1. Intro
We start off with a short little track. The beat is pretty basic, some lifeless horns added in. DMX is pretty awful here….like really awful. With lines like “I’d be on your dick if my name was no *****….ever”, and then does some little song about Bill Bixby. This was not very good….at all. Wack

2. We In Here(Feat Swizz Beats)
Much better than the intro. Nice heavy horns here with sirens added. DMX raps with the energy that made him famous. The chorus is simple with Swizz doing it. This is pretty good, and reminds me of the beginning of “Grand Champ”. Let us hope that it doesn’t fizzle out. Good track. Good

3. I Run Shit(Feat Big Stan)
Heavy techno type beat here with a lame synth that kicks in every so often. Yea, it’s a Swizz Beats beat, who would’ve guessed? Well, DMX does a good job with the flow, but he’s not saying anything of note. It’s pretty obvious DMX has lost a lot of his hunger for rap, but you can’t fault his flow. The chorus is constant “I RUN SHIT HERE” repeated over & over. It’s way too simple, and quite corny. Big Stan is not that good, but he’s tolerable. It’s weird to hear a rapper who raps in a semi calm matter after hearing DMX spazz all over the track. This was average stuff. Average

4. Come Thru(Move)(Feat Busta Rhymes)
Bad party beat by Swizz. Wow, this is sloppy, and sounds like two robots wrestling. DMX atleast tries, but this beat is death in music form. No one is going to shine on this tripe. Busta’s on the track, but again, who cares? Why can’t these 2 rap over a good beat? Wack stuff. Wack

5. It’s Personal(Feat Styles P & Jadakiss)
Pretty good beat here, it’s hard to describe, but it’s banging. Nice bass on the track. Everyone comes correct here. See, these are the type of tracks that DMX should rap over, also, nice dark piano beats are a good atmosphere for DMX. Good track. Good

6. Baby Motha
Decent slower synth-ish type beat by Swizz, it also has a soul touch. DMX raps about his……of course “Baby Motha”, and how sometimes she can annoy him, and he doesn’t like her, but he has a kid. I like this track. Good

7. Dog Love(Feat Janyce & Amerie)
Lame sappy type beat. This is a radio friendly type track that has been heard a million times in different form. DMX talks about being a street guy, but this girl makes him a total sappy guy, but then talks about shooting someone. This track is sort of weird. It’s well done, but the lyrics are way too bi-polar for my taste. Good enough. Good

8. Wrong Or Right(I’m Tired)(Feat Bzr Royale)
So that’s why DMX has been unmotivated for all these years! He’s just tired! Bzr is a horrible singer. It’s like I’m listening to some loser on Soundclick try to sing over a heavy guitar style beat. DMX does a great job though. These type of heavy bouncy guitar beats fit X really well. Besides this Bzr guy, it’s a good track. Good

9. Give Em What They Want
Constant “Give Em What They Want” sayings in the beginning. That’s a real turn off. Scott Storch beat here, and it’s decent enough, it has an Asian feel to it. The chorus is the same as the beginning, and it’s terrible. DMX does a good job actually. Atleast he kept his crazy type flow, even though his lyrics have become terrible. Besides the chorus, this was actually pretty good. Average(Yes, the chorus is THAT bad)

10. Walk These Dogs(Feat Kashmir)
Good 70’s style beat by Dame Grease, it has a nice bounce and a good mixture of heavy sounds. DMX does a good job here, and Kashmir is a decent female rapper. She’s sort of like Eve-lite, but she doesn’t ruin the track or anything. Good track. Good

11. Blown Away(Feat Jinx & Janyce)
Decent slower type beat, it’s sort of sappy, but it fits X’s voice. DMX talks about growing up, & going to jail. Oh, and nice saxophone’s that kick in. I dig the chorus with Janyce singing. Say what you will about him, but X drags you into these type of tracks. The guy really should be a pastor, because he has so much charisma. Yea, this track is pretty good. Good

12. Goodbye
Really good piano beat here. This track is about all those who died. DMX sings, it’s not that good, but it fits the track. DMX raps about reaching the youth, and about his friend who died of cancer. Really emotional track, and it’s pretty good. Good

13. Life Be My Song
Dame Grease sings a relaxed type beat. It’s pretty good. DMX raps about street life, & surviving. It’s pretty good, and DMX is still one of the most emotional rappers in the game. Pretty good track. Good

14. The Prayer VI
Self explanitory.

15. Lord Give Me A Sign
Pretty good electric guitar type beat by Scott Storch, it also has an eerie feel to it. DMX does a prayer in the beginning, and raps about not letting the devil get to him. I like the singing by DMX in the chorus, because this track isn’t really about singing well, it’s about emotion, and X is great at displaying it. Really good way to end this track. Good

All in all, this gets a Good rating. I don’t know why people ragged on this album. Were there bad tracks? yea, but were there good ones? Yes, and the good outweighed the bad. DMX still gives you 100% here, and even though his lyrics are slipping, it’s his emotion that makes this album good. Cop it if you’re a DMX fan.

