KEY LOADS  “THE FIRST SHIPMENT”  Rating:  4.4
There are 23 tracks titled on the album, but many of those are skits, intros, outros, etc.  The first track to grab my attention was the song Intro (BIO) with it’s eerie strings and bassline.  Key Loads has a presence that is intimidating with his distint voice and aggressive delivery comparable to DMX or King Ashoka.  His powerful sound kicks in the door with the Intro (BIO) and continues with All These Hoes.  The beginning sounds like a soundtrack score then Key Loads dives in with his lyrical assault.  Long Time Comin is one of my favorites from the album.  It has that old-school PSK snare with Key Loads blasting clips of lines in rapid succession describing his long journey through life to reach this point.  Simple Life follows and keeps my head noddin.  Key Loads has the gift of capturing your attention and holding it with a tight grip.  The production of the album is fairly simplistic, but effective to serve as the canvas Key Loads paints across with his lyrical brush.  Not just his lyrical gifts, but the ad libs he throws behind each bar add depth to each track.  Look At Me is another highlight from the album.  Music Play follows the What Is It skit and you have to listen to both together for the full impact of Music Play to resonate.  This brings out another apsect of Key Loads that I appreciate and that is his lyrical content.  The First Shipment is much more than the typical braggadoicious track listing you might find on another album.  He’s got a message behind his methods.  Move Forward is the first song that I come across that I don’t care for.  It’s too simple and needs more depth with the production.  Key Loads still represents well with his rhymes, but the production was too much to overlook.  God’s Plan almost fell into the same trap, but Key Loads pulls it along enough with his delviery and content to keep me listening.  Reparation (aka Blacc History) is powerful with deep consciousness as Key Loads speaks on the pride of Black history and the attrocities against the Black man.  I really like the track for it’s content and intelligence and of course Key Loads brings the heat with his intense delivery.  This is probably the most powerful and emotional song on the album.  He keeps the album moving with the track Money.  He isn’t bragging about stacks of money, but instead the evils that money creates and cultivates.  MarCy ChicC is straight boom-bap Hip-Hop.  Why You Like Me is another highlight from the album with lines that will stick in your head for days.  Then we come to one of my favorites of the album:  Wine & CocC.  I love the production on this track.  I love the lyrical delivery and content.  I love the hook.  Wine and CocC is bananas!  I did not like RocCstar and wish he would have left this one off the album because another of my favorites follows.  Win is a hot track with perfectly timed drops in the beat to allow Key Loads to deliver with the heat.  The Champ Is Here may be the best track to lead out as a single, although I think Wine & CocC has the same potential.  I’m Here closes the album and is perfectly placed ot leave you remembering the strength of Key Loads’ lyrics, content, and delivery.  Trim out the 6 skits and you’re left with 17 tracks out of which I did not like 2.  15 tracks of heat is a good showing for Key Loads and The First Shipment.

LIL DUCE  “I GOT WHAT YOU NEED”  Rating:  3.6
Lil’ Duce may be a name that makes you immediately expect a rapper, but Lil’ Duce has a unique delivery that blends rap and singing.  There are 22 tracks on the album taking you from up-tempo club tracks to love songs, but not your typical loves songs; these come with that street twist like his song Ghetto Bug.  The album has a rough mix and would definitely benefit from a mixdown by a professional engineer.  His song Take a Picture is a great illustration of this as the beat has big bang potential, but the mix doesn’t lend itself to bringing the full power of the instruments out or display the depth of his vocals.  I liked the song Ghetto Bug, but Take a Picture really caught my attention as a song with tremendous potential.  YUM is another dope track and is the first song with single potential from the album.  The track is laced with a funky bass guitar covered by a synth line that is very catchy and the hook will stick in your mind for a long time.  Playa Like Me features Big Tuck and is another hot track, but yet again the engineering buries too many instruments.  Bring those horns out and pump that percussion loop up more.  The song Swisher is another favorite from the album with its slow grind melody and the funky twist Lil’ Duce puts into his lyrics and wordplay.  Naan Single One is a funky ride with the Rhodes laying in the back, but I didn’t like the feature of Lil’ Loco.  It was too simple and again the vocal mix didn’t fit the level of the singing of Lil’ Duce.  The funny thing is that they had perfectly engineered tracks to use as a reference when Lil’ Duce sings over instrumentals from other hit songs.  Just listen to the difference in sound levels when you go from the song Closer to the song Don’t Bust.  There is a huge drop off and that should have served as a wake up call to the ones responsible for the engineering.  I really liked the short Candy song and was left wanting more of that when it ended just a little after a minute it kicked off.  Just Roll is another single-potential track.  Overall I really want to hear more from Lil’ Duce as I know he has tremendous potential and obvious talent.  His voice is unique, his lyrics are edgy and on-point, and his funky blend of rap and singing is a refreshing change to the norm.  Let me hear a full album of original production and professional engineering and I would expect to be singing nothing but praise for this talented singer.

DWELE  “SKETCHES OF A MAN”  Rating:  4.6
Sketches of a Man is a simple intro and I won’t go into my hatred of intros, skits, interludes, and outros.  Free As A Bird is a nice mellow joint with simple Rhodes and a phat side stick for a snare. I loved the lyrics, the delivery; Dwele’s soulful voice…everything about this song is hot.  Feels So Good is more of an up-tempo groove, but still full of soul.  I especially liked the subtle horn throughout.  Blow Your Mind keeps the groove going with more of Dwele’s soulful flavor.  Still no disappointments to this point.  A Few Reasons (produced by Nottz out of Virginia) is funky right from the opening drum fill.  This is one of my favorites from the album with its funky drum patterns and the perfectly timed piano hits combined with Dwele’s passionate voice.  I like the way he slips in references to myspace and youtube.  A testament to Dwele’s songwriting abilities to include those references without sliding into corny.  The cover of Bobby Caldwell’s Open Your Eyes is beautiful.  Even the guitar was tolerable since it wasn’t overbearing.  Workin On It is a more edgy song with a more aggressive flavor, but its dope.  The song Brandi features Slum Village and almost threw me off my grown folks vibe, but the song recovered quickly with Dwele infusing his jazzy vocals.  Five Dolla Mic was the weakest track on the album.  It just didn’t do anything for me on any level and felt like filler material.  You Won’t Be Lonely is another filler piece that you can skip through.  Then you get to the lead single I’m Cheatin’ which is produced by G1.  This song is bananas.  The groove is absolutely beautiful and the lyrical twist of cheating on a woman with that same woman’s alter-ego is clever.  You Won’t Be is a simplistic groove that almost serves as a mantra with Dwele repeating the lines repeatedly.  Unfortunately it is just another filler piece.  Love Ultra comes in with a unique off-beat vibe that caught me off-guard at first.  I loved the sound of the acoustic guitar slides.  It’s Dwele at a raw and exposed moment that I admired immediately.  Traveling Girl builds from a chattering intro to a full crescendo of horn then eases back into Dwele carrying the tune with his soft and soulful voice.  This is another of my favorites from the album.  If You Want To is only the second song with any features with Lloyd Dwaye and J. Tait gracing the song.  The song is okay, but the repetitive strings got old quick and the beat didn’t seem to fit the flavor of the song.  I liked Shady except for the claps.  Dwele’s vocals are beautiful and the rest of the groove is nice, but those claps….loose the claps. 70’s is a nice instrumental piece but again just another short filler.  He’s begging for rappers to snatch that and get busy.  The song Vain is amazing on it’s music merit alone, but add the lyrics and the message behind the song and this is my top pick for the album.  The album wraps up with Spiritual, I’m Sorry, and Body Rock.  I’m Sorry (Wake The Musical Baby) is my favorite of the three with it’s simple piano driven melody and Dwele with his raw vocal pain and passion.  If it weren’t for the filler material I would have pronounced this album a solid 5.

