She could also use a fresh start, and what better way than with a reunion with the peer who helped her net her own first No. The song also functions as a bit of a pick-me-up for her friend Meg, who’s had a rough go of it over the past couple of years. Not only has her flow improved - where it was once a locomotive, it’s now like a bullet train - but she also raps in Spanish, displaying yet another facet of who she is without needing to tell us. As far as hits go, I hope “Bongos” has similar success to “Bodak Yellow,” “I Like It,” and “WAP,” because it’s the sort of hard left turn that Cardi’s been executing her whole career, but at a higher level of performance. It was the sort of smash most artists can only dream of having. She also sounded like she was having the most fun on the record, which resonated outward to the listener.Īpparently, audiences at least somewhat agreed with me the song became Cardi’s second No. Back in 2018, I wrote in my review of Invasion Of Privacy that I wished Cardi had included more songs like the boogaloo-sampling, reggaeton-featuring “I Like It,” because the song’s Latin flair both evoked Cardi’s Dominican roots, giving listeners a better sense of who she is, and stood out from anything else in hip-hop at the time. “Bongos” displays that reinforced confidence deftly, while also expanding Cardi’s toolbox in fun and interesting ways. In the meantime, roles in films like Hustlers and Fast And Furious sequel F9 kept Cardi’s face in front of appreciative audiences’ eyeballs until she was ready to return on her own terms, shaking off the anxiety that came from achieving so highly on her first musical outing. Smartly, she mixed it up there were guest features from Cardi on songs from mainstream hitmakers like Normani, Lizzo, and Summer Walker, as well as a run of remixes to fan-favorite street hits from GloRilla, FendiDa Rappa, and Latto. She maintained her iron grip on the public’s attention by releasing a string of high-profile collaborations. She was right, of course, but mostly due to her own hustle. Where many artists would have struck while the iron was white hot hoping to maintain the momentum, Cardi showed that she was perfectly confident that her brand would withstand taking a couple of years off. Despite the success of “WAP” and its follow-up “ Up,” the outspoken artist decided to instead focus on her family and building her empire with a succession of endorsement deals, acting roles, and other business moves. The song was every bit as ubiquitous as Cardi’s first breakout hit, “Bodak Yellow,” seemingly presaging the inevitable release of another world-shaking full-length LP.Ĭardi, though, had other plans. And it entered the social lexicon the way Judd Apatow movie quotes dominated dorm room conversations throughout the mid-aughts. Everyone sang it, even if they had to adjust the lyrics in a way Cardi herself wasn’t too fond of. Conservatives hated it, seemingly because they couldn’t relate. Kids loved it, even if they didn’t understand it.
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