Da Band  - Too Hot for TV, Bonecrusher  - AttenCHUN!, Memphis Bleek - M.A.D.E., Joe Budden - Joe Budden, Chingy - Jackpot, Common - Electric Circus, Dead Prez - Get Free or Die Tryin', DMX - Grand Champ, 50 Cent - Get Rich or Die Tryin', Freddie Foxxx - Konexion, Freeway - Philadelphia Freeway, G-Unit - Beg For Mercy, Immortal Technique - Revolutionary Vol. 2, Ja-Rule - Blood In My Eye, Jay-Z - The Black Album, Lil' Kim - La Bella Mafia, Loon - Loon, Ludacris - Chicken-n-Beer, Keith Murray - He's Keith Murray, Nappy Roots - Wooden Leather, Nas - The Lost Tapes, The Neptunes - The Clones, Outkast - Speakerbox/The Love Below, Paris - Sonic Jihad, Raekwon - The Lex Diamond Story, Sheek Louch - Walk With Me, T.I. - Trap Muzik, Wyclef - The Preacher's Son, Westside Connection - Terrorist Threats

Da Band - Too Hot For TV

Release Date: September 30th, 2003

Between me and you, I think I got an ear infection listening to this album. I can’t prove it, yet but before I put it on I was fine. Seriously though, is it just me that can’t take these guys and gals seriously, as artist, as entertainers, ….as people. After months of watching Puffy attempt to whip a group of contest winning adolescents into an actual Rap/R&B group, listening to the final product makes me feel like I am listening to a cast of MTV’s “The Real World” do an album. The content of Too Hot For TV is basically more of the same stunt dummy gangsta' tripe that currently saturates the radio airwaves, but there is an added element to hearing it come from Da Band that is unnerving. Listening to Fred (the member from Florida with the gruff voice), Chopper (the member that sound like he could be down with those Hot Boys from New Orleans, where black men “do nothing but chill, fuck hoes, and eat food [probably fried chicken]”), Babs (the female rapper who sometimes sounds like Lil’Kim on the album), and Nes (the member from Philly that Fred put in a sleeper on national TV) talk about cooking and selling cocaine, robberies, and driving Bentley’s is even more ignorant and unbelievable than normal, especially after the world just watched Puffy send Da Band on a trek of several miles on foot, to get him a piece of Cheesecake. Just where did they get the money for these Bentleys and expensive things? It most certainly didn’t come from those 3 points out of 100 that the group (that’s 0.5 points per member) received for getting ripped off when they signed with Puffy. It didn’t come from Babs mother who as Babs laments on “My life” makes good money but is cheap, which causes Babs to “hit the streets and knock off a hunid' pack (that’s slang for a 100 pack of Crack cocaine) - so much hard middle class living, so little time. But hey, what else can one talk about on a rap album especially when if they don’t talk about such things you have Fred telling listeners they’ll need a “microscope” to see him up in the sky and Chopper telling his enemies they’ll catch “Down Syndrex” for messing with him (I think he meant syndrome). But enough about these children imitating grown and not so grown folks already in the music industry, what you want to know is whether or not this album is any good. Well no, it’s not, but if you are under 18 it may find some room in your rotation sadly enough. There are a few cuts that may earn a second listen such as “Like Your Style”, “Go Steady”, “Chopped Up”, and “How You Like Me Now”, but in the end it’s mostly bad ideas and worse execution. The biggest problems being with so many divergent minds and “talents” in the group not to mention the people handling the project, there is no vision of where Da Bands’ sound is going. Most of the time the album tries unnaturally to cram too many Band members on each song. If Da Band doesn't make much money from album sales, don't blame my review though, because Puffy already told them, they will have to make their money from touring. 

Bone Crusher - AttenCHUN!

Release Date: June 17th, 2003

I'll never forget several years ago when at an awards show (I believe it was the Source Awards) rap group Outkast was greeted by lukewarm applause and some booing in NYC while receiving a rap music award. The far-too-often-slept-on Andre 3000, ended his short impromptu acceptance speech by saying, "the South has something to say!" True indeed, the South does have something to say, some people (i.e. Outkast) just have more to say than others. A couple of years have passed since then and the doors of commercial success are now wide open for the next generation of Southern rappers such as Bone Crusher, Lil' Jon & the East Side Boyz, and David Banner. One of the more recent personas to pass through these doors, though he may have trouble fitting, is the Dirty South's own Bone Crusher. If you ever listen to the radio or have gone to a club recently and you still don't know who Bone Crusher is, he is the artist responsible for the ode to black-on-black violence also known as "(I Ain't) Never Scared". This "Never Scared" and engaging personality shines through on Bone Crusher's debut album, AttenCHUN!, too bad it's all so fake. Listening to this album it's apparent that their are a number of things that Bone Crusher is scared of, including putting any real thought, energy, or effort into his rhyme writing or song concepts; holding down a song by himself; directing some of his violent and negative energy at the things that make "his hood" so bad; or making any kind of break from the pimp-player-gangsta-trick mentality being so heavily promoted in commercial rap. But you know how the saying goes, "if their is one thing about n***as I do not like, ni@@as are scared of revolution!", or maybe they're just "Never Scared" of doing the same thing. Whatever the case, it seems that most of the songs on AttenCHUN! are just highly unsuccessful attempts to recapture the success of the album's lead single. AttenCHUN! is filled call and response hooks that end up sounding plain-old tired and make the album sound rushed. Not to mention I think this album may have shattered Eddie Griffith's record for use of the N-word. There are even a few songs where it seems Bone Crusher can't even think of anything, so on one song he finishes his verse by repeating the same expletive 8-9 times in a row. There are a couple of songs that are decent on the LP or at least bearable, such as "Ghetto Song", "Hate Ourselves", and "Grippin' The Grain" which I suspect will be the next single release but overall AttenCHUN! doesn't deserve a download, much less a purchase.  It's a shame that with all the starving artist, with something to say and something artistic to offer, dying for a chance in the just the South alone that what we get forced upon us is rappers who come up with song choruses that say "let me tell what Real Ni@@as do / if you ain't hustlin' or grindin' ni@@a f*** you", and then put out albums that reflects this same mentality mixed with what sounds like 50-Cent philosophy  ("Get Rich or Die Trying" or is it "get dead or get rich trying"?). Deep down, I think even Bone Crusher knows their is something seriously wrong with the content of his album as he even makes an effort to blunt some of the negativity with a song at the end of the album, "Hate Ourselves (featuring Goodie Mob)". Unfortunately for Bone Crusher, you just can't address the self-hatred, pathology, and violence espoused in almost every bar of the album with one song and you can't hide lazy and unimaginative music behind bounce beats and yelling. Pouring syrup on dog shit doesn't make it Pancakes! 

Release Date: December 16th, 2003

If I had to describe this album in one word, that one word would have to be, "uninspiring". After taking numerous walks through Memphis Bleek's 3rd LP, M.A.D.E., I finally figured out what was missing from Bleek as an artist. Putting aside the obvious content and perspective issues which I've come to expect, Bleek is just not a very interesting personality musically, and probably otherwise. Maybe it's the fact that he got into the rap game so early in life (allegedly at 15) that has stunted his growth and made him so short on personal experiences and growth, maybe not. Whatever the reason, despite a strong delivery and voice, Bleek's songs so often come off as dry, particularly when he attempts to rap over tracks of a slower tempo or 'smooth it out' like on "Hypnotic", "My Life", "Round Here", and "Need Me In Your Life". Bleek comes across best when both he and the track are full of energy, so he wins on cuts like "Everything's A Go" and "Murda Murda". But come to think about it, the last two aforementioned tracks both feature guest appearances by Jay-Z, and worse than that those are only half of Jay-Z's four guest appearances, and less than a third of the total guest appearances by other rappers. It's clear that Jay-Z is doing everything in his power to attempt to pass his own popularity to Bleek, but such attempts are often unsuccessful, because you just can't make everybody else like your apprentice the same way they liked you. The choice of guest appearances is also somewhat interesting, because although publicly people associated with the label have gone out of there way to say that everything is fine and everyone gets along, I think I have an idea of who (Cam'ron, etc) Bleek is talking about when he says "it's many dudes on the team (Rocafella) that ain't family now, and ya'll see it". I would gladly return to the days of 10-12 song albums with limited, and often timely, guest appearances over today's era of 17-20 song albums riddled with guest appearances, bad skits, musical filler, and material that probably should have stayed on the cutting room floor. Another area where M.A.D.E. seems to run into trouble is it's selection of song hooks, which many times are porous if not brutal, i.e. the songs "War" and "Hell No".  Overall though, M.A.D.E. isn't much different from any of Bleek's previous efforts so if you liked those then you may view this one as a small step up, if not sideways.