1. Intro
Intro.

2. Excuse Me(Ant Locc, Bleezo, Pain, Scitso)
Sloppy beat here. Out of control drums don’t really work with eerie sounds. The rappers range from painfully bad to decent. Not a good way to start off the album, because right off the bat they put this track on, instead of putting a T-Nutty track. Wack

3. 2 Gether(Bleezo, Bop, Sav Sicc)
Much better track, because it showcases some rapid spitters over a really decent slow/fast(Does that make any sense?) beat. The beat is not anything special, but it gives talented rappers like Bop a chance to showcase his skills. Besides, these type of tracks are more lyric/flow based than beatwise based. You want a beat based track? Go buy a Dipset album, and pick any song. Good

4. Invasion(G-Macc, Keylocc, Big No Love)
I dig the beat, because it has an old Siccmade feel to it, complete with each one giving their own eerie tell. I miss these type of tracks, because they were the bread & butter of the Sac-Town rap scene for a long while. I think I might be the only one who digs “Loaded” way more than “Season of The Siccness”, and this track had a “Loaded” feel to it. Good

5. Off The Edges(Sav Sicc, Lexo, T-Nutty)
Relaxing yet eerie style beat, I dig it because it doesn’t get in the way of the lyrics. T-Nutty is of course the most overlooked rapper in the West right now, and outshines the other rappers on this track. I appreciate the effort displayed by the other rappers, but I sort of wish this was a T-Nutty solo track. Good

6. On Tha Roof(G-Macc, Big No Love)
Decent eerie slow style type beat. It again has an old Sac-Town feel, but something’s missing. I dig Big No Love’s style, because while it may not be all fancy, he atleast tries to make the track mean something. G-Macc does a good job as well. Again, this track had the tools, but something was missing. I’ll give it the benefit of the doubt. Good

7. Dump-N-Reload(Sav Sicc, Skari, Bleezo)
Heavy piano mobbish style beat. They all shine here with rapid spit, after rapid spit. Now this really lives up to the compilation name. All of these guys have bright future’s in the rap game, because they can pretty much flow correctly on any beat. Good

8. 7 Doors(Gushmoe)
Wow, this track is really, really horrible. Gushmoe is pretty horrible here, with an awful flow. The beat is just sloppy, and lifeless. Wack

9. G.A.N.G.(Bleezo, Skari, Sav Sicc)
Some more really good rapid spits from these guys. The beat sounds like something that would be playing during a fairytale. I was waiting for someone like Robin Hood to jump through my window with Friar Tuck. Anyway, this track was really good. Good

10. Testimony(Big No Love, Keylocc)
The beat is basic stuff, but the flows & lyrics are on point, and make up for it. See, this is why I enjoy listening to these type of rappers, because even though the beat may suck, they all try their best to make the track work. Good(They tried, and that’s what counts)

11. The Savageness(Bleezo)
Pretty good beat here, it’s calm & has a pretty good synth style added to it. Bleezo gets his chance to show what he has in his lyrical arsenal, and he doesn’t disappoint. Really smooth rapid flow, and cunning lyrics. Good track. Good

12. Rhyme I Wrote(Bleezo, Sav Sicc)
Simple beat here, nothing fancy, but nothing ugly. The flows make up for it, and once again the rappers get a chance to shine. Sometimes you hear someone say “Wow, you hear that new *Insert rappers name here* track? Man, that beat was dope”, and they never say anything about the actual rapper or the lyrics he spat? This is the opposite here. Good

13. Spree(Bleezo, Ant Loc, Skari)
Nice beat here. It’s like a weird mixture of Vallejo rap, Sacramento rap, & Frisco rap. A good triad of sounds here. Some nice rapid spits, and good lyrics from pretty much everyone. Good track. Good

14. Nolove-a-lude(Big No Love)
Very good track here. The beat is just straight gangsta & gritty. No Love flows really well here, and even channel’s X-Raided for a bit. Good

15. Part 2(Big No Love, Ant Loc, Bleezo, Skari, Sav Sicc, Bop, & T-Nutty)
Wow, that’s quite the feature list there. The beat is basic stuff, a little dark with some heavy drums. Everyone comes correct here, it’s such a long list of features that everything just sort of blends together to make one big good rap track. Good

16. Regardless(X-Raided, T-Nutty, Big No Love)
This was the track I was looking forward to. X-Raided & T-Nutty have incredible chemistry. I really think they should do a duo album together. Heavy ready for war type beat, it’s really dope. Man, X just rips this track to pieces, with T-Nutty right behind him. No love does a great job as well. This was insane, and easily the best track on this album. Now picture X & T-Nutty doing these type of tracks on a full album together. DOPE!

17. Outro(Savsiccness, Bleezo)
Outro.

All in all this gets a Good rating. Well, it definitely lived up to it’s name. It wasn’t just rapid spitting though, you had a variety of different sounds. You need to check this album, especially track 16.

1. Return Of The Hustler(Feat Soup, Tree Dog, & Jazmine)
Basic beat, but it atleast has some bounce to it. Knocturnal’s hardly on the track, but that’s okay, since it’s a compilation. These guys try, but they’re about as basic as it gets. Average stuff. Avergae

2. Gansta Ways(Feat LiL T & Lord Lucky)
Terrible beat here, it’s just ugly heavy bouncy with a standard drum loop. Again, these guys aren’t that exciting as rappers, I mean atleast do something to distinguish yourselves from the bunch. These guys come off sounding like some low rent YA rejects. How does a guy like Knocturnal, who has only released one full length album, have a bunch of artists signed? That just boggles my mind. The song is just terrble. Wack