2 PISTOLS  “DEATH BEFORE DISHONOR”  Rating:  3.0
The intro is a disturbing piece that actually held my interest – you know I hate intros.  The title track of the album is okay at best.  The first hit on the album is easily the song She Got It, featuring T-Pain and Tay Dizm.  By now you’ve heard the song getting heavy play on the radio since it’s release back in February.  Chalk that up as another J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League-produced hit, who produced the majority of this album.  Been Throwin Money is okay, but not spectacular by any means.  Getting Money Mane is the better of the two.  Let’s Ride is nice mellow track, but if the beat (specifically the snare) were redone I think it would have a lot more heat.  The song Flex rides on the success of the original by Mad Cobra and I would prefer the original to 2 Pistols rendition.  That’s the risk of doing a song that had its own success; you better knock it out of the park or everyone will refer back to the original as the better version.  I was diggin’ Eyes Closed because of the aggressive horn stabs that gave the song a real lean forward attitude.  Skip the stupid Phone Skit interlude…waste of time and space.  Ray J comes through on You Know Me and the song is already heating up with heavy radio spins.  Something about the song makes me think Paul Wall would have been a better feature in place of 2 Pistols, but regardless, the song is hot and rightfully heating up the charts.  We Run it featuring Slick Pulla and Blood Raw is a dope track.  It’s real simple, but perfect for banging out the trunk.  That’s My Word with Trey Songz is another highlight and once again produced by the J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League.  The top 3 songs from this album are produced by the same and all feature a solid R&B voice.  I think that is 2 Pistols niche’.  He’s not a strong enough rapper to hold his own, but he sounds great as a compliment to an uptempo R&B track.  The song Candy Coated Diamonds raises the question:  who’s song is this?  I’ve been hearing the Riskay version for a long time before 2 Pistols dropped his version and I still like Riskay’s more.  If you take out the tracks that are sample-based (Flex), questionable ownership (Candy Coated Diamonds), and the 3 R&B tracks ‘featuring’ 2 Pistols, this album would be a flop.  Unfortunately 2 Pistols drops and album that doesn’t help to establish his own identity and that usually leads to a quick exit from the game.  Look at it like this:  you could insert any other rap artist into this entire album and never miss 2 Pistols.

LIL WAYNE  “THE CARTER III”  Rating: 3.5
Reviewed by Lorenzo Fouts
Wayne jumps right into the album with a nice joint, “3 Peat”.  The overall production to this beat is hot and the lyrics are nice with plenty of punch lines (as always). I think it’s a great way to jump into the album and get the listeners' attention. “Mr. Carter”, featuring Jay Z is a slower track made for the lyrics. Although the beat isn’t bad and it can keep your head bobbing, this is surely not one of his top joints on the album. “A Milli”, everyone has their own versions of this song already which just shows that this track is a straight banger that will be played for a long time everywhere. “Got Money” is featuring T-Pain so you know its intentions were for the club. I feel that they hit that perfectly from the beat and the punch lines along with T-Pain in the hook; it’s a hot track. I feel that Wayne was tripping when he did “Comfortable”. This just is not a track Wayne should be on at all. Wayne was bold with “Dr. Carter”, coming out with the intro and the whole content of this track.  I think this track was nice and he took a good leap for this one. “Phone Home”: the beat and lyrics for this are hot. “Tie My Hands” slowed the album down and it has a nice sound to it with Robin Thicke singing the hook.  It’s hot. “Mrs. Officer”, featuring Bobby Valentino, is a nice joint.  It wouldn’t be my first choice to listen to, but it’s not bad until the 2nd-to-last verse, which is awful. “Let the Beat build” could’ve been nice if it wasn’t for the annoying singing in the background. “Shoot Me Down”, featuring D. Smith is not a good track. The beat was just awful. “Lollipop”, this song was an obvious club track from the beginning although it seems to hardly have any lyrics to it, its still an alright song. “La La”, featuring Brisco and Busta Rhymes could’ve been really hot. If it wasn’t for the “la la…” in the back then I think it could’ve hot. Change the beat a little and it’s a hot street banger. “Playing With Fire” featuring Betty Wright... Wayne was tripping with this song -every bit of it. “Nothin’ On Me” featuring Juelz and Fabulous is a hot street track. Wayne with Juelz and Fabulous was a good idea to get together. The sample and total production to “Misunderstood” was hot. The song was hot, but at the end you can see Wayne was lit up with the extra 5 minutes of talking.

ASHANTI  “THE DECLARATION”  Rating:  2.8
Ashanti returns with The Declaration sporting the typical A-List of producers along with features from Robin Thicke, Nelly, and Akon.  It’s fairly short by today’s standards with only 13 tracks, 2 of which are the Intro and Outro and you already know I don’t like the fillers.  So with only 11 tracks to judge Ashanti’s return; she better bring the heat, but unfortunately you’ll have to skip to Struggle (track 5) before you’ll hear anything that sparks some interest.  Struggle isn’t even that hot, but considering you just listened to the first 4 tracks with throwback production and flavor it’s the starting point for the album.  I was digging the song Girlfriend, even though I couldn’t get Prince’s classic out of my mind while listening to the track.  Then Robin Thicke comes in with Things You Make Me Do and now I finally find a song I honestly like outright, although Ashanti doesn’t exactly sing with any conviction over the breathy-flavored vibe.  In These Streets is a nice follow-up and Ashanti brings more of her vocal prowess in on this one.  Jermaine delivers the first song worthy of a leading single with the song Good Good.  If you are a connoisseur of music you will not be able to get Elton John or even Mary J Blige out of your mind while listening to the piano licks throughout the song.  Body On Me brings the most up-to-date vibe to the album with Akon leading off then Ashanti and finally Nelly.  Mother delivers a beautiful message of love for mom.  I really liked the guitar laced throughout the track produced by Babyface.  Shine is okay, but nothing spectacular.  That’s pretty much the overall opinion on the entire album.  It’s been years since Ashanti released a full album and this is a major disappointment.  Wandering outside of The Inc with the album, Ashanti seemed to struggle for an identity with The Declaration.

USHER  “HERE I STAND”  Rating:  4.3
As much as I hate intros, the lead intro on Here I Stand is a beautiful clip that I wish would have went on longer.  Love In This Club (both versions) have been getting a ton of play so you are familiar with them.  This Ain’t Sex reminded me of old Rick James/Michael Jackson songs with the simple beat.  Its okay, but not a memory-maker.  Trading Places is dope and I fully expect to hear plenty of rappers looping the beat for mixtapes galore.  It did have me laughing that a song spelled out breakfast in bed in great detail, but the song is hot even with its pedestrian songwriting.  Moving Mountains is picking up heavy radio play with deserving merit.  The song is nice.  What’s Your Name’s sample-driven base is too hard for me to listen to without thinking of the original “Sweet Dreams” song from the Eurythmics.  The Prayer For You interlude is nice, too.  Usher is making me eat my words on my hatred of intros and interludes.  Something Special was the first highlight to the album for me, with Usher belting out his vocals over a simple guitar beginning leading into a swing out-flavored track.  I think this song best illustrates Usher’s vocal abilities.  Love You Gently is a powerful follow up and is definitely another highlight of Usher’s vocal power.  This is another of my favorites from the album.  Best Thing could have been much better with stronger production behind it.  The production s just feels weak, but the potential of this song is huge.  Before I Met You is okay, but I kept waiting for something to happen in the song to pick it up.  This is another one that the production quality hurts.  Usher knocks out the vocals with power and passion, but the music behind him is asleep.  His Mistakes is a great song with a piano-driven track and Usher delivering content that a lot of guys can relate to (paying for a woman’s previous relationship disasters).  Appetite is bananas with the flutes kicking it off and Usher doing his thing in a big way; this song has strong single-potential.  The biggest thing that stood out to What Is A Man To Do was the odd sample in the background.  I kept trying to indentify it throughout the entire song.  Is it an instrument, a vocal piece warped out…what is that?  I liked Lifetime and would like it more with a live drummer behind it.  Can somebody get Usher and ?uestlove together to remix this song?  Here I Stand is a nice melodic song with a laid back flavor.  I definitely liked the title track.  Usher delivers a Stevie Wonder quality with this one.  The album wraps up with the song Will Work For Food and it’s a nice song to end on.  Overall, Usher’s vocal prowess is exceptional throughout the album and even with some production downfalls it is still a hit album.