Release Date: June 10th, 2003

And ya'll thought my Kelly Price review was late! This Joe Budden disc has been posing quite the conundrum to me since I first gave it a listen. In fact, I had trouble listening to it, so I held back on the review because I didn't want to be unfair, I just couldn't get into it. I was basically disinterested. But I got over my apprehension and finally without further ado, here is the Gumby perspective. Joe's not bad as a lyricist, at least not as bad as many of his contemporaries, but the first thing that you notice about Joe's style is the similarity to a certain Shawn Carter. On more than a couple of tracks the likeness to Jay-Z's lyrical styling is overwhelmingly evident to me. More so in his inflections than anything, but I suppose if you're going to borrow from anyone you would want to borrow from a cat that's at the top of the game, which makes track number seven all the more perplexing. For a guy who turns in some fairly decent lyrics and shows some modicum of talent the cut "I Wanna Know" featuring Lil' Mo sounds like an out and out copy of a Jeffrey Atkins (Ja-Rule) special. The only thing missing was Ashanti! I mean, who wants to copy that kind of drivel? There are some decent tracks on the album, which give a nod to some of Hip-Hop's legends and ultimately allude to some of Joe's influences. Specifically the reminisce track titled "#1" which samples KRS-One from the BDP classic, and the tune "Pusha Man" which features a hook that recalls Slick Rick's "Teacha Teacha". However, much of this CD's content just tends to clash with many of my sensibilities. I don't really care about a lot of the things that Joe's talking about or gone through. Maybe it's because in some way, shape or form I've heard it all before, and though Joe's got some skill he's not brought much new to the table. There are some tracks that caught my ear though, and Joe gets props for them. The song apologizing to moms for being a difficult ass and/or blaming her for his missteps and such seems like it's been done so many times but better. I suppose I can understand Joe's need to voice those sentiments to his mother in a record, sort of like the ultimate recognition, but maybe that's something that needs to be done in a less public manner. But who am I to tell a dude how to apologize to his mama (I know, I'm wilin' out, right)? What does surprise me though is Joe's verses to his father on the track "10 Mins". Where so many cats go the obligatory route of reserving their most venomous lyrics for their absent fathers, Joe takes some bars to show his father some love and encouragement even though his father is on lock down. But another problem with this disc is the production. A lot of  Whiteboy's tracks just seem dusty or unpolished. The quality is just not on the same level with a lot of what's out there, as is evidenced by the lead single. Even though Whiteboy handled a major portion of the production the lead single from the disc is the runaway hit "Pump It Up", produced by Just Blaze. There are guest appearances by other recognizable names like Busta Rhymes (the other obligatory club song) and even 112 pops up (how long have they been on Def Soul now?). All in all, I think Joe's got some potential to be at least a middle of the pack kinda' guy, maybe even a little more, but I don't see him becoming a Hip-Hop all-star. That being said, standout tracks include the aforementioned (and widely spun) "Pump It Up", "#1" (what can I say, I love reminisce tracks), "Walk With Me" and "10 Mins".

Release Date: July 15th, 2003

I have heard Chingy's name referenced so many times on radio, in print, etc. I hear Chingy so many times, I just knew I was going to be blown away by this talented newcomer. I said let me get the bootleg CD first just to be on the safe side. That was a good move by me, because it was very hard to sit through this album. The fact that this guy is getting so many spins on the radio means that his label must be paying some station program managers some big money. I heard two of his singles on radio before and never paid much attention to who the artist were or that this was Chingy. But since they get constant radio rotation I found that I had a certain level of tolerance for Chingy. I figured that since rap veterans like Snoop were anxious to work with him on this album maybe he was really talented. So upon checking with my bootleg music supplier, I decided to pay the 2.00 and see what the newcomer had to offer. Well the answer is not much.

In fact I will even say that he is not talented but he is hooked in with the right people and that will take you very far in any industry but especially entertainment. The best tracks on the album are when Chingy is singing not rhyming. There is nothing creative about the album, not one track. Preludes about pimping with Snoop and “letting da hoes know who he is ” make up just a few of the overdone sophomoric fantasy tales. He approaches his debut album as if someone told him pussy was going out of style and he better get all he can get now. He has two solid radio plays songs from this album and those are the only two they you will probably like. If you buy this album from the store you will be extremely disappointed. In the spirit of Christmas I hear that Santa is giving Chingy’s album to all of the kids that have been naughty.

Release Date: February 11th, 2003

I'll keep it real with you, although Common's last effort, Like Water for Chocolate was decent, I was a little worried about ol'boy. I feared he was getting a little too far from his hip-hop, b-boy roots. His first choice for a single, "Come Close" did little to assuage my fears (but the video was tight). Later, finding out that the album would be titled Electric Circus didn’t help either. Maybe it's just me but circuses tend to make me think of things like psychedelic colors, wild animals, clowns, and other generally weird stuff. Still nervous, I checked the album credits to find that the Soulquarians (?uestlove, James Poyser, and other rotating membership) were the parties principally responsible for the beats. Don't get me wrong the Soulquarians are a very talented and top notch production crew, whose sound shines on cuts lie "Between You, Me and Liberation", but their laid back, soulful sound often works better with R&B, and only in stints with rap. The final tip-off came when I saw that almost all the guest appearances (Erykah Badu, Jill Scott, Cee-Lo, Bilal, Omar, Mary J. Blige, etc) were from the R&B/soul/funk genres). When I finally listened to Electric Circus, most of my biggest fears where realized. I couldn't help but wonder where the Common from One Day It Will All Make Sense had gone. The lyrical skill and insights on life and society are still there as evidenced cuts like "Soul Power" and "Aquarius" but from a musical standpoint he is apparently 'on some other shit'. In many ways, most of the album reminds me of an interlude from an OutKast album (which is cool - as an interlude!), or Cee-Lo's debut album. But where you knew and welcomed Cee-Lo's singing and musical experimentation, Common at times crosses that invisible line (no he doesn't sing but damn near everybody else does) between creative and just plain strange. Like a bad acid trip, this experimentation has landed Common in an difficult to reach world somewhere between hip-hop, funk, swing, new wave, and R&B; someplace where old Common fans may not be willing to go and potential fans have no interest in visiting. Maybe as Common says, "art and opinion are made to clash", and perhaps he is leading a "New Wave", the question is who will follow - I for one will be here when he gets back.

Release Date: October 21st, 2003

Since their critically acclaimed debut album, Let's Get Free, many people have been anxiously awaiting the next offering from the rap duo, Dead Prez. That wait has proven to be longer than anyone originally anticipated. A combination of record label difficulties coupled with a music business scene, hostile to any rap that does not revolve around misogyny, black-on-black violence, and buffoonery has led to a gap of 3 years and counting between their major album releases. As I write this, the second major album release from Dead Prez, slated to be titled, "Revolutionary But Gangsta", is being shopped to different labels and from what I've been able to hear, and the accounts of many, it's quite impressive. However, this is not that album. This is, Get Free of Die Tryin' (perhaps a response, but obviously a play on 50 Cent's album title) the second of two mixtapes/albums that DPs has released independently, and that have kept them on the radar during their hiatus. The first mixtape, titled Turn Off the Radio was truly a mixtape in the simplest sense of the word, packaging mostly old Dead Prez material and that of some of their close associates, over beats of some well known hit songs. The jewels of that offering being "Food, Clothes + Shelter, and "We Need a Revolution", which kidnaps Aliyah's "We Need a Resolution" and sets it ablaze. This time around there is still an abundance of airtime for some of DPs close associates, much of it not particularly helpful (well the Divine's cut "Baby Face" is decent), but there is also some strong new material. They even do an updated remix of ONYX's "Last Days" which features Fredro and Sticky Fingers trying to get a little political, .....well at least Fredro tried. But sometimes it's not even the social perspective of Onyx, which I expect to be more than a little skewed, that I worry about. Occasionally I worry about Dead Prez's perspective or at least their methods. Since the duo of M-1 and Stic(man) better known as Deap Prez, hit the scene they have made it clear that they are "conscious" but have no interest in coming across as passive or soft, and that's one of the things I've always liked about them. Socially conscious, or political Hip-Hop in my opinion, has long been in need of more artist that you don't picture, wearing open-toe sandals and dashikis when you listen to them, and could reach that so-called "street element". But sometimes, DPs sincere attempts to reach "the street" seem to cross the line into pandering. If change is going to happen then those who want to see it have to be honest about the current state of affairs, and trying to turn the N-word, and gang names into acronyms for something positive, or pretending Tupac was a revolutionary are questionable tactics at best. You can't take on the pseudo "thug mentality" being pushed and marketed to youth of color without deconstructing it and too often DPs does too much embracing and not enough deconstructing. Youth of color, who are obviously DPs target audience, need to understand that simply "rebelling" against "the system" and/or lashing out at societies bastions of power, without direction doesn't necessarily make one revolutionary ("power without perception is useless"). Putting those issues aside Get Free or Die Tryin' is pretty solid, when Dead Prez is on the mic, that is. The biggest standouts are "Window to My Soul" where Stic talks about his older brother's addiction to Crack cocaine and how it affected his family (I don't know if it's just a dope song or truly autobiographical) and "Real Black Girl (Revolutionary Love)". Other solid cuts include "Tallahassee Days", "Coming of Age", "Fuck the Law", and "When Mama Cries". Who knows how long the world will have to wait for the official release of Revolutionary But Gangsta, but in the meantime this something to nod your head to.

