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.

When Mobb Deep burst on the scene in 1995 with “The Infamous” they released some of the grimiest music ever in hip hop history. Since then in the 11 years, a lot has changed. Since then the grimy edge has been washed away with their record sales too with their last record not even reaching gold. Before they would only trust a selected view to help create their dark grimy vision and as time increased so did their circle of the chosen few. Even though everyone could see this with every release, but this hit the fans the hardest when they sign to 50 “Mr. Mainstream” Cent’s label G-unit records.

The album gets off with a head start with “Smoke it”. I feel the horns reflect as a sign of success over their last release. It’s quickly finished and we hear their newest single “Put em in their place”, the first single still holds some of their griminess with their computer based beat with the simple horns pattern and synth to create an atmosphere, but the biggest problem is, who is this aimed at? It’s too grimy to be in the head of the mainstream fans and it’s too pop to be for the underground. This equals the Mobb Deep to isolate both their audiences.

As you could imagine, the other G-unit members are plastered all over the track listing. This is to pull in a bigger audience, a different audience. While this does bring in more it also isolates some of their hardcore older fans. The first song with a G-unit member is “Stole Money” where Lloyd Banks joins the Mobb Deep lads over again a very simple beat from a few organ hits but seems to work.
After this, a flood of featuring slots is let in, with the other G-Unit members featuring on an embarrassing amount of 9 out of the 16 tracks. “Creep” where 50 Cent joins them, which BTW has already taken the title of the most annoying beat of the year in my view. The Beat is so simple yet so annoying, all the producer has done is gone up and down in a scale of keys to create it. Though “Give it to me” featuring the great Young buck is a much of an improvement with it’s Arab feel which would seem to be a great song for the club. The main problem is buck wasting his normally brilliant skill on this. The next guest I wish I could say that for the next guest but when it totally the opposite. Tony Yayo is the name he goes by and his whole career is a trainwreck. It’s a shame as this song had potential, with it’s trademark Mobb Deep grimy sound sampled cleverly from the Knight Rider theme song. One song which holds both good lyrics and beat is “Pearly Gates” ft 50 Cent, this a personal highlight for me has it is actually song with substance. The beat is a bouncy, yet quite soulful one with them talking about God and their lives. Plus this is all completed by a catchy hook from no other then 50 Cent. 50 who always delivers addictive hooks supplies them with one more. He joins them on “The Infamous” supplying them a very weak hook for them over a old school type of beat with it’s cowbell sounds and a very addictive bassline. He also joins them on the soulful “It’s Alright” perfectly finished with Mary J Blige.

50 also appears on the bonus tracks which can be found on other releases, the already mainstream hit “Outta Control (Remix)” which can also be found on The Massacre DVD reissue and “Have a party” feat another master of hooks, Nate Dogg which can be found of the Get rich or die trying OST.

Apart from the songs already mentioned and the other songs which there isn’t a G-Unit member in sight there’s only a measly 5 other tracks. Saying that with the G-Unit name over this release you can expect a few club tracks and there’s one more. The track has a bouncy beat with a popular mainstream sounding synth while they talk about girls and their advantages to their “Backstage Pass” which is handily the name of the track. This also has a quick appearance of 50. The popular sounding synth I described before also is used on “Capital P, Capital H” which makes this album sound quite repetitive. 2 of the 3 which I haven’t mentioned are also highlights to this album. “Daydreamin’” has a dark eerie feeling which is created by the rising strings and its Indian chimes. This track isn’t just good because of the beat but lyrics are quite good too with them describing everything they wanted but couldn’t get which a lot of us has felt like before. All this plus with a good hook. What more could you ask for? “In Love with The Moula” also has both good beat and good lyrics. While it is a used concept of them comparing money to a women but they do it cleverly while being backed by light pianos and strings.

