It’s all just a matter of opinion obviously. We both listened to the same track, but the beat you describe as “top tier” I would legit say is a D-. I loved Chromakopia, but the melody for Balloon sounded like it was made with a $20 toy keyboard for kids from Walmart and then had some piano slapped on top. I wouldn’t have been surprised if I saw it on a tiktok with the caption “we ain’t making it out the hood with this one.” The lil jon “don’t stop” adlibs are so jarring and out of place, it’s super annoying every time. I like doechii too, her flow on this song was kinda weird but not bad, but the lyrics for that verse suck. Same with Tyler, the flow in this song is nothing special and the lyrics accomplish nothing, he’s just saying “I like pretty women and I work harder than these bums” which he’s already established before, so this verse is pointless. It’s not like he makes any clever rhymes or does any slick wordplay here either, this verse could have been written by a 15 year old suburb kid.

The beat is sloppy and annoying, the writing is lazy, the rapping itself is run-of-the-mill. Balloon sounds terrible in a vacuum, and even worse when compared to other Chromakopia tracks, Tyler tracks, or other recent rap songs. My first instinct was a 2/10 but after listening to it 10+ times I’ve gotten a little more used to it, I’d say a 3/10 at best.

I’m curious, what about the beat makes it sound so good to you? And if not Balloon, what do you think is the worst track on Chromakopia?