Release Date: September 16th, 2003

I once heard an elder say that 'wisdom is learning from another's actions' so at that point I can decide 'Is that the road I really want to take'. At that moment there is 'a choice'. In the hood you don't always see that choice until its too late and more often then elsewhere in America, growing up in "the Hood", a mistake can be fatal. That's why someone being honest can be somewhat of a breath of fresh air these days because you see the choice. If there is a Devil culture, its rawest form can definitely be found in the ghettos of America. Throughout history and as long as capitalism exist there will be a place called the Hood and there you will find the so-called 'underdogs of society'. Once again X is back with his fifth album entitled Grand Champ (canine term for 5 dogfight wins). DMX has been saying 'you can have this Rap sh-t' for a minute and that this will be his last album stating. Since Wah and Dee, founders of the Rough Ryders imprint, said (in the Oct '03 Source) they 'have X for 2 more albums' I don't know what's up. I do know on the radio last week, as he has stated before, he has a calling for the church and he will eventually become a Pastor. With hearing the changes in prayer from the first conversation-style lyrics in the original 'The Prayer' to the 'In Jesus name' affirmation-style in the lyrics of 'Prayer V' this may become a reality. He hasn't pushed his lyrical technique to any new heights on this album but his flow and techniques have never been a problem. DMX is what is know as 'block-rhymer' in hip-hop and I never expected it. DMX and many like him are a part of the Hood. His history and OG status as an MC can be heard when he raps 'I remember 50 in a cypher when Onyx was slammin' on this track (that's is '93 for those that don't know). He once again joins his Ruff Ryder imprint family on cuts such as 'We About To Blow', 'We're Back', 'Untouchable', and the familiar music industry and life thought provoking Double R skits such as Ruff Radio I and II. The DMX that was said to have been missing from most of the cuts on the previous two albums seems to be back for his position as top dog of Hiphop. DMX has said 'I am the streets' and has built on the position to bark a warning at trespassers of hip-hop and the original art form of Rap. There is a difference in a rapper 'glorifying the streets' and 'growing from the streets' in the hood you will often find both scenarios living on the same block. DMX, Jadakiss, and Eve display this in 'We're Back' when they rap about meaning 'what you say when you talk'. In the song 'A Yo Kato' (one of my favorite instrumental, flow, and content songs on this album along with many others) you hear what so many others have experienced throughout this life when you receive 'the call'. Other good songs on the album are 'Don't have to go home Tonight' (another choice in the dog-ish ways of a Man in 'What these bithes want'). Even the compilation cut with Cam' Ron 'We Go Hard' wasn't the disappointment I thought it would be. Also, knowing how popular being Gay is these days doesn't stop DMX from speaking very clearly on where he stands on the 'homo thug' issue. During a radio interview when the rumor he had smoked crack first surfaced (which he clearly speaks about in his book 'The Autobiography of DMX') he said, 'Yeah I did it. As a Man, you fall and you get back up. Being from the Hood you go through certain things. But how you gonna explain fucking a Man?!' (In response to Ja-Rule calling him 'crackman X'. Like many males during a fight or heated debate on any street in America you might hear a person say 'suck my dick you bitch ass fagot' as a form of disrespect to a persons True Manhood. This type of dialog is all over the album and can be nerve racking for SOME listeners and also misunderstood as 'gay bashing'. A lot of Men (naturally defined; see 'no Homo' in Playahata Dictionary) do not agree with any choice of a homosexual alternative which lately has sometimes been 'reversed' into 'homophobic labeling' by Gay sympathizers but I digress¦ for now. This will be the downside on the album for some listeners (Haters excluded!) along with another Swiss Beats Casio string and horns instrumental, the Patti LaBelle and 'The Prayer V' party-like instrumental which doesn't seem fitting to the lyrical content and spiritual vibe of the two cuts. And lastly, the 'block-hugger' mentality displayed at times will be the downside of the album and fuels the 'spin' Dr' Bill O'Rielly in his twist of this art form. Judging from the half a million record sales generated the first two weeks, word on the streets, internet, magazines, to the video and song request the X is being received quite well. Making him by sales, movie deals, the Hood, and mainstream as a whole the undisputed Grand Champ (i.e. Top Dog) in hip-hop. This has been and still is the metaphoric story of the Dog that became a Man. If you don't like it stay out the yard... and I pray you always have that choice.

Release Date: February 6th, 2003

50 cent is always putting his 2 cents in on everything and everybody. I USED TO LIKE THAT ABOUT HIM until I really listened to him and realized he is generally uninformed and will say anything to get some press. He's a funny dude and a excellent hype man. He constantly brags about surviving gun play. He survived 9 shots, yada ,yada, yeah but he doesn't tell you like 7 shots glanced off his ankle. I gotta take my hat off to him though, because he has folks believing the hype. He is like 2Pac on steroids of the mouth. The result is Get Rich or Die Tryin', probably the most anticipated album of 2003 (so far). This album shipped platinum, so their are huge expectations on it. I downloaded it , because I try not to let the hype open my pockets but when I was in the store, the cashiers had all the albums behind the cash register and they were asking any customers who brought rap albums, "do you want to buy the new 50 cent album." I am like damn is he paying them? The units were moving too. Its like he is being forced on the whole country. If I hear "In the club" one more time, I will slit my wrist !! Yeah its got a phat beat ready for the clubs but dawgz they killing us with those 12 spins a day. He has another club song called "U not like me" and 2 club hits should equal at least platinum sales. BTW on his Track called "Heat" he encourages the D.A.'s to listen to it and use it against him in court, mark my words that rhetoric is gonna come back to haunt him, apparently he is not paying attention and he doesn't think "Rapcointelpro" is real. But it's no surprise to me that history is a mystery to him. That's why he misconstrued and admonished Dead Prez for their politics recently telling them to "snap out of it" and stop trying to change the world, then he says KRS1 is no longer his favorite mc because he started turning into a teacher. 50 Cent says "when Krs1 came out with Criminal Minded ah man that was his ni@@a then. It was the story of my life." C'mon 50 give it a rest, you was 8-9 years old when that album dropped, how was it the story of ya life. We don't believe you, you need more people. I guess he's trying to stick w/ the outrageous commentary that put him on the map like when he came out with "How to Rob" (I  loved it). He recently told Time Magazine in an interview that being shot is funny, stating "I mean it’s not funny when you’re actually getting shot, but afterwards, yeah, it’s funny." On Ashanti he asked, "Am I trippin' or is her sideburns thick like Eddie Munster? Get her groomed and get her a choreographer. He speaks to the press about wanting to bone Mariah Carey since Eminem was done with her. As long as he keeps dissin' everybody he will keep getting press. Have you noticed that I have barely spoke about his album in this review? That's cause it don't make a difference what I say, he's gonna sell! Why? Because he is (1)controversial, (2)the king of the sound bite, (3)a master at drama, (4)on every station's playlist and even if you didn't like his music, you'll get used to it because its everywhere. 50 done mastered most of the formula for success in American pop culture. This album is basically just like his underground and mixed tape stuff the "nobody likes me anyway" chorus is like his lifelong mantra, but now that he has hooked up with Dr. Dre and Eminem, he's got media fanfare and with that at his disposal there is no stopping 50 Cent, like'em or not - Nuff Said

