Anderson .Paak and Knwledge's album released early and it doesn't disappoint

Anderson .Paak's collaboration with Knxwledge, Yes Lawd, is worth getting excited about. Photo / Getty Images

Perhaps this album got its name because it's so hard to listen to without raising your hands and preaching "Yes Lawd".

Yes Lawd! is a collaboration between the insanely fast-rising star that is Anderson .Paak and his Los Angeles producer soulmate Knxwledge, and it's what lies at the intersection where hip-hop, soul, R&B, pop and gospel collide.

The 19-track offering is the long awaited follow-up to their first collaborative single as NxWorries; Suede, which released last February.

And it doesn't disappoint, following on with the same chilled yet funky vibe, and led by .Paak's velvety vocals.

It's a lot more mellow than .Paak's summery Malibu, and introduces a romantic element hard to find in hip-hop, tempering the usual language found in the genre with lines like, "You love me like I could be leaving in a moment's notice ... like you know this could be something like your very last moment".

What's great about it is it feels and sounds like the kind of collaboration that was made by swapping ideas at the last minute and working out hooks in the middle of the night.

The songs are short and move quickly from one to the next but it never feels disjointed or unfinished, just full. It plays like an old-school hip-hop mixtape, the kind that is less concerned with polished products and focused more on just making good music.

Where Malibu was a summer barbecue at sunset album, Yes Lawd is the album you play to quietly see in the dawn.

NxWorries, Yes Lawd!

Artist:

NxWorries (Anderson .Paak + Knxwledge)

Album:

Yes Lawd!

Label:

Stones Throw Records

Verdict:

Summer chill and hip-hop soul all in one.