Illuminated by flashing images of hip-hop legends Pop Smoke, Mac Miller, DMX, Drakeo the Ruler and others, A$AP Rocky dedicated "Same Problems?" to "everybody we've lost and anybody who ever lost somebody" last month in a compelling performance. Now available as a studio track, it serves as a solemn introduction to A$AP Rocky's upcoming album Don't Be Dumb.
Floating on a euphoric synth like smoke on water, A$AP Rocky pulls us into a reverberating hook and a rich bass line. The angelic sigh of vocal harmonies melt off the tip of Rocky's icy rhymes — his words are strung together like crystals sending chills up the listener's spine. Built on an interpolation of Kid Cudi's introspective "Day 'N' Night (Nightmare)," the track features scattered voices that respond to Rocky's call: "How many problems get solved? Am I a product of things in my songs? / How many problems get solved? Am I a product of all of my flaws? How many problems get solved? (If we don't get involved)."
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