Album review: What does DJ Khaled actually do?

DJ Khaled with his son Asahd. Photo / AP

Here's a question that needs to be asked: What does DJ Khaled actually do?

Aside from Instagramming everything he does, shouting catchphrases everywhere he goes, turning himself into a walking, talking meme, and aligning himself with stars far more famous than himself, what does Khaled Mohamed Khaled actually do?

On Grateful, Khaled's 10th - yes, 10th - album, one that features an entire music festival of guest appearances from the biggest rappers, pop and R&B stars of the time, the New Orleans native at least goes some way towards answering that question.

The answer is, very little indeed.

Clocking in at an overbearing 87 minutes and whopping 23 tracks, Grateful is stuffed full of missed opportunities. Not too many people could get Beyonce and Jay Z on the same track and come up with something as forgettable as Shining, but Khaled does. Not too many people could make Rihanna sound as tired as she does on Wild Thoughts, but Khaled does. Not too many people could get Chance the Rapper to sing the entire alphabet on cheese factory I Love You So Much, but Khaled does.

Begging for it to stop? It doesn't. Nas turned in the highlight of Khaled's last album Major Key; here he's teamed with Travis Scott for It's Secured, a tinny track six years past its use-by date. Drake's To the Max is clearly a cast-off by someone whose cast-offs are usually far more reliable. Even Migos sound out of sorts on Major Bag Alert, and that's not something they've been for at least 12 months.

Add Khaled's catch phrases - "We the best!", "And another one!", "DJ Khaled!" - into the mix and you have a bona fide mess on your hands.

Redeeming features? Sure, Future classes up almost all of the five joints he appears on, but he'd sound great doing his mumble-rap thing over a rustling chip packet. It's a shame Nicki Minaj isn't used just as much - she pulls the same trick on two. And weeks after release, I'm the One is still a pure pop smash that hasn't yet lost its sheen.

But Grateful's high points are blunted by far too many lows and way too many woes.

There is one redeeming feature about Grateful, and that's the incredible cover - a photograph of Khaled's 1-year-old son, Asahd, lounging in a Jacuzzi like he was born in one. He probably was.

But when you've made an album only worth remembering for its cover art, perhaps it's time to forget about the music and stick to what you do best: Instagramming your more famous friends.

DJ Khaled - Grateful
Label: Epic
Stars: Two
Verdict: There's nothing to be grateful for here