3. You A Bopper(Feat Aziz & Macguiness)
This track is just like the album title: Uninspired & bland. Knocturnal raps on this track and shows why he’s so generic. Has a rapper ever fallen off as bad as Knocturnal? That’s not a knock against the guy, but really, has a rapper fallen off as bad? The beat sounds like a cheap rip off of Beanie Sigel’s “The Truth”. Bad track. Wack

4. I Stay Swerning(J-Peace & Macguiness)
Sloppy accordian style beat. It sounds like what you’d hear a “Greasy Abe’s Italian Eatery” at 7:00PM. The rapping is just amature hour, and uninspired. Man, this was pretty bad. Wack

5. Up In L.A.(Maintain & Krown City)
Really sloppy techno style party beat here. You know, if you’re not going to even try to make good music, then don’t do it. Go be a chef, or a chiropractor. This is the epitome of train wreck here. Just offkey rapping, & horrible lyrics. Train Wreck

6. Four Season’s(Soup, Tree Dog, Wes, & Lord Lucky)
Easily the best track on the album. Nice soulful beat, it’s a little sloppy with the piano thrown in there, but it works. Everyone does a pretty good job. Good

7. Dirty Money(Lord Lucky & John)
Nothing says “Gangsta Rap” like the name John. “OG Killa” I can understand. Hell, even “The Bum From RedRum” would work, but…..John? John’s like the guy who deliver’s your pizza, or the guy who works the cash register at Best Buy. Anyway, bad bouncy beat that sounds like it’d be played during the credits of that old Super Mario Brothers movie. Horrible singing as well. Just an all around horrible track. Wack

8. The Donkey Donk(Macguiness)
Bad pimp type beat here, but with bounce added. “Big Ol Butt” is said during the chorus. I haven’t heard that since 5th grade. Bad rapping by Macguiness. Wow, this guy doesn’t have any talent at all, and sounds like “Pops” from the Wayan’s Brothers Show. This is horrible. Wack

9. Get Up On It(Lord Lucky & LiL T)
Futuristic type beat, and it’s not that bad actually. Ok rapping, but again, why should I care about any of these people? What do they do that others don’t? The beat was good, but the rest bores me. Average(Yea, I liked the beat)

10. My Dream
Pretty standard track here. Nothing really excited, nothing really horrible. Just average. Average.

11. Inspiration(Maintain, Krown City, & Jessica)
Knocturnal makes a joke about not being on Maury Povich, and that’s about the only entertaining thing about the track. Gospel type sound filled with bad singing and bad rapping. Not a very good way to end this, but atleast it’s over. Wack

All in all this gets a Wack rating. When the best thing about the album is the hilarious album cover, then you know you’re listening to a bad album. Skip this.

Jehst originally was a great rapper (who did the odd production or two) who came on the scene with a new style. As time went on Jehst has more and more got into producing with him resulting to last year producing his whole EP “Nuke Proof Suit”. It wasn’t very consistent to be honest in both the production and lyrical departments. But this year instead of rapping over them Jehst has got a list of top UK rappers to spit over them.

This is a big shock as most of the beats are really consistent for being good. The first question rises to your head: Why didn’t Jehst use them or keep them for himself. I personally believe it’s to due to the artist style and preferences. The album begins with a bang with the lead single “Dunya (My World)” featuring the fast rising in the ranks Micall Parknsun. It sort of reminds you of his last album main single of “Run Hard” featuring on Falling Down. It reminds me due to the Asian type song he sampled. Parknsun’s lyrics aren’t really narrowed down but more free ranged. Judging from this you would fall quickly to an assumption from this that all off his production follows a basic formula. But you’re wrong!

The production really varies which is also a strong point for a production album. Though the “If You Were Me” has a sort of Jehst vibe it doesn’t stick to same old formula. If it’s the dark “Say Word” featuring Kashmere or the Soulful“Listen” featuring Sir Smurf Lil’, this album caters for all tastes. “Tempa Tempa” featuring the laid back *****y Verb T is a great different sounding beat from most on the market. My favourite has to be “Right Now” featuring Kyza who isn’t normally my taste but is one of my favourites at the moment. Kyza flows excellent over the sampled piano and delivers some deep stuff.

One song I do not really like as much (though it’s not that bad as most albums weaker song or two) is “Soldiers 4 Life (remix)” with the Universal Soldiers. The lyrics are nothing amazing but accompany the beat but the beat does nothing for me. A piano sampled some where before but used different and completed with hard drums. Also there is a lot of remixes of songs already released. Even though after one or two it does shows a skill of building a beat over vocals though you do feel a bit cheated after a few. I took this with a pinch of salt as this album was more about Jehst’s production. Some of the remixes I prefer to the original. The “Money in the bank (remix)” (which should be labelled “Money in the bank (remix remix)”. The original had a different Jehst beat which had the same sort of flavour but I’m feeling this more. You can forget the marvellous job he did for the remix of Rodney P’s “Future”. With the organ and drums it gives it a old school funky feel (which suits him again as he was a pioneer of UK Hip hop)

There’s two more remixes both equally enjoyable but not much I could go into explaining. In all this gets 4 out of 5 on the border of 4.5.

Even though production wise Jehst worked his arse of and got a list of A star rappers these are my flaws.
I thought on the album apart from 1 weaker song they all pretty bang on. With only 11 tracks you expect them all to be on point like Illmatic. Again some may feel cheated on the fact it’s filled with remixes but you got to remember this is a production album. One flaw which I haven’t said is maybe Jehst could have brought in some less well known names but I suppose he wants to sell more units and has to keep it tight with the lowlife records.