In all this gets a 2 out of 5 maybe a 2.5

Everyone has seen the downfall toThe Infamous but now this must really be the death of them. The boatload of featuring slots from the G-Unit members is an obvious decision made by 50 and their marketing team. The sound and topics of this is their most risky shots for mainstream and by this like I’ve said before in this review it’s isolating their old fanbase and I don’t see it drawing the G-Unit fanbase that much either. Lyricism has always been weaker then most for them but has really gone downhill even for them. The beats have too with them having to ask more people to bail them out.

Recommendation: Don’t buy this. If you’re a fan of Mobb Deep and/or G-Unit give it a download and base your opinion on that instead of going straight out and buying this. In my opinion buy something worth while like Ghostface “Fishscale”, Vakill “Worst Fears Confirmed”, Dilated Peoples “20/20” or Gnarls Barkley “St. Elsewhere”. These have been 2006 best releases from the USA especially as not many good ones have been churned out.

1. Intro
Intro.

2. Turn It Up
Decent clapping type beat with electric guitar sound effects added in. J-Ro starts it off and seems to be on cruise control here as he sleep walks through his verse. The chorus consists of people saying “Turn It Up” in a montone voice. This track isn’t that good. Tash with a good verse, he tries to salvage this track but it doesn’t work. Bad way to start off the album. Average(For Tash’s verse)

3. The Flute Song(LaLaLa)
Decent flute beat albeit uninspired(Produced by E-Swift). Tash starts things off with a good verse. Tash is one of the most overlooked rappers out. The guy(Tash) really needs to release another solo album. The chorus is decent but the girl singing ruins it. J-Ro with a decent verse, it seems like he doesn’t care, but I can’t really blame him. E-Swift with the last verse, it was average. Tash ruled it here, the rest were just there. Average

4. Popular Demand
I dig the beat here. It’s like a weird mixture of West & East with the horns and such. Everyone does a pretty good job here and the chorus is pretty simple but it works. Good

5. The Get Down
This beat sounds like something that was on Busta Rhymes “It Ain’t Safe No More”, that’s not a good thing. This track is horrible as J-Ro starts it off with a cliche’d verse about women & the like. This beat is just horrible and the chorus with some girl saying “You gotta get up to get down” in a montone voice doesn’t help matters. Tash tries but this beat is just death in music form. Crap, be gone from my ears! Train Wreck

6. Get Into It
I like the beat, it’s hard hitting and is so much better than the track before this. Everyone comes tight here and show a different side of Tha Liks, a more serious style but still maintaining that charm. Good track. Good

7. Faded
Skit.

8. Chaos
Danger Mouse produces the beat and it’s so uninspired that it’s not even funny. This is probably the worst Danger Mouse beat I have ever heard. Tha Liks make up for it by doing a really good job and showing some amazing chemistry. This is a case of average beat and great rhyming. Good

9. Hangover(Stylizik Jones & Bishop Lamont)
Good party beat here. Stylizik starts it off and he sounds like the lost member of the Young Gunz. J-Ro with the next verse and it’s not that good. The chorus is just awful, it sounds like someone doing a horrible Kurupt impersonation. Tash rules it here as he outshines everyone. Bishop Lamont with the last verse and it’s good. Good(But leaning towards Average)

10. Party Ya A** Off
Bad 80’s sounding beat. Tash tries but man this is just uninspired stuff from just about everyone. Uninspired lyrics, uninspired chorus, uninspired beats. Just terrible. Wack

11. Handle It
Southern style beat, it’s just really sloppy and horrible. This is another case of Tash trying to carry the load and again it just doesn’t work because even Tash realizes this track sucks so he comes with an average verse. Wack

12. On The Floor
Really annoying “Get your ass on the floor!” voice samples, after that a cliche’d clapping beat kicks in and your average party track is born. Tash rules it here though as he flows really well over this. E-Swift has a decent verse. Average stuff all around though. Average

13. Poverty’s Paradise
Pooh(?) sings a good portion of this track. I like the beat, very soul sounding. Pooh is a decent singer, but I really don’t want to hear him sing for a good minute. E-Swift is the only Lik rapping and he does a pretty good job. Good track. Good