KEITH SWEAT  “JUST ME”  Rating: 5.0
When I first hit play on the CD I thought the CDs got mixed up at the factory, but that really is Keith singing in falsetto!  The falsetto song Somebody features Chris “F.L.L.” Conner laying his rhymes into the vibe mixed with samples from Blue Magic’s “What’s Come Over Me”.  Call me simple, but that simple drum fill had me going bananas everytime it rolled in.  Then track 2 drops and my mind takes me back to knocking boots in the backseat of a Beretta with Keith Sweat setting the mood with his crooning oozing out of the cassette deck.  The Floor is produced by Teddy Riley and he did this song perfectly.  He never tried to overpower the song with too much instrumentation, but instead kept the vibe slow and sexy.  The Floor is already one of my favorites of 2008 and definitely my favorite from this album.  Girl Of My Dreams has a more modern feel to it, but it’s still a Keith Sweat ballad and again another highlight of the album.  Sexiest Girl had an irritating snare that just seemed to disrupt the groove, but other than that, I was feeling this track, too.  The song just has a nice easy groove and Keith’s vocals fill in perfectly.  R.L also appears on this song, along with Somebody and Teach Me.  Butterscotch is a timeless classic.  This is an incredible ballad with Athena Cage who also propelled the older “Nobody” to the top of the charts back in 1996.  They have not missed a beat or lost a step.  Butterscotch is easily another of my favorites from the album.  Me And My Girl is still another highlight from the album.  This song is perfect for early in the evening with that special someone.  Sweep your girl up and swing out with her while Keith swoons to the upbeat of the track.  Can’t-miss-start to a big night.  Paisley Bettis starts off Suga Suga Suga, and then Keith drops in with the beat and bang!  Another great song!  I have to say that Paisley truly impressed me with her strong vocals.  Never had A Lover just keeps the album on classic status.  It’s a real slow and mellow jam with Keith laying his voice into the groove perfectly.  Love You Better had to be a hit.  How could Keyshia Cole and Keith Sweat combine to produce anything less than a stellar song?  They do not disappoint at all.  Keyshia Cole’s passionate vocals are emotional and stirring and really highlight the track.  Just Wanna Sex You is one of the only two tracks on the album that were not produced by Keith Sweat himself.  O’Ryan produced the track while Teddy Riley produced The Floor.  Just Wanna Sex You felt like the strongest display of Keith’s vocals as his voice really stood out and took this song to a powerful crescendo. What’s A Man To Do takes off right were the previous song left off and just serves to keep the groove going.  Teach Me would have been the best finish to the album, but there is a bonus track featuring Akon titled Some More that really didn’t seem to fit.  This was the only song I did not like from the entire album.  Thanks to Raheem DeVaughn and Keith Sweat, I still like the classic love songs and ballads and I would have to rank this a 5 right along with Raheem’s “Love Behind The Melody”.  If you have any hopes of romance you better have both of these albums on standby.  Yes, Keith Sweat’s Just Me is must-buy album!

BUN B   “II TRILL”   Rating: 2.9
It is never a good sign when an artist drops an album that has 20 tracks and only 4 of those are solo efforts (ignoring the 7 and 14 second interludes).  Bun B brought in a long list of talents to complete this compilation:   Z-Ro, J Prince, Sean Kingston, Lil Wayne, Rick Ross, David Banner, 8Ball & MJG, the surprising duet with Lupe Fiasco, Jazze Pha, Webbie, Juvenile, Mya, Chamillionaire, Lyfe Jennings, Young Buck, Mddl Fngz & Cobe, Junior Reid, Lil Razah, Mike Jones, and Slim Thug.  That doesn’t include the 14 various producers who had their hands in the mix, too.  By the way, the latest material I have been hearing from Scott Storch has me steadily believing he is way over-hyped as a producer or perhaps his short time in the limelight has passed.  The album is full of the typical talk that most expect from Texas artists:  strip clubs, big rims, tough streets, big money, slangin’, etc.  Bun B did nothing to help expose some of the true artistry that can be found in Texas.  The song You’re Everything started out as a song built on the pride of Texas, but almost turned into a “Fuck You I’m From Texas” feel which I thought was odd for an artist trying his best to sell on a national scale.   The Jodeci sample is hot, though.  With all of the negatives out of the way I can finally comment on some of the few things I truly liked about the album.  First of all I loved the blues feel with several tracks laying heavy blues guitar licks, horns, and organs.  Yes he has the expected 808 for the trunks and the heavy synthesizers for the clubs; he even sampled “Cry For You” by Jodeci, “Back That Azz Up” by Juvenille, and an almost cover song of the classic SOS Band’s “Just Be Good To Me”.  Although I didn’t care for the song Underground Thang, it was good to hear Pimp C’s voice one more time.  Without absolutely trashing the album I have say that absolutely loved the songs If It Was Up To Me and Angel In The Sky.  Both of those will be in my playlist for a long time.  Other than those two tracks, the other 18 made little impression on me and served to be exactly what I expected from Bun B.  For his loyal fans, this may very well be a hot-seller, but for the rest of the Hip-Hop world, this has to be deemed a disappointment.

FOXY BROWN “ BROOKLYN’S DON DIVA” Rating:  1.8

Foxy Brown returns with her 4^th album amidst the constant controversy of her legal issues, the stories of her hearing loss, on the heels of the drama that unfolded with her interview in New York on Power 105.1, and the still questionable label issues she has endured.  Foxy Brown, whose real name is Inga Fung Marchand almost single-handedly reviewed her own CD for me.  A few days after its release, Foxy Brown released a statement stating she had only heard the final mix of the album at the time of its release, and it was put together without her final approval. She goes on to say that she was very disappointed with the results, becoming "devastated (and) riddled with grief", leading to her "disowning" it. She now calls it more of a "street album", a "mix CD" that is not meant to be a proper release. Her initial intention was to sue her label, but instead is working with them to create a version with her approval, which will feature five brand new songs. The re-release of Brooklyn's Don Diva is scheduled to hit stores sometime in June 2008.  Along with the statement, she says her proper follow-up album, Black Roses, will be "epic".  As for the album itself, this one is a flop.  The title track Brooklyn’s Don Diva has some heat, along with Never Heard This Before, and We Set The Page.  My guess is that Bulletproof Love/One Love is the one single with any hopes of getting heavy play.  One of the major downfalls of the album is that it almost appears as if she is incapable of recording an entire album on her own merit.  This album features:  Grafh, Mavado, Jay Rush, Kira, Dwele, AZ, DeMarco, Lady Saw, Lil’ Mo, Prinz, Morgan Heritage, and Spragga Benz.  Nothing about this album stands out other than the fact that Foxy Brown (as she so eloquently reminds us several times) still has a great set of breasts.