Release Date: June 10th, 2003

When I 1^st brought this album, I thought to myself  “Foxx tell us why you mad sun”. Freddie Foxxx sounds like the "Madd Rapper" on some of these tracks but he is no laughing matter, although some of the stuff he says is funny. His strengths are also his weaknesses on this album, those being emotion & frustration. This is a vintage Freddie Foxxx album, you have the cartoon art on the CD inspired by the graffiti element of real hip-hop & the disdain for materialistic lyrics & studio gangsters who rap. You gotta' know how Foxxx gets down, because he plays the dozens on others as part of his natural style. I don’t  think he meant to diss  Q-Tip when he said he watched him turn into Maxwell, or track 16 with the hilarious title “Gangsta’s Again” where he disses Jay Z. Some of his offensiveness is just him, being him, like when he barks on homosexuality or disses Jay Z.  I guess  that is just stuff that you do when you weigh 265 lbs & its muscle. Foxxx does do some intentional diss stuff & comes hard at Flavor unit, however. Believe it or not, to him its brotherly love. He can say what he wants because he is not trying to get rich & his $$ flow is said to be ok from his other projects, for example he wrote & produced TV commercials for a few companies, like Red Lobster, Omnipoint Cellular Phones, etc. He approaches music making like a movie trilogy he wants 3 albums and he’s out after that. Anyway all the tracks are copasetic except track 6, which has no flow. He may have noticed if he had not produced so many of the tracks his self under the name Hidden Agenda. He should have left the production to DJ Premier cause he gets too involved in this album. I like when an MC doesn’t have the 7 guest appearances from other artist but damn Bumpy doesn’t take a break on this album & it gets too intense for casual listening. So you left with an up-tempo hip-hop workout album  His range of subjects  matter on this Konexion has decreased from his debut album Industry Shakedown also. He chronicles the 9/11 situation but he should have rapped about it. Foxxx is still annoyed by corporate control of music and gangster rappers (much like me) but he spends too much time there & less on some of his more social  ideas like "New Millennium" which is the last track. When it comes to Freddie Foxxx a.k.a. Bumpy Knuckles let me say this “To one who  knows him, no explanation is necessary. To one who does not know him, no explanation is possible”- Nuff Said

Release Date: February 25th, 2003

Ole Boy debuted on the Billboard chart at number 3 which shocked many but not me. I know of a lot of dudes in Philly that love this guy. Come to Philly & see how many young people have the thick beards. I think Freeway probably sports the beard for religious reasons though. One thing is for sure he got a following, so don't sleep. I bet all of them copped this album. Plus he has so many guest appearances by other artist that if the other ten thousand artist brought the album that's like gold status right there. Okay I may not be the right person to review this because I am one of the few in Philly who don't really like his rap style, but I will take him over his homey Beanie Siegel any day. Freeway violates one of my rap album commandments by having more people starring on his album than he has solo's spots. He gets so carried away with guest spots that on his 2nd best track #15 called "You got me". It reads "You got me" featuring Mariah Carey, Freeway & Jay Z -I'm like it's your album, it's not "featuring you"! That's the mark of a rapper who should still be underground. Since his boy Beanie Siegel is coming out with the State Property line of clothing with hidden pockets that Siegel says are designed to hide drugs, I shouldn't be surprised that all throughout the album Freeway serves as an apologist for those from the inner city like himself who grew up poor & are selling drugs in their communities. Track 11-Victim of the ghetto does this, its followed up by track 12 called "You don't know" which does the EXACT same thing. I didn't do a scientific count but about 15 of 16 songs have drug references or references to murdering somebody else, preferably those in his own hood. Maybe he sees it as killing the competition some of us see it as poetic genocide. I wonder if he is still attending mosque, if so many will be terribly offended by this.

Release Date: November 14th, 2003

On the real, just between me and you, I'm tired of reviewing this album. Now, that may sound kind of strange since I am only doing one review of the G-Unit's debut Beg For Mercy, but when you've been hearing the same thing from seemingly every commercial artist's major label release, for the past few years, it makes perfect sense. I am tired of 18 songs, most of them weak, about selling drugs, "bling-bling", sexing "hoes", and killing everyone in your hood' - except anybody responsible for making life in "the hood" so hard. And I'm tired of putting on headphones only to have the artist whose album I just purchased threaten me with the most cruel and unusual of violations - I just bought your album dog, "why you wanna hurt me for" (well I didn't really purchase this album so that's for the rest of ya'll). On that note, I am not really going to go to deep into the content of this album. Quite frankly if you know anything about the short musical legacies of the G-Unit's membership, 50-Cent, Lloyd Banks, and Young Buck (formerly, and nearly, of Cash Money Records fame), then you knew what you were getting into when you put this album on. From just a listening standpoint much of the times,  Beg For Mercy, leaves a listener doing just that and it's hard to imagine the group members being any less creative than in their debut offering. The album starts off bad, with "Poppin' Them Thangs", which seems to only be missing two things, (1) inspiration and (2) "Nate Dogg". The next song, "My Buddy" is about, .... take a wild guess - a gun. Yes, even after this living "gun/girl/friend" concept has been done to death, and done better, by the likes of household rap names such as Ice Cube, Nas, Biggie, and Tupac as well as underground luminaries such as Organized Konfusion, the G-Unit feels the need to revisit it - they even throw in a sample of the movie "Scarface" to top it all off  (yes it's almost 2004, and these guys are still sampling "Scarface"). From there the album mostly meanders through songs, many of which such as "Groupie Love", "Better Ask Somebody", "Lay You Down", and "Eye for Eye", come across almost as if the members of G-Unit all just happened to show up at the same studio at the same time, so they decided to record some songs. The only things that prevents Beg For Mercy from being a total disaster is production (beats) that is at times stellar and 50-Cent's uncanny and unparalleled ability to come up with well timed and catchy song hooks, such as on tracks like "Stunt 101", "Footprints", "Beg For Mercy", and "G'D Up". "Wanna Get To Know You" which features R&B crooner Joe is one of the two obligatory "Thug Lovin'" cuts designed to show that "thugs and gangstas" may murder and main heartlessly and indiscriminately, but they need love too - although it is one of the better songs on the album. Perhaps Beg For Mercy sounds worse then it actually is due to the amount of hype that accompanied the album's release, probably not. In either case, the pop-culture machine currently has a lot more reach than I do, and judging by the constant promotion, simple rhyme styles, and catchy hooks of the G-Unit they shouldn't have any problem selling records with or without my blessing .

Release Date: November 18th, 2003

It's been a long time since I have felt even a little excited about a rapper, but after listening to the second underground salvo, Revolutionary Vol. 2, of  the Harlem bred, Latino sensation, Immortal Technique I can't help but recall the words of Tank from the first Matrix - "If you can do what they say you can .....wow...it's an exciting time to be alive". Lyrically, Immortal Technique almost makes up for all of the lame and pathetic wordsmiths to come out of Harlem in the last 8 years or so, and in terms of content his political outlook and social commentary is as sharp and incisive as anybody in the game, underground or commercial (as if there was anybody commercial with sharp social commentary). If you can imagine the ill metaphors and punch lines, fiery delivery (though not as smooth), and verbal gymnastics approaching those of a rapper like Canibus, but with a twisted and "Obnoxious" sense of humor, and a political and social consciousness that wouldn't allow you to foolishly join the army after September 11th (that was some dumb shit Canibus!) then you may in fact be imagining this MC (In fact, if you can actually find this album, which is an independent hip-hop gem, try pulling out and opening the album insert, and you will be witness to the most provocative and "controversial" artwork ever to be placed on an album). As a consequence of top-notch lyricism he may be the target of some of the same criticism ("talking over people's heads") that is often leveled at MCs, who actually still believe in such a thing as MC-ing, and encouraged to "dumb his raps down", but honestly there are more than enough "dumb raps and rappers" filling the nations airwaves. Maybe it's time for the listeners to "smarten their ears and taste up", besides the historical and current events references that he uses will, at worst cause listeners to miss a punch line or two, and at best will make them want to know what he was referring to.  The one thing that is slightly lacking on this LP is the production, which is sometimes underdone or just doesn't match the intensity of Immortal Technique's delivery. Revolutionary Vol. 2 probably could have used more production like on the cuts, "The Point of No Return" and "The Cause of Death", which seem to fit him more but the other positives about the album overpower this shortcoming. Revolutionary Vol. 2 also contains hardly any "throw away songs", even if you don't like a song, it has a point which is often evident in some form by the song's title or is explained on the liner notes inside the album. In addition the LP touches on many issues including American history and society and world events,  the media, to the shady dealings of the underground rap scene. He even manages to get death row prisoner and world renowned writer and activist, Mumia Abu Jamal on the album twice, and I'm not talking about a replay of one of Mumia's old speeches regarding something else, but two real features done for this album - Immortal Technique deserves props just for that alone. The album has a number of gems but "Peruvian Concaine", which has guest appearances by 6 underground MCs you may have never heard of - each of which telling a story and playing a character as it follows the path of  cocaine from a field in South America to the streets of the U.S. -  is a true standout in terms of creativity and originality and shows what a guest appearance is supposed to be about.