14. Drink Wit Us´
I like the beat, it has a Southern sound to it. It’s like a LiL Jon throwaway beat(That’s not really a bad thing by the way). J-Ro starts things off with a good verse. I like the chorus as J-Ro says all these artists names and says “They drink wit us”. E-Swift with a pretty good verse. They really should’ve done more tracks like this one. Tash has the last verse and of course he rips the track to pieces. Yea, this track was pretty good. Good

15. Do It
Really good beat by Rural. Very hard hitting stuff and has a hint of Westcoast to it. J-Ro with the first verse and he does a good job. Tash up next and he does a great job. E-Swift with the last verse and he does a pretty good job. Yea, this was pretty good as well. Good

16. Over Here
Westcoast bouncy beat, it’s pretty good. Tash with the first verse and he does a really good job. I like the chorus, it’s pretty simple but it works. King T up next and he does a great job. King T is one of the most overlooked rappers in the game, he can make any track sound good and has a ton of charisma. J-Ro with the next verse and he does a pretty good job, but following King T is a tough task. Really good way to end this album. Good

I’ll give this a Good(Leaning towards average) rating. Well, this is their farewell album and it had it’s share of awful tracks and good tracks. This was totally different than their other albums and at times it felt like the chemistry just wasn’t there. Give it a good listen first before you buy it.

1. Public Service Announcement(Intro)
Intro.

2. Long Time Coming
Pretty good old school beat, but the voice effects don’t really sound good when Artifakt is rapping. Artifakt is pretty good, I could see him becoming a huge star someday, he has the tools to become a star. Good intro, but man the voice effects. Good enough. Good

3. The Life
Nice soulful beat here. Artifakt raps about cementing his status as a rap legend. Pretty good track here with a simple yet good chorus. Good

4. Represent(Feat Stryke)
Really good piano beat here, with some lady singing(Which is pretty good and fits the beat). Stryke is pretty dope, he sounds like Prospect from the Terror Squad(That’s a good thing). Stryke flows really well over this beat. Artifakt is up next with a really dope verse, yea he also flows well over this beat. We’re 4 tracks in and we’ve already hit a DOPE! rating. DOPE!

5. Showin Love
Relaxing beat, nice choice to rhyme over. Artifakt does a really good job here as he raps about fake people in rap and how the music deserves much better. I dig this. Good

6. Lets Rise
Nice Premo type beat here. One thing I can say about the All Business crew is that they always pick good beats to rap over. I’m glad they don’t pick corny beats to rap over like LiL Kim’s “How Many Licks” or Master P’s “Oooohweee”. They pick straight up Hip Hop beats and it’s a breath of fresh air to here. Artifakt rules it here of course, rapping about temptation ruining the youth and how we must fight back. Artifakt should do a track with Non Phixion. Good

7. Close Your Eyes
Nice soulful beat here. Artifakt makes this beat his own here as he flows over it like a pro. The chorus is really good as it’s just the beat changing up a little bit. I dig this. Good

8. Prolifical Endeavor(Feat Sense Wondah)
Sense & Artifakt have really good chemistry. They should put out a duo album, I would most definitely like to hear that. Artifakt starts things out with a dope verse about speaking the truth. DJ Spyncere does the chorus by introducing the rappers. Sense is next with a pretty good verse. Yea, this was the goods. Good

9. Special Recruit
Dark army type beat here. Pretty good choice here as it fits the song title and Artifakt’s flow. I dig that rappers are now trying to actually make good music instead of just collecting a paycheck. I mean, I can understand the motive for making money, but that doesn’t mean I have to enjoy listening to such watered down redundant garbage. Great track. Good

10. Moment Of Silence(Interlude)
Interlude.

11. We Got This(Feat Stryke, Markuz, & Sense Wondah)
They use the “Outta Control Remix” here. Nice choice because I’ve always dug this beat. Everyone comes tight but Stryke impresses me the most. Then again, I was a huge Prospect fan and thought he shined on Terror Squad’s first album. Great track that should be heard. Good