SCOTT JOHNSON “CLUTCH”  Rating:  3.7
The first song Hello is nothing more than an intro and you already know I hate intros, skits, intermissions, and outros.  With that said; The Truth kicks off the CD with a fierce loop and production with perfectly placed drops and switches.  Scott takes a unique approach to the song while intentionally omitting any chorus or hook.  Even without the traditional structure of most rap songs, The Truth is easily one of my favorites.  King Kong Heart makes for a great lead single to the album, and yes it has a hook.  Scott’s lyrical gifts are borderline poetic.  His use of metaphors and simile are much like any other emcee, but occasionally Scott splices in deeper thought and that is definitely refreshing.  The song Writers Block was a let down for me.  The production was way too simplistic and his delivery lacked emotion or energy.  Scott has a bit of an old school cadence with all of his songs, but it can normally be overlooked due to the lyrical content and production.  With Writers Block he fell short on all counts.  Superhuman immediately strikes a nerve and serves as wake up call to anyone who does not know Scott Johnson.  Any rapper who starts a song with “You’re tuned in to the only cracker better than Ritz” gets my admiration right away.  No fear, no regrets, no sympathy….just real.  The song Clutch is another hot song.  Rock Me Right is absolutely bananas.  The production is enough to catch me noddin’ my head with the guitar lick and the simple but heavy beat, and then the hook sung by Holly Cole clinches this as one of my favorites.  If not for King Kong Heart, I would have selected this as the lead single for the entire album.  Bless The Mic has Scott bringing the most energy from the entire album and it definitely stands out.  The loop throughout the song is almost reminiscent of some old Bomb Squad production and the beat is banging.  The engineer Nolan Brett did a fantastic job with this album – a lesson far too many “rappers” need to learn: the importance of a good engineer.  Remember what I said about hating intermission tracks…give the song You a pass on that.  Yes, it’s a simple spoken word piece that lasts less than 2 minutes, but the music behind the piece is incredible.  Which leads me to Love Your Life.  The guitar lick had me hooked immediately.  The subtle use of the hi-hats and the tambourines mixed with the simple boom of an 808 and the soulful cries of Brian Morris along with the message Scott delivers.  Love Your Life is a piece of true art with timeless appeal.  Lucky is again blessed with the incredible vocals of the songstress Holly Cole and she truly carries this song along with the production.  I didn’t care for the snare, but the piano was beautiful.  Remain Silent is another intermission spoken word piece that really seemed to have no place on the album.  The best thing about the song Ephesians 6:12 was the live band feel.  Other than that I didn’t care for the song.  The song Bent is a strange concoction of synthesizers and an awkward beat all overpowered by some kind of vocal loop in reverse.  Influences is yet another filler intermissions piece with Scott talking about all the artists he would like to work with.  Eh.  Some Other Sheet is my favorite illustration of Scott Johnson’s lyrical gifts, but the production is sub-par.  If this song were remixed, it would be one of my favorites.  Terry Peterson wastes the first 21 seconds, the gets dope as hell, then falls apart and never recovers.  The Aristorcrats almost sounds like a Slick Rick throwback with Scott telling a story throughout the entire song with an odd inflection in his normally no-nonsense delivery.  Where We At has a nice laid back flavor heavy on soul and perfectly mixed the vocoder effects.  Goodbye is the outro and you already know how I feel about outros.

DUBB SICKS  “MIND IN THE GUTTER”  Rating:  4.3
The First thing that caught my attention was the original production skills laced throughout the album.  Producers include S. Killz, R1, Stability, Von Smear, and Charlie Johnson and they all did a terrific job of creating full songs rather than just simple loops that repeat for 4 minutes.  Another thing that jumped out right away was the limited number of cameo appearances with only Foog, Judahfly, and Cali Zack.  It’s refreshing to hear a new sound that is dominated by the artist for whom the CD is titled.  Now for the music.  Mind In The Gutter is hot with some absolutely ill percussions and Dubb Sicks ripping the track with his grimy delivery.  Throughout the entire album you need to listen carefully to the lyrics because Dubb delivers some of the funniest lines ever written.  The nice thing is that he comes across with a true sense of reality.  He’s not trying to pose like he’s king of the world riding on dubs and flossing diamonds by the pound.  He’s talking about drinking beer rather than Henney or Chris or Moet.  Realism is refreshing.  The 35 second intro to Conservative Terroristic Threats II was too much and had me itching to hit the skip button.  If you make it through the intro, Dubb is dropping some heavy talk.  I loved the beat and especially the repeated snare on Bloodshot Angel, but when the full beat kicks in with the bass line the song takes on a whole new feel.  Dope is the best description I can offer.  It almost reminded me of the old Paris songs from the 90’s. There are a few tracks that I didn’t like mostly due to the simplistic production when compared to the others.  It seems like Dubb’s delivery changes to match each song’s production and that would be his one downfall.  I Don’t Dance is easily one of my favorite tracks.  The production is ill like Wu-Tang style and Dubb rocks the mic with a fierce lean.  Then we get to my favorite song from the entire album, which I am only guessing was meant to be a joke, but Let Me Put The head In is absolute fire!  I keep that song on replay and each time I hear another line that cracks me up.  The song is mad funny, but it’s cool as hell.  Dubb is a damn fool with some of his lines in the song, but I guarantee he will have people singing every word of this song.  Queen of the Trailer Park is a dope groove and again Dubb delivers his comical vision of a trailer park ho.  There are some hits and some misses, but overall I like the album.  I’m still bumpin Just Let Me Put The Head In!  Dubb's sense of humor I think is the number one reason why I fell in love with this album.

9^th WONDER & BUCKSHOT  “THE FORMULA”  Rating:  3.8
I think that we are all aware of 9^th Wonder’s renowned productions skills and he will not disappoint with the production of The Formula.  His samples are crisp, his beats never overpower the song…they compliment the entire arrangement (something many producers and engineers need to learn).  The Intro is hot, but it lost a lot of interest from me based on the title alone.  I hate albums with intro, interlude, and outro tracks because I don’t see them as necessary, but instead, simply filler material to add more weight to an album.  Not the case here!  Ready (Brand Nu Day) is a nice laid-back mellow track.  Be Cool was one of my favorites.  The song features Swan crooning through the chorus while Buckshot and 9^th Wonder work their magic with another laid-back groove.  Something about the song Go All Out reminded me of Waterbed Kev (old school Hip-Hop heads will know the reference).  The groove is nice and again laid-back.  Carlitta Durand laced her sultry voice on the track and that was a nice addition.  No Future maintains the same easy vibe.  One of my favorite lines from the song was “Some of your LP’s stand for long punishment”.  PREACH!  Hold It Down features Talib Kweli and Tyler Woods and the combination makes for a solid formula indeed.  One thing I began to wonder by track 6 “Hold It Down) was how they handled all the sample clearances? Whassup With U? is definitely one of the highlights from the album.  Keisha Shantelle has a beautiful voice and Buckshot rolled a hot set of verses on the song.  One For You (Big Lou) stays the course with the mellow production, but for me the lyrics really stood out with this one.  Maybe it was the sentimental value of paying homage to a fallen one, but the entire storyline of this track is touching and poignant.  Just Display again falls right in line with the entire mellow flavor of The Formula. All of the tracks are nice, but so mellow that I think it may receive some light radio play, but not heavy play in the streets.  The Formula is dope, but it’s more for chillin’ at the crib then bumpin’ in a club or bangin’ out of your trunk.  I was always waiting for that one track to really grab me and make me start buggin like I had found a track I would be bangin’ all year.  That never did come to fruition, but my favorite track is Shinin’ Yall (featuring Arafat Yates and Big Chops of M1 Platoon).  Although it is mellow and laid-back like all the others, Shinin’ Yall definitely stands out as the best track.  I’m still wondering how they managed to get so many samples cleared!

