“Penith (The DAVE Soundtrack)” - Lil Dicky Album Review

For a self-proclaimed “Professional Rapper,” Dave Burd seems to be at the forefront of everything that isn’t his profession. Philadelphia rapper, Burd, known as Lil Dicky, released his debut album in 2015 to mixed reception, featuring a lack of focus balancing his lyrical ability and comedic tendencies.

While song quality wasn’t always there, his popularity skyrocketed netting Dicky nearly a combined billion views from music videos on his YouTube channel. Rapid streaming of his songs reduced quickly. He revealed in a 2015 interview on The Breakfast Club that he only started to rap to break into the entertainment industry.

His aspirations came true. In 2020, his sitcom, “Dave,” based on his own life, debuted on FXX. Three years later, he compiled the songs used in the show to release his sophomore album, “Penith.” How did Burd, now 35, grow since his previous effort?

Lil Dicky shows some growth as an artist but often falls back onto the same tropes that tainted his legitimacy as a rapper beforehand.

“Penith,” based on the fictionalized record from his show, has become a reality. Spanning 22 tracks, and just over an hour in length, the record explores songs heard over all three seasons, and some unreleased material as well.

A massive improvement that is readily apparent is Dicky’s production choices. Benny Blanco helms the credit for executive producer and has his hand dipped in a majority of the tracklist.

It’s fair to say that a majority of Dicky’s catalog has aged poorly, both lyrically and instrumentally. He even admits to it on the second track of the album, “Honestly.” “F**k my old s**t, all of it sucked | P**s on them records, I s**t on them records,” he raps.

Dicky also corrects his previous mistakes in the song runtime. While some tracks exceed the three-minute mark, most are kept around that time preventing his ideas from becoming quickly exhausted.

Season three of “Dave” mostly revolves around Dicky on “The Looking for Love Tour,” hence the several cuts dedicated to this topic. Between “Ally’s Song,” “I Met A Girl,” and “Morning After,” his ideas on relationships run dry. His issues make him come off as a jerk and unrelatable.

This isn't always the case. Dicky strikes gold on “Mr. McAdams" featuring a clean acoustic beat, and a catchy chorus that stands out amongst the tracklist. The track is proof that Dicky can make a pop hit without being too corny or outlandish.

This sense of nonchalantness is short-lived. Even though Dicky states several times that he wants to be taken seriously, it’s near impossible to do with his lyricism. On “HAHAHA,” the following track, he raps “I was out in China, gettin' the bread rappin' to 'em | No, I wasn't, but you believe me 'cause I'm the type of guy | That could be rappin' out in China.” His attempt at humor can be very hit or miss, and when it misses it’s truly awful.

It’s even worse on tracks that are deliberately supposed to be funny. “No Fruits Or Vegetables” explores Dave’s uncomfortableness with eating healthy. A true testament to the art form of hip-hop. The topics discussed in “My D**k Sucks” are self-explanatory. It’s hard to believe that anyone over the age of 14 would find either of these to be funny and even harder to believe that Dave does as well.

Even though there are plenty of headscratchers, Dicky manages to somehow not make a song worse than 2019’s “Earth.” That’s not saying much. He also ditched the repugnant “Brain” character to that he dedicated a whole EP in 2017, so there’s some progress here.

Another disappointment is the lack of features. On “Professional Rapper,” his guests would sometimes make up for Dicky’s sloppiness. Dicky has collaborated with dozens of artists throughout "Dave's" runtime, and it’s hard to believe that almost none of them showed up on the project. Listeners get a spoken-word interlude from YG, and a feature from Dicky’s co-actor GaTa as a bonus track which was also released over two years ago.

However, when he tries, Dicky manages to be a decent storyteller. “Harrison Ave,” which partially sounds like a J. Cole ripoff, tells a story about his crush in high school. He manages to blend tight rhymes with sensical humor that works surprisingly well.

“Jail, Pt. 1,” is the self-described “most innovative piece of content ever in the history of record media.” Dicky raps about his Jail experience in one of the most absurd and borderline offensive ways possible. The nearly nine-minute track allegedly has another six and a half minutes that exposes the criminal justice system that will most likely never be heard.

The highlights are simply not good enough to put up with all of the filler and duds that fill "Penith's" runtime. Most of the tracks fall into three categories: 1. Boring. 2. Not Funny. 3. Why?

The album only works as a companion to the show. If listeners have not watched “Dave,” there is little enjoyability to be had streaming the record alone. Once again, Dicky is unfocused, unserious, and sometimes unlistenable. It’s especially frustrating knowing that he has genuine talent and squashes it one juvenile humor.

If listeners liked any part of the record, then go check out “Dave,” a much more fulfilling and well-thought-out experience.

But it would be excessive to be critical of Lil Dicky, after all, his stage name is just a self-deprecating joke.

Rating: 4/10

Reviewers' Favorite Tracks: “Mr. McAdams,” “Harrison Ave,” “Jail, Pt.1”

Reviewers' Least Favorite Track: “No Fruits or Vegetables”

Caelan Chevrier is a fourth-year majoring in marketing. To contact him, email cjc6789@psu.edu.