Showing posts with label Reviews. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Reviews. Show all posts

Wednesday, January 14, 2009

Movie Review: Notorious


Over 12 years ago hip hop lost one of its greatest artists, the Notorious B.I.G. True, Biggie Smalls only had two albums in his discography and two posthumous releases; but the content and music made him a legend. One of Big's strengths was his clear and smooth delivery, and ability to tell stories. Though the stories Big would spit were life experiences, his life prior to his Bad Boy signing still remained mysterious. Fox Searchlight Pictures drops Notorious; a biographical movie which reveals the history of B.I.G., his remarkable rap career, and his unfortunate death.

The movie opens perfectly with a young Biggie Smalls where viewers get a chance to see his early inspirations. His struggle for acceptance to his distant relationship with his Father built his foundation to his early teenage raps. Eventually he began to sell drugs and rap publicly making a name for himself. After doing time and having a daughter, Big decided to focus on making rap music as soon as he's released. B.I.G.'s crew (which later became Junior Mafia), encouraged Frank White to pursue a rap career and once he linked up with Puff, the rest was history. Viewing B.I.G.'s back story shows his fate at becoming a rising star. He was determined to use his witty rap style to make the transition from the streets to the studio, and even had his childhood friend sacrifice five years of his life to help Biggie make it. Throughout all of the changes B.I.G. encountered before he signed, it built his character and gave the audience the chance to see him from a more personal perspective that we didn't get to see while he was alive.
The question everyone had was, will Jamal Woolard aka Gravy be able to emulate Chris Wallace successfully. The portrayal of B.I.G. was on point and at times very convincing. From the charismatic personality to the rap style, Gravy did a great job at portraying the late rapper. On the other hand, there were some other portrayals that weren't as well fit as Big's and Puffs. Lil' Cease was played by a young actor who appears to be a teenager. During the early stages of the movie you assume the character will age as it progresses, but at the end, he still appears to be an adolescent. There's also Anthony Mackie who plays B.I.G.'s former friend turned for 2pac. As far as the look goes, Mackie resembled Pac but Pac has a distinctive persona that is challenging to embody. One role that caught me off guard was former 3LW member Naturi Naughton (featured above) as Lil' Kim. After Lil' Kim dedicated spread in KING Magazine, I thought she didn't resemble her. In the film she reenacts Kim and Big's relationship and stage presence causing me to regret my doubts.
When Notorious comes to an end, it seems a bit rushed. However, it goes a little deeper into 2pac and Biggie's feud and the negative effect the media had on it. The film leaves an excellent lasting impression and raised my respect level even higher for the late MC. For aspiring music artists like me, you will find the story inspiring seeing that anything is possible. Like Big said on "Sky's The Limit" he went from ashy to classy, and this film captures it all. There wasn't a dull moment in this film and it brought Chris Wallace's music to life. Whether you're a Biggie fan or not, you will find this film enjoyable.

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Saturday, November 22, 2008

Album Review: Ludacris - Theater of the Mind


Ludacris gets cinematic with his latest release Theater of the Mind. Some of the biggest names co-star on this project, and features a variety of A-List producers. After months of hype, is Theater of the Mind worth the money or are you better off getting it on bootleg?