12. Who Am I(Feat Stryke)
Nice soulful beat mixed with a little funk. Artifakt starts it off with a really dope verse giving hints as to who he’s rapping about. Stryke does the same, he comes tight also. Artifakt closes the track with a pretty good verse. I dug the slow beat meets fast flowing aspect. Good track. Good

13. Back For More
Nice bouncy type beat here. Artifakt flows really well over it and the chorus is pretty good albeit simple(Hey, choruses don’t have to be complicated. If it was up to me then I’d make every chorus simple because it works every time while the complicated stuff goes over heads). Pretty good track. Good

14. For Da Fam
Artifakt raps over the “6th Sense(By Common)” beat here. Great choice as DJ Premier is greatness. He(Artifakt) does a pretty good job here as he raps about various subjects line for line. I dig this. Good

15. So Fine(Feat Sense Wondah)
Great choice for a beat here. Has a jazz element to it and has bounce so it evens out. Artifakt starts things off with a good verse. Sense Wondah up next with a pretty good verse, I don’t know, his voice sounds a little awkward over this beat but it’s still dope. Good track. Good

16. My Lullaby
Really dope piano beat here with some funky bass added to it. Artifakt raps about growing up and how times have changed. We’ve all had childhood memories so I think everyone can relate to this. Really good track that needs to be heard. Good

17. Fall In Line
Soulful beat at the beginning with singing then once the rapping starts the beat gets all choppy(Which isn’t a bad thing for this type of track). These type of beats are hard to vibe to(Nevermind rhyming to), Artifakt does a great job flowing over this. Pretty dope stuff and really interesting to hear. Good

18. Righteous Plan(Feat Sense Wondah)
DJ Spyncere starts things off with an introduction then Artifakt and Sense trade verses over a 70’s sounding soulful beat. I dig this because it’s different. Sense has this really weird deep voiced flow and he starts growling towards the 1:30 minute mark, it actually works. More trading verses. Good track. Good

19. Prophets Intuition
You know, soulful beats never get old, they always sound dope. Artifakt raps about a bunch of complicated scriptures and the like, he also relates it to modern life. I’m digging the subject matter here and wish more rappers would go down this road. Great track. DOPE!

20. Break It Down
Artifakt uses the “Brown Sugar” beat by Mos Def. Great choice. Really short track here, but it’s good for what it was. Artifakt was able to say a whole lot in about a minute. Good track. Good

21. Do For Self(Outro)
Outro.

All in all I’m giving this a Good rating. All Business Records remain one of the most consistent record labels around as they release another great mixtape. Go to AllBusinessRecords.com and cop this NOW! Artifakt is a rapper you need to pay attention to.

After the intro the first song is a tune and a half which is named “Shakey Dog” UK Producer Lewis Parker creates a beat from voice sampling and dominant horns as Ghost paints a picture of a robbery. A very good way to begin the album and continues with “Kilo” where the production is very minimal to be generous with just funky guitars, again vocal sampling and outburst of horns. Though as the album progresses a lot of the beats are like this. Maybe Ghost wanted it to have a vibe of the boom bap sound. “R.A.G.U”’s Delfonic sampling from legend Pete Rock sort of reminds me of classic Wu. J dilla creates both brilliant simple beats with the bass heavy “Whip me with a strap” where Ghostface describes his mum raising him. Even the posse cut “Dogs of war” made by Pete rock works. Most of them work but two dont as they come off boring. Both of them happen to be by MF Doom.“Clipse of Doom” even though I like the freaky sounding of it (sort of supervillain sounding) but he should have flipped the beat a bit more, and“Jellyfish” the organ, even though these sound different from what’s on the market in this day and age, you can’t help but to hit the skip button.