Recommendation: Buy this album! One of the best this year and one of my favourites (maybe even my favourite)

1. Sacramento Bang(First Degree The DE)
Pretty weird beat here, with chants of “Sacramento Bang”. Good way to start off the album, because it shows the DE fans that he(DE) is still making this weird kind of music. I don’t think I can rate this though.

2. For Crips Only
Short insert.

3. Gang Accctivity(COS & Calico 101)
Dark type beat here filled with gun shot sound effects and the like. This was my first hearing of Calico, and he’s not that bad. A little on the bland side, but he has talent. COS is probably one of the most talented rappers in Sacramento, so of course he comes tight. Good track that will satisfy the gangsta rap fans. Good

4. Big Blue Wreckin Crew(Calico 101, G-Macc, Pup)
Weird beat here, it’s almost a mixture of dark & soft sounds, but put together very slowly. They all try their best to rap over this beat, and they do a good enough job. This track is pretty much about the Crip lifestyle, and how they have to watch their backs. It’s not really that good, but I appreciate the effort. Average

5. Crip Steppin(COS)
Another weird type beat here. I can’t really describe it at all, but it’s done slowly, and with some highpitched synth sounds. COS tries a weird rap style here, and it fits the beat. Good enough. Good

6. Heart Pump Blue(T-Nutty, Devious, 8Ball)
T-Nutty is one of the most overlooked rappers in the game today. It doesn’t matter if it’s the North, South, East, or West, he still needs to get his props. This beat is like a weird mixture of mid 90’s Westcoast rap & techno music, needless to say, it works. Different voice effects for each rapper, and of course T-Nutty outshines them all. Good

7. OG Gang Banger(Pup)
Heavy hitting piano type beat here mixed with eerie sounds. Pup’s a pretty good rapper, I’ve never heard of the guy, but he’s a pretty good rapper. He flows over this beat really well as he raps about your typical killing type lyrics. Good track. Good

8. Blood Walk
Short insert

9. Gangstas In Red & Black(Yac, Bad Biz)
Now we get to the Blood side of things. What a strange beat, I can’t even begin to describe it. Some good rapping, but it’s hard to vibe to a track when the beat is so odd. Look, I’m into weird beats, I own Quasimoto’s “The Unseen” and Prince Paul’s “Psychoanalysis”, but this beat on this Gang cd is just sloppy weird. Sometimes the less abstract, the better. Wack

10. Blood Jack(BeGee)
BeGee has always been an underrated Sac Town rapper, but it’s another case of beats that just don’t fit. This is some weird eerie cheap type sounding beat, that messes up any chance of BeGee shining. This was horrible. Wack

11. The Anthem(AK, Waco TX, Skizzo Mac Hour)
Good Latin type beat here. This is much better than the last track. Every rapper gets to showcase his skill, and come off looking like a million bucks. Good

12. My Home(AK)
Eerie piano type beat here, really slow stuff. AK raps about being a gangsta and all that jazz. He does a good job, but you sort of get tired of hearing the same subject matter on EVERY TRACK. Good enough. Good

13. Me & My Bloosinz(Killa Irv, Thee, BeGee)
Again, we have weird sound effects to mess up the track. This time it’s an annoying echo that appears every so often to ruin whatever vibe this track had going for it. This was terrible. Wack

14. Sactown Gang Bang(First Degree The DE)
DE fans will dig this track. DE sings, and shout’s out the people who helped make this record. I think only DE should be able to get away with being on these type of weird tracks, because his style fits it perfectly. Great way to end the album. Good

All in all I’m going to give this a Good rating. This was like those “Bloods vs Crips” albums, but with more abstract beats. DE was trying to educate people with this album, and I think he did just that. Cop it if you’re a fan of Sac Town rap.

1. Yo(Feat Coolio)
Wow, Coolio? I haven’t heard a verse from him in a long while. He really comes tight here. You know, Coolio has always been a very talented rapper, but people tend to label him as a joke(Which is so wrong it’s not even funny). 4 tay does a great job as well. The beat is reall basic, but both men make it work. Good

2. Sucka(Feat Too Short)
Bouncy type beat, but with a soft touch. Both men talk about being players, and still having the game on lock. That’s sort of funny in a way, because when was the last 4 Tay hit? I’m not hating on the guy, because he’s one of my favorite Bay rappers, but get real. Too Short does his usual. Good track. Good

3. If It Wasn’t 4 You(Feat Nate Dogg & Suga Free)
Sloppy beat here, I can’t tell if the producer wanted to make a pimp beat or a bouncy type beat, either way they mix together to form a mess. Nate Dogg remains the most overrated hookman ever. He adds nothing to this track. Suga Free tries, but man this is bad. Wack

4. Gossipin Ass Nigga(Skit)
Skit.

5. Rumors
Wow, this is just terrible. Why is 4 tay making a club track? WHY?!?!?!? Dude, make a pimp track, that’s what you’re good at. Don’t make tracks for the moronic Redbull & Vodka drinking chumps. Make tracks for the Don P drinking players. Wack

6. 360 Degree’s(Feat Eightball, Spice 1, & E-40)
This is a recycled track off Eightball’s “Lost” album, it’s still a great track. Everyone comes tight here, and it’s a great beat by Ant Banks, filled with the nice piano sounds. Good

