Kaash Paige Is “2 Late To Be Toxic” In New Album

Kaash Paige Is “2 Late To Be Toxic” In New Album

The turbulence that lives between heartbreak and new beginnings is placed at the forefront of Kaash Paige’s latest album, 2 Late To Be Toxic. In her most vulnerable project to date, Paige is unequivocally exposed, saying the things often kept to oneself, out loud. Navigating through a maze of emotions, listeners are inched closer to finding an exit door, which in this case, is a release from toxicity. 

The album, which was released on October 10, is the fifth in her discography and comes shortly after her latest EP,  “KAASHMYCHECKS,” which debuted early August under her new record label, Rostrum Records. Already, Paige is experimenting with sound. Her EP fusing hip-hop and electronic music, and the album touching back on her melodic R&B roots. 

As a teen, the Dallas-born artist found early success after releasing her first EP, “Parked Car Convos,” which featured her viral TikTok sensation, “Love Songs.” Paige has since soared, collaborating with artists such as Don Toliver, Travis Scott, and Alicia Keys, and has taken her music internationally, this summer touring in China. 

Through eleven songs, Paige pens with a raw realness, bringing audiences closer than ever before.  The opening ballad, “GOD SAVE ME,” tugs between loving and hating someone following a breakup. The reactiveness of the lyrics, mixed with the piano’s heavy sound, offers a look into the chaotic emotions that lead people to “crash out crazy” when they’re left confronting a broken relationship. Paige doubles down on the feelings she started with in, “What happened 2 us,” highlighting the confusing nature of an unstable relationship. Although pain-struck, Paige sings, “If this was real, we’d be beautiful together,”  still wondering about what could’ve been despite the neverending cycle of ache.

She finally breaks away from the pattern in “Sexy Freestyle,” where she returns to the sensuality deeply entangled in much of her music. The song, short but straightforward, is like meeting eyes with someone for the first time and letting your imagination overrule all else. “High” brings the tempo down with a haziness that feels like seeing things in slow motion. Featuring DeJ Loaf, the song is perfect for late-night rides with the windows down, as the dreamy guitar strums quietly below the song. “MAKE LUV,” much like the songs before it, puts desire on full display, leaning towards the escapist aspect of being intimate, and the following song, “Never Getting Back Together,” is a haunting but necessary realization of leaving a relationship in the past.

“STUCK ON STUPID” is melodic but gut-wrenching in its vulnerability, as Paige touches on the restlessness of insecurity when not given the same amount of energy in a partnership. The song is conveniently followed by “F.U”  as its unfilteredness provides an honest reaction to being done wrong. And, not shying away from the “toxic” title “CHEATERS ANTHEM,” is a risque confession, where Paige proudly proclaims, “I’m a cheater.” Over the track, she states, “It’s not the fact that I’m tryna do it, it’s just sometimes I can’t control how I feel and the temptation and the urgency inside me.” Here, impulse outweighs remorse in this candid callout.  

The final song, “305,” is more self-assured– Paige now opting to search for something more. Referencing the South Florida area code, Paige sings about feeling “alive”, an optimistically fresh approach against the darker mood found throughout the album. This song is the light at the end of the tunnel for Paige, finally allowing her to romanticize newfound freedom. 

“2 Late To Be Toxic” shows that this love, the toxic kind, cannot survive. Her bluntness gives an answer to the limbo-like state of losing a romantic partner and uses that pain to her advantage, in the end delivering a standout album that mirrors many realities. From start to finish, the strengths of each song lie within its sincerity on the topics of love, heartbreak, infidelity, and more, allowing listeners to reflect on their own experiences. Baring all and burying nothing, Kaash Paige’s latest project reaches self-actualization, turning turmoil into peace of mind.