The recent hip-hop trend of paradigm-shifting MCs continues with the big-top arrival of B.o.B, whose The Adventures of Bobby Ray debuted at number one on the Billboard album chart in April. There has been something preordained about his rise, but it's been an intermittent ascent for Atlanta's Bobby Ray Simmons. Unlike his comrade in genre obfuscation, Drake — who became famous virtually overnight — B.o.B's trajectory has been a slow burn climaxing in, finally, the hit single "Nothin' on You."
B.o.B, named for the OutKast song of the same name, emerged in 2007 at just 18 with the woozy, billowing weed anthem "Cloud Nine" and a DJ Smallz mixtape of the same name. "Haterz Everywhere," a song by the little-known Wes Fif that somehow became a song by B.o.B, came next.
Comparisons to André 3000 came fast, with fans noting B.o.B's complex, fast-to-slow phrasing and twangy melodicism. Enthusiasm grew. Blogs bit. It was all happening. Then things got a little blurry. Months went by without new music. Then, reportedly, B.o.B retired. Or didn't. Then he changed his name to Bobby Ray. Then changed it back. Or didn't. Or it was an alias. His career began to resemble an elaborate prank.
B.o.B's label history is just as confusing. Sometime in 2007, Atlantic came onboard. Then delays set in. Cut to March 2008: In an act that smacked of desperation, T.I.'s Grand Hustle got in the B.o.B business. The mutual benefit? Mainstream street cred for the Coldplay-name-checking novice and a veneer of oddball intrigue for Tip. "On Top of the World," from T.I.'s Paper Trail, followed, with B.o.B on a hook he cowrote with Playboy Tre, who parlayed their association into two stellar mixtapes last year. Soon B.o.B was rolling again. A flurry of new mixtapes came next, some good, most rehashing previous achievements.
Today, B.o.B has six mixtapes to his name (only Cloud Nine is essential) including the recent May 25th, meant to indicate his album's release date. The speedy success of "Nothin' on You" pushed the date to April 27, making that title look a little silly, but the tape itself revealed a cleaner, more hook-driven artist. It was all part of the plan.
Make no mistake: B.o.B has been anointed and handled very carefully. He's been shaped slowly over time, getting the chance to fail with the 2008 single "I'll Be in the Sky" before scoring with "Nothin' on You," a song that, while catchy, probably doesn't distinguish B.o.B. Hook man Bruno Mars can claim much of the credit for its success, thanks to his wet-lipped chorus. The song will make B.o.B famous, but what makes him important is everything that isn't "Nothin' on You."
To become viable in 2010, young rappers must be about more than rap. And these days, B.o.B seems to be favoring the singer/songwriter stuff. Rather than worry about alienating hardcore rap fans — who don't buy albums — B.o.B wisely teased The Adventures of Bobby Ray with spacy fluff like "Satellite" and "Don't Let Me Fall." His Coldplay allegiance (the band was his first concert and primary inspiration) is all over these songs. More good news: The guy is Justin Bieber's favorite rapper. That's a win. The album also includes "Bet I Bust," a knuckleheaded rap banger that features Playboy Tre and a freshly sprung T.I. It's a vision of what B.o.B could have been ten years ago but can't be now: a rappin'-ass rapper.
But ultimately, in a rap landscape in which rappers can't succeed just by being rappers, it sure helps to have a sideline. And B.o.B's is about as au courant as they get.
