Discography Deep Focus - Westside Gunn

Flygod. Super Flygod. Westie the Bestie. WSG. Gunn.

Alvin Lamar Worthy, born on July 27, 1982, pioneered the Buffalo rap scene.

Growing up in Buffalo’s impoverished East Side influenced Gunn to sell drugs in order to support his family and himself. Throughout the numerous albums, we hear him reflect on his youth frequently, painting a beautiful picture of his turbulent upbringing.

He started creating music in 2005 but took a multi-year hiatus due to a close friend, Machine Gun Black, who lost his life to gun violence.

In 2012, his paternal half-brother Demond suffered from getting shot in the face resulting in permanent facial paralysis. Motivated by this, the two of them decided to pursue their music career with Demond becoming who you may recognize now as Conway the Machine. The two brothers created Griselda Records along with their cousin and rapper Benny the Butcher.

Not only defined by his upbringing, Super Flygod is a cultural asset passionate about various topics such as fashion, art, and wrestling which is strongly shown through his work.

Dropping 22 total albums and counting, you may be able to recognize Flygod by his signature “grrrrrrr” and “doot-doot-doot-doot-doot-doot- DOOT” adlibs or his unique high pitch vocal style. On top of his vocals, his productions are on another level. Consisting of either soulful samples, classical piano keys, or working with some famed producers like Daringer, The Alchemist, and Conductor Williams, Gunn’s albums take you on a mystical journey that’ll only transport you to the ultra-creative brain of Westside Gunn.

Four essential Westside Gunn albums:

Supreme Blientele (2018)

Produced by the Avengers of the underground rap scene, Gunn sums up the Griselda spirit with this project. With features consisting of Benny the Butcher, Anderson .Paak, and Roc Marciano just to name a few, Gunn continues to shine through the star studded list accented by some of the grimiest beats of his career.

Some songs I would like to highlight is track four, titled “Amherst Station.” The beginning of this track features Westside Pootie, Gunn’s daughter, preaching for whoever is listening to stop copying off her daddy, money doesn’t make you Flygod, and once again reminding us that this is Griselda. Followed by a soulful sample “What Makes Me Love You” by The Sequins, this is a pristine Gunn track that perfectly sums up his vibe and appreciation of his family.

Another would be track six, “Elizabeth.” A smoky jazz beat, Flygod raps about his hometown and he addresses some of the things that go down there while also wishing those he lost could see how far he’s made it since his youth.

The final track I’d recommend of this pristine album would be track eight, “Stefflon Don.” In my opinion, the grimiest beat off the album, Gunn gives us the blueprints for a dope image he is trying to convey. My favorite bar being “I got the mink dragging, dolo in Manhattan” as you can literally picture Gunn wearing a mink coat trekking through the city by himself.

Peace “Fly” God (2022)

With one of my favorite album covers showing Gunn’s artistic taste, he delivers some amazing vocal loops and cool samples as well as some clean beat drops.

My favorite off the album, the beautiful track four “Big Ass Bracelet” just shows how Gunn is doing something different. From how the sample compliments his flow (which happens on every song he pops in on) to the Stove God Cooks feature, this track is impossible to dislike.

Another good track would be number nine titled “Danhausen.” If you need a song to be the soundtrack of some hijinks, this is it. The grimy beat and aggressive flow is enough to get you amped. This was one of the first Gunn songs that hooked me on the artist and it’s never lost its replay value to this day. This is also a great track if you want to find out why the aforementioned adlibs do go hard and aren’t just silly noises.

Flygod Is An Awesome God (2019)

I just came back to this album recently and it became the soundtrack to my Fall 2024. Taking a more chill approach, Gunn really discusses his hopes and aspirations throughout the album while also discussing the things he values like fashion.

My favorite track is No. 4, “Lunchin.” The flow is extremely catchy with a calm jazz beat complimented by an angelic feature of Keisha Plum, who appears on numerous Gunn projects. Plum’s verse is extremely introspective as she pitches all the “Imagine if” scenarios in Gunn’s life such as “Imagine your moms snortin’ lines of white” to “Imagine if Con never got shot.” One of the more emotional tracks, this one definitely takes the cake.

Some other great tracks include number eleven and twelve, “Gunnlib” and “Lakers vs Rockets.”

And Then You Pray For Me (2023)

My Fall 2023 soundtrack, this album is near perfection.

From the beautiful orchestral beat and reflective lyrics on track six’s “KITCHEN LIGHTS” to track eight’s “DunnHill” possessing one of the hardest beats of the last 10 years as well as a Rick Ross feature, this project is a no-skip. It covers all the bases of what a rap album should be.

Even with amazing feature verses from Ty Dolla $ign, JID, and numerous members of Griselda, Gunn still manages to not get overshadowed. His presence is immense and in your face in the best way possible.

My favorite track would have to be number fifteen’s “Ultra GriZelda” featuring Denzel Curry. I think this track, besides from “Danhausen” off Peace “Fly” God, has Gunn’s hardest adlibs of his career. The well-placed gun-shot imitations aligned with the beat and Curry’s chorus make this track as catchy as possible.

Flygods influence on the rap scene is undeniable, getting featured on numerous projects like Travis Scott’s Utopia, Joey Bada$$’ 2000, and Kanye West’s Donda.

Not only having a presence in the music scene, Gunn recently created his own pro-wrestling league promotion called “4th Rope” which has looked super cool.

I definitely recommend following his Instagram as you will see him announcing events with crazy graphics, engaging with fans about updates on his various projects, or just simply enjoying the life he’s built.

Westside Gunn continues to push the boundaries of culture by having a consistent album rollout (and actually dropping on the dates he announces unlike many modern artists), and being a positive role model in his community, and I’m excited to see what cultural impact he’ll bring in the near future.

Leo Weisfelner is a third-year majoring in telecommunications. To contact him, email lhw5076@psu.edu.