DJ Serena
This is an album review I wrote back in 2024 and a shortened version appeared on WRBB Radio. I never had a place to share the full-length review, though, so I’m excited to publish my version this time! This album has become one of my ultimate favorite pieces of work by Megan Thee Stallion and I’m so glad it was one of my first ever album reviews.
Megan Thee Stallion’s recent release, MEGAN: ACT II follows a recent trend of artists releasing projects in numbered sections. Megan released her self-titled album MEGAN in June. The album was well received and the top song, “Mamushi (feat. Yuki Chiba)” received 189,000,000 streams. Megan Thee Stallion is riding her popularity wave from MEGAN with this ACT II serving as both a deluxe edition and a new album. The original album and this second portion are the first two releases on Megan Thee Stallion’s recently formed independent music label, Hot Girl Productions LLC, which is affiliated with Warner Music Group but allows Megan Thee Stallion to own her masters. This is a special achievement for Megan Thee Stallion as claiming ownership of your masters is a difficult task for artists of any genre. MEGAN: ACT II includes twelve new songs, including a remix of the most previous popular song, and one recently released single. The album is a mix of hype and chill rap that showcases Megan Thee Stallion’s strength as an independent artist and a rising competitor in the rap game.
MEGAN: ACT II begins with “Bigger In Texas,” where Megan Thee Stallion showcases her confidence and unapologetic nature. The song has a funky beat that complements Megan Thee Stallion’s consistent flow. Throughout the song, Megan Thee Stallion raps about her natural and effortless rap ability. She makes multiple references to her rising come-up in the music industry, with one specifically mentioning her masters. At the end of verse two, Megan Thee Stallion raps, “I’m the youngest bitch ownin’ her masters / bitches old as fuck, stuck in a deal.” She is clearly aware of her successes and wants to make them known to her audiences as well. “Bigger In Texas” follows Megan Thee Stallions typical formula: a hype track where Megan Thee Stallion continuously stunts on her haters and critics. This song was the first newly released track out of MEGAN: ACT II that received a music video. The music video debuted with the album, and features Megan Thee Stallion in a variety of hairstyles and outfit choices that are reminiscent of 90’s hip-hop style. Megan Thee Stallion is taking inspiration from the hip-hop and rap artists who came before her. This is clear through her use of retro styles and by the design of her cover art which has many similarities to popular album covers from the era of hip-hop’s debut.
Megan Thee Stallion continues to prove her talent with the song, “Bourbon.” With an extremely uptempo beat, Megan Thee Stallion excels on this track by using a faster flow and rhythm pattern. She raps very quickly throughout the song, all the while never missing a beat. Similarly to other songs, Megan uses “Bourbon” as an opportunity to reassert her dominance in the music industry because of her rap ability. She adds to that by continuously bragging about her success, specifically mentioning the men in her life and her stylistic aesthetic. “Number One Rule” has darker undertones then the previous track with a slightly slower beat. The song is pretty catchy but also quite repetitive. Throughout the track, Megan repeats how she maintains the power over the men in her life both in terms of money and in a sexual way. She urges her fans to adopt the same mentality by reminding them to never give up their agency and control when it comes to a man. The chorus embraces this as it includes repetition of the track-name inspired line, “That’s the number one rule / Bad bitches choose.” This song is again in line with Megan Thee Stallion’s known personality as a confident, independent, and capable female artist who does not need any man to enhance her success or satisfaction.
A highly anticipated track from MEGAN: ACT II was “Roc Steady (feat. Flo Milli).” Megan Thee Stallion teased the song on social media and had fans of both artists speculating about the collaboration. Both artists emerged in the rap industry at similar times but have not worked together on a song yet. Their collaboration on Megan Thee Stallion’s recent release proves that the two female rappers complement each other extremely well with their similar rap flow and style. “Roc Steady” is a short track that leaves you wanting more of both the artists. The song goes by quickly as both Flo Milli and Megan Thee Stallion only come in for two brief verses each. Flo Milli brings an added level of fun to the track as she and Megan Thee Stallion go back and forth during the song’s chorus. Her voice complements the tempo and the rest of the song as well. Flo Milli and Megan Thee Stallion’s voices fit together quite well which results in a seamless transition between the two artist’s parts. The beat of “Roc Steady” is fairly unique and sounds to me like a combination of a beeping alarm clock and the noises of a scanner. The beat is actually sampled from the song, “Goodies” by Ciara and Petey Pablo, an iconic R&B dance song from the early 2000’s. This sample gives the song vibes that are perfect for getting hype or for feeling empowered.
Megan Thee Stallion has always been open about her sexuality and has previously mentioned the fluidity of her sexual orientation. The sultry track, “Best Friend,” brings audiences deeper into Megan Thee Stallions’s sexual desires. In this song, she speaks openly about her attraction to women while simultaneously describing a common experience of female friends to cross sexual lines. While the song focuses on a relationship with a women loving women dynamic, Megan Thee Stallion does not explicitly refer to herself as queer, bisexual, or lesbian. In fact, the song still includes references and lyrics about men and the ways Megan Thee Stallion uses them to fulfill her sexual needs and desires. “Best Friend” gives a sexier vibe than the rest of the album with its slower tempo and Megan Thee Stallion’s seductive and lower voice. Megan Thee Stallion uses this song to describe her interests for both men and women. And while this is breaking norms for the rap industry to speak openly about female sexual desire for each other, Megan Thee Stallion still positions her sexual interactions with other women through the context of men and male sexuality. By continuing to place the focus on the man, Megan Thee Stallion continues to uphold traditional and mainstream notions about gender and sexuality.
