Wretch 32 - Upon Reflection review

The Guardian 60

(Polydor)
The rapper’s fifth album deals with gender and mental health issues, and with a refreshing new musical looseness

It is somewhat surprising that it’s taken this long for the Tottenham rapper Wretch 32 to release an album titled Upon Reflection. Many people will remember him for breaking the Top 10 in 2011 with bombastic party singles Traktor and Unorthodox (with Example), but he is well-respected by his peers and dedicated UK rap fans as a thoughtful wordsmith, known for soul-searching, weighty album tracks and freestyles tackling grief, racism and police brutality. On his fifth studio album, Wretch turns his unflinchingly direct lyricism to the subject of gender on lead single Mummy’s Boy (“There’s power in empowering a woman”) and to struggles with mental health on the downbeat title track.