Though the instrumental albums that Jonwayne released prior to Rap Album One didn't appear lacking at the time of their releases, this proper album presents the producer as a complete artist for the first time. What was the missing ingredient? Apparently it was Jonwayne’s rapping. Though it's usually inadvisable for even a talented white producer to start rhyming, the young man has a direct, unadorned delivery that doesn’t detract from the mood of his beats but enhances them. The other newfound quality displayed on Rap Album One is a sense of self-editing. Where his previous works were dense and sprawling, this one's concise. He still makes room for weird ruminative nuggets like “Sandals,” “Reflection,” and “Zeroh’s Song,” but they're balanced by “The Come Up (Pts. 1 & 2),” in which the artist demands his listeners' attention rather than waiting for it. If you think it’s impossible for a suburban white kid to make convincing rap music, just check out the slyly autobiographical confessions hidden in the verses of “Black Magic.”