One of the best and most hype songs on MEGAN: ACT II is “Right Now.” This song is most similar to the work on Megan Thee Stallion’s previous album, Traumazine. “Right Now” includes a hardcore beat with a lot of bass. Megan Thee Stallion keeps the track upbeat throughout with her intense and forceful rhymes. She comes out hard with this song as she unapologetically declares that there is no one else in the rap industry who is working the game like her. Megan Thee Stallion expresses this through her lines, “I’m the baddest bitch out right now / tell them other hoes pipe down.” She is claiming her spot as a successful Black female rapper and making it known that no other artists or haters can get in her way. “Right Now” is definitely one of the strongest songs on the album as Megan Thee Stallion uses the track to show up and stand out.
Going into the second half of the album, Megan Thee Stallion continues with two collaboration tracks of different genres. One of the new releases is a Remix of the highly popular and previously mentioned, “Mamushi” with K-Pop Girl group, TWICE. TWICE has adopted a large following of American fans so their collaboration with Megan Thee Stallion is likely targeted at that audience. The original version of “Mamushi” was extremely sensational as it went viral as an online trend. Many fans were drawn to the song as it combined Megan Thee Stallion’s flawless rap abilities with her love for Japanese culture and featured a well known Japanese rapper. The Remix falls just short of the original as the new feature, TWICE, does not complement the track as well. “Mamushi (Remix)” does still shine as a unique remix because of how Megan Thee Stallion switches up her own verse on the song to add in a few new lines. Following “Mamushi (Remix)” is another collaboration, “TYG (feat. Spiritbox). This song came through as one of the weaker tracks as it felt slightly disconnected from the rest of the album. The genre of “TYG” leans more towards rock instead of rap or hip-hop which is not unusual as Megan Thee Stallion began dabbling with rock music on her previous song, “Cobra.”
“Motion” begins with a cute and silly speaking intro by Megan Thee Stallion where she prefaces the song by claiming that there is no one with better looks or more money than her. It kicks off the track by showcasing Megan Thee Stallions’s unconditional love and support for herself. Her flow and talent are undeniable in this song as Megan Thee Stallion raps about her abilities to surpass all the men in her life and the other rappers in the game. She calls out those who hate to see her succeed and continues to anger them by highlighting her own greatness. Megan Thee Stallion continues the album with two songs that are purposefully placed to create a juxtaposition between the contradictory titles. The next tracks are “Fell in Love” and “He Think I Love Him.” In the former, Megan raps about being unexpectedly committed to her new man. The song has a funky beat that adds to the song’s fun nature. TOne of the most noticeable and comical lines is from the chorus, “Ain’t shit in the streets but a bum.” Megan Thee Stallion plays with the word streets by using it in a way that is different from the colloquial usage as a term that refers to provocative behavior. After the song where Megan Thee Stallion boasts about the nature of her new relationship, she follows with “He Think I Love Him. The song has a more plain beat compared to others on the album and also comes through as one of the shortest. In this track, Megan Thee Stallion focuses on her popularity and fame that allows her to play with men the way she does. Her flow throughout the song keeps a consistent pattern which gives “He Think I Love Him” the feel of a freestyle track.
The song, “Like A Freak” is a sample of the popular early 2000’s club hit, “Like A G6.” The electronic beat and hyperpop tempo are uber recognizable to audiences from that generation, most of whom fit into Megan Thee Stallion’s own audience group. By using a well known sample, Megan Thee Stallion sets up this song to be a hit. “Like A Freak” is a super upbeat, almost hyper pop, club beat that combines house music genre with Megan Thee Stallion’s rap skills. Ending MEGAN: ACT II is “Neva Play (feat. RM of BTS),” a recently released single that Megan Thee Stallion dropped just before ACT II. “Neva Play” has similar vibes to the previous song in that it is very catchy with a trendy beat. Megan Thee Stallion’s collaboration with RM brings in something unique with RM’s much lower and slower rap. The song switches up slightly between the choruses and verses, making the track a lot more dynamic.
MEGAN: ACT II is overall a successful and cohesive album that continues to showcase Megan Thee Stallion’s vocal ability and rap talent in the music industry. The album starts off really strong with tracks that are upbeat, empowering, hype, and leave every listener feeling as confident and powerful as Megan Thee Stallion does. MEGAN: ACT II’s second half doesn’t carry as much weight as the songs are more basic and feel rushed compared to the first half and especially when put in contrast with her original self-titled album. The songs still highlight Megan Thee Stallion’s rap ability and success in the music industry as she consistently affirms in her music. There is a central theme throughout the album of self-love and trust in your abilities. Megan Thee Stallion never doubts herself or her talent on any of her songs but the message remains clear here. While ACT II may not stack up as high as its counterpart MEGAN, it is still full of hyped up female rap that is perfect for any occasion. Megan Thee Stallion reminds herself and her fans to believe in themselves, use the power they have, and stand up to those who get in the way of their success. With MEGAN: ACT II, Megan Thee Stallion maintains her assertion that she is winning the rap game and does not plan to stop soon. It is clear that Megan Thee Stallion’s career will only continue to progress from here.