Release Date: November 4th, 2003

Ja-Rule Thanks: All The Black Leaders: Marcus Garvey, Malcolm X, Martin Luther King Jr., Nelson Mandela, Natt Turner, Hariett Tubman, Roy Wilkins, Muhammad Ali, George Jackson, Louis Farahkan - No I'm serious, this is what the pullout cover of Ja-Rule's latest effort, Blood in My Eye, says. I know, I know ... I also didn't know it was possible to make 9 deceased souls all turn in their graves at once. While we're talking about black leaders, by now you've probably heard how Nation of Islam leader Louis Farahkan has recently tried to broker a peace between the feuding camps of Ja-Rule and 50-Cent, but after listening to this album I'm not even sure why Ja-Rule bothered to meet with Minister Farakhan as this LP is certain to do nothing but fan the flames. Who would have thought that in the midst of a heated, bordering on violent, "beef" with 50-Cent and his camp that Ja-Rule would record a tribute album to 50-Cent. Of the 8, actually new, songs on the album more than half of them deal directly or indirectly with the feud. That's not counting the 3 skits and 2 "bonus freestyles" that attack 50-Cent, Eminem, Dr. Dre, etc. I don't have much good to say about the camps of Ja-Rule or 50-Cent but in these type of exchanges it's usually pretty easy to tell who is winning, hint, hint, McDonald's rarely mentions Burger King and Coca-Cola rarely mentions Pepsi in their advertisements. Blood In My Eye starts off with solid production on cuts like "The Life" and "Clap Back" but it isn't long before the album succumbs to a lack of direction, content, and most other things that make an album worth hearing. Ja-Rule raps like a man swinging at ghost, responding to 50-Cent's barbs ad-nausea not so much because he wants to but because the rise of 50-Cent, Eminem, etc is clearly maiming his popularity and record sales. He's seems so flustered and bothered by the situation that for this album Ja-Rule has completely scrapped the Rap/R&B hybrid songs that put him on the verge of superstardom and made him a multi-platinum artist, instead opting to try and wrestle the legacy of Tupac's Thug Life back into his corner using a number of guest appearances by one of Tupac's close associates (Hussein Fatal, formally of the Immortal Outlaws). I can't say where Ja-Rule or Murder Inc. goes from here on the rap front, but hey at least they still got Ashanti.

Release Date: November 14th, 2003

Looks like Jay Z's last album will be his most hypocritical and aggressive self-promotion effort, yet. It will also probably be his most personal. In addition he finally acknowledges his relationship with Beyonce beyond the Damon Dash interview. In fact he said she is the #1 chic in pop culture on track 10 and he shouts her out frequently. I guess I now believe that Jay was telling the truth when he said that he never writes his lyrics down. He must be part genius in that sense. If he wrote down his lyrics he might read them and recognize his MANY contradictions. When Jay Z says he is like Che Guevara with bling on, it's a total oxymoron. Che was a communist revolutionary, the complete opposite of "Bling" in philosophy, and Jay quite frankly is status quo, not revolutionary. Its appropriate that the Black Album is his "swan song" cause there is much singing on here. I thought that after his last album he would try more new things but instead he dropped back a few notches. Going back into the high misogyny, narcotic glorification, pimping endorsements and slight miscegenation. However, since this is his last work it's going to sell based on its farewell significance and it being the last work of a rap icon.

"What More Can I Say" is probably his most notable track; there's something compelling about it. Jay slights many when he says -"I don't wear jerseys, I'm 30 plus" it remains to be seen if this will hurt NFL sales because on this same track J already claimed to be the most influential man in pop culture capable of changing or starting trends. Of course that line is bogus cause Jay been 30 plus for a few years and he been rocking the NFL Jersey of at least 12 players up until the last 10 months Since finding Beyonce's love, you only find him in designer suits but that's still new. At the same time he test his pop culture influence by dissin' the wearing of Jerseys as "young" and says those 30 need to "button up" (wear suits or dress clothes). J also introduces the name of Professional Ferrari Driver Michael Schumacher as a top dawg. Only time will tell if people start referencing him but I doubt it. The "What More Can I Say" chorus is hot and unbeknownst to most it appears Jay is taking obvious parting shots at 50-Cent not Buster Rhymes as Buster assumed. This is the most brash and angry track he's ever done which is not aimed directly at any particular rapper in the form of a diss. J appears bitter about the way the industry has treated him the last 2 years. Telling fans they're going to be "sorry when he's gone". Another Notable track is "Moment of Clarity" aimed at people like me who criticize his level of social consciousness. Believe it or not Jay has a track that complains about drugs in his community called "Justify My Thug". To hear him do that is almost like a Jedi mind Trick. Jay calls on the Governor and President reminiscent of an old Nas track called "I Want to Talk to You". On the track "December 4" Jay-Z's momma narrates, seemingly lending insight to his lyrics but not quite co-signing it. But at a personal net worth of about 30 million she will probably co-sign anything he says. Jay still can flow but flow alone doesn't make for a great album.- Nuff said

The most interesting songs on the album are when Jay-Z reviews his career and thought process particularly "My First Song", "Allure", and the brooding, Eminem produced, "Moment of Clarity", which despite that fact that he only recently began producing records, has Eminem written all over it. In "Moment of Clarity", Jay-Z rhymes that for the most part he's made conscience decisions to rap certain ways at times (simplify rhymes) and about certain things ("Money, Cash, Hoes") because financial success in the industry isn't primarily about skills or talent, as he rhymes "if skill sold, truth be told / I'd probably be /lyrically Talib Kweli" and that he would "like to rhyme like Common Sense, but he sold 5 million and ain't been rhyming like Common since". Jay-Z drives home the point on several songs, that he chose to approach the rap game from the perspective of a "hustler", meaning that few things are more important than the bottom line. Although he alleges that he hoped his financial success would allow him to make a difference in other ways. Only Sean Carter knows how honest and truthful such a statement about his career is, but at least for this album, he makes listeners want to believe him. He also makes listeners believe that this will be his last album, and truth be told I think it will be, outside of a few appearances on other people's albums and some mix-tapes (this could all change however, is his relationship with Beyonce turned really sour, really fast). Somehow I don't think this whole retirement bit is just a sales ploy, although Jay-Z indicates that he might come back "like Jordan wearing #45". It seems that personally Jay-Z is entering a different space in his own life, which probably makes sense since he'll be turning at least 34 this December. Outside of those already mentioned, The Black Album does have contain several other winning songs including the rock laced "99 Problems", the reggae tinged "Lucifer", and the strangely amusing, "The Threat". Although The Black Album doesn't come across as the final chapter in a career judging by some of the songs that were selected for the album, such as "Change Clothes" which seems to have made it only because the Neptunes produced it and it's very radio friendly, or "Encore" which simply misses the mark, if this is the end it's not a bad closing chapter.

Overall: B :Review by Eyecalone

Release Date: March 4th, 2003

I didn't think I would get to review this album because their was a major bootleg CD bust & 1/2 million bootleg CD's got confiscated by 5-0 recently. The whole eastern seaboard was on drought. But lo & behold my boy Hustle Man came through with the 2 for $3 deal. As female MCs go, Lil' Kim is one of the most prominent, with a following that taps into both urban & mainstream audiences. She is more like a socialite because even though she hasn't had an album in approximately 3 years (her 2000 release "Notorious K.I.M.-sold 1.3 million units)", she still appears in the media regularly. She said with this album, "I really want to reach the Midwest & the West, audiences that I haven't gotten a chance to touch" (Parents beware, this harlot is about to hit 33 cities). This is her 3rd album and ain't much changed with her except she apparently has cut loose the Junior Mafia crew, particularly Lil' Cease, who she disses on the album and basically accuses of being a thief and a freeloader. Her lyrics have special appeal to chickenheads, strippers, college age males & wankstas, but the slick thing is that most of the tracks are for the clubs, where almost anything goes. So don't be surprised, she might go double platinum before its all over. Plus she got some tight production from producers like Timbaland & Swizz Beatz. WARNING this album is raunchy. It's like a GUN, if you have kids it shouldn't even be in ya house. Another ploy is that Lil Kim is appealing to the triple L in young men -loins, lust, & libido. Unless you a eunuch their is a good chance that some of her lyrics will resonate with you. She promises to give brothas' brains & allow thug men access to the anus - I guess it's the curious nature of many young men. Personally I won't call a 1-900 number but I've often wondered what that call is like. After La Bella Mafia I think I know. Extreme materialism, shock skits & wild sex are Kim's constant theme's. In addition, her constant homage to B.I.G will win her sentimental favors with many cause the "Notorious B.I.G" has a cult following in rap & despite the fact that B.I.G's mom (Violetta Wallace) dissed Kim a week before the album release saying she wished "B.I.G. had blown her brains out". The association between B.I.G. & Kim is something everybody is aware of & she exploits it to the fullest calling herself Mrs. Frank White (B.I.G's alias or other ceremonial titles like Queen of NY). She said a lot of funny, wild, & ignorant stuff on this CD like "I would rather be dead & rich than poor & alive". But hey it's Lil Kim what you expect. -Nuff said

