On December 13, 2024, Ultra Ground member Playthatboizay released his sixth studio album, Vampires Impersonating People. This album, although being a very good project with coherent sound and production, does feel a bit repetitive at times, making it a hard task listening to the project all the way through. The album is the deluxe version of his earlier album, VIP, that was released earlier this year. This is Playthatboizays return to making music after a almost fatal car crash in 2021 that halted his creative process, delaying the album until 2024
The Album opens with the song Shoota which sets the tone for the album going forward the song being a loud unapologetic track about money and cars that showcases what this album is going to be about. This track leads into Lil jit featuring Kenny Mason. This song stands out with its abrassing guitar and heavy beat that make the listener want to break something near them.
Vampire impersonating people includes many features which are the highlight on most songs. The most notable of the features is A$AP Rocky on the track hoodlums. Rocky’s flow on this song elevates the song to new heights, easily making it the best song on the album. Other collaborations on this album include Denzel Curry on the songs Murda gardens and RATATAT. Denzel offers a thoughtful lyrical flow that contradicts lLaythatboizays loud bass heavy vocals that paints a beautiful picture to the listener, making Denzels feature some of the best on the album. Artist JPEGMAFIA on the song YOO provides a vocal performance that sets itself apart from other people on the album but still makes it fit cohesively with the rest of the album, making it a must listen song if you are just skimming through the album.
The only song that feels out of place from the rest of the album is the track put it down featuring A$AP Ferg and HUNTER. This song adopts more of a traditional drill-like production instead of the more vampire-esque production used throughout the rest of the album. These factors do not make the song bad, but it feels out of place from the rest of the album. This leads into a bigger issue with the album. The album feels like you are listening to the same song over and over again with nothing really new happening, and the production never really changes drastically in a way that captivates the listener. The only song that evolves the sound of the album while keeping the core elements of the prior songs would be RATATAT featuring Denzel Curry and 03 Greedo. PLaythatboizay, as well as the featuring artists on RATATAT, provide a more groovy, laid back performance that captivated the listener making it a fitting outro for the album. If the album was trimmed down to a handful of songs it would greatly improve the album, making it a listening experience you can listen to front to back, enjoying the interludes and really listening to what he has to say.
Another aspect that made the album less enjoyable was how he barely explored the concept of the album’s name. Throughout his whole career Playthatboizay has always branded himself as a vampire, implementing gothic sounds into his music and albums covers, but apart from that, nothing sets him apart from his competitors in the florida rap scene if he would capitalize on what makes him unique he could he eons ahead of his competitors, skyrocketing him into the mainstream.
All in all, Playthatboizays album, Vampires impersonating people, is a good project if you’re looking for something fun to listen to, but if it was worked on a little more it would have been a masterful work of art.
