And "Cold Hearted" is a surprisingly touching closer. The '70s exploitation flick vibe of "Stand Up," featuring an indelible two-line cameo from DJ Khaled, is another stylistic switch-up on the album's back end. It also keeps in line with the idea that a brief blast of Meek is the best way to experience Meek. Meek has allowed these artists to "take the lead" on these tracks, and the album is better for it, because it opens the record up and gives Meek breathing room. In fact, the album's biggest highlights are its biggest departures, from the druggy "Jump Out the Face" with Future (which would fit nicely onto 56 Nights), to "R.I.C.O." featuring Drake, and even "Bad For You" with Nicki Minaj. "Classic," a typically nimble, bouncy, Bangladesh track, is an atypical Meek move: he's rarely if ever sounded so airy, clean, fun, bright, and it's a good look. He's still rapping hard-hitting lines like "Shout-out the judge that denied me my bail/it made me smarter and it made me go harder." It's a great song, even if it can't match the bar set by "Dreams and Nightmares." Opener "Lord Knows" lays a Tory Lanez hook and a typically fraught Meek vocal performance atop sample from Mozart's Lacrimosa movement from his Requiem in D, a tip of the hat to how epic "Dreams and Nightmares" remains but also as a hedging of bets: Nothing could realistically top his first intro, so they reached all the way back to Mozart for a fitting backdrop. However, Dreams Worth Than More Money is still a few clicks better than his debut, because it feels like Meek Mill is taking risks. And I'm not even sure if 14 "Monster"s is sustainable or desirable. Recent non-album single "Monster" is an incredible song, but I can't imagine it being on this album it's too concentrated. Every few months, Meek drops an incredible single, or an eyebrow-raising feature, reinforcing the idea that his music works best in short blasts, harnessing his energy and expending it all at will. His mixtapes are often long and scattershot, while still containing at least a half dozen keepers, and his first album, and now the second, suffer a similar fate. The "for five minutes" qualifier is an important distinction: Meek's intensity is both the key to his appeal and his Achilles Heel.
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