Release Date: October 21st, 2003

Oh shit! Mase is back! Well not really, but listening to this album you'll find yourself hard pressed to tell me the difference between Mase and Loon, besides the year. True they don't sound exactly alike but the laid back flow and P.Diddy's formula for success is much the same. This time Puffy may even have an extra trick up his sleeve, as it appears P.Diddy plans to play on Loon's apparent sex appeal with the ladies. Overall Loon's self-titled debut album, much like his persona, is ho-hum and the album is about 3-4 songs too long. The LP doesn't stand out, although there are a couple of songs directed at the club scene, like "How You Want That" and "Down For Me", which are already getting serious spins, which in a nutshell is probably most of P.Diddy's plan. At least this time Puffy is actually promoting somebody on Bad Boy, other than himself. Also listening to the lyrics of the album I'm even more confident I know who has been writing Puff's lyrics as of late. If you were a Mase fan then you'll probably like this album. For the record I was never a Mase fan. So why am I smiling after listening to this album? Did I like it? Not really, but I did just save a bunch of money on my car insurance.

Release Date: December 9th, 2003

A lot can be said about Atlanta's Chris Bridges a.k.a. Ludacris, although when FOX New's Bill O'reilly was orchestrating the boycott that eventually had him removed from a Pepsi ad campaign, Ludacris didn't seem to have much to say for himself (although he throws some insults in the direction of the "Faux News", media pundit on the album he doesn't come back with much in the way of a response about the situation). In some ways not having, or running out of things, to say could be the theme for Ludacris' 3rd major label LP release Chicken-n-Beer (that title makes me cringe). The album starts out strong enough with "Southern Fried Intro" where Ludacris shows some versatility in his flows and does it high-speed, "Twista" style. This is followed up with "Blow It Out" which is another decent cut and rolls right into the album's "club-banging" lead single "Stand Up". Ludacris scores again on the next song "Splash Waterfalls", which features an unnecessarily lewd hook, especially once you hear the radio edit version of the song. Even the next two cuts "Hard Times", featuring Carl Thomas and Tennessee's 8-Ball and MJG, and "Diamond in the Back" which is built upon William Devaughn's excessively sampled tune of the same name, come across decent. But then, it's almost as if Ludacris gets lost or maybe he simply ran out of song ideas, because the album takes a serious downturn. And when out of ideas, Ludacris, a man who has an admitted infatuation with strippers, has no problem going to his fall back option - debauchery! From that point the misses just keep coming with Chicken-n-Beer, with a number of unsalvageable songs like "Screwed Up", "P-Poppin", and "We Got" forcing quick use of the skip button. Overall as an album I've heard worse, and Laducris' sense of humor, charisma, and verbal dexterity, make Chicken-n-Beer at least listenable, content notwithstanding.

Release Date: July 15th, 2003

As everybody knows Keith Murray spent a couple of years in jail and missed some key time career-wise. The brotha' seems to have anger management issues and his album wouldn’t make you think otherwise. On the albums first track Keith tells sucka' rappers to eat the peanuts out his shit. But as disturbing as that image is, He's Keith Murray doesn't stay completely stuck in the completely lewd and foul. I can tell that Keith Murray doesn’t want anybody to get his album on bootleg because Keith has one of those interactive CDs which grants access to exclusive audio, videos and passwords when you put it in your pc, but on the bootleg that won’t work. Although you can access a lot of extra stuff through his website. www.Kiethmurray.com, it turns out many of those features are not totally active either since Keith was dropped from Def Jam less than a month before his album hit the market and his website sits on the Def Jam server. His website is built off a "Alice in Wonderland" theme. It’s one of the wildest rapper websites I've ever seen. The cartoons are crazy, and make sure you check out the silhouette of the figures in the car on the website. Murray has been in the industry a long time but this is actually only his 3rd album. I expected to see more creativity in terms of lyrics. On this album, Keith borrowed from a number of older school artist lyrically, but instead of outright bitin', he really seems to be paying homage. 

He's Keith Murray is diverse in terms of the production. The album includes some gems like "Christina", "The Carnage", "Child of the Streets" and "Candi Bar" which are A+ tracks. These tracks would be street and commercially successful if other artist beside the “big six” could get more playing time on radio. But the only time other artist get on radio is the day their album “drops” or if they just got in some trouble with the law. I can see why Keith became agitated that Def Jam was not marketing him correctly. He probably felt that this is a commercial album with lots of crossover appeal (could easily sell ½ million copies in today’s market) but it’s not an overt reach to the ”other” fan base. Its still vintage Keith Murray and he has the usual suspects riding with him who are (like him) also hyper guys like Redman, Def Squad and Busta Rhymes. Busta is one of those screaming rappers and Keith has a lot of that in him also. So his guest appearances are consistent with his personality. However the skit out takes with Jamie Foxx are not funny for people over 19, Jamie could have done all his jokes on 1 opening track in the beginning or at most 2 BUT Jamie Foxx is on like 4 intro tracks and he shouldn’t be. In the end Erick Sermon brings excellent production for Keith and he gets his swagger back it will be interesting to see what he will do without the shackles of Def Jam now that he is an independent.

Release Date: August 26th, 2003

Some people say that Nappy Roots first album was better, some people say Nappy Roots are straying from their roots, some people say Nappy Roots is trying to go commercial. Their may be some truth to any one of these claims, but the one thing I can say with some confidence is that Nappy Roots sophomore effort, Wooden Leather, is a tight album. Sure their may be a few cuts at the album that were better left unrecorded "War/Peace", "Light & Dark", "Roun' The Globe (remix)" and their may be a few more songs that are more "radio friendly", but the good completely outweighs the bad. Following the success of their platinum selling debut Watermelon, Chicken, and Grits, I imagine that one of the biggest fear of fans, and maybe even group members, was that Nappy might fall victim to the infamous "sophomore jinx" especially with the group's initial success coming as somewhat of a surprise. But the 6-man crew from Kentucky gets it done again with a combination of clinging tightly to their southern roots, the  down-to-earth rhymes that many people appreciate them for, and the addition of a little star power in the production arena.  The Kanye West produced "These Walls" is one of several standout songs on the album, and they even manage to enlist the talents of the Raphael Saadiq for cuts like "Leave This Morning" and "Work in Progress". Other standouts like "Good God Almighty", "Sick and Tired", and "Push On" - the latter two, assisted by the soulful vocals of Anthony Hamilton - manage to get heads nodding without big name producers. Then their are cuts like "No Good" and "Lac Dogs & Hogs" that leave no doubt that Nappy Roots hails from the South. And despite some seemingly minor changes in content, probably encouraged by some A&R industry flack to "reach a wider audience", when the group does a song about a car ("Lac Dogs and Hogs") or a women's curves ("Twang"), it doesn't come across as ignorant or extremely misogynistic as most of the songs dominating today's radio. Probably not since Goodie Mob's first 2 albums has a group with more than two members represented the south so well and made listeners feel so in tune while doing it, although six members may be overkill for a rap group (especially since I don't know the names of any of the group members or what picture goes with what rhyme). Overall though, despite a few minor hitches, Wooden Leather doesn't disappoint. 

Release Date: September 24th, 2003

I can tell that Nas wrote many of these songs at the same time in which he composed Stillmatic cause he was still in that "zone" on some of them. This album seems to be made up of the tracks that didn't make the last album, they probably got pushed out cause the tracks dissin' Jay Z and others had to make it on the earlier album. I enjoyed this album but the shit was short, only 12 tracks, which is paltry these days. Doesn't he realize that doe is tight in a double dip recession economy and cats ain't coming out their pockets unless you have at least 14 joints. To compound my dissatisfaction, my Columbia contact informed me that Nas signed with Murder, INC., which means there is a good chance that, that pink fur, wearing Pablo Escobar (alter ego) of his may be back on the next album and this may be the last we see of the great Nas. This album has the gully and authentic lyrics like "the verse which says, I don't like the way that P-Diddy did Shine with different Lawyers ...", that came from nowhere but he was just on some "phuck it", whatever is on his mind. He has some political and social tracks on here which I like in my music. This pumps in ya car or walkman but I don't expect it to go platinum especially with the light marketing. Nas made this LP for himself and hoped that others like it, I did.

