Rich Gang Lives The Exuberant Life On ‘Tha Tour Pt. 1′ Mixtape

When Bryan "Birdman" Williams has a vision, the probability of that vision becoming both extremely lucrative and devotedly embraced by the masses, is as sure of a thing as the magnitude of his own net worth.

Within the revolving door of prosperous artists that is YMCMB, the chief visionary recently brought forth the design for a definite super group, to act as the emerging face of the loosely structured movement known as Rich Gang. Without clear distinction in the past as to which specific artists actually made up the rap collective, it seemed to be a liberally distributed stamp for anyone associated with the Young Money/Cash Money brand.

The Rich Gang campaign dropped an initial project, Rich Gang: All Stars, in February of last year, including over twenty celebrated contributing artists, all of whom had a relationship with YMCMB at some point throughout their careers. While the inaugural release and their subsequent self-titled effort, Rich Gang, were of great prosperity, there still remained no real definition amid the core identity of the mega group.

Fast forward 19 months, mix in two of the hottest rappers in the game, integrated with the brilliance of the aforementioned foresight of Birdman, and your left with the radiant blueprint for the renewed and more intently purposed Rich Gang, and their new mixtape, Rich Gang, Tha Tour Part 1.

After working closely with Young Thug and 2014 XXL Freshman Rich Homie Quan, who had already connected on a handful of booming tracks together ("Lifestyle," "Get TF Out My Face") and learning that the two Atlanta based rappers were currently engaged in a collaborative project, Birdman ultimately took the reins and control of the project, navigating and blessing it with his Midas touch. The combination of the three superstar's eccentric charisma and self-assuring temperaments, results in eighty-three minutes of pure lyrical lavishness.

Establishing the atmosphere of the album directly from the jump, Baby spends the first minute of the appropriately titled intro track, "Givenchy", elaborating on what both the Rich Gang lifestyle and the ensuing mixtape entails -- Big money, bitches, blunts, liquor, jets, Bentleys, drop top Bugattis, pristine fashion, marble floors, and chandeliers, among other bountiful assets. The listener immediately becomes familiar with the route of where the newly united trio's creativity is headed, and the themes remain intact throughout the entirety of the mixtape.

The production quality surrounding the history of Cash Money's musical output has always been first-rate, and this project is no exception. Featuring the likes of London On The Track, Issac Flame, and Goose, among others, Tha Tour Part 1's beat construction is spotless, and promptly becomes equally as important to the fluidity of the mixtape as the extraordinarily erratic lyrical counterpart's offerings. While only seven of the twenty tracks see both Young Thug and Rich Homie Quan rhyming on the same record, it goes largely unnoticed as the mood of the album is seamless. With the presence of either Thug or Quan on each track, combined with lyrical contributions from Birdman himself,  Nipsey Hu$$le, PeeWee Longway, Yung Ralph, Bloody Jay, Jacquees, MPA Duke, and MPA Wicced, you never find yourself yearning for more of anything as Tha Tour Part 1 unfolds.

While the content of the mixtape isn't notably ingenious, it's certainly of no concern, as that truly isn't the appeal, nor the aim of the two flourishing rappers and their preferred styles. Rich Gang isn't here to bend your mind with words. Rich Gang is here to provide you a glimpse into their exuberant lifestyle, while supplying you an arousing soundtrack in the pursuit of your own. Young Thug and Rich Homie are very aware of their lanes, and wholly embrace them.

If you aren't along for the Rich Gang ride, Quan and Thug couldn't care less. Even if they did care, they wouldn't hear what you're saying. Their weed and Louie V ear muffs are too loud, and they know it. - Michael Blair