Most of the standout songs are on the first half of the album. As adorable as the idea behind 23 tracks is, Grateful could have benefitted from some cuts. There are some definite bops on the album, but there are also some songs that are clearly just filler. Many of the songs, especially as you listen further down the tracklist, tend to blend together.
The album’s runtime is an hour and 27 minutes, which is just too long. In 2017, no one has the attention span required to fully absorb and appreciate 23 songs. Chance the Rapper, Travis Scott, Nicki Minaj and Future are just some of the artists who appear on the album multiple times. It boasts collabs with Beyonce, Drake, Justin Bieber, JAY Z and Rihanna, among others. Grateful, which debuted at number one on the US Billboard 200, features a laundry list of top artists. Asahd is even credited with Executive Producer on the album. In addition, the album features 23 tracks because Asahd’s birthday is October 23. Khaled released Grateful earlier this year in honor of his son, whose image is featured on the album art.
