Saba and No ID form a dynamic duo and build a keen repertoire together that stands among the best hip-hop this year will have to offer.
Release date: March 18, 2025 | Independent | Facebook | Instagram | Twitter | Stream/Purchase
It’s been a hell of a month for hip-hop. The fact that this is my third review for the genre in the single month (a new record for me) should be testament to that alone. And hey, if clipping. and Backxwash didn’t do it for you, maybe Saba will? Dude hasn’t missed yet – from CARE FOR ME to Few Good Things to all the side-projects and features he’s done, Saba‘s been near the tippy top of hip-hop’s pantheon of quality, especially when it comes to Chicago MCs and storytellers.
And No ID? He doesn’t need an introduction for the heads in the audience, but for everyone else, he’s one of Chicago and greater hip-hop’s most celebrated producers, at it for over three decades working with rap monsters like Common (back when he was still called Common Sense too), Jay-Z, Ye, and Pusha T (including the “The Story of O.J.” beat for Jay-Z that King Push later used in “The Story of Adidon” to chokeslam Drake through a glass table with one of the biggest diss tracks in history). There’s a reason Saba calls him ‘the actual GOAT‘ on “Acts 1.5”.
For those in the know, this matchup makes immediate sense, in the sort way that makes you smack your palm to your forehead and go ‘damn, I should have thought of that in my dream rapper/producer matchups!‘. No ID‘s soulful, measured production that focuses more on neat, natural layering with sampling and liveliness is just a masterful mix with Saba‘s wizened, down-to-earth approach to instilling knowledge and reflecting on his own life. “Every Painting Has a Price” sets this tone with a nostalgic and sunny piano sample and Saba rapping about his fans and the place in life he occupies because of his art and success:
‘When the smoke clear, notice I was still in the buffer
Between bein’ a superstar and being next to the hustle
I made a living off of lessons that I learned from my uncle, yeah
Taught me see the bigger picture, it come with a price‘
Saba always had this lovely, lived-in feel with his music that plays so well to your own imagination and its ability to visualize along with his music. I always get shining glimpses of community, family, and prosperity on that neighborly level, truly feeling supported and living, not just surviving. In that sense, From the Private Collection is like an adventure. Saba loves hard in “Crash”, interrogates himself through God on what’s truly important in “How to Impress God”, and covers the malaise of living life when you’re aware of so much suffering on “Woes of The World”.
No matter what though, you can count on some of the smoothest production out so far this year and Saba to speak candidly with the occasional deep cut reference or catchy bar. One of my faves is when he says ‘No man is a God, fall short to creator like Khaled streams‘ between the bold horns on “Breakdown”. It’s a funny reference to how Tyler, The Creator outsold and outstreamed DJ Khaled when they respectively dropped IGOR and Father of Asahd on the same day, much to Khaled’s petty jealousy. The deeper meaning of that line houses Saba‘s critique of extravagance being valued over artistry as well – I’d venture that he’s a bigger fan of one artist over the other for that alone.
And when it comes to straight bars, I gotta hand it to “Westside Bound Pt. 4”. It has a triumphant feel and an invigorated Saba really getting into a few tight flows in his verses paying homage to everyone from Malcolm X (‘If you see someone always winnin’, he not gambling, he’s cheatin’‘) to his Pivot pal MFnMelo (‘Pivot Gang, got a homie named muhfuckin’ (MFn), really though‘) who has a guest verse that’s all about showing love to his Pivot peers and the come-up they’ve had. He has his own lyrical gems like ‘All through the city we run-run/For a fee it get fye like it’s fo-fum‘ all delivered in a deep cadence that I can’t help but compare to Wish Bone from Bone Thugs-N-Harmony. He’s not the only standout guest either – Kelly Rowland bolsters the intimate feel of “Crash”, “head.rap” is lent a supreme sense of melody by Madison McFerrin, Ogi, and Jordan Ward for a personal track about Black identity, natural hair, and ‘growing your garden‘; and Joseph Chilliams and Jean Deaux show up on “30secchop” to bless it with their signature styles (holy shit, that Jean verse).
Even more than before, Saba‘s music just feels communal and bright. The only thing that matches it is his work with Pivot Gang and rightfully so – that is a literal communal effort. And what to label it? Is this simply an intermission project to sate the fans between grander, more conceptual records? To say so feels diminishing of the quality of work here – there was a lot of thought put into these tracks and while they may not cohesively create a narrative like his last two LPs, it’s apparent the dude is incapable of slacking. This album transports me to the suburbs and streets of Chicago to bask in a form of humanity that’s quite different for my own, and yet it seems both of us simply want better for ourselves and the ones we love. There’s a lot of love in that realization.
I think there’s a reason why this album was so smooth and serene: it’s telling, not asking, you to calm your ass down. It doesn’t ask much of you, simply to sit and listen, to enjoy what is there to be enjoyed, and empathize with the more personal stories and appeals. That to me is the essence of hip-hop and a big part of why I love rap so much as a genre and art. Saba has always embodied that and he will continue to do so until he puts the mic down. No ID was such a perfect pick to complement that approach to hip-hop. From the Private Collection is the result of two experts merging their crafts to form one of the most awesome, deliberate, and loving albums of the year so far.