Saying all of that not all the beats are simplistic as some of them are some of the most complicated beats I ever heard for a hip hop album. MF Doom creates the album banger with “9 Milli Bro’s”featuring the whole Wu Tang Clan! When I first heard this beat on the Nastradoomus album I loved it and even more now the greatest group lay their vocals on it. Another favourite of mine also by MF Doom is “Underwater”. MF Doom creates a beat which first gives you the atmosphere of someone searching underwater while Ghost creative as possible talks about an underwater adventure. Just Blaze’s“The Champ”also shows more complicated producing. With pianos, horns and more Ghost brags he is the champ with his lyrics and for once it is a worthy title match.

This album is great and different from most mainstream hip-hop with singles like “Be Easy” and “Back like that”.Ghost is still lyrically gifted with flows and personality. For this reason this album gets a 4/5

Recommendation: Buy this album

Juvenile crossed paths with Cash Money in the mid/late 90’s and later formed the group UTP Playas (UTP is for Uptown Project) and UTP Records after leaving Cash Money. Reality Check is recorded on that label, under Asylum. I have to admit I’m not a big Juvenile fan. I liked Soulja Rags and 400 Degreez but was very disappointed with 600 Degreez. A funny side note on Juvenile is that he found Young Buck and made him a member of UTP Playas. Buck later connected with 50 Cent while being with Juvenile in L.A.

1. Intro

2. Get ya hustle on

The album starts of with an encouragement for people to get your hustle on. Juvenile says he lost his house and everything with it in Hurricane Katrina and that he has to hustle more than ever. The beat on the song has a smooth but heavy bass with a dirty south flavour to it.

3. Around the way

Around the way is about Juvenile – where he’s at and where he’s from. In my opinion, Juve has a special way to rap and it’s coming out real good on this track. One again he’s flowing over a tight beat and the album sounds real tight 2 tracks deep.

4. Sets go up feat. Wacko

Juvenile continue with a more up-tempo track without the beat lowering the standard of the cut. The Magnolia rapper is dissing people that didn’t believe in him and worked against him over the years and up till this day. Wacko comes in on the last verse with a different type of flow than Juvenile and diversifies the track in a good way.

5. Rodeo

Rodeo is the first single of the album, and it’s a good pick. This slow jam is a tribute to all the hot girls out there and considering the type of songs that get a lot of airplay it seems like a good song to put on the radio and TV. The way Juvenile looks in the video actually reminds me of Ja Rule. Still, he manages to not completely sell out and lose respect. Nice cut.

6. What’s happenin’

Juvenile mix story-telling rap with ole fashion southern bragging on this one. I guess he’s telling us What’s happenin’. The beats so far has been real tight but this one is weak to me. It might be that I’m not into the old South sound. All in all it’s an ok song but more or less a filler to me.

7. Loose booty feat Eightball & Skip

You can probably guess what Loose booty is about. She’s got a Loose booty. Eightball and Skipp can back it upp, too. I think we all know what Eightball can do by now, but Skipp is a pretty new rapper to people not into the UTP Playas. I’ve heard Skip before and he’s impressed me. I’m looking forward to a solo effort from him. This track? It’s allright.

8. Way I be leanin’ feat. Mike Jones, Paul Wall, Skip & Wacko

Swishahouse came in on this one to keep it crunk. The beat sounds like something Lil Jon would put together and the two outside guests Mike Jones and Paul Wall help taking it to the next level. I’m guessing this is the second single – enough said.

9. Break a brick down

Break a brick down has a bass similar to Get ya hustle on but with a lil more speed to it. That’s a good thing. Overall the beats have kept a high quality throughout the album this far and that’s an important ingredient for a hit record. Juve’s saying he’s “Going platinum from talking about my lifetime” and if he’s referring to this album he just might be right. He’s also saying “Everybody wants to be the king of something, I guess I’ll just be the king of hustling”. That pretty much sum up the subject of this song.

10. Who’s ya daddy

Next song in line is a kind of up-tempo bouncy song. In Who’s ya daddy, Juvenile speak to the girls again saying he’s gonna ***** them etc. The hook’s pretty catchy and the beat is tight so all in all it’s a real tight track.