ATMOSPHERE  “WHEN LIFE GIVES YOU LEMONS”   Rating:  4.8

The has been a lot of hype how Atmosphere handled the problem of albums leaking prior to the release date and although it is an incredibly expensive method, it may prove to be a blueprint for all the labels that are being slaughtered by file-sharing sites leaking albums sometimes weeks before their scheduled release.  Outside of the move to hold the album under wraps until the actual release date, Atmosphere has actually created a nice album.  The first track Like The Rest Of Us is a mellow joint that I was digging right off the bat.  Puppets kept my interest with the mellow laid back delivery and vibe.  The Skinny’s beat is minimal at best, but the lyrical delivery is bananas!  Dreamer is another lyrical masterpiece, but the tempo picks up and the album finally shows signs of life for radio and club DJs.  The most respected aspect of Atmosphere’s music has long been their introspective and skillful lyrics.  They do not disappoint.  I’m still not sure if everyone is honestly listening to what they are trying to convey with their songs.  When Life Gives You Lemons (Paint That Sh*t Gold) is for the Hip-Hop heads that respect the art of lyrics and the gifted delivery of a true emcee.  This is not for the trunks to rattle or the clubs to get jumpin…this is for the hardcore Hip-Hop heads that appreciate the art of rhyme.  Before I get carried away singing the praises of Atmoshpere, I have to slam the song You.  Garbage!  Follow that up with Painting and the uncanny ability to carry Country and Western into Hip-Hop with success…I’m back on track as a fan again. Your Glasshouse on the other hand had a little too much Techno feel for me.  Then comes my favorite track from the album – Yesterday.  This joint is dope!  The guitar intro of Guarantees is bananas!  You have to commend Atmoshpere for having the courage to bring in any sound or flavor of music and put it all on one eclectic album.  Me is another of my favorites from the album.  The production is on point and the lyrics are stirring.  Wild Wild Horses almost felt like an old Loose Ends track kicking off.  I did not like Can’t Break at all.  That’s what you get with such a diverse taste of music.  The flutes on The Waitress had me hooked immediately, then the lyrics drop and I’m hooked solid.  The Waitress is definitely a highlight of the album. 

ESTELLE   “SHINE”  Rating:  5.0
Kanye West, Swizz Beatz, Wyclef Jean, Will.i.am, Mark Ronson and Cee-lo & Jack Splash all lend talents to the album, executive produced by John Legend.  Needless to say, Estelle has the respect of many well-established and successful artists and it appears the girl from London is ready to take the US by storm with her new album Shine.  This is a feel-good album and I could not help loving the entire album.  From the funky spin on Screamin’ Jay Hawkins’ “I Put a Spell on You” with the lead song Wait A Minute all the way to the Cry Tuff Council Remix of Come Over.  Sometimes the English accent was hard to listen through, but Estelle has so much funk, soul, and flavor…I absolutely loved this album!  All the hardcore Hip-Hop Heads may not dig the album, but if you just want to throw an album and dance around the room with your daughter or hold wifey close and jam with a smile, drop the needle on Shine and let it go from beginning to end.  Don’t get me wrong, Estelle got legitimate Hip-Hop flava.  This is the closest I have heard to Lauryn Hill and we all know how much she is missed.  Funny enough, Magnificent was one of my favorites from the album with the Reggae influence.  A booming dancehall party jam produced by Mark Ronson and featuring Kardinal Offishall, Magnificent is just dope.  Then that’s followed by another dancehall vibe with the song Come Over.  Still no disappointment.  Estelle has a beautiful voice and incredible songwriting skills.  By the way, she does have some rhyme skills, too.  Estelle is the total package.  I’m a new fan of Estelle…I can’t even lie I was sleeping on Estelle.  I’m wide awake now to the vibe of Estelle and the incredible album Shine!

RAY J  “ALL I FEEL”  Rating:  2.7
Ray J returns to the spotlight with his latest release “All I Feel”.  Brandy’s little brother is definitely shaking the ‘little brother’ image with an album built around his sexual expertise and exploits.  Skip the first track and I Like To Trick is a dope track right off the bat.  Everything about this song is hot, including the T-Pain vocal effects and the screwed bits.  Ray J leans on the vocal effects heavily with this album which is usually a bad sign, but even with some suspect vocal moments he still carries it off.  Sexy Can I (featuring Yung Berg) is a hot follow-up.  Then Gifts comes up and Ray J keeps the energy flowing.  Girl From The Bronx is a disappointment.  The sample-based production and wanna-be rapper flow from Ray J is not appealing.  Jump Off is okay, but I can only take so much of the simple piano loop.  Again, the production is a problem.  Boyfriend gets the album back on track.  Yes it is very simplistic production, but Ray J knocks this one out of the park with his vocals.  The title track All I Feel almost sunk my hopes for Ray J’s vocals completely.  You’ll hear his voice shake all over this one, then the heavy reverb and of course the T-Pain effect.  By this time I’m 8 tracks into the album and my confidence in Ray J’s vocal abilities is wavering like a bad circus act on a tightrope.  Another thing that jumps out about this album is the blatant use of other popular songs throughout. Ray J tries to sneak in a little Rihanna, Justin Timberlake, T-Pain….By the time I get to It’s Up To You my opinion on this album is falling apart.  Real Nigga showed signs of hope with Styles P laying his verse in real nice, but after listening to Ray J say “real pimpin” at least 48 times I have come to the conclusion that songwriting is not his strongest gift.  I honestly wanted to like this album, but in the end there are just too many problems for me to overlook.  When is Brandy’s new album dropping?

TRINA  “STILL DA BADDEST”  Rating:  3.2
Trina returns with more sex and shock-value than ever before with her new album Still Da Baddest.  Look Back At Me (featuring Killer Mike) is a dope track with a heavy 808 and some serious screw effects twisted into the vocals.  What makes this track stand out are the comedic lines laced into the verses.  The track I Got A Thang For You is hot, thanks to Keyshia Cole’s beautiful voice and the production.  Trina enlisted the production talents of Scott Storch, Jim Jonson, Young Yonnie, Kane da Kameleon, J Rock & Big Chuck, along with features from the aforementioned Killer Mike and Keyshia Cole, along with Missy Elliott, Pitbull, Rick Ross, Qwote, and Shonie.  Wish I Never Met You is the track featuring Shonie and is actually a beautiful song with the acoustic guitar flavor and Shonie’s soft vocals layered in perfectly.  To be honest, I would prefer this song without Trina at all.  I’m on the fence with Stop Traffic.  After hearing Trina brag on her pussy for so long, what else can she talk about and how much more do you really want to hear it?  The beat is simple, but still bangin and Pitbull did his feature nice.  I don’t expect Trina will expand her existing fan base in a major way with this album.  For the fans of Trina and her sex-and-shock lyrics, you’ll be happy.  For the Hip-Hop heads that want lyricism and dope production, you might like some of the production.  Trina is not a lyricist by any measure.  Her rap skills are pedestrian by most measures, but…I’m still bangin Look Back At Me.  Call it a ‘guilty pleasure’

GUILTY SIMPSON “ODE TO THE GHETTO”  Rating:  4.6
The first thing that caught my ear was the voice of Guilty Simpson, who sounds a little like E-40 pitched down a notch with a hint of Jeru Tha Damaja.  Before even listening to the album my expectations were set high with production from Mad Lib, Black Milk, J Dilla, and others.  She Won’t Stay At Home is one of my favorites from the album thanks to the comical lyrics from Guilty Simpson.  Ode To The Ghetto is another highlight.  Guilty Simpson’s delivery is low key and laid back, but his words are witty and wrought with truth.  Get Bitches is another lyrical work of art.  The funny thing about the album is that with all of the weight of the producers, the music is never a highlight.  The production with the majority of the songs is very simple; from the beats, to the hooks, to the instruments and samples.  Guilty Simpson is the centerpiece and everything else just accompanies his lyrical wordplay.  This brother is a wordsmith with a full armory of metaphors, similes, comedy, honesty, and truth.  The production of Pigs was dope.  I was having flashbacks of the movie Beat Street when homeboy was in the basement beating on the pipes in step with the beats bumping from the party upstairs.  Guilty Simpson is lyricist and it comes through heavy with the album.  My guess is that he is deadly in any rap battle.  His chops are too sharp for most to mix it up with in a rhyme skirmish.  Due mostly to Guilty Simpson himself and his poignant lyrics (like I said - I wasn’t blown away by the production), this album is a must-have.  It’s not made for the clubs, or the radio, or even bumpin’ out your trunk…but it IS dope!  This one is for the true Hip-Hop heads that are begging for substance and lyrical content.  Something many of you may not know:  Guilty Simpson is the cousin of our March Sports Zone feature Ronnie Brewer from the Utah Jazz.

