Wiz Khalifa offers up a suggestion to music critics, encouraging them to spend more time with an album before reviewing it.
Art criticism is a fascinating — and occasionally controversial — topic of discussion. There are many whose livelihood centers around reviewing mediums like music, film, television, and video games, each one created by artists and creatives. With YouTube in the picture, music critics have multiplied tenfold over the past few years, with many racing to unpack the latest albums while they’re still in trending territory.
The rush to create content has led to an influx of first-day reviews, and while it’s not always the case, such reviews tend to be based on a single listen. Given that many albums are created as labors of love, sometimes taking years to put together, such rushed judgment risks painting an incomplete picture. After all, how many albums can be described as “growers,” with deeper cuts unveiling their true potential only after several repeat listens.
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Wiz Khalifa recently took a moment to offer a suggestion to album critics, having likely been a first-hand witness to several reviews both positive and negative. “Normalize listening to albums more than once before you critique them,” he suggests, though it’s uncertain as to how many listens are sufficient before a critic can declare themselves an authority.
Though it’s no guarantee that Wiz’s advice will have an impact on the average critic, perhaps it will encourage aspiring reviewers to spend a little more time with an album before firing off their initial reactions. Check out his tweet below, and sound off if you think Wiz Khalifa’s request is one that more people should abide by.