“So, you think you can save rap music?”

Actor, rapper and singer Jaden Smith, son of acclaimed actor and rapper Will Smith, said he hopes to in his second album “Syre.”

Smith presents the theme of the album in the tracks “Breakfast” and “Hope,” in which he goes into detail about himself and his mission in the music industry.

Jaden Smith describes himself as “the boy whose words never seem to make sense” and claiming that his goal is to be “the most craziest person of all time.”

The album opens with the first four songs “B,”“L,” “U,” “E,” with the story of Adam, Eve and the garden of Eden. Smith raps about love and heartbreak in these rock-infused ballads.

Smith switches the sound with “Breakfast,” one of the two features on the album and an introduction to “Syre.” Although the song features A$AP Rocky, he doesn’t ever come in rapping but plays the part of an ominous, deep voice in the background of the song. Unlike the intro tracks, this song brings in more of Smith’s bravado, with the reference to Kendrick Lamar (“When I talk to Kendrick, man, I sit on the ground”).

Toward the end of the song, Smith comes in, “So, you think you can save rap music?”

The next track seems to answer this question. The song “Hope” opens with the line, “Baby girl, I just hope.” Smith seems to target politics more than anything in this track though, as he refers to  Martin Luther King Jr. with the lyric “My shoes are bleeding with the blood of Martin Luther King/These ain’t no Louboutin.” Smith references King to prove he’s sharing the same message as King: peace and equality.This line suggests that he’s walking in MLK’s shoes and could also suggest his disregard for material items during times of conflict and war.

Switching up again, the song “Falcon” is the second and final feature track on the album, featuring Raury. Throughout the song, Smith combines his intense rap with Raury’s soulful singing, keeping listeners excited and guessing. The song closes with yet another introduction with the lyric “Syre, the boy who chased the sunset, until it chased him.”

The track “Ninety” is where Smith’s complex and diverse use of music and lyricism shows, as he opens with a soft and slow beat. He goes back to rapping and singing about his love. In the middle of this almost eight-minute song, he abruptly stops rapping, and the song switches as he opens with a guitar melody, repeating the line. “Sometimes I feel like a stone,” shows Smith is restless and can’t stay in one place, and he then raps about his desire to run away with his lover.

Throughout the album, Smith continues to jump from tracks like “George Jeff,” which is more octane, to tracks like “Lost Boy,” which is more of a ballad.

Smith concludes the album with title track “SYRE,” an explanation of Smith’s story. He makes references about his confusion within the world with lyrics like, “never quite sure about his placement.” He talks about his love and heartbreak and his own personal exploration into the world and himself. Smith includes a nod toward Kid Cudi in the lyric, “Passion, pain and desire,” referring to Cudi’s album, “Passion, Pain & Demon Slayin’.”

One of the biggest flaws is sometimes Smith tries too hard to be deep and complex, resulting in cringe-worthy lyrics. On the track “U,” one of the lyrics is “Man I’m artichokin’/I can’t breathe, that’s the art of chokin’.” It’s sometimes laughable. Lyrics like these can be heard throughout the whole album.

Overall, this album is extremely unique in the ways of lyricism as well as music. It speaks to Smith’s growth, especially from the time since he was featured on Justin Bieber’s “Never Say Never.” There’s much room for Smith to improve in the way of lyrics, but this just gives his fans more to look forward to on future projects.`