SNOOP DOGG   “EGO TRIPPIN”   Rating:  4.8
First thing I thought of when I read the title of the album was Ultramagnetic MCs, but the title is the only similarity.  If you like Roger Troutman/Zapp and Teddy Riley you will love the song SD Is Out.  Teddy Riley hits the song not only with his cameo appearance, but he also produced the track. There is a heavy diet of guest appearances and multiple producers and of course the ghostwriters.  Teddy Riley also produced one of the dopest tracks on the album Gangster Like Me, although you might mistake the sound for a Pharrell track.  The Neptunes did produce the song Sets Up with a cameo from Pharrell.  Sets Up is definitely another highlight of the album.  Waste of Time is another favorite from the album, featuring Raphael Saadiq and produced by Raphael Saadiq and Bobby Ozuna.  Neva Have 2 Worry may be the best song from Ego Trippin.  Produced by Niggaraacci and featuring Uncle Chucc, Neva Have 2 Worry has one of the most laid back beats on the album with a blazing hook and Snoop explaining how he is still relevant in the game after 15 years.  Life of Da Party (produced by Scoop DeVille) is hot with Too Short and Mista F.A.B. trading verses along with Snoop Dogg.  It’s not often that you hear a rap artists do a straight cover song, but Snoop pulled it off with his cover of The Time’s “Cool”.  It’s a stretch, but if you liked The Time, you will dig this throwback.  Staxxx In My Jeans (produced by Rick Rock) is a heavy dirty south track that will get heavy play in the streets.  It was another of my favorites from the album.  Niggaracci brings another highlight with his production of Been Around The World featuring the beautiful voice of Latonya “Tone Treasure” Givens.  I know Snoop is giving props to Johnny Cash and all, but My Medicine?  Seriously?  A straight up country song?  Anyway…The album has 21 tracks with 21 featured artists and 15 different producers.  That is becoming the typical blueprint for rap albums now, but another trend that is becoming more and more prevalent; artists are getting away from samples due to clearance problems.  Ego Trippin only includes 6 samples.  Outside of My Medicine, I have to say that this a must-have CD for every Hip-Hop head out there.  Snoop did the damn thing with Ego Trippin.

JANET JACKSON  “DISCIPLINE”  Rating:  4.3 
Janet Jackson is back with her new album “DISCIPLINE” and ready to shock those who thought she might have fallen off.  Yes she is 41 years old, but she is (in Janet’s words) “Heavy like a first day period.”  ‘Nuff said.  Longtime producers Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis are absent with Dupri, Ne-Yo, Rodney Jerkins, The-Dream, and StarGate taking the production duties.  We’ve been hearing the lead single Feedback for a minute, but this album doesn’t fall off after that.  Luv is a hot crossover song that should have mass appeal.  The CD keeps the energy high with the song Rollercoaster.  For those who live in the dance clubs, Janet will keep you bumpin’.  Ne-Yo produced Rock With You and it must have been made with her European fans in mind because it has straight European dance/house flavor.  Personally I hate house music so this song had me hitting skip.  The song title had me expecting a remake of her brother’s hit, but no such luck.  I didn’t care for 2 Nite either.  Can’t Be Good eases the pace and we lay back with Janet to catch our breath with a nice mellow track, followed by another chilled track Never Letchu Go.  Greatest X had me interested by the title alone; knowing Janet’s risqué track record, but it’s really just a mellow love song.  I was hoping for some of the naughty to come out – I can’t even lie. Then So Much Betta comes banging in to wake you up again.  At first I hated the beat, but something odd about this song had me diggin’ it.  Missy Elliott opens the song The1 with “Tell me how long is it boo?  7 inches – yep that’ll do.”  The1 is my top pick from the album.  The beat is simplistic with a mostly percussion production, but it is mad funky.  Janet and Missy Elliott?  You had to know this was going to be on that level.  The mention of a threesome always grabs my attention anyway!  What’s Ur Name is a hot track with a mid-tempo vibe and is also one of the highlights of the album.  Discipline is co-written and produced by Ne-Yo.  I just want to know who wrote the lines ‘‘‘I misbehaved/and my punishment should fit my crime/Tie me to something/Take off all my clothes/Daddy, I want u to take your time.''  Miss Jackson if you’re nasty…know what I mean?  Discipline is my second favorite song from the album.  The 41 year old Janet lets us sneak into her closet and listen as she tells her man how she wants it.  Hot with a heavy emphasis on some S&M-type ish!  The CD closes with song Curtains which is a funky joint with some nice guitar licks and horn shots perfectly timed.  Now turn off the lights and put Discipline on replay. 

ERYKAH BADU  “NEW AMERYKAH, Pt. 1: 4^th WORLD WAR”   Rating: 4.3
For this first installment of New Amerykah, Badu enlisted some of the most revered Hip-Hop beatsmiths in the industry. Producers Mike “Chav” Chavaria, Sa-Ra, 9th Wonder, Madlib, Shafiq Husayn, Om’mas Keith, Taz Arnold, Kariem Riggins, Amir ‘?uestlove’ Thompson of the Roots and James Poyser.  Guest performers on the album include Bilal, Roy Hargrove, OmarRodríguez-López (Mars Volta), Amen Khum Rah, and Georgia Ann Muldrow. The first thing that strikes you when you hit play on the CD is the immediate throwback feel of the flavor.  The lead song New Amerykah is basically a long intro track.  Then you get to the dope track “The Healer” which was produced by Madlib.  Hip Hop is Erykah’s roots and she gives love to the culture, not to mention the fallen Dilla.  Apples has never forgotten her roots.  Hip Hop is that big, but let her tell it with her voice.  I wasn’t really feeling the song Me, although the horn licks are nice.  The song has a bit of a European feel and the beat was driving me nuts (that basic house beat with a beat dropping at every half bar).  Maybe if the beat was redone and the organ was tuned town…I’ll just say that this song is begging to be remixed, BUT don’t skip it.  There are little extra nuggets mixed in all over this album; in between songs, at the end of songs, etc.  Now the song My People is a trunk rattler and will definitely be bumping in my ride.  Props to Erykah for giving the streets something to bump while still delivering a crucial message, although there was obviously not much thought going into the songwriting as it is basically the same thing over and over.  Soldier brings back the songwriting skills of Erykah with a hot track.  The Cell feels like a song that is tracked out for the b-boys to get their break on.  To be honest I was disappointed with the majority of the production of this album, even with all the heavyweights she has involved with the project.  It just feels “over-produced”, but maybe I’m just too used to the rim shot that Erykah had been slapping for so long.  Wait until you get to the 4 minute mark of Twinkle and bug out with the trance-like vibe.  Master Teacher starts off with some odd vibe, but skip to the midpoint of the song and Erykah returns to her minimalist roots with a simple beat, rim shot, some low bass, organ, and her beautiful voice.  This is the Badu I have been waiting so long to hear again.  That Hump is one of the highlights from the album.  I really like this track from beginning to end. This is another song that flips in the middle to a whole new vibe.  Telephone is by far my favorite song from the entire album. It is a tribute to the late J Dilla featuring James Poysner and Amir of The Roots. The words were inspired by a conversation between Dilla and his mother, “Ma Dukes” Yancey on the day Dilla transitioned. Everything about Telephone exudes the Badu I have loved for so long.  By now we have all heard Honey are familiar with the song.  Honey is a dope song with producer 9^th Wonder working his magic on the track.  One last thing:  if there is an award given for best album artwork, you can give that to Badu and graphic artist Emek right now!

