“Rock N Roll” was the perfect intro for Ken Car$on’s 2021 debut album, Project X. It set the tone for the rest of the album with its inclusion of dark synths and hard-hitting 808’s. Outtatown, Starboy, and Lil 88 provided their signature production on “Rock N Roll” which is super significant considering that Outtatown and Starboy have produced a lot of tracks on Playboi Carti’s 2020 3rd studio album, Whole Lot of Red. Ken’s auto tune up until this point had been a bit raw but it sounded much more refined on “Rock N Roll” and many other tracks on, Project X. His flow is vibrant and energetic despite the heavy presence of autotune within his vocals. The loop of the chorus creates this hypnotizing sound effect as the synth reigns in at the pace of Ken’s voice.
The visuals for “Rock N Roll” were really interesting as there were many screen glitches and blur effects and even moments where Ken Car$on could be seen in animated form. The lightning sound effects and visuals in the video blend with the song perfectly, giving off boss battle video game vibes. My favorite part of the video was noticing the subtly detailed branding of the song title placed at the head of a convenience store that Ken Car$on enters. There, he can sort through multiple women with the click of a pen. I look forward to more music videos that may be released from the Project X album and hope to hear a new project from Ken within the coming months.
