| Reviews Reviews are based on a point system. 1=bootee, 10=masterpiece |
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| Wyclef- Masquerade: Continuing to build on a wildly eclectic solo career that's taken him far beyond the success of The Fugees, Wyclef Jean uses his third album MASQUERADE to weave a message of social consciousness laced with hard-edged hip-hop nuances. Utilizing the concept of these tracks emanating from the fictitious pirate radio station HOT 93.1, Jean decries selling crack as a way out of poverty ("Peace God"), pays tribute to his recently deceased father (the reggae-driven "War No More") and life in the projects ("PJs," featuring Governor and Prolific). Wyclef's interest in a broad range of music finds him giving props to Biggie, Tupac, Aaliyah, and victims of 9/11 with Dylan's "Knockin' On Heaven's Door," turning Frankie Valli's "Oh What A Night" into an updated party jam and loving the ladies alongside Tom Jones on a waltz-like "Pussycat." The Haitian singer-songwriter teams with City High's Claudette Ortiz on the soulful original "Two Wrongs," gets thuggish and ruggish with Butch Cassidy and Sharissa on "Keep It Gangsta" and throws down with Brooklyn's hard-core M.O.P. on the stripped-down title cut. The only MASQUERADE perpetuated with this progressive mix of R&B, rock, and rap is that of Wyclef Jean being an easily pigeonholed pop artist. 7 OUT OF 10 |
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| Styles- A Gangster & A Gentleman: Styles made a better album than Jadakiss. Don't get me wrong I still think Kiss is the ace of the group. But 'Gangsta and a Gentleman' is a step above Kiss the Game Goodbye'. Only low point of the album is the fact there are to many skits. take away the skit he could have but another banging track on there, but lets not get to greedy. It makes sense the Styles album is better because he learned for where Kiss might have messed up, and he had an expectation or goal to try and match Jada's fire. The new Sheek album is going to be nuts. And the new LOX joint might mess around and get group of the year. And the cut "The Life" with Pharoahe Monch is banannas! Overall, a very solid debut album. 7.25 OUT OF 10 |
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| Cormega- The Realness: I have heard a few songs from the album and I gotta say the songs are dopeness pure! There aint no commercialism in Cormega's songs. The title track 'true meaning' is produced by dr period and is already classic! Another heavy song is 'endangered species' which is produced by J-love, who also produced a few cuts on 'the realness'. After all the songs got a similar vibe as the songs from 'the realness', not just the same but a even more elaborated style, which is quite unique . Cormegas flow, some say is "off beat" but exactly this is what distinguishes him from all the other weak rappers nowadays. Conveys true-school thrust, showing his disdain for the trappings of name-brand hip hop culture. He's finally coming into his own. 9.5 OUT OF 10 |