7. Sweet Luv 2(Feat Daz & Kurupt)
Again, this is recycled. I liked “Introduction To Mackin'” a lot, but this track was not one of my favorites. Kurupt was already wack by this point, and Daz was getting there. Yea, not exactly a great track, but the beat was pretty decent I suppose. Average(For the beat, and Daz seemed motivated)

8. Ghetto Starz(Feat Game Bangers)
Nice bouncy type Los Angeles gangsta type beat. This would sound great in the ride. 4 Tay actually raps really well over this beat, and outshines everyone else on the track. Good track. Good

9. Balla Balla(Feat Flexx & Michelob)
Boring drum type beat. THese tracks don’t really work that well unless you’re really charismatic. 4 tay has charisma, but he can’t pull this off, and neither of the features can either. Wack

10. Gangsta Gumbo(Ambassedor & JT The Bigga Figga)
Hey, you guys like to listen to the 2001 era Get Low Records? Well, this is right up your alley. Lifeless lyrics & sloppy flows, not to mention an uninspired beat to go along with it. This is pretty average. Average

11. What Is Gangsta Gumbo(Skit)
Skit.

12. Keep Hustlin'(Feat Spice 1, Michelob, & Kandi)
Sappy soft type beat. I don’t like these type of beats, especially when someone like Spice 1 is rapping over it. 4 Tay can make these beats work, but the others can’t. This sounds like something the NB Ridaz would rap over. I was waiting for the Troutman-like voice synth to kick in. Wack

13. Burning Burning(Feat Eastwood & Michelob)
Good beat here, it’s like a weird bouncy disco type beat that really doesn’t fit 4 tay, but he(4 tay) tries to make it work. I appreciate the effort displayed. Eastwood is a rapper I care nothing about, and he doesn’t really add anything exciting to the track. Good beat, good try by 4 tay, everything else? Bad. We’ll call it average. Average

14. Bay Life
Really good track here, with a beat that’s pretty 1995 Bay here. 4 tay spits out some paranoid type lyrics that fit the beat. The Bay fans need to hear this one. Good

15. Me & My Daughter
I liked this, because not too many rappers do this kind of stuff. 4 Tay raps about how he wants his daughter to grow up and be successful. The beat is a little too seizure inducing, but the message was right. Good

16. Dreams(South Central Cartel)
Dark gangsta mob type sound here. The SCC are very overlooked, and quite possibly one of the greatest gangsta groups around. Havoc & Prodeje deserved much more success. Everyone comes tight here, and the crazy laughter sound effects are a nice add. Good

17. In The Club(Game Bangers)
Another club track, and wow, this one sucks as well! Does anyone really care about these type of tracks anymore? I mean, atleast the mainstream rappers know their tracks will get played in an actual club. Wack

18. B4 Entertainment
Outro

All in all I’m giving this an Average rating. Well, it was an attempt, but the recycled tracks and the uninspired club tracks hurt more than helped. Give this a good listen before you even think about buying it.

01. Killa Cam (Intro)
The beats kicks in after a while and it’s a really good one to begin with. The beat has that Dipset sound as its very dramatic sounding with its rapid guitar. Instead of Cam doing it his Dipset buddy 40 cal is heard. The lyrics don’t really impress me that much as I expected as you don’t know which dipset member is which half the time where they are so basic and all too alike. Before you can even really start to enjoy the beat it is cut off and a new beat comes along. It’s heavily synthesized and Cam takes over speaking about his struggle growing up in the hood and dealing. I’m surprised with that I actually like his lyrics. Saying that this happens with all Cam’ron’s album from “Come Home Wit Me”, so let’s hope this isn’t the case.

02. He Tried To Play feat Hell Rell
After that great introduction you get a calm mellow piano with Cam singing over it. After a few minutes of Cam’s crooning the drums kicks in and Cam begins to rap but the typical fast dipset drums don’t fit this arrangement at all. Lyric wise his raise it since the terrible “Purple Haze”. I think this is also another shot at Jay-z aswell making him sounding as biter and obsessed as Yukmouth. Either way still a pretty good track.

03. Leave you Alone
Arghhh! This is such a terrible beat. The beat has those terrible typical fast drums like the last song and hype pitch sampling. It’s a well shame as again I like the lyrics a little bit but is drowned out by the awful beat

04. Living A Lie feat Mo’ Money
Even though the beat again equipped with fast drums, they fit a tiny bit over the freaky eerie haunting backdrop. In the song he must be talking about himself as they go on about people living a lie. Boring song topic boring lyrics wasted on a decent beat.

05. We Make Change (feat. Juelz Santana)
Again starts of with Cam crooning but then the strings and the choir singing are introduced. For once it seems like it has both good lyrics and a good beat with cam telling us about the situation with his mum and drugs.

06. Voicemail (Interlude)
Exactly does what it says on the tin.

07. Wet Wipes
For a first single from Cam’ron this is actually pretty good! I’m really surprised! Normally Cam would be hiring the biggest names but where he is not on Rocafella his gone for alternative roots and it’s a great change. Where before he would be having a played out high sped soul sample he has gone for a much darker synth sound from Alchemist and it works really well. Before the singles would have been about car money and hoes but this is different and it’s more of a bragging rights type of song. The hook is quite catchy too.

08. Touch It Or Not (feat. Lil’ Wayne)
Another song on this album which has me on two sides of my decision. On one side I don’t mind the horn beat behind it but the lyrics about head is too much. Pretty obvious a song like this would have came up sooner or later so no surprises there. Lil’ Wanye doesn’t add anything new to this song either. Pretty surprised this wasn’t the main single to be honest.