Release Date: August 19th, 2003

I think they should have named this album, The Neptune's Mixed tape. Let's look at who is on here Busta Rhymes, The Clipse, Nelly, Pusha T, Ludacris, Nas , ODB, Kellis, Jay-Z, Snoop, Jadakiss and the list goes on. Pharell is the most high profile member of the Neptunes the other two are Chad and Robert Walker. Don't know much about Robert Walker as the Neptunes are always photographed and presented as a duo of Pharell and Chad. Chad is viewed as a skateboard dude and there is some skateboard music on this album which is all instrumental. However this skateboard music seems so out of place crammed right in the middle of this album. Its seems like an production error. I guess one can't be too surprised since the NEPTUNES refer to themselves as NERDS. However, Nerds get that moniker because they are focused on lofty academic or scholarly things, they pay little attention to the things that are supposed to be cool. Instead approximately 12 of the 14 lyrical tracks on the album feature guest artist talking about topics that they think will make them seem cool and get them radio play, like drug dealing, and pimping hoes. Although many popular rappers are on this album they ain't talking about much of anything. I was feeling track "Frontin" with Jay Z but that may be only because I hear it on the radio 24/7. I liked "It Blows My Mind" also but I don't even understand what the lyrics are really saying. I just got bored with the album to be truthful, I mean Just because the Neptune a.k.a. the "Nerds" are also known as "Startrack" that doesn't mean that every track has to have a guest on it. It's worth a download but if you thinking about buying this, with all due respect pay your bills first. -NUFF SAID

Release Date: September 23rd, 2003

A double album from a duo featuring a solo album by each member - leave it to Outkast to be the first. Possibly the tightest group to do it in today's era and definitely the most creative, the duo of Big Boi and Andre 3000 are back with their 5th album, Speakerbox/The Love Below. People seem to have been wondering about the possibility that this dynamic duo might break up since the 2nd or 3rd Outkast album, although it's not really clear where this speculation has come from. Maybe it's that the two personalities that make up the group appear so different on the surface. Maybe these perceived differences are the reason that the group chose to approach this album in this fashion. Maybe this was the only way for both artist to fully express themselves and keep the group together, especially in light of the fact that Andre 3000 has indicated that he is somewhat bored with rap in several music magazines. Whatever the reason, something special has been done here, both musically and creatively.

But Outkast is a duo and there is certainly no reason to forget Big Boi or his solo disc, Speakerbox. While Andre 3000's disc is definitely all Andre in sound, Big Boi's album while far from boring or uncreative, sounds more like an album that Outkast would have done as a duo. While Andre has built a reputation for being "out there" Big Boi's persona is far more of this world - particularly the greater Atlanta, GA area with all of it's "SouthernPlayalisticity" (try pronouncing that). Fortunately neither member of Outkast is a slouch lyrically or musically, because Big Boi's disc is most definitely rap and also a strong solo offering with a definite sound all it's own. Listening to Speakerbox at times is almost like putting on a loud dress suit, some "Gators", grabbing your walking cane, and hopping into a Cadillac. The sound of songs like "Bowtie", "The Way You Move". and "Knowing" bring this type of 70-ish, ‘pimpish’, imagery to mind. Then there are other times when Speakerbox takes the listener onto a street corner such as songs "Bust" of "Flip Flop Rock" featuring Killer Mike and Jay-Z. But the tour of Big Boi's mind doesn't stop there because other cuts such "War" and "Church" take listeners into Big Boi's mind and politics while "Unhappy" and "Reset", which is one of my personal favorites, leave you in a far more serene place. Overall Speakerbox is a strong and musically varied effort. And overall Speakerbox/The Love Below are efforts that few duos or solo artist could have pulled off successfully. Hopefully Outkast doesn't intend to break up as they have always maintained but it's good to know that the choice to remain a duo is in fact a choice.

Release Date: September 23rd, 2003

The key to knowing if an album is dope: It has over 14 tracks and you do not skip any of them after listening to it over 5 times. This album has 16 tracks and I didn't skip any, what a major accomplishment in 2003. Paris has done something huge. I only hope that this classic won't be treated like a classic GO-GO Music album and ignored. Those of us in the D.C. area feel me on the Go-Go Music treatment.

If you want to know where all the great West Coast artist have gone, look no further. I don't know if Paris is actually considered a great west coast artist by the general public but this album is definitely great, it's going to be a collectors item. This is actually the first Paris album I ever brought and I had not really heard anything from him since 1992' when his name was in the media all the time due to the controversy involving his album's artwork and President George Bush Senior. He has had music released between that time and now, so I am feeling like I must have been missing out on something and I might have to go to his website and order those missed albums. The content on this album is amazingly filled with current historical anecdotes, its academic, political and funky. Nothing soft about it in any aspect so I had to make sure that I purchased the clean version with the bleeping of the curse words - I have kids you know. If you believe in conspiracy theories, you realize that after its official September 23rd release Paris' might just disappear. When the rap intellectuals of today start labeling albums as classic and noting them for historical rap relevance I predict Sonic Jihad will be an album they speak about. If they don't mention it they will be regarded as "suspect" in my book. Most of the album has a real serious west coast feeling but its the type of West coast feeling that everybody used to love when Ice Cube made Death Certificate. I was looking for something to hate on with the album but I couldn't find anything in any of the 16 tracks. I had forgotten that an album could be so entertaining and educational at the same time. All the information in his Guerrilla News Network- Aftermath: Unanswered Questions is on this album in rap form and more. The best thing is that this is more than just a political rap album. The quotes and artwork on the CD alone are worth the purchase. Its a good day for rap music. My Favorites are "Evil", "What Would You Do", "AWOL", "Ave Bushani" and "Split Milk".

Release Date: December 16th, 2003

The album title begins the myopic vision, Raekwon telling the tales of a unknown fictional hustler and gangster named Lex Diamond. That doesn’t automatically spell doom but I was suspicious that this LP was going to be a few notches below his Only Built 4 Cuban Linx album (I love that crazy album). Unfortunately, there was no RZA on any of the production (sample clearance problems) so Raekwon went a different route, beat wise. Raekwon says his fans wanted it like that but you don’t expect mix tape flavor from Raekwon. According to him “This album right here is nothing but hard beats. I came a little bit more gritty because that's what my fans wanted. They want me on that street sh*t. But at the same time I'm a conscious MC so I kind of mashed all of these thoughts together amongst hard beats.” I have to disagree, this is not what Raekwon fans want and you can’t be too conscious of an MC when you have drug glorification issues throughout even if the drug glorification comes in the form of guest artist bragging about how much weight they dropped on the block and who they killed over it. It’s hard for today’s MC to actualize being hard and tough without equating it with selling drugs and the homicides that ensue. I think Rae wanted to copy the success of his first album but not do the same thing as his last. However, he makes the mistake of being be too different from either of his previous works. When you are the type of artist that he is, that has a fan base that require certain integral things, you have to stay focused. Rae can still flow but conceptually this is not a vintage Raekwon album. Rae is not known for being the hardest rapper he is known for being original and clever something that is only present on skits and intro's. Rae of the Wu-Tang Clan is a different person on this album. Rae told Hiphopdx, “Why a ni$$ can't get a GRAMMY for being the hardest mutherf@*ker out there? It shouldn't be based on money and popularity. It should be based on originality and authenticity." Originality and authenticity is exactly what is missing. It’s too many tracks like # 7 that have that brick (drugs) talk, "Planet of The Apes" has D-Block on it and they taking that rah,rah. He tries to praise women on "Ice Cream pt.2" but then he embarks on a path of the most profane type of "accolades". He tempers it all with some humor like on the 9th track and various intros and skits but the martial arts acknowledgement that Wu-Tang is known for is absent from this creation. Without it Rae gets a little lost, but that was a plus in the case of the 19th track which is actually an R&B gem featuring some unknown songstress, however it doesn’t feel right on this gritty album. I longed for more of the creativity that he exhibited on the cut "Missing Watch", but felt the vibe on "Wyld in Da Club", which is targeted for the club. - nuff said

Release Date: September 16th, 2003

My younger cousin pleaded with me to review Sheek's solo debut album. I wasn’t going to initially but I said ok let me borrow your CD and see what is up with this. All the other members of the Lox have solo albums and he is supposed to be the best lyricist according to my lil' cousin. In the end (5 Listens ) I only liked 4 of the 14 tracks. He carries about 60% of the album without guest appearances by other D-Block a.k.a. The Lox members. You all remember the Lox, they used to be down with P-Diddy but they broke away cause they said they was too hardcore to wear those shiny suits and dance with Puffy. Well Sheek could have used some of that Puffy mentoring to tone down the rhetoric on this album, this album was over thug/gangsta. Although P-Diddy has no creative control over this album, he is still getting paid off of them, you’ll notice Justin Combs Inc . listed on many of the tracks. But back to the overcooked gangsta' tracks. I am listening and I hear a lot of  “why u looking at me” …BOOM “ya dead cause I am too rough”. Its so violent that it wouldn’t make any sense even if this was a serial killer rhyming. Word is dude can fight, ( he has Beanie Sigel scared to death ) but on to the tracks.... well Walk With Me through them.

