Anderson .Paak is so much more than one-half of Silk Sonic.

Pronounced An-dur-sun Pack, not Pock, or Pawck; it’s Pack. Okay, moving on.

Anderson .Paak is one of the most talented musicians in the game right now, and has been for awhile. He’s the artist who made what is currently my favorite song, he’s incredibly charismatic, and he wears funny glasses. I’m very happy that his collaboration with Bruno Mars gave him a massive boost in popularity, but I wanna dispel the thought that he is the weaker half of Silk Sonic.

His (Rough) Origins
Brandon Paak Anderson, also known as Anderson .Paak, Breezy Lovejoy, or Cheeky Andy, was born in February of 1986 and is of mixed Korean and Black heritage, his mom being South Korean. His father, as is discussed in some of his songs, left his life at an early age, after physically assaulting and abusing his mother in front of Brandon when he was seven. His father was put in jail and Brandon says he “never saw him since.” As if that wasn’t enough, his mother was convicted of major fraud at the start of his senior year of high school, and she was sentenced to seven years in jail. It gets worse; in 2011, he was dismissed from his job working at a marijuana farm, classic, and was left homeless with his wife and baby.

His Musical Past
As heard in his music, Brandon started as the drummer for his church and started producing as a teenager in high school. He went by the name “Breezy Lovejoy” when performing. In 2011, after the loss of his job, Shafiq Husayn and Dumbfounded gave him a job as an assistant, writer, videographer, editor, and producer. Soon after, he released his first album, O.B.E. Vol. 1, which technically is not an Anderson.Paak album, but a Breezy Lovejoy album, so I won’t be talking about it in detail (after all, it’s not the true musical debut of Anderson .Paak). Brandon’s real debut was with Venice in 2014, under his new stage name “Anderson .Paak.”

Venice
For those who don’t know, Anderson .Paak is not a pop artist in the same vein as Bruno Mars at all. Anderson .Paak’s music is a blend of rap, funk, pop, motown, and a whole ‘lotta soul. Venice serves as an excellent debut to this where all his influences and his overflowing charisma are put on display. Now does that mean Venice is perfect?
Uhhhh….
Venice has some bangers and truly starts off on its best foot with one of Anderson’s most effective songs, “Milk N’ Honey.” In this song, Anderson .Paak spins an elaborate yarn about him finding a woman who is giving him so much, with the only caveat for him being that he must be faithful to her. Of course, Anderson .Paak is not one to be tied down to one woman, and he pays the price. She was not all that she was cracked up to be, and she gave Anderson a car because she stole it and needed it off of her. And, of course, Anderson .Paak gets pulled over and caught; grand theft auto. The way this is described and rapped is so engrossing you can envision the entire song and situation in your head. Now, unfortunately not every song is as great as “Milk N’ Honey,” but there are other winners. I love how Anderson shows his personality on cuts like “I Miss that Whip” and “Put You On.” “Might Be” also has a great beat and vibe. But with some songs you suddenly remember that this album was released in 2014 and sounds like it; complete with cheesy 2014 Pop and Dance cliches and bright synths. For “Get ‘Em Up” and “Luh You,” that results in a really fun fusion of Dance and RnB, but for songs like “Paint” and especially “Drugs” with a mix of trap and dance music, it does not work well and doesn’t at all feel like Anderson.
Overall Venice is an effective debut to Anderson .Paak’s career but is far from perfect. I would listen to “Milk N’ Honey,” “Might Be,” or “Luh You,” and if you’re into any of those listen to the album in order. You can skip “Drugs.”
Best Song: “Milk N’ Honey”
Worst Song: “Drugs”

After Venice
Anderson .Paak’s most important collaboration, and possibly most important musical decision are his several features on Dr. Dre’s 2015 album Compton. This got him in front of a lot of new people, and started a fruitful relationship between Dr. Dre and Anderson .Paak. Anderson .Paak would later be signed to Dre’s record label and Dre would give Anderson feedback on his music and work with him frequently. After all of this promotion and success, he was set up perfectly for his underground hit Malibu.

Malibu
Malibu was my first true exposure to Anderson .Paak. Like many others, I watched the excellent and popular NPR Tiny Desk for him and the Free Nationals that dropped in 2016, and wanted to hear more of the awesome songs “Come Down” and “Heart Don’t Stand a Chance” and found the original album. Malibu leans more on Anderson .Paak’s incredibly troubled childhood, but rather than yell and rage about his messy childhood, reflects with a bittersweet smile. The first song “The Bird” is so beautiful and heartfelt with the context of his past. He favors smoother sounds and a gentler approach than Venice. However you would not know that from the album’s biggest single “Come Down,” a banger of the highest degree that I suggest you listen to right now. And I have to compliment the production on this entire album – it’s amazing and groovy and so complex and inspired and amazing. There are so many beautiful songs on here complemented by Anderson’s excellent and personality-rich singing. I cannot sing this album’s praises enough, my only issue is it’s a bit disjointed and all over the place in a way, and not every song is a huge winner. Sure he sticks to that soul, RnB, and rap vibe but goes from lo-fi to rap to soul to old-school funk on a dime. While I wouldn’t say this is his best album, it’s my favorite from him and is highly recommended. Rich with personality, soul, and creativity. I’d listen to “Put Me Thru” and if you’re into that, I’d listen to the rest of the album in order. My other personal favorites are “Am I Wrong,” “Heart Don’t Stand a Chance,” “Without You,”  “Lite Weight,” “The Dreamer,” and “Your Prime.”
Best Song: “Heart Don’t Stand a Chance” or “Your Prime”
Worst Song: “Parking Lot”

After Malibu
After this album, Anderson .Paak would be featured in the formerly most popular NPR Tiny Desk of all time, with his set with the Free Nationals. (It was later outdone by Mac Miller after his passing). It’s important to mention that Anderson .Paak drums and sings at the same time like it’s nothing, playing complex insanely precise beats and singing something completely different with the kind of ease and style only Anderson .Paak could exhibit. Anyways, remember all that Dr. Dre talk? Yeah, Anderson .Paak’s next album is what it was all leading up to. The next album would have Dre as the executive producer, and many insane features like Kendrick Lamar, Snoop Dogg, Pusha T, J Cole, and Q-Tip of A Tribe Called Quest. Oxnard, named after Anderson .Paak’s California hometown, was released in November 2018.

