Fabolous - Ghetto Fabolous
It's the F-A-B-O-L-O-U-S. you've prolly heard new signing to DJ Clue's Desert Storm record label, Fabolous spellin out his name on Lil Mo's smash Superwoman Remix, and the young Brooklyn emcee spells it out on pretty much every track on his debut album, Ghetto Fabolous. But bar that, this is a very solid debut from an artist who seems set to become a household name in the near future. From runnin down the list of producers Fab has used, Timbaland, Neptunes and Rockwilder are among others which clearly show that this is anutha album with the majority of tracks aimed at clubs.
But something seems to set these apart from others, maybe its the flow of Fabolous, or maybe its the fact that "Get Right" is the hottest beat i have heard Rockwilder do to date, n if this don't give you neck ache nuthin will. Timbaland and Neptunes keep their signature style on "Right Now & Later On" and the second single, "Young'n", again keepin their consistent ability to make heads nod. But the album ain't all club bangers, Fab switches his flow on the introspective cut, "One Day" where we hear his rag to riches story. Many emcees have tried and failed with these kinda tracks, but the F-A-B-O hits right on point provin he has more skill beyond his wry humour and ability to rock a party. Other highlight tracks include Keepin It Gangsta and the debut single, "Can't Deny It" which is given a west coast flavour by the sure-fire-hit formula of havin Nate Dogg on the hook.
A pleasantly surprisin fact about Ghetto Fabolous is the shortage of guest appearances. Many new rappers these days seem content on basin their skills upon the amount of guests they can shove on their album, where as fabolous only uses Ja Rule to lend a verse, with the only other appearances comin from Jagged Edge, Lil Mo and Nate Dogg providing hooks. From this album, it is clear Fabolous is goin places and make sure you keep the CD playin after track 14 has ended cuz Fab has thrown 2 bonus tracks on there too. |
|
|
|
Jermaine Dupri - Instructions
Having the likes of Da Brat, Jagged Edge and Lil Bow Wow signed to his label, and his string of party starters, Jermaine Dupri has built-up a reputation as bein a bit of a pop rapper. A reputation he tries to shed on beleive it or not, what is his first full length solo album, unless you include 'In the Life of 1472' with guest appearances including Jadakiss, Nate Dogg, Kurupt and UGK. The opening track, "Welcome to Altanta" with GA native Ludacris is a typical Dirty South track which will have heads everywhere noddin their heads. JD really tries flippin his style for the grimey style on "Hate Blood" which features Jadakiss ndthe scratchy voice of Freeway on th hook. And surprisingly enough, Jermaine's flow seems to fit perfectly alongside Jadakiss on whut has proved to be a massive street anthem.
But of course the So So Def CEO sticks to whut he duz best on most tracks, makin tracks to just have a good time to. As "Ballin Out of Control" with Nate Dogg, "You Bring the Freak Out" featuring Da Brat and "Rock With Me" prove. On many of the tracks however, J contradicts himself to whut he wuz sayin on "Hate Blood" as he is guilty as anyone to baostin about how much ice they got. Because of that, some may find the album tiresome, but everyone needs an album for just having a good time to, and Jermaine serves one up on Instructions.
The 5 interludes are whut bring this album down tho'. When someone can explain to me the need for skits i'll be grateful cuz to me they are totally pointless n just mean i have to reach for the skip button every now and again. None-the-less, i'd reccomend this album to pretty much everyone. Whilst the mainstream audience will lap it up, i say to the backpackers n undeground heads who will normally sneer at this, remember, hip hop can be fun! |
|
D12 - Devil's Night
It's been 5 years since i got crazy about an unknown rapper from Brooklyn after hearin his debut track, Can't Knock the Hustle. The album i was taken from, Reasonable Doubt, is now a hip hop classic. The bad side to droppin a classic debut is tryin to better it, a hurdle where many fall short, yet Jigga continuely comes hard album after album. 2001 sees his 6th album, The Blueprint. The lead single, Izzo (H.O.V.A.) seems out of place but for the bouncy Jigga That Nigga. The two are blatantly Hova's arm for the mainstream audience which continually lap him up. The rest of the album seems to be tryin to create Reasonable Doubt II. The hottest track on the album, Takeover, is Jay-Hova's stab at Nas and Mobb Deep. The beef brewin between the Roc-a-fella camp and QB has since brought the LOX into the picture, but they get off this time. Nas and Mobb Deep are roasted by Jigga's fire over a Kanye West beat. Rather than bein a diss record in the style of Hit 'Em Up or Cllin Out Names, Jay just laughs at Nas proclaiming he his LAME and pokes fun at Prodigy's days as a ballerina. Eminem is also brought on board for Renegade, but is a track which will keep the streets happy rather than another attempt to keep the millions of mainstream fans happy. Slim Shady himself also produces the track to give it a typical dark feel. The albumalso has its moments of fun with Girls, Girls, Girls with Biz Markie, Slick Rick and Q-Tip providin the hook for the original or Micheal Jackson on the remix as a bonus track. The album then stays to a grimy, street feel with the massive street anthem Hola' Holvito and the heart felt title track and Heart of the City. Once again a switch in style for Jay-Hova, and its definately payed off with arguably his best album yet. Better than Reasonable Doubt? Decide for yourself |
|
|
|
|
