Rod Wave’s ‘Nostalgia’ blends heartbreak with emotional beats

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Rod Wave has soared in popularity, as his angelic, booming vocals paired with sample-heavy instrumentals have made him a pioneer in the soul-trap subgenre. Nine months after his last release, the November 2022 EP “Jupiter’s Diary: 7 Day Theory,” the St. Petersburg emcee returns with his newest project “Nostalgia,” which came out on Sept. 21.

Teasing snippets and releasing singles since March, the anticipation for “Nostalgia” circulated across social media and the music industry for months. The bounces between R&B and rap showcase Rod Wave’s versatility, touching on some of his familiar themes such as failed relationships, life struggles and betrayals.

With only one feature across the entire project, “Nostalgia” is a display of his personal emotions in solo experiences against the world, relaying advice and messages to his fan base.

Album Rollout

Standing as Rod Wave’s first full-length project since August 2022’s “Beautiful Mind,” the 18-track album has a 55-minute run time. Despite being announced in August, the lead single was released in March, titled “Fight the Feeling.”

“Fight the Feeling” discusses how women in Rod Wave’s past have hidden their feelings surrounding breakups and failed talking stages. The song starts with the line “Women, how’d you get so good at hiding your feelings? Pretending, pretending you’re fine when really you’re bending.”

It continues with the chorus in which Rod Wave describes women falling under the pressure of their emotions, crying in the club whenever a love song plays. Rod Wave consistently plays out real-life situations in his music, a big reason why he has generated so much stardom over the years. But in “Fight the Feeling,” he dives more into other people’s problems than his.

Along with the album’s announcement came Aug. 18’s single “Call Your Friends,” asking listeners to check on their loved ones and people they care about in life, signaling these actions are important before it is too late.

Thematically, the lead singles help set the stage for the album’s intimate glimpse into Rod Wave’s journey of emotions.

Several other singles dropped prior to the album, including “Checkmate” and “Boyz Don’t Cry,” also set the tone for what fans hear throughout the tracklist.

Standout Tracks

Utilizing a snippet from R&B duo Wet’s song “Where Did The Day Go” for an intro, “Nostalgia” is a perfect place to start for Rod Wave’s project. The rapper reminisces on the old days and better times he had once experienced, stating that “these days, it ain’t the same, everything done changed.”

Wet’s sample pairs very well with the meaning of the song, with the main chorus of “Where did the day go?” fitting into what Rod Wave is trying to accomplish with the album.

Track 5, “Come See Me” focuses on letting go and moving forward in life, as he reflects on old relationships and women that got away. He raps in his first verse, “Tell me what could make a grown man lay down and cry? Maybe what he thought was real love, he watched die.”

Watching his girlfriend’s love slowly fade away, hoping that at some point she would come back, he realizes why his broken heart is not fully healing. The pure emotion and power heard through Rod Wave’s vocals additionally make “Come See Me” one of the better tracks on the album.

“Checkmate” goes further into the rapper’s personal struggles, not only with the aforementioned theme of love, but also with drug usage, decision-making and family roots. He states that all of these combined have left him with “war wounds” and “so many nights alone,” continuously trying to find ways to cope with the pain of the past.

Despite the dark tale of Rod Wave addresses in each song, listeners are exposed to resiliency and reflection on events that he has been able to deal with over the years. We are able to once again see an open relationship with the downsides of the rags-to-riches road to success, one that can be heard on all of his albums to date.

Moving down the tracklist, “Rap Beef” touches more on his collaborations with the music industry. He mentions both Pooh Shiesty and Young Thug, praying for their prison releases, while furthermore addressing the hate for “beef” between rappers in hip-hop. Here, more of the rap side of Rod Wave is pushed out, including longer verses and a chorus that he “came to kill the game” that repeats throughout.

The final track, “2018,” includes a huge chunk from Sadie Jean’s “WYD Now?” which went viral on TikTok in 2021. Jean’s high-pitch performance with reverb and Rod Wave’s strong finishing verse make up an incredible album outro.

Final Thoughts

Packed in with a lengthy, well-built tracklist and a nice balance of hip-hop and R&B influence, “Nostalgia” stacks near the top of Rod Wave’s discography. After a few listens, fans will most likely debate if it passes the likes of “Beautiful Mind,” “Ghetto Gospel” or “Pray 4 Love” due to the quality of some of these past projects.

The similarities to his past projects are evident through the lyrics, themes and production, yet Rod Wave still ensures that “Nostalgia” includes its own unique pieces in each of those categories.

With an upcoming 36-show tour alongside other R&B and rap stars including Ari Lennox, G Herbo, Toosii and more, Rod Wave is near the top of the industry at the moment. He’ll only continue to build up his already stacked resume.