4/5

Over the past eight years, Ludacris has had a progressive career. From his debut LP Back for the First Time, Ludacris branded himself as a lyrical, humorous, fun loving emcee (hence the name Ludacris). Luda’s personality and charismatic delivery granted him instant acceptance in the rap game. Five albums later, Ludacris is still relevant and has not showed one sign of struggle in his career.
Ludacris gets thematic on his latest effort Theater of the Mind. For the movie themed album, Luda labels guest appearances as “co-stars” and productions as “directed by”. The album opens up in traditional Ludacris fashion with someone talking over an instrumental and Ludacris spontaneously starts to spit with no hook. He welcomes his audience to the album starting his verse with “Lights, Camera, Action…” over a rapid-drum beat directed by The Runners. The following track “Undisputed” would’ve been suitable for an intro as well. The track features Floyd Mayweather as he plays Luda’s trainer motivating Ludacris to deliver hard hitting punch lines. Luda goes in with lines like “Makin my fans catch the holy ghost at my shows like ya grandma at church/and the fat lady's singin - it's over for you rappers/can't none of y'all bust, you're just sacs full of semen”. Ludacris links up with former rival T.I. for another unlikely appearance on “Wish You Would”, a follow up to “On Top of the World” off of T.I.’s Paper Trail. The two collaborations prove that when beef is reconciled, it can result in good music.
Theater of the Mind is one of Ludacris’ most well balanced albums. For the ladies, Ludacris dropped his lead single “What Them Girls Like” featuring Chris Brown and Sean Garrett. The intention of the track was to get the ladies attention and appeal to the clubs, but it is one of weaker tracks on the album. The second single “One More Drink” is the albums mandatory T-Pain feature. The club friendly track talks about the effects of too much alcohol and how you perceive women. Unlike “What Them Girls Like”, “One More Drink” is commercial, but still a cold track. Swizz Beatz delivers “Nasty Girl”, with an unimpressive appearance from Plies. On Usher’s “Yeah”, Ludacris rapped “I like a lady in the streets, but a freak in the bed”, which Ludacris sticks to on “Nasty Girl”. Another track for the ladies “Contagious” features Jamie Foxx and a smooth neo-soul styled instrumental surprisingly produced by Scott Storch.
For the streets, Ludacris teams up with Rick Ross and Playaz Circle on “Southern Gangster”. Ving Rhames narrarates the track similar to BET’s “American Gangster”. The track is more suitable for Rick Ross since Luda’s attempt to get “gangsta” seems unnatural.
The album comes to a close with pure hip hop tracks. Ludacris and Lil Wayne address the issue of hip hop dying on “Last of a Dying Breed”. Lil Wayne drops a favorable verse with a frantic delivery as he spits lines like “Hip hop ain’t dead, it just had a heart attack/but you see I keep it pumpin’, and I got that heart back”. DJ Premier makes a production appearance on “MVP” with his signature production style. Ludacris makes the mistake of saying “He’s the first southern rapper on a Premo beat”, when artists like Cee-Lo and Scarface have worked with DJ Premier in the past. The most hyped appearance on this album was the Nas and Jay-z featured “I Do It for Hip Hop”. Nas and Jay-z together have made “Black Presidents” and “Success” which leads to higher expectations for this track. Instead, it features a bland instrumental but it’s redeemed by solid verses from Jay and Nas. The album ends on a conscious note with Ludacris’ collaboration with Common and Spike Lee coincidentally titled “Do the Right Thing”. Ludacris drops his positive wake up call to the people.
In conclusion, Theater of the Mind is a versatile LP. Whether Ludacris is rapping about drinks, envy, or his love for hip hop, he manages to make above average music. Theater of the Mind is Luda’s most substantial effort, and a little more fun than Release Therapy.

To Sum It Up In One Word: Theatrical

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Album Review: Kanye West - 808's & Heartbreak


Kanye drops his breakthrough album 808's & Heartbreak just in time for the holiday season. While the release of this album was rather unexpected, the question is will fans find 808's & Heartbreak boomin' or heartbreakin'?

