Not Even Through the Ceiling Yet

Gucci Gang was one of those songs you couldn’t avoid even if you tried—a three-word loop over a beat that somehow justified its own existence through sheer repetition. That was Lil Pump’s most visible moment before this, but he’d been stacking material since D Rose and Boss, and now comes Esskeetit, dropped with a video and the energy of someone who genuinely believes he’s only getting started.

Gazzy Garcia—Lil Pump’s real name—is 17, from Miami, and surrounded by a crew that reads like a who’s-who of the rap underground-gone-overground: Smokepurpp, Lil Yachty, Chief Keef, Rick Ross, Gucci Mane, 2 Chainz. The co-signs were early and they stuck.

He’s on record saying he wants to be the biggest thing out there—simply because I’m different from everyone else, and that the route I’m taking is going to be crazy. And it’s just the beginning—I haven’t even really broken through yet. Given that Gucci Gang already racked up hundreds of millions of plays, this reads as either breathtaking confidence or the specific variety of delusion that produces great pop music. Probably both. With Lil Pump it’s hard to tell, and possibly beside the point.

Esskeetit is exactly what it promises: loud, repetitive, weirdly compelling. I’ve listened to it more times than I want to admit.