09. War (feat. Hell Rell)
Like Hell Rell says at the start “this is sounding like a movie here” and the beat actually does sounds like it should go along a war scene. Hell Rell drops an average verse first. Cam’ron does a little bit better but nothing to save the track but not a bad track to be honest.

10. Triple Up (feat. 40 Cal.)
The rapid strings fit the fast high hat hits. Again it’s a bragging type of song about all the things he can afford three times but he isn’t that cringeworthy. 40 Cal does much better starting with that flipping wordplay technique. Not a bad track again.

11. I.B.S.
This is easily the best track on here. Cam looks and goes in depth about his illness which made him lose loads of weight after one of his album dropped, and people questioning if it was drugs. For once no fast hi hats just normal drums and a simple high pitched chiming.

12. Get Ya Gun
I really do like the beat here it is really freaky and eerie from the demon moaning sounds and the high fast strings. Lyrically again its not that bad. The title pretty much describes the topic.

13. White Girls
There’s not much to say here (well really I don’t really want to talk about this track). Fast piano, chipmunk singing etc you can pretty much see the formula. Cam shows his love for white girls, which isn’t a new topic at all.

14. Girls, Cash, Cars
This songs topic is all the things wrong with hip-hop now days. You could tell this sort of song was to be featured. The freaky beat again is very good.

15. Do Ya Thing (Remix)
Really mellow beat and works really well and is a refreshing change to proceedings. The lyrics are not too bad aswell. Can’t say much but a pretty good track with both good lyrics and good beats.

16. Get ‘Em Daddy (Remix) (feat. Hell Rell, J.R. Writer & Jim Jones)
This must be a posse cut track for the dipset and it’s ok. The beats again a eerie and freaky beat with fast hi hats and it works. The lyrics are not bad nothing amazing nothing cringe worthy.

17. Voicemail 2 (Interlude)
Just an interlude and you can tell what its about by the title.
18. Something New (feat. Hell Rell)
A bouncy track where Cam talks about his new fling in his life. The topics nothing “something new” and neither are the lyrics. Again good beat weak lyrics.

19. You Gotta Love It (feat. Max B.)
This is the hype track which everyone was waiting on the album for just like 50 Cent’s Piggy Bank. This is a diss to his ex labelmate now company owner Jay-Z. This is one of the rare songs where he comes both good on the lyrics side and picks a nice beat. He does the generally *****, mutha*****a” etc childish lyrics which could be aimed and wrote to anyone but he does have some personals. In All not bad but lasts a little bit too long.

20. Love My Life (feat. Nicole Wray)
Ends the actual album pretty good take away the two bonus songs. Over a piano he reminisces back and looks about his life at the moment and tells you how much he loves his life. Deep lyrics over a nice beat.

2 bonus songs
Nothing special just Cam’s protégés rapping.

In all this gets 3 out of 5. I’m really surprised as I was expecting the album to be rated much lower. The album is not consistent in both the whole album wise and the songs. At some place neither the beats nor lyrics were good, then they both were good and then they are missing one of them. Cam has raised his lyrical game since the awful Purple Haze. His beat selection most would say he has lost some good ones but in my opinion he has had much better then he usually did. Suppose you’re going to love it or hate it.

Recommendation:
Buy a different record unless a fan of him.

1. Get You Some(Feat Q-Tip & Marsha From Floetry)
Dr. Dre & Mark Batson produce a really weird layered beat. The piano throws everything off, and the chorus by Marsha is really bad. Q-Tip is pretty underused here, he just rattles off some lyrics with apathy in his voice. Busta is great here though, he sounds really motivated. Good enough. Good

2. Touch It
This was the first single, and I dig it. I can understand someone who might not like it, but it’s so damn catchy that I have to listen to it. Busta does the “Quiet…LOUD!” style here. I think I like the remix better though, because DMX pretty much does this track better than Busta. Good stuff. Good

3. How We Do It Over Here(Feat Missy Elliott)
Dr. Dre produces a lifeless party beat, and Missy is absolutely horrible. Busta does his boring “Let me rap really quiet here”. This is like a throwaway track from “It Ain’t Safe No More”. Wack

4. New York S***(Feat Swizz Beatz)
DJ Scratch produces a nice old school style beat here. Really cool track, with both guys talking about various New York surroundings. Yea, this is the goods. Good

5. Been Through The Storm(Feat Stevie Wonder)
Sha Money XL & Dr. Dre do a really good job on production. Stevie Wonder really makes this track work though, because not only does he sing a great chorus, but he puts so much emotion into it that he can relate to pretty much anyone. Busta raps about his parents & growing up. Busta’s pretty motivated here, as he actually writes something worth listening to. Pretty well developed track. Good

6. In The Ghetto(Feat Rick James)
Rick James(RIP) does a pretty good job singing at the beginning. Good track, but I can’t stand the really stupid sounding “In the ghettooooo!” deep voiced sound effect. Busta does his “Quiet, yet rapid” flow, it fits the track. Good track, but that low voiced “In the ghettoooo!” really, really sucks. Good

7. Cocaina(Feat Marsha From Floetry)
Boring piano beat from Dr. Dre & Mark Batson. Busta does a good job, but this beat has no life to it. Good chorus with both Busta & Marsha rapping/singing on it. Pretty average all around. Average(I really liked the chorus though)

8. You Can’t Hold The Torch(Feat Q-Tip & Chauncey Black)
BEST TRACK ON THE ALBUM! J Dilla(RIP) does the production here, and it sounds like something “A Tribe Called Quest” would rap over. Q-Tip starts it off with a fun verse. Really good chorus by Chauncey Black. Busta up next, and he raps about the weak rappers in the game, and how they can’t carry the torch. Q-Tip & Busta do the last verses. Really great track that needs to be heard. DOPE!