4/5

In early 2004, a producer-rapper emerged from the Chi with distinctive, soul sample production and realistic song content. College Dropout discussed everything from religion, to college, to slow jams. The album's successor, Late Registration followed the school theme, but also showed Kanye’s progress as a producer. Instead of sticking with the soul-sample sound, Kanye went for more of an orchestral vibe with the album. After years of controversies and outspoken moments, Kanye dropped Graduation which outsold competitor 50 Cent, and showed consistency in his career.
Early in Mr. West’s career, he laid out the blueprint of his album titles; College Dropout, Late Registration, Graduation, and Good Ass Job. About a year after Graduation, Kanye announced he will be dropping an album this year, and decided not to go with the Good Ass Job title. Kanye named the album 808’s & Heartbreak to represent the drum sound on his latest project, the unfortunate loss of his Mother, and the disengagement of his fiancĂ© Alexis Phiffer.
Ye took a different approach with this album. It is full auto-tune, and very limited rapping. The album begins with “Say You Will”, which sets the tone for 808’s & Heartbreak. The booming 808 and the piano laced production shows an emotional sound to Kanye as he expresses his dislike for dishonest women. The follow up track “Welcome to Heartbreak” would’ve been the perfect intro for the album. On the Kid Cudi assisted track Kanye compares material accomplishments to priceless life experiences which equates to heartbreak.
The albums second single “Heartless” is one of the rare tracks that feature rap vocals. The flute driven instrumental features Ye confronting a cold hearted woman saying “How could you be so, Dr. Evil/You bringin’ out a part of me that I don’t know”. The next track “Amazing” has a guest spot from Young Jeezy and features a tribal type of sound similar to the lead single “Love Lockdown”. One of the standout tracks, the synthesized “Paranoid” has an eighties vibe to it, and is followed up with the mediocre “RoboCop”. While the album version of “RoboCop” features additional strings and other efforts, the combination of auto-tune, sirens, and strings is a bit disastrous.
Another sub par track on the album is “Bad News”. The dark sounding track is one of the moments on the album where the auto-tune begins to sound abused. The excessive use of the auto-tune continues on the Lil Wayne collab “See You in my Nightmares”. Overall it’s a favorable song, but after 9 straight songs of auto-tune, it starts to become an annoyance. The album comes to a closing with the mandatory dedication to his late Mother Donda West. “Coldest Winter” is a farewell to his beloved Mother where Kanye does a remake of Tears for Fears “Memories Fade”.
Overall, 808’s & Heartbreak is a great album. The production is genius and shows Kanye’s versatility and progression as a producer and artist. Though “RoboCop” and “Bad News” are my least favorite on the album, Kanye makes up for them with musical tracks like “Paranoid” and “Welcome to Heartbreak”. Also, the use of the auto-tune becomes a problem towards the albums closing. A couple of auto tune-less tracks would’ve been ideal but it could’ve resulted in an inconsistent sound. I can see 808’s… not being accepted by everyone, but a real musician takes risks. Common did it with Electric Circus, Andre did it with The Love Below, and Cee-Lo did it with St. Elsewhere. Since Kanye is at his peak in his career, this would be a good time to drop an experimental album. Upon the first listen on the album, you find yourself thinking “what am I listening to?”, but after two to three more listens, it becomes infectious.

To Sum It Up In One Word: Heartful

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Wednesday, November 5, 2008

Album Review: Q-Tip - The Renaissance


A Tribe Called Quest front man Q-Tip, is back with his second solo LP The Renaissance. In the 90's, the hip hop audience loved Tribe's jazzy style of rap music. While hip hop continues to change musically, will Q-Tip be able to revive the art with The Renaissance?

4/5

It's been almost 20 years since Q-Tip has been an active MC starting out with the legendary A Tribe Called Quest. After five albums over the course of eight years, Tip leftPhife and Ali Shaheed Muhammad to drop his debut album Amplified. With "Vivrant Thing" and "Breathe and Stop" serving as lead singles for the album, it made Q-tip the most successful solo artist of A Tribe Called Quest. After the release of Amplified, Q-Tip stayed out the limelight appearing on various underground projects.
Q-Tip returns with his breakthrough LP The Renaissance. While Tip's first solo album had a huge commercial single, The Renaissance took a different approach. The albums lead single "Gettin' Up" is a smooth, piano sampled track sounding opposite of Q-Tip's older singles.
Another difference from Q-Tip's previous album is that it features only one J Dilla track while the last was produced almost thoroughly by the late great producer. The Renaissance's soulful funky production was handled by Q-Tip himself. The one Dilla contribution "Move", is the albums most commerical track. Tip kicks off his verse with "I'm just a brother man, descendant of the motherland; I fuck with blackberries, dymes and butter tans" as he raps over a funky Dilla instrumental, which samples "Dancing Machine" by the Jackson 5.
During the middle of the album Q-Tip addresses troubled relationships. On "You" rhymes about confrontational women and how the end result is typically their fault. Similar to "You", "Fight/Love" discusses conflict in relationships, and features a hook by the soulful RaphaelSaadiq. The mellow beat, Q-tip's relaxed flow, and Saadiq singing on the hook compliment the track extremely well, making "Fight/Love" one of the best tracks off the album. As most rap veterans do, Q-Tip has track addressing the current state of hip hop. "Dance on Glass" starts off as anacapella track, but the beat comes in with a DJ Premier-esque type sound.
Overall The Renaissance has a soulful vibe. Based off the features alone you can perceive the type of feel the album will have. The album features no rap appearances, but features RaphaelSaadiq, Norah Jones, Amanda Diva, and D'Angelo who appears on the motivational "Believe". "Believe" contributes to the albums great closure, but the final track "Shaka" tops it off. "Shaka" is an ode to Q-Tip's younger bro, where Tip spits "My brother Shaka would've wanted me to do it like this...so raise your glasses for the loved ones in your life"; over a beat with production style similar to A Tribe Called Quest's "God Lives Through".
My closing statement is that Q-Tip proves his relevance thus having almost 20 years in the game. While some artists fail to stay relevant after longevity, Q-Tip delivers with an outstanding album. Aside from the lyricism and flow, the production off The Renaissance is reminiscent to the signature A Tribe Called Quest sound, and at some points you find yourself anticipating a verse from Phife. This album will definitely be enjoyed by ATCQ fans like myself, and will also appeal to new listeners.

