Big Sean has decided he is through being the underdog.

The Detroit-native has been criticized for being inconsistent throughout his career, with some contesting that while Sean possesses the ability to be one of the elite rappers, he is yet to find his identity as a rapper. As a result, Sean’s name tends to get overlooked. However, Sean revealed he is not bothered during an interview with Angie Martinez of Power 105.1 in New York City.

“I’m not looking at the [rapper] to my right or to my left, I’m just looking straight at that finish line,” Sean said. “I have felt myself get better, as an artist, as a person. Like I’ve been getting wiser, I feel like that’s effected the music too.”

While opening for Rihanna during the European stretch of her Anti Tour, Sean created most of his fourth album “I Decided.” The album, released on Feb. 3, indeed showcases Sean’s progression, exhibiting maturity as he demonstrates less of his selfish and braggadocios nature and allows his authenticity and compassion shine through.

“Honestly I had to take the time to let my ego go/Realized that that held us back and back’s not where we need to go,” Sean raps on “Owe Me.”

A majority of the album is retrospective of Sean’s shortcomings in life to this point and making amends. This is emphasized on the album’s front cover, which has a picture of two men, the one on the left being Sean in the present day and the man on the right being Sean in the future. The album is a brutally honest journey through Sean’s identity crisis, with the album’s title serving as a motivating phrase that speaks to the adage “only you can set you free.”

“Imagine you going through life and you failed at everything,” Sean said. “Your love, to your dreams, family. You dropped the ball and somehow you got a chance to go back and redo it all, so you go back but you got the wisdom of your older self.”

Sonically, the album maintains Sean’s hard-hitting trap-style with popular trap producer Metro Boomin on the tracks “Bounce Back,” “Voices in My Head/Stick to the Plan” and “Sacrifices.” Boomin’s in-your-face style masterfully allows Sean to enter destruction mode.

“N**** how dare you stand before me and not respect my authority/If you f*** with my glory, I’ma drop the L and get gory,” Sean raps on the album’s lead single “Bounce Back.”

Along with Boomin, Sean is also joined by Jeremih on “Light,” where he raps “this the flow that got Steph Curry inspired,” as well as his girlfriend Jhené Aiko, The-Dream, Migos, Starrah and The Flint Chozen Choir.

The biggest guest spot, however, is fellow Detroit-rapper and hip-hop legend, Eminem on the sinister track “No Favors,” where he absolutely spazzes out, channeling his alter ego, Slim Shady. In vintage fashion, he attacks everyone from Jamie Lee Curtis to Fergie, Lana Del Rey, Ann Coulter and President Donald Trump.

“Call Shady number 81/Surely I’m turning into the Aaron Hernandez of rap/State of emergency, the planet’s having panic attacks/Brady’s returning, matter of fact I may be deserving/Of a pat on the back, like a Patriots jersey,” Eminem raps on “No Favors.”

“I Decided.” is projected to debut at No. 1 on the Billboard 200 charts according to Billboard, which would be Sean’s second consecutive number one album and his fourth straight LP to debut in the top-five. Reaching the number one spot would mean toppling the meteoric rise of Migos’ album “Culture,” proving Sean has decided to stop “taking Ls” and start dishing them out.

“I Decided.” takes Sean’s career down a new path and quite possibly throws his name into the conversation for best rapper alive. Whether he claims not to be concerned with his competition or not, Sean definitely has a chip on his shoulder and perhaps it is time he receives more respect.

“I Decided.” was something his career needed, for he has had plenty of hits, but lacked that one great album. Sean comes up clutch, with his latest LP being his best work to date while discovering his identity, as he said “it ain’t about who’s better, it’s about what you’re saying.”