9. Goldmine(Feat Raekwon)
Erick Sermon & Dr. Dre do the production, and this is the best E-Sermon beat I’ve heard in a while. Pretty good track with both men(Raekwon & Busta) spitting dope verses. This is the type of tracks Busta should be doing, not lifeless club tracks. Good

10. I Love My B****(Feat Kelis & Will.I.Am)
Will.I.Am produces a weak beat that sounds like it was a Dr. Dre hand me down. This would be the second single, and it’s atrocious. Kelis is just annoying here, as is Will.I.Am. Wack

11. Don’t Get Carried Away(Feat Nas)
Good beat by Dre, but it sounds like something G-Unit would rap over(Nothing wrong with it, but it’s odd hearing Busta rap over this). Busta does his 50 Cent impersonation for the chorus. Busta with the first verse, and it’s pretty good. Nas is up next with a good verse. Busta with the last verse, and it’s really good. This was good, but nothing great. Good

12. They’re Out To Get Me(Feat Mr. Porter)
Bad singing at the beginning, I’m talking really bad, like Mo B Dick bad, but without the comedy. The beat sounds like Country Western on acid. Busta does a decent job, but wow, this track is a mess. Wack

13. Get Down
Timbaland produces a boring drum heavy beat. Wow, this is really boring, like a “Rashad Evans fight” boring, but without the cool dancing. Wack

14. I’ll Do It All(LaToiya Williams)
Now this is more like it. Very good flute heavy type beat by Jellyroll. LaToiya is just great, and probably my favorite hook singer. Busta does a good job flowing over this beat. This should’ve been the second single instead of “I Love My B****”, because it’s a lot more melodic and less annoying. Good

15. Legend Of The Fall Offs
Dr. Dre produces a really great beat here, very dark. The gravedigging noises just add to the track, and take nothing away from it. Busta is great here as he uses his “Low voiced flow”, and raps perfectly over this track. Great way to end this. Good

All in all, this gets a Good rating. Well, this was so much better than “It Ain’t Safe No More”. Busta was motivated, and with the right production, he really shined. This is worth a listen.

We never got the Outlawz and Bone Thugs N Harmony collaboration album. Instead, Layzie and Noble hooked up to do this duo album.

Nice opening intro. Layzie is repeating words through out the whole song kinda similar to how Bone Thugs do it. The beat is mellow and got a nice laid back vibe to it, good short intro, sets the mood for the album.
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2) Put Me In A Cell

Layzie starts off the track with the hook. After that, Noble lays down his first verse. The verse is raw and goes perfect with the beat. The hook is deadly and very effectively done by Layzie. You can tell by this track that they are a great duo, Noble stands for the hard hitting lyrics and voice while Layzie is the smooth rapper with a lower voice that puts more harmony to the songs.

3) Stay On The Grind

On almost every rappers albums you will find a track about hustling and working hard and this album is no exception. This track goes out to everyone that is out there trying to make a better living. I’m feeling the message in this track because it’s all about staying positive and do your thing. My only complain is that the beat could have been better.

4) What The Problem Is

Everybody got a problem with something and that’s exactly what this track is about. What I like the most about this track is that they once again deliver a message. The Hook is repeating the words “What the Problem Is” and it’s very catchy and effective. Very good track, also we will find Layzie on the hook and on most of the verses while Noble is absent with only one verse.

5) Money First

“Interlude”

6) Young Soldier

Mike Mosley produces this track and as always when it comes to his beats, they are tight. The message is clear, get the money and ***** the fame. The difference between this track and the others is that Noble is also on the hook and appears as much as Layzie does on the track. Great track! One of the best of this album.

7) We Can Get It On

This far into the album, the beat on this track is the hardest. It don’t sound like the other beats either. This is similar to The Outlaw sound while the other tracks remind me of how a Bone album sounds. Good track with verses dedicated to 2Pac, Yak and Eazy-E.

8) That’s The Shit

So far most of the album’s been laid back. On this song the beat is more up-tempo. I gotta say that it works real well. The track is basically about ballin’ and having good things. Nice track with a tight hook.

9) Man Up

I love these type of beats: hard, raw and a heavy bass. It’s also laid back and fits both rappers styles. The downfall of this track is Noble tho, he fits perfect on this beat but his delivery is lazy and uninteresting. The hook ain’t that good either. Skip it,

10) Then Your Gone

What I like about this track is that they use the sample that UGK uses on “One Day”. Don’t know where the sample is from but I really like it. Deep track with a sad hook is the best way to describe this song. I like how Layzie is singing the hook. Very catchy. I think it’s one of the best songs on this album.

11) I Got Cha

The first love track on this album! I like how they made it sound ok and not to corny, I hate mainstream, love songs – and that’s not the case with this track. However, it’s not the best track on the album. The song gets annoying after a while; I think they repeat the words “I Got Cha” to much. Skip it.