To Sum It Up In One Word: Funkdafied

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Thursday, October 2, 2008

Album Review: T.I. - Paper Trail


Last October, T.I.'s career was being questioned due to his arrest from gun possession. Many wondered if it would cause Tip to go on a hiatus or would he still remain relevant while he is locked up. Since T.I. was proven guilty, he was issued 1000 hours of community service, and has to do a year in jail. Since T.I.'s jail time is delayed until community service is complete, it gave him more time to focus on his music and bring his latest effort Paper Trail.

4/5

The album's predecessor, T.I. vs. T.I.P. was an thematic attempt for T.I. to show his more creative side with an "alter ego" style album which received average reviews. With Paper Trail, T.I. went with his typical album formula; hard bass beats, club friendly tracks, and a couple of joints that appeal to the ladies.
The albums opener "56 Bars", T.I. hooks up with longtime collaborator DJ Toomp, dropping 56 lines straight with no hook. While the song sounds reminiscent to the "Trap Muzik" album, T.I. names who he feels is the best and on his level when he says: "Ranked up there with Benjamin/Who? Andre 3K, B.I.G., Jay-Z, UGK, Scarface, Makaveli the great/Wayne, Common, Kanye andLupe/So fuck what you say". T.I. continues to show his confidence in his music with the follow up track "I'm Illy" (not to be confused with the "A Millie"), and "Ready For Whatever".

While the first three openers appeal more to the streets, Paper Trail starts to lean towards the commercial side in the beginning to middle of the album. The "from-nothing-to-something anthem" "Top Of the World" features an unlikely feature by former rival Ludacris, and newcomer B.O.B.. T.I. also links up with Rihanna on "Live Your Life", a Just Blaze produced track that has crossover potential. Other tracks like "Swing Ya Rag", "Porn Star", and the lead single "Whatever You Like", also add to Paper Trail's mainstream appeal.
The post summer smash "Swagga Like Us" which features heavyweights Kanye, Hov, and Wayne is one of the albums biggest gems. The M.I.A. sampled hook features a dope beat by Mr. West, and an impressive verse from not only Jay-z but T.I.. T.I. shows his lyrical growth on "S.L.U." spitting lines like: You know see Weezy for the wordplay, Jeezy for the bird play/Kanyeezy for diversity and me for controversy/I'm a verse that's picture perfect, only spit to serve a purpose/You ain't livin what you kickin then you worthless/Lookin from the surface it may seem like I got reason to be nervous/Been observant, work to see if my adversity was worth it".

The album slows down towards the end with the nostalgic "Slide Show", the behind the walls dedication "You Ain't Missin Nothin'", and the final track "Dead and Gone" which features Justin Timberlake. Not only is JT on the hook, he also shows off his production skills on the track. "Dead and Gone" serves as a tribute to lost ones and also T.I. starting a new beginning; bringing the album to a close. In conclusion, Paper Trial is much better than T.I. vs. T.I.P., and it also shows T.I.'s growth as an artist. T.I. proves that no matter how much pressure and problems he experiences, he still manages to make above satisfactory music.

To Sum It Up In One Word: FlyPaper

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Wednesday, September 3, 2008

Album Review: Young Jeezy - The Recession



In 2005, Young Jeezy was introduced to the world via Def Jam records. His breakthrough album "Thug Motivation 101" had rap fans curious to see what happens after "And Then What", had them vibing to "Soul Survivor", and eventually made them "Go Crazy"; resulting in over 1.7 million units sold. While Thug Motivation was Jeezy's first album, he branded himself as a "real street nigga" with his raps about drug trafficking, the trap, and his snowman logo, where he derived his alias. After the success of his first album, Jeezy released his second album "The Inspiration" which achieved platinum status as well. While the second album shared the same content as the first, Young Jeezy decided to take a different approach with his latest effort.

