Buy Now
| Buy on |
|
- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
-
Jul 24, 2019Beyoncé joins their ranks [Paul Simon, David Byrne, Peter Gabriel, Carlos Santana] soulfully and attentively, seeking full-fledged fusions. She mixes (apparently) personal thoughts and archetypal ones; she savors musical hybrids and rhythmic challenges; and she digs in to every line she sings. ... Unlike the movie that occasioned it, “The Lion King: The Gift” is no remake or reiteration, no faraway fable. It tells a story of its own.
-
Jul 25, 2019Overall, it works and is another jewel in her crown — one that she, overall, can be proud to call hers.
-
Jul 19, 2019The album’s warm production washes and anthemic musicality may not have the same avant-garde sway or weird rhythmic kink of its immediate aforementioned predecessors, but what “The Lion King: The Gift” misses in messiness, it makes up for in flavor, heart and grandeur without treacle. Well, not too much treacle.
-
Jul 24, 2019On The Lion King: The Gift, Beyoncé deftly connects a kid's flick to something bigger, honoring not only Africa and its traditions but also shifting perspective to future destiny and greatness. It's a superior statement and a lesson on how to properly execute a winning soundtrack.
-
Jul 22, 2019For all the natural force of her singing — best displayed here in “Otherside,” a stripped-down piano ballad, and the grand Oscar-bait closer, “Spirit” — Beyoncé puts more thought into her records than anybody else in music, and what’s on her mind now isn’t just where all these sounds came from but how useful they remain.
-
Jul 19, 2019The Gift is a quixotic compilation of tracks. ... One of the things that comes across most impressively in this afro-futurist mix of hip hop and R’n’B is that it all sounds fresh and exciting but not remotely alien or intimidating.
-
Jul 23, 2019Though not fully comprehensive or that musically far-reaching (due to its prioritization of African genres that have already experienced crossover success), the album still succeeds in introducing a whole new musical universe to the average American listener.
-
Jul 24, 2019Ultimately, The Gift is a deft balancing act that weighs personal songwriting flourishes and meaning with Disneycore tropes, as well as a sincere desire to celebrate the music of the African diaspora with its fundamentally commercial obligations.
-
Jul 23, 2019Not every track is as strong as ‘Black Skin Girls’. ‘The Lion King: The Gift’ showcases what Beyoncé can do at her best and most creative, yet consistency is an issue with this eclectic album.
-
Jul 23, 2019Individually, almost every song is interesting. But altogether, the listening experience is a choppy mess. Out-of-context cartoon voiceovers and pan-African pop music don’t sit well together. And while some of the long-form ideas partially work, they could have used more fleshing out.
-
Jul 22, 2019The Gift leans on variety to express its love of blackness, yet a singular voice proves just as affecting.
-
Jul 22, 2019Lion King: The Gift is a great example of Beyonce’s fantastic taste, and of her ability to oversee an album that doesn’t focus on her while also cementing the soundtrack as a worthy substitute to the original. Most importantly, it puts a spotlight on artists from the continent in which the movie takes place.
-
Jul 19, 2019The guest spots occasionally overshadow the star. The Beyoncé-led tracks are of distinctly variable quality. For every song as good as the brilliant Black Skin Girl or Mood 4 Eva, there is something underwhelming. ... It’s an album, then, that ably displays her excellent taste, rather than a great Beyoncé album per se.
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
-
Positive: 962 out of 1106
-
Mixed: 27 out of 1106
-
Negative: 117 out of 1106
-
Jul 19, 2019Beyoncé cada dia provando porque com 30 anos de carreira segue para se tornar uma das maiores lendas do mundo da música.
-
Jul 19, 2019
-
Jul 19, 2019Beyoncé é definitivame a maior artista viva. Tudo que ela faz é tão coeso, minimalista e bem pensando. Ela é absolutamente admirável.