CHERI DENNIS  “IN AND OUT OF LOVE”  Rating:  4.5
The way Bad Boy kept pushing Cheri’s album back you’d think the songstress would never see the album come to fruition, but it is finally being release.  The timing is bad; releasing on the same day as heavyweights Erykah Badu and Janet Jackson, but Cheri should fair well.  Her album is mixed with up-tempo club tracks and the slow jams we all need for special nights and includes the assistance of Timbaland, Yung Joc, Gorilla Zoe, and others.  My personal favorites from the album are the up-tempo I Love You (which should do well with both radio and club spins), Portrait (featuring Yung Joc and Gorilla Zoe), Caught Up, Waiting, and of course the Timbaland track Act Like You Know.  There are a couple songs that are just too far left for me to get into, especially the song Spaced Out.  Overall, Cheri has put together a nice album that should do well, even with the heavy competition of Janet Jackson and Erykah Badu.  I just hope Bad Boy puts all their weight behind Cheri.  After being on the shelf for so long she deserves everything the have in their promotional and marketing arsenal.

BORN TALENT  “THE ESSENCE”  Rating:  4.2
The first thing that jumped out to me about “The Essence” was the return of the DJ.  Few of today’s artists are still allowing DJ’s to get their shine on with the turntable skills, but Born Talent shares the spotlight evenly with all the cuts, samples, and scratches. Born Talent flows with an easy and natural flow.  This is old school brought back to life.  DJ’s twisting the platters with that boom-bap sound and Born Talent on the mic with the production of The Avid Record Collector and DJ Reflection.  Those who appreciate the old school Hip-Hop will love this album.  I’m not so sure he would get the same love from people under 24, though.  Personally, I liked the CD because I have appreciation for all the old school pioneers and could easily identify the samples and cuts.  My picks for the top 5 cuts on the CD:  Braggin’, Blah Blah, Dumb, The Essence, and Bad Side.  Every DJ out there will appreciate this CD and every fan of old school Hip-Hop will appreciate this CD.  My guess is that this album will be a heavy favorite of the underground heads, but will struggle to break the mainstream.  No heavy 808s, no heavy synths, no straight dance/club tracks.  This is nothing like the music you hear on the radio or the videos on MTV/BET.   This is Hip-Hop for real Hip-Hop heads. 

COLBY SAVAGE  “BEAUTIFUL”  Rating:  4.8
Colby’s rhyme style has legitimated street edge; laced with intelligent wordplay and clever use of metaphor and simile.  Yes Colby is from East Texas and he definitely reps the Dirty South feel, but he’s lyrically far ahead of most others from Texas.  The Savage moniker is well earned.  Colby Savage is a beast on the mic.  His energetic delivery is aggressive and had me leaning forward for each upcoming verse.  Music Love Affair is a dope lead track   I love the sample and the production.  Can’t You See features a heavy guitar fused over a deep 808 with Colby truly defining his Savage moniker.  I love the horn play mixed into the production of King along with the energy Colby delivers with his rhymes.   Colby Savage and Lisa Love come together for a fantastic blend on the song Conversations.  He’s Back is a great track with gritty production and Colby at his best with his ‘Savage’ delivery and lyrical assault.  This is one of my favorites of the album.  Hope is a beautiful song.  I wouldn’t normally use the word “beautiful” to describe a rap track, but Colby named the entire album Beautiful so I feel comfortable using that depiction.  Can’t Help Myself is built for the deck in your whip.  The production is dope, Colby delivers yet again, and T. Hines is a nice compliment to Mr. Savage.  The title song Beautiful had me bobbin’ my head immediately.  Colby delivers conscious thought with the help of Caesar and Lisa featured on the track.  Let It Go  is a great follow-up to the title track Beautiful.  Supa Star did not disappoint.  Colby Savage is dope, but the feature of Knes is an excellent compliment to Colby.  Their energetic styles and grimy/gritty delivery match perfectly.  Then Hustla comes up and I’m turning my speakers up even more!  This one is for the riders.  Then Ahkee comes next and the horns blaring with Mr. Savage blazing over the track keeps my speakers on blast.  Colby and Autrice keep the fire burning with the song Young and Sexy.  Dopeman is definitely another of my favorites from Colby Savage.  Flesh of My Flesh is nice with the sultry voice of Lisa Love really highlighting the entire song. My Homies is one of the most powerfully written songs on the album.  I’m nosey so I want to know the story behind the lyrics.  Who’s the snitch?  Regardless, Colby once again delivers with grime and grit intensified by the story Colby tells about his homie snitching him out.  The ending of the song is perfect with the “to be continued” clip.  Last song of the album is Rejoice and it’s another beautiful song.  This one is produced by B-War who also produced the opening song Music Love Affair.  Rejoice brings the album full circle and illustrates how well the sequence was laid out on the entire album.  There are 21 tracks on the album and only 4 that did not stand up to match the rest of the heat Colby Savage delivered with the other 17.  Anyone that drops a CD with 17 dope tracks deserves mad props!

J. HOLIDAY  “BACK OF MY LAC”  Rating:  5.0
The song Ghetto was the first song to jump out to me.  I love the passion of the vocals and the lyrics.  J. Holiday has a distinct flavor that comes across as real as the words he speaks.  Thug Commandments is one of my favorites and I applaud J for putting those words to music.  The story behind the song Bed is a full feature in its own right.  The Dream wrote the song and Chris Brown expected the song to be his, but J. Holiday came out with the song instead and took it straight to the top, contrary to the rumors that Chris Brown promised the song would never hit #1 without him singing the song.  Betcha Never had is a dope joint spoken from a man that relates to the real brothers out here.  This is one of the things that I thought distinguished J. Holiday from other R&B artists.  It’s like listening to your boys just spitting real talk.  The song Laa Laa is one that I have reserved for special nights with special women.  Come Here fits right in as a terrific follow up. I can’t stop bumpin' Be With Me.  Suffocate could easily be the best track on the album, but with all the heat on this CD it’s hard to pick the best.  Listen to Thank You and compare that to the others on this album.  Now tell me which one is the best?!  Better yet, tell me which song is not as good as the others?  With all these 5 ratings dropping lately my faith in R&B is solid.  Now it’s time for Hip-Hop to regroup and get back to meet the heat coming from today’s R&B artists!

MARIO  “GO”   Rating:  5.0
Mario has stepped into the big time with his latest release titled “Go” and the title track (produced by the Neptunes) is a great jump off for the album.  If you don’t already know, Mario assembled a stellar combination of the top talents in the industry from producers like The Neptunes, Timbaland, Mr. Collipark, Akon, Scott Storch and others.  There are cameo appearances from Juelz Santana, Rich Boy, Alicia Keys, and Nelly.  All of that combined with some songwriting help from Ne-Yo, Akon, and Pharell.  There’s even more weight from the likes of Jermaine Dupree, Trey Songz, and the infamous Jimmy Jam and Terry Lewis.  If you’re going to do it then you better do it big and Mario has set a new standard for full assault creation of an amazing album.  It’s rare to find a CD that you can drop in and let it play from front to back, but Mario delivers on every song.  There are 12 songs on “GO” and I was completely impressed, almost overwhelmed, with every track.  I never considered Mario at this level, but he is on top of his game and “GO” is a clear demonstration that Mario is set for longevity with his career.  I am now an official ‘Boy Wonder’ fan!  Mr. Mario Dewar Barrett has arrived to take his place among the greats of this era in R&B.