11. I know you know feat. Trey Songz

Trey Songz has gotten a lot of attention lately and I was really feeling that first single of his where he talked about how he used to be poor and fight hard to get a chance. Every time a big RnB singer comes on a track you know it’s gonna be a real smooth cut. I know you know is no exception. I hate when singers just look for those opportunities to take high tones, as if the listeners are supposed to be impressed or something. Trey Songz doesn’t do this and I appreciate that. His effort is solid. I wouldn’t think Juveniles voice would be good for a slow jam like this, but his flow actually fits real well with the guitars and all other instruments on this cut.

12. Keep Talkin’ feat. Skipp & Red Eyezz

Keep talking on the side of your mouth and get smacked. That’s the message with this track. It’s an other Lil Jon type of track with the whistles and all that stuff. I’m sure a lot of people are feeling this track but I’m not one of them.

13. Rock like that feat Bun B

I’m a big Bun B fan. Every time he’s on a track it’s a banger (with a few exceptions). The beat on Rock like that is hard hitting and the instruments complete the full picture. Bun B come in with a real tight verse taking the track to the next level. Arguably the best track on the album.

14. Why not feat. Skip

Looks like Skip is the next UTP Playa to drop a solo album. He’s on a lot of tracks here and it’s a classic move to put your unknown rapper on your album to hype him. Snoop and Hittman are probably the best examples. This track is real tight but considering the other songs on this album it’s average. It fills its purpose though – I’m gonna check Skips album out when it drops.

15. Animal

Animal is an other one of those Lil Jon sounding tracks. The production actually use a monkey-sound in the background to illustrate how Juvi’s an animal. The track’s allright, but could’ve been cut.

16. Addicted feat. Brian McKnight

Addicted is pretty much a Brian McKnight solo track. Juvenile’s doing some talking between McKnight’s singing but the RnB singer pretty much makes the song. It’s a real mellow jam and might be nice to play with a girl at your place. Still, I don’t really see why this is on Juveniles album…

17. Holla back

Holla back is one of those southern songs that is trying to hype you up and get you crunk. Even thought I kind of like the song, it doesn’t really fill its purpose. It’s not all that tight. The beat’s pretty tight but not tight enough to make you wanna get up and get crunk. Like I said, it’s still an allright song.

18. Pop U feat. Fat Joe & Ludacris

Any time you have Fat Joe and Ludacris guesting you on a track, you know it’s gonna be tight. Juvenile does his thing on his verse just like he’s been doing for all of this album, and when Ludacris comes on on the second verse I can’t help but feeling like he can do better than this. I mean Ludacris is Ludacris, don’t get me wrong, but we all know what he can do. He’s not really doing it on this one. Fat Joe comes in on the third verse doing his thing. Probably the best verse on the song flow wise. All in all a real tight track.

19. Say it to me now feat. Kango

Last song on the album is kind of different than the other ones production wise. Say it to me now doesn’t have a typical dirty south beat. Juvenile’s talking about how people talk behind his back and should say it to his face instead. Kango really completes the picture. It’s a real soft track and I’m definitely feeling it. It’s a good thing Juvi share his experiences with us listeners and fans.

With Reality Check, Juvenile shows the world that he’s back (if he was ever gone). The album was a lot better than I had expected and all in all I’m definitely going to rate it somewhere above average. Juveniles flow doesn’t fit for all productions, but here he really found a good mix of slow and up-tempo beats where he could shine. Production wise this album was very well made and the mix of a tight rapper on tight beats is always a good thing. Big name guests were combined with less known artists from Juveniles own UTP Playas crew and label. I’d say the rapper managed to find a good mix without overdoing it. Some albums looks like compilations but Juvenile managed to escape that type of criticism. If you’re a Juvenile fan that might have been thinking that Juve fell off lately, get this album and then speak on it. People that didn’t really bump Juvenile before can also check it out and make him a new fan. I rate this album 4 out of 5. Real solid effort.