3.5/5
Young Jeezy has a rep for glorifying the drug dealer lifestyle and sharing his tales of a hustler through his music. Surprisingly, Jeezy decided to increase his content by discussing politics, laws, and economical issues, thus the name of the album "The Recession". The album starts with "The Recession Intro", an outstanding synth and bass-heavy beat provided by DJ Toomp which sets the albums tone. The intro features audio of news coverage on the blatant recession that the United States is experiencing with Jeezy giving hope through it all.

As most later albums that artists release, there's the essential track that marks the return of the artist. On "The Recession", Jeezy has "Welcome Back", a banging track which welcomes Jeezy back from a two year hiatus. On "Crazy World", Young Jeezy big up's presidential candidate Barack Obama, then goes in on the government, President Bush and crooked laws. Jeezy raps "Real G shit, well that's really unheard of/when you get more time for selling dope than murder...murder", the content and production make "Crazy World" easily one of the best songs on the album. "What They Want", a track that defines Young Jeezy's self-proclaimed motivational speaker title, Jeezy raps "They know just what they want/ They know just what they gettin'/They ask me what I'm doing, I tell 'em teachin' for a living/...And I can show you how to make a mill right now".

The album is off to a very good start, but towards the middle the overall sound becomes repetitive. The production typically contains heavy-bass, high hats, 808 kicks, and/or claps, with Young Jeezy's laid back delivery and signature ad libs. On the other hand, there are a couple of songs where the production is different from the majority of the album. On "Circulate", producer Don Cannon provides his usual one instrumental per Jeezy album. The soul-like instrumental contains a vocal sample for the hook with Jeezy using his ad libs to compliment the sample. It is then followed by "Word Play", another distinctive beat produced by Justice League. Jeezy explains his differences from typical hip hop artists stating "You niggas want word play/But I'm about bird play".

Guest appearances are limited on "The Recession". The lead single features Kanye West, while the rest of the album features hooks by Trey Songz, Anthony Hamilton, a verse by Lil Boosie, and a surprising appearance by Nas. In 2006, Young Jeezy questioned Nas' street credibility after showing offense to Nas' album title "Hip Hop is Dead". The two reconciled their differences on their ode to Barack Obama titled "My President", where Nas delivers an impressive verse.

In conclusion, The Recession is an above average album. Young Jeezy has elevated his lyrical ability and expanded his content, yet the overall music still sounds similar to his two previous albums. The album is definitely worth listening to and it is easily favorable with over a handful of bangers.

To Sum It Up In One Word: Semi-Substantial

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Monday, August 25, 2008

Album Review: The Game L.A.X.


4/5

In the early 2000's, G-Unit achieved success as a crew by dominating the mixtape and mainstream scene, and appealing to all regions on the map. For the East they had 50 Cent, Lloyd Banks, and Yayo; the South had Young Buck, and the West had The Game. The success of his fellow G-Unit members helped introduce The Game to the world with his debut LP The Documentary. With two mainstream 50 Cent assisted singles (three if you include "Westside Story"), The Documentary received positive recognition and has sold over two million units. Shortly after, 50 Cent and The Game fell out resulting in The Game's departure and a claim from 50 Cent stating that he wrote a majority of the album.

Over a year and numerous diss songs later, The Game had to show that he can make it by himself with his post-G-Unit album, Doctor's Advocate. While Doctor's Advocate was a near platinum album, The Game proved he possesses the skills to make a high quality album without G-Units support, show growth and consistency.

Now that The Game is a respected name in hip hop, he is back with his third release L.A.X. (abbreviated for Life and Times). Since he proved on his last album that he can make it on his own, The Game took a different approach with this album by including numerous guest features. Some of the appearances on the album are Ludacris, Common, Ice Cube, Ne-Yo, Nas, and many others. A majority of the features on the album, like the Cool-n-Dre produced "My Life" which features Lil Wayne, only have the featured artist appearing on the hook. Despite numerous features, The Game succeeds in delivering an album with a West Coast vibe. A wide range of features can change the vibe of an album if the artist emulates the featured artist style which leads to an inconsistent overall sound. One of the standout features on the album is the collaboration with Wu-Tang frontman Raekwon on "Bulletproof Diaries", where The Game and Rae drop verses about if they were to switch their place of residence.

