Iamsu! – Sincerely Yours

While the last few years have blurred the line between albums and mixtapes, rappers insist on stressing the personal importance of their debut album, that is, the first album after the deal comes. Music, plenty of it even, has been released, but this is where your career starts. For Iamsu! it has been an interesting ride. Repping the least celebrated (at least in a rap sense) major American region usually proves fruitless, but a string of beats and verses on some of the most fun regional/Internet hits of the past few years, including LoveRance's "Up," E-40's "Function" and of course, Sage the Gemini's "Gas Pedal," created a buzz unheard of for a Bay Area artist. There was never a single hit song attributed solely to him, but he clearly represented something significant for California rap.

2013 found Su being lapped by his contemporaries YG, Ty Dolla $ign, Problem and HBK member Sage The Gemini, each with multiple radio hits, each fitting into rap's current ratchet/strip club narrative. A growing number of blog posts aside, Iamsu, who had always seemed so poised to take over, had yet to make a dent into the national scene even as rap's go-to sound gravitated toward his home state. With Sincerely Yours Su was set to finally make his mark, to properly declare the start of an outstanding career.

Much of the music on Sincerely matches up with the rest of his catalogue, technically sound and enjoyable. His personality is present but the songs don't scream superstar. He does things you'd expect from his debut – mentioning putting on for the Bay and being the first to bypass that handicap – but this collection of songs feels more like an extension of his many mixtapes. If there's an aspect of the album that leans more towards the modern mainstream, it's the songs that resemble music by 2 Chainz, Wiz and Drake, filled with cliches that sound good but don't really mean anything. The lead single "Only That Real" might have made serious noise two years ago but is generally forgettable in the year of DJ Mustard.

Su's ability as a rapper has never been questioned. He's incredibly capable of putting words together in interesting ways, but he really shows off his ear for melody on many of these songs. He doesn't just sing through Auto-tune. His voice becomes an instrument in itself. Think R&B Future meets Kanye on "Say What's Real." On "Stop Signs" there's no hesitance to hit a higher register and demonstrate a bit of vibrato. Some of the most interesting moments, both from a production sense and a lyrical one, happen on the album's interludes. It's as if Iamsu is at his best when creating in a confined space whether for a 16 bar guest verse or a two minute interlude.

There's plenty to appreciate about Sincerely Yours, but the best debuts of the new millenium – The College Dropout, good kid, m.A.A.d. City, even My Krazy Life – had higher aspirations. Iamsu is from the Bay. He's used to being under appreciated. He just need to change things enough for the world to finally respond.