Oxnard
If Malibu is my favorite Anderson .Paak album, Oxnard is the best. It leans more heavily on funk and pop than his previous records and it works. The big single of this album is “Tints” featuring Kendrick Lamar. It’s so groovy and fun, and it makes me wish my windows were tinted. The other single “Who R U,” in my opinion, is less successful and what it’s trying to do is outdone by another track on the album, “Mansa Musa” featuring Dre and Cocoa Sarai. I love the grand intro, “The Chase,” with an iconic flute that will be carried into future projects. It goes into a very hilariously explicit song, “Headlow,” that still manages to be funky and smooth. Other highlights include the proudly West Coast cut “Anywhere” with Snoop Dogg and The Last Artful Dodgr, “Brother’s Keeper” with that slow feel and psychedelic guitars and an awesome verse from Pusha T, the lurid “Saviers Road,” and the two-part “Smile/Petty” with excellent lyrics. But nothing compares to what is currently my favorite song of all time and was originally the last song on the album before two bonus tracks ruined the finality of the song, “Cheers” featuring Q-Tip. This song is so beautiful, so catchy, so emotional, and the composition and production are top-notch. Q-Tip’s verse is incredible, and the instrumentation and vocals are spectacular. The song is about loss, particularly dedicated to the late Mac Miller who had passed away around this time in 2018, but is vague and universal enough to apply to anyone who has experienced loss and is struggling with the emotions that come with it. But, it’s not a depressing song, it’s bouncy and colorful, like you’re celebrating their life while still deep in the mourning period, the songwriting is so, so, good. Stellar song. I’d recommend you listen to it as the last song, skipping the two mediocre bonus songs added later. If I haven’t made it obvious, Oxnard is great, sure there are some blemishes like “Trump’s love child,” but it’s overall great. I’d listen to “Tints” and “Mansa Musa,” and if you’re into those two, listen to Oxnard in order.
Best Song: “Cheers”
Worst Song: “Left to Right”

Ventura
Soon after Oxnard, he released his Grammy-award-winning album Ventura. This is an intentionally smaller album when compared to Oxnard and has such a homely vibe, this might be one of the most accurate album covers to the sound of music of all time. It goes hard into the direction of RnB and soul, and dives into more personal feelings within relationships. The two singles are “King James” and “Make it Better,” some of the warmest songs in his catalog; “King James” explores the oppression and hardship Black people and other marginalized groups have faced and continue to face. He references several acts of racism and judgment that Black people have faced, both recent and old, but chooses to praise figures like LeBron James who uses his platform and success to raise the Black community up. However, the Grammy-award-winning song on this album is the beautiful and warm “Make it Better” which manages to capture the feeling of a magical relationship, the feeling of a hug after reconciliation so perfectly. Other highlights include “Reachin 2’ Much” with Lalah Hathaway, “Good Heels” with criminally underrated artist Jazmine Sullivan, and the best song on this album, the intro track “Come Home” featuring an amazing feature from Andre 3000. In fact all the features (except Pharrell’s production on “Twilight”) are great, whether it be the posthumous vocals from Nate Dogg, or the stunning vocals from Smokey Robinson on the Grammy winner, the features are insane. I’d listen to the album in order, and if “Come Home” doesn’t bring you into the album, then it’s not for you.
Best Song: “Come Home”
Worst Song: “Twilight”

The Rest is History
Anderson .Paak did the things any artist would do after making two excellent well-received albums. He was on “The Price is Right,” hopped on a bad Eminem album (Music to be Murdered by), was featured in the Madden 21 soundtrack, was featured in the end credits of “Tom and Jerry” (2021), and began to work with pop star Bruno Mars. That led him to another Grammy, the biggest album of its given year, and being playable in the hit battle royale game: Fortnite. Also because there’s nowhere else for it to be mentioned, Anderson .Paak’s features on other artists’ songs are always amazing, like on A Tribe Called Quest’s “Movin Backwards,” Jazmine Sullivan’s “Price Tags,” and both of his collaborations with Cordae. He also did an amazing live performance, a live-streamed performance in 2021, funded by GrubHub of all companies. This all concludes with a fitting 2022 Super Bowl performance with him on the drums in a performance surrounding Dr. Dre, who of course let Anderson .Paak rise to this level of fame. Truly a rags-to-riches story, and despite what some of his lyrics may suggest, he is using his money to raise up so many more than himself with the Brandon Anderson Foundation, a non-profit foundation meant to uplift marginalized communities through supplemental education and the arts, and its first initiative: the .Paak House. 

TLDR: Anderson .Paak has done so much more than sing on “Leave the Door Open,” and is a way better, and more interesting artist, than Bruno Mars. No hate to Bruno, it’s just that A.P. is objectively cooler.