L.A.X. has a vast list of producers that contributed beats as well. Some of the producers include Cool-n-Dre, Scott Storch, J.R. Rotem, Dj Toomp, Hi Tek and others. On "Ya Heard", produceder Nottz samples the b-boy classic track "Jam On It". The production is nicely flipped transforming Newcleus' 80's hit into a modern west coast track. Kanye West delivers "Angel" which features Common, where The Game raps over a soulful Gil Scott Heron sampled track, continuing Common's "I Used To Love HER" story.

The Game often receives criticism for his excessive references to other artists he uses in his verses. The "name dropping" that The Game is known for is L.A.X.'s weakness. Though The Game may name drop a lot, he still manages to touch a wide range of subjects. Whether he's rapping about his home state of California on "Cali Sunshine" and "State of Emergency", consciousness on "Letter to the King", or making a song for the ladies on "Gentleman's Affair" and "Touchdown"; The Game brings his most substantial effort. Another standout track is "Never Can Say Goodbye" where The Game raps as 2pac, Biggie, and Eazy-E, and summarizes their last minutes of life.

Overall, L.A.X. is a very solid album but it's a bit lengthy. The Game shows he's been consistant with his albums since day one, and he can collaborate with numerous artist and still remain himself.

To Sum It Up In One word: Feature-Heavy

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Monday, July 21, 2008

Album Review: Nas - Untitled

Disclaimer: This is my first ever album review. Don't consider this a warning, consider it an accomplisment.

Nas - Untitled

4.5/5

It’s been 14 years since Queens Bridge MC Nas debuted with the classic album, Illmatic. Since 94', Nas has been one of hip hop's most original and prolific artists touching various subjects and kicking pure knowledge. Esco is back with his follow up to his last album Hip Hop Is Dead. While the title caused a raucous in the hip hop community and exposed the insecurity of artists' music (unintentionally), Nas came with an even more controversial title, Nigger. Once the title was released to the public, controversy emerged in no time. Fellow music artists like Jay-z, Akon, and Alicia Keys supported the album titles message, but others like the NAACP opposed it. Eventually, the album title had to be changed in order to be released. Fans (including myself) were displeased with the album’s title removal, but we all know what the original title is. On the albums lead single “Hero”, Nas raps “So untitled it is, I never change nothin’/ But people remember this/If Nas can't say it, think about these talented kids/With new ideas being told what they can and can't spit”

The album starts off with Nas going in over a sampled piano instrumental produced by newcomer rapper and producer Jay Electronica. The laid-back instrumental and abrasive delivery set the tone of the album. Nas even takes shots at 50 Cent when he drops lines like “Take 27 emcee's put them in a line and they're out of alignment/my assignment since he said retirement
hiding behind 8 Mile and The Chronic/Gets rich but dies rhyming/...Now add 23 more from Queens to B-more/I'm over their heads, like a bulimic on a seesaw/Now that's 50 porch monkeys ate up at the same time”

At a time where mainstream hip hop mainly consists of rapping about materialism, sex, and drug trafficking; Nas took a completely different direction with his latest effort. Nas collaborated with R&B singer Chris Brown and The Game on “Make the World Go Round” which has the most mainstream appeal out of all the songs on the album. The rest of the albums content is discussing black stereotypes (N.I.G.G.E.R., Yall My Niggas), historical racism (You Can’t Stop Us Now), and politics (America, Black President). One of the standout tracks, “Sly Fox”, Nas exposes Fox and CBS’ propaganda and the lack of support for the hip hop community. Nas also has words for hip hop's biggest supporter Bill O’Reilly (sarcasms) for attempting to remove Nas from a free concert for Virginia Tech. Another standout track on the album is “Fried Chicken” featuring Busta Rhymes. Nas and Busta rap over a smooth instrumental produced by UK producer Mark Ronson, about Fried Chicken.

The album ends with “Black President”, an ode to the presidential candidate Barack Obama. Nas discusses the possibilities and outcome of Barack’s potential victory this November. It features a sample from 2pac’s “I wonder if Heaven’s Got Ghetto” that states “and though it seems heaven-sent, we ain’t ready to have a black President”

In conclusion, this album is a superb effort by Nas. He’s definitely proved that he is at the status where he doesn’t have to strive for mainstream appeal, and he can make music from his point of view, projecting his opinion about society. Hip Hop needs albums like this at this day and age.

To sum it up in one word: Powerful.

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