RAHEEM DEVAUGHN  "LOVE BEHIND THE MELODY"  Rating:  5.0
The song Woman jumped out immediately to me.  I love the sentiment of the song and had to immediately tell my wife and mom that I appreciate them and all they have done and meant to my life.  Love Drug is a dope joint, literally.  Mo Better is a timeless piece with that Smokey Robinson flavor again.  This is one of my favorites from the album.  Raheem says everything I want to tell my wife, but there is no way I could do it with same passion.  One of my top picks from the album.  Desire is another timeless piece and another of my favorites from the album.  Something about Raheem’s voice captures the anguish of desire.  I cannot say enough how much I love the song Marathon.  Floetry is a fantastic feature to accompany Raheem.  This one is by far a timeless piece and should still be getting some play for many, many years.  This song is my favorite from the album.  The structure of this song is beautiful with the voice of Floetry and Raheem DeVaughn floating through a lush instrumentalist’s dream.  Butterflies confirms Raheem’s alias “R&B Hippie, Neo-Soul, Rock Star”.  This song definitely illustrates Raheem’s versatility and willingness to ignore genre boundaries and you have to give credit for the Barry Zito appearance on guitar.  She’s Not You is yet another highlight from the album.   Try Again explains how he wishes he could run time in rewind and correct all of his mistakes to restore the love.  If you ever blow it with your woman, send her this CD with some kind of note asking her to listen to this track and call when she’s done.  Definitely a highlight of the album.  Empty is still another highlight from the album.  Four Letter Word is (I know I keep saying this) another highlight.  I love the piano in this track!  This brother knows how to express love better than the majority of artists I have heard.  Obviously with a "5" rating we consider this a MUST-HAVE CD.


STRESS  "FAHRENHIET AFFAIR"  Rating 4.2
I like the vibe of What I Would Do, but it is crying for a break to add some punch to the song.  Fall Back is one of the highlights of this album. The hook has a good catch and the production is good enough for street and radio play.  This one is dope!  Ching Ching is the top single from the album.  The production is nice and the features are a perfect fit.  Stress, Magyver, and Damion create a unique blend of sounds and styles that fits well together.  The hook had me immediately!  This song has been on replay quite a bit in the offices of USM.  Dope joint. ‘Nuff said.  Insecure is my favorite illustration of Stress’ lyrical gifts.  The songwriting is definitely the highlight of this song.  Club Into The Crib is yet another highlight from the album with Tami Latrell stealing the spotlight right at the start.  It felt like Stress came with a little more energy with his delivery on this one, too.  Stress jumps in claiming his flow is acrobatic and at times he’s right.  He’s got some gifts with the pen.  You want that one big banger for your trunk?  Dead Prez is THAT joint. 


THE DREAM  "LOVE ME ALL SUMMER, HATE ME ALL WINTER"  Rating 4.6
The first thing you need to know about Dream is all the songwriting hits he has under his belt.  Check his resume and you will understand why Def Jam finally singed him as an artist.  By now we have all heard Shawty Is The Shit (Shawty Is A 10 on the radio).  The song is a legitimate club/radio hit and is definitely a highlight of the album.  I know that Falsetto is the next single and it's a good song, but the electric guitar solo was a bit much for me.  Throughout the album you will hear traces of Prince sprinkled all over it.  I Luv You Girl is my favorite pcik from the album.  The song Nikki is another highlight.  She Needs My Love is another favorite.  Purple Kisses cannot be ignored.  The song is hot.  I was really impressed with the construction of the album.  It flows much like a mixtape with each track complimenting the previous and effortlessly leading into the next.  There were 3 tracks that I absolutely did not like, but other than that The Dream has a solid album.  Please ease back on the "heys" club chant already!  You'll hear that on several songs.  You will be hearing more from The Dream without a doubt.  Not only as an artist, but as a songwriter.  His credentials as a songwriter are heavy!  Again, check his resume.


L’RENEE   “2^nd CHANCES”   Rating:  4.8
L’Renee has brought Soul, Jazz, R&B and Hip-Hop together with her album and the blend is beautiful.  If I had to compare L’Renee’s voice and flavor I would say she’s a little bit of Lauryn Hill, India Arie, Jill Scott, and Chaka Khan all combined into a funky new vibe.  My top pick from the album is the song “Red Dress” where L’Renee drives her voice over a funky mix of instruments.  The interlude “12” definitely caught my attention, taking the classic PBS song from the old school show Electric Company to another level.  “All I Need Is Time” is another favorite.  The album holds 16 tracks with 13 tracks that I would consider highlights.  Her recreation of Aretha Franklin’s “Natural Woman” is filled with passion.  “It’s OK” puts L’Renee’s vocal range on display, making it another top pick from the album.  Along with L’Renee’s fantastic vocals, the production of this album is incredible with an excellent mixture of guitar, piano, brass and wind instruments, and percussions.  L’Renee is definitely a special songstress and 2^nd CHANCES brings her to front stage.


LUPE FIASCO  "THE COOL"  Rating:  4.7
This is one of the best produced albums I have heard in a long time, loaded with a full arsenal of instruments layered perfectly.  The production is heavy!  There are 19 tracks on the album and only 4 didn't appeal to me.  On the other hand, The other 15 are just that dope!  From the incredible spoken word intro to my favorite track Little Weapon.  For those familiar with Lupe you already know he is a lyrical genius.  The flow on Go Go Gadget Flow is bananas!  I loved the piano on the The Coolest, the organ on Paris,Tokyo, the boom-bap feel of Gold Watch and even the interlude Free Chilly.  The one thing that I found bothersome was that 11 of the 19 tracks featured other artists almost making this feel like a compilation album.  With that said, Nikki Jean took Hip Hop Saved My Life over the top to absolute bomb status.  The content is full of knowledge that the game is needing so badly to bring rap back to a respected art form.  Dumb It Down answers the question "What is wrong with Hip Hop?" best.  Listen to Intruder closely.  I can't offer enough props for Lupe having the courage to put that into words.  Still, Little Weapon is the ultimate track from "The Cool".  Get this CD!  This one ranks as one of the best of 2007 easily.


MARY J. BLIGE "GROWING PAINS"  Rating:  4.6
Ok, my personal favorite was immediately Grown Woman featuring Ludacris.  I loved everything about this song.  The beat is raw and the flow is powerful.  DJs should have a blast remixing this one into mixtapes.  I think we've all heard Work That and the song is worthy of a lead single, but Grown Woman is one for the streets and clubs.  I wasn't feeling Just Fine, but I imagine the message alone will have plenty of women arguing that I'm an idiot.  Feel Like a Woman is a beautiful ballad that should get plenty of late night play.  Hurt Again is a AMAZING!  Instead of picking my top choice cuts, I will pick out the ones that I didn't especially feel.  I already mentioned Just Fine.  I didn't like Till The Morning either.  Fade Away irritated me with the simple house beat.  Come To Me...what was she thinking with this one?  So there are 16 tracks on the album and 12 tracks will be getting heavy rotation for a long time.  Mary J Blige has again solidified her spot as one of the best of our time.  You need this CD in your collection.


LEDISI "LOST & FOUND"   Rating:  5
Ledisi has constructed an album full of joy, pain, passion, love, thought...everything necessary to capture any mood you might find yourself lost in.  Her voice is a touch of Chaka Khan and Jill Scott and her music is a blend of Roots, Al Green, and D'Angelo.  Ledisi is everything Soul music loves to embrace and we fell in love with this entire album immediately.  Is it a classic?  Absolutely.  You need this CD in your collection for every need music can fulfill.  Mark my words now, someone will sample the song Upside Down and twist that into a rap joint.  In The Morning is one of my favorite tracks from Lost & Found.  The vibe is beautiful and her voice is incredible.  Peep the vocal range in the song We Are One.  Ledisi is one of the most talented singers to emerge in years.  To be honest I tried to find a negative to include so I didn't sound like some kind of groupie, but damn...call me a groupie.  Ledisi is an amazing songstress and Lost & Found is just that good.  THIS IS A MUST-HAVE CD!  The title track alone is an excellent prelude to the magic you'll hear throughout the entire album.