“Sociopath” [ft. Kash Doll]

When you see Pusha-T release a song called “Sociopath,” the first thought is likely that he’s rapping about himself. Or rather, that he’s simply doing what he always does. He has spent more than two decades playing the heartless peddler of toxins. In a bit of a twist, the song is an ode to a lover as heartless as he is: she finesses rich guys out of their cash; Pusha calls her “Swiffer” because all she knows is swipers. In the midst of the rise of the scammer—of Megan Thee Stallion, Hustlers, and fake songs paying out royalties to frauds—it’s fitting that scamming is apparently an aphrodisiac for Push. “Sociopath,” a dark outtake from last year’s Kanye West-produced Daytona, is Pusha-T’s version of finding love in a hopeless place.

Dubbing a significant other a sociopath would usually be grounds for a breakup, but Pusha clearly means it as a compliment. Not that they’re really in a relationship anyway, more of a two-person mutual admiration society. Pusha beams with pride as he recounts her exploits. His voice is nearly giddy as he raps, “I got a bitch that will master your card/Nice with the Visas, passports is art/Every page inked up, her and the bitches link up/They think they hear the drum in the machine when it syncs up.” Kash Doll plays the finesser to a T; they are a diabolical tag-team. As sinister Kanye-beeps click behind Pusha, he snarls about someone else for a change.