The review favors Rashad's blunt, unvarnished disclosures - his lines about family and fluidity make these the best songs on IT'S BEEN AWFUL because they foreground honesty over spectacle. Reeves balances admiration for Rashad's influence with a sobering note that the album offers confession more than tidy resolution.
Key Points
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“Act Normal” is the best song because it crystallizes Rashad’s candid exploration of sexuality and family secrets.
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The album’s core strengths are its honesty, slow-ass Southern blues production, and reflective lyricism.
Themes
Critic's Take
Part of the charm of Isaiah Rashad has always been that loose, tossed-off vitality, but on IT'S BEEN AWFUL that spark often feels drained and aimless. The reviewer's tone lingers on the record's listlessness while spotlighting the best tracks - “M.O.M.” for its kinetic, propulsive paranoia and “Supaficial” for its memorable refrain and disarming vocal turn. He praises the opening verse of “10 STATES AWAY” as beautifully outlining distance from a botched relationship, yet says these highlights are too few to rescue the album. Overall, the album drifts between breezy production and evaporative features, leaving the strongest songs to carry most of the weight.
Key Points
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The best song, "SUPAFICIAL," is best for its memorable refrain and disarming vocal delivery.
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The album's core strengths are occasional kinetic tracks and breezy, unprogrammatic production, but these are too sporadic to sustain the record.