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| Nas- God's Son: After blessing us with the Near-classics Stillmatic and Lost Tapes any Nas fan this year would've been satisfied if Nas came through with an album at least better than the I am... project. And with rumors of Irv Gotti being caught in the mix of this album Nas' fans were shaking in their boots hoping they wouldn't get another nastradamus. But Nas has given us yet another banger to add to his amazing catalogue of hiphop music with God's Son. Nas recaptures the funk of the Mid 80's with tracks like the James Brown inspired storytelling track "Get Down" which features none other than a brilliant breakdown of the beat in the middle of the Song. "Mastermind" comes with that classic 80's feel along with the street banga "Made U Look." Nas also brings back his Slick Rick impersonation on his 2002 version of "Hey Young World" with "I Can" while not as good as it's predecessor thanks to an annoying chorus the lyrics are really inspiring to youngsters and would make a great single considering that youngsters shouldn't be listening to this album in the first place. The worst track on the album "Zone Out" gives us that public enemy feel but Bravehearts messy flows and a lackluster performance by Nas weigh this track down. Nas easily has enough 80s throwbacks on this album to have any hip-hop head over the age of 21 drooling. But what makes this Nas album special in it's own right is the amount of heart and soul he put into this cd. This is clearly one of Nas' most personal albums to date. The death of his mom has put that emotion and spirit into his lyrics that non-Nas fans have always demanded of him. "Warrior Song" produced by Alicia keys gives inspiration to those going through tough times and Alicia's voice just seals the deal on the hook. And the touching "Thugz Mansion" with it's bare bones acoustic rift will take you to a place few hip-hop records have achieved. "Heaven" has Nas using the fastpaced flow (his best effort so far) over a great beat and does it impeccably. The lengthy soulful chorus adds to the power of the song as Nas questions what people would do if heaven was only a mile away. The heartfelt "Dance" has Nas pouring his heart out to his Mom who was a victim of cancer this year. If anyone has a close relationship with their mother or has lost their mother this one will definitely have your pupils a little watery. Nas doesn't fail to hit us with his share of hip-hop bangers and creative tracks with the retrospective storytelling of "last real ni**a alive" which will have you hitting the rewind button a million times trying to dissect the renaissance period in the east coast in the early 90s. "The Cross" produced by Eminem has Nas spitting fiery battle rhymes over a bass heavy Eminem track, though not one of his greatest production jobs, a solid track none the less. "Book of Rhymes" will have any writer laughing and reminiscing as nas flips through his old rhyme books to recite some leftover material. A great album indeed and a must have for any hip-hop fan. You'd be hardpressed to find an MC with a catalogue as great as Nas'. And even harder pressed to find an MC that after 12 years in the game can still put out an album as fresh and creative as God's Son. 9.75 OUT OF 10 |
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| Snoop Dogg- Paid The Cist To Be The Boss: Paid Tha Cost To Be Da Boss is on the same level as The Last Meal. Snoop swiftens up his flow and uses different types of beats rather than just west coast beats. He experiments with different flows and his lyrics are some of his best ever. It is really refreshing to hear Big Snoop Dogg comin different for the year 2002. This old dogg has refined his game to near perfection. Songs like Ballin feat. The ever soulful Dramatics, and Suited & Booted are more of that pimp Snoop style. I Believe IN You is a stunning ode to his wife; a concept we have never heard Snoop tackle. The Neptunes produced tracks 'From The Chuuch To The Palace" and Beautiful are both magnificent tracks as the Neptunes continue their hit list. Wasn't Your Fault, The One & Only ( produced by DJ Premier ) and Batman & Robin feat. Lady Of Rage are all tight songs. Boss Playa has a straight ridah beat with silky smooth rapping by Uncle Snoop. Hourglass is a swift tongued swift beat swift flow song which is pimp tight. Snoop's most experimental track has to be "You Got What I Want". This song is so CRUNK. Produced by Jelly Roll, Goldie Loc and Ludacris guest on the song. Their flows are just that straight heat. Snoop has definitely regained that sense of urgency and the swiftness and acuteness in his flow. Ludacris also puts down a great verse. Pimp Slapp'd is the diss song to Suge and his affiliates and recognizing the fakes in the industry. Excellent track. Snoop's new album is definitely worth the cheddar that you spend on it. 8.5 OUT OF 10 |