(1) "For You" - this track is about he is gonna' kill people for minding his business. (2)"OK"- this is a nice club track. (3)"Turn it up" Sheek re-affirms his toughness over a catchy chorus. (4)How Many Guns - The title says it all, on this track Sheek shoots up everybody in the hood without explanation. (5)"In/Out" - a lot of descriptive ways of how to kill, this is what I call video game murder. (6) "I Ain't Forget" - it's a smooth track (7)"Walk With Me" - is a song exploring future unity that seems out of place considering all the violence advocated on the album. (8) "Crazzy"- song lyrics show Sheek's infatuation with Guns (9) "Ten Hut" - Sheek outshines Jadakiss lyrically in this contest of violent bravado. (10) "How I Love You" - re-hashed metaphoric song of how he is in love with rap. Okay let me sum up the last 4 tracks because they are about ALL about drugs, drug dealing, scheming on crews, killing and other evils that you think he would have said the same exact thing and merely changed the beat. It’s a shame too because I really want to like track 14. He has this amazing boot camp chorus for D-Block. The type of mantra you learn in the army or camp and you can sing as a group. It’s that mantra of  “everywhere we go (repeat) the people wanna know (repeat) - stop if u been to camp or anything similar .You know what I am talking about - Nuff said

Release Date: August 19th, 2003

The "Kingofdasouth" sounds like an awful lofty proclamation for a rapper so early in their career, but as T.I. says he's "no more arrogant than he needs to be". And when you take into account that while this is only T.I.'s second major label release (his first, "I'm Serious" dropped in 2001 and went nowhere), he has been an acclaimed fixture on the southern underground scene for a couple of years now, it sounds a little less far-fetched. After listening to Trap Muzik, T.I.'s claim to royalty moves from the realm of simple boastfulness to a distinct possibility, at least among the new crop of rappers to come out of the south in the last few years. This effort could have easily slipped under my radar, particularly because "24s ('cash and clothes /money rolls/ that's how all my ni@@as roll')" was arguably the worst and most mind-numbing song on the album - and consequently the first single. I was left with little choice other than to assume that Trap Muzik, would go the way of so much of the ignorant and outright terrible music dominating the radio airwaves and masquerading itself as hip-hop has gone; that is to appeal to the most base and degenerate aspects of pop culture. But while Trap Muzik, does contain a fair share of the seemingly ubiquitous references to selling drugs, hoes, and materialism I wouldn't be giving you the full scoop in pretending that, that is all this album is about. Production from notables such as Jazze Pha, David Banner and Kanye West holds the listener’s attention throughout the album, but there is something different about this guy in comparison to a lot of the "new breed" of southern or southern-styled rappers whose names are all over the Billboard charts, and that something is mainly two things. T.I. can actually rhyme, and as far as I know, he is for the most part the persona he has created. "The Trap" as he calls it seems to represent two things; it is a slang reference for selling drugs, particularly the house or houses, and hoods he used to do it in and the fact that as he states so clearly the drug game is a trap (as evidenced by his alleged 7 felony criminal record). Songs like "Be Better than Me" and the Kanye West produced "Just Doing My Job" (you guessed right, more sped up old soul records) reflect an introspective and at least partially, aware T.I. and don't at all come across as the contrived and pseudo- positive records "gangsta" rappers often place at the end of their albums to clean up the first 15 cuts of refuse that preceded it. Everybody will eventually hear the infectious and David Banner produced "Rubber Band Man", or maybe a mediocre song like "Bezzle" due to the name recognition (features southern legends, Eightball & MJG and Bun-B of UGK), or maybe even a tune like "Let's Get Away" which could be a single if it were a lot less vulgar and descriptive. But these are not the songs that really make this album. The real gems are the songs you probably won't ever hear unless you hear the album, such as "No More Talk" (which has a sick beat), "Be Easy", "T.I. Vs T.I.P." where T.I. takes on the himself and critiques his shortcomings, and "I Still Luv You", one of the most sincere sounding confessions on wax that I've heard, where T.I. asks forgiveness from his ex-girlfriend, grants forgiveness to his dead father, and begs forgiveness from his daughter whose existence he hadn't previously acknowledged. Overall there are of course still some content issues for me, and a couple of songs do drag Trap Muzik down slightly, but I wouldn't suggest missing the album altogether. T.I. is further proof that you don't have to make "crunk music" in order to be "crunk" and all the way southern.

Overall: B :Review by eyecalone

Release Date: November 3rd, 2003

The Preacher's Son is not really a showcase of rap music. It is an example of a hip-hop artist just making music. He has about 6 tracks that are actually considered rap. The rap tracks are really tight especially the ode to a better day in hip hop called "Industry". Wyclef was even able to get Patti Labelle into the mix on "Celebrate", but then again Patti loves rap music, so she probably loved doing the track which is pretty tight. I was feeling "Party to Damascus" with Missy Elliot also. Of the other songs that are partial gospel, reggae, and R&B in a hip-hop style probably the best of track is called "Who Gave the Order with Buju Banton". Wyclef does a lot of singing on this album so I hope you don't mind experimenting if you buy this. The album is soothing and eclectic. Nobody selling drugs or getting killed on wax. More important is that although he has about 12 guest appearances they are all legit. The tracks are written around the artist strength and they keep with the spirit of the album, so when Redman comes on he is not coming on crazy and flipping out in an animated fashion. This is a rare situation when multiple guest appearances help rather than hurt the flow and concept of what the central artist is trying to do. This is in line with stuff Wyclef used to do with the Fugees. I know the word on the street is that Wyclef "shitted" on Lauryn Hill and destroyed the Fugees but I gotta' call it like I hear it, and although I downloaded this album it is worth the consumers money! - Nuff said

Release Date: December 9th, 2003

"We used to sell raw, kill, and give toe tags/ Now every since 9/11, rappers wavin' white flags/ But me I keep it gutter, just like before/ I'm a WARRIOR, so I stay prepared for war/ Ain't nuttin wrong with spoilin' the bitch, 'specially if you got it/ Her suckin' you, you fuckin' her, gettin' freaky and erotic / But if it ain't rough, it ain't me / And I refuse to turn R-A-P into R and B / You went from hardcore to pop, just to be on top / I give Cool J his props, and that's where it stops".

That verse sums up where this trio is coming from on their new album. Pretty much all they talk about is how rap has allegedly become soft and there are too many rappers singing, and not real dope dealers, gangstas' or killas', the 3 monikers they advertise themselves to be on the promotional material for this album. Even though Mac-10, Ice Cube, and WC all have their own identities, they have think as a group on this album. They hate the singing but they have Nate Dogg singing the hook on their lead single, "Gangsta Nation". Is that hypocritical yeah but what do you expect with Ice Cube leading the charge. Ice Cube barks that a "thug got ain't enough - nigga where your mug shot?" and "I can't bump yo' shit if you never was shot." Ok how does Ice Cube say that with a straight face. Anybody who knows his history knows he probably never had a real fight in his life. I think he is starting to believe his own lyrics even though he never lived them but he paired up with 2 other rappers with more street credibility so that he can get a pass. Maybe I should actually say 1 rapper wit some credibility (WC). They make some good points on the album like a track called superstar about dead MC's getting better promotion than living ones, but in the end the album balls down to 1 huge contradictory & hypocritical tough guy session over "hard beats". Mack 10 should answer to all true west coast MC's for not being true to anything but golden opportunities to hold on to his 15 minutes. WC should answer to the fact that the album promotes negative gang activity and their is a resurgence of the activity in L.A. among young people now. Ice Cube should answer to Shorty and Kam for his meaningless "re-newed attacks" on capitalism, imperialism, and materialism. He seems to be trying to re-invent himself as the Death Certificate Ice Cube. On the call 9-1-1 track he says "afta 9/11 niggas got patriotic / on 9/12 , I'm like fuck it nigga, blaze the chronic ....an eye for an eye / When you live and die by the sword". Whomever is writing Ice Cube's lyrics these days must be a comedian