12) Be A Gangsta

Overall…

As a long time fan of legendary Queens group Lost Boyz, I know what Mr Cheeks can bring to the plate. With Tah, Spiggs and Lou he brought straight classics to the world. Considering Mr Cheeks did most, or all, of the rapping a solo album from him is very interesting for me to get my hands on. After the death of Freakie Tah, Mr Cheeks has been releasing a few projects. I haven’t been very impressed even though some bangers have been put to birth by Cheeks. Seems like Freakie Tah’s adlibs did a lot to Lost Boyz. However, I’m was very excited when I heard about “Ladies and Ghettomen” being released.

1. Mass Homocide (Skit)

I don’t write about skits normally, but this is actually a tight skit. Mr Cheeks giving some shoutouts and dropping a verse over a real nice beat. It’s like a mini-song. Don’t let the label fool ya – don’t start your CD on track 2. If you wanna be negative, you may ask yourself why Cheeks didn’t make a full song out of this.

2. Tonight feat. Babydoll

Now-Na-Now… Tonight has a dope beat just like the intro track. Mr Cheeks has the same flow back in the day and memories are coming to life. I can’t help to think what this track would have sounded with Frakie Tah going nuts in the background tho. Still, this is a f*cking banger. Mainly because of the beat… Hook’s tight too and Babydool’s 5-something words on the track is a good addition.

3. All I Know feat. Babydoll & Madman

“All I know” is more of a slow type of track on some girl shit. Your girl might like this but I’m not really feeling it. Mr Cheeks is coming out allright but it’s not a type of song I’d expect him to do. Madman is allright too. Babydoll once again contributes with a few words on the hook.

4. It’s Alright feat. Truth Hurts

Former Aftermath singer Truth Hurts comes in on “It’s Alright” to do some hook-singing and some background vocals. She’s doing it real well too. Mr Cheeks is on some commercial shit with a happy bumpin’ beat I’d expect from Black Eyed Peas. It’s all good though. Mr Cheeks has done his term and deserves to do what the ***** he wants. This was a hig and it’s still a hit. Good for you, Cheeks.

5. Keep It Movin

The beat on “Keep It Movin” is back. With that in mind, Mr Cheeks does an effort to save the track. Unsuccessful. Skipper.

6. What’s Happening feat Babydoll

“What’s happening” has a kind of sad sound to it. Mr Cheeks has always been a good story-teller and this is an other track formed like a story. It’s not as good of a story as in i.e. “René”, but it makes you listen to what he’s got to say. All in all a real cool song.

7. Turn It Up feat. Wild Walt & Madman

“You at the car, in the club? Tell them: Turn it up” goes the hook on “Turn It Up”. The song’s a collabo between Mr Cheeks, Wild Walt and Mad Man and it’s a little different from the rest of the tracks on the album that way since Mr Cheeks is only doing one verse. It’s a pretty cool song. Something I’d bump in the background, but not really turn up in the car or at the club.

8. The Girl’s Mine

“The Girl’s Mine” is a cool song with a tight beat. Judging from the title I’d assume Mr Cheeks would do his own version of “The boy is mine” from Brandy and Monika but that’s not the case at all. Like I said though, real nice cut. Mr Cheeks is steppin’ it up.

9. All Nite Long

The second “All Nite Long” started playing, I started bumpin’ my head. The beat’s real catchy. Unfortunately, Mr Cheeks is not the right rapper for it. This is one of a very very few times he should let someone else have the beat. The hook’s real nice tho. Could be a single.

10. Four Walls

I don’t know how to say this… but Mr Cheeks kind of bores me. I guess it’s because I’m missing Freakie Tah. Cheeks is doing his best and he’s not wack or anything, it’s just that I know he can do better. This song is an other of those average tracks.

11. Blind Fold feat. The Garcia Brothers

This cut is one of those tracks that sounds “big”. I guess it’s because of the chorus singing on the hook. I’ve heard The Garcia Brothers before and they usually come out tight. This is no exception. I’m not even sure Mr Cheeks is on this one. Definitely check it out if you cop the album tho.

12. LB Family feat. Madman & Babydoll

I’m not sure this is a tribute to Lost Boyz, or an introduction to the new Lost Boyz. Either way I hope that if Mr Cheeks get a new group he name it something else. Lost Boyz is legendary and nobody should attempt to take their place. It’s not fair to the new rappers in the game. Madman is a tight rapper and he shows it on this track, but I doubt he’s ready to carry the legacy. It’s a pretty good song where Mr Cheeks speak on LB as well as the new generation, saying they try to hold them back.

13. It’s Alright (Remix) feat. Truth Hurts

Just like you guessed, this is a remix of “It’s Alright” with Truth Hurts. Even though the remix is cool, it’s not as good as the original. A lot of times when a remix isn’t as good as the original people say it’s wack. I won’t go that far. It’s a cool song… but the original’s better.

Mr Cheeks has dropped a solid effort with “Ladies and Ghettomen”. It’s nowhere near the two first, or even the third, Lost Boyz albums but it’s a pretty good Cheeks album with a few real tight tracks and a few less good ones. It’s real hard to rate an album like this. It’s not a bad album at all, but I know Mr Cheeks can do better. I can’t really rate the album below 3 since I do like it, but at the same time I don’t really want to rate it any higher since it could be better. So there you have it, I rate this album 3 out of 5. Average.