Rick
Ross may not be the most lyrical artist, but he manages to produce some of the best
contemporary hip hop albums. The comparisons
to the late, great Notorious B.I.G are premature and need to stop. Although similarities exist between the two; most of the similarities are cosmetic and not important. Ross
is criticized because people say he is not “real” because he worked as a
Correctional Officer at a Florida correctional facility. In short, who cares? How many people know the celebrities they
support? I’ll wait. People must realize that artists are first
and foremost entertainers and do not necessarily live the image they portray. Regardless of his level of street
credibility, Rick Ross’ latest album is very good. It combines stellar production with great
lyrics and an overall authentic feel.
The
album is full of famous guest appearances.
The list includes a “who’s who” of both great and upstart emcees
including, Jay-Z, Nas, Andre 3000, Dr. Dre and upstart artist, Meek Mill. Ross almost produced a compilation album and
interestingly, he gets outshined on almost every song that features another rap
heavy weight. Rick Ross also included
R&B heavyweights John Legend and Usher.
That, in itself, shows the level of respect fellow artists have for Ross.
There are not a lot of hip hop artists that can boast the guest list that he
can on this album. He has truly evolved
as an artist. I still remember going to
a Miami night club when “Hustlin” was first released.
My
favorite song on the album is also my favorite song of 2012. In fact, Andre 3000’s verse on “Sixteen” is
the best verse I have heard in a number of years. When 3000 displays the kind of precision,
skill and wizardry as he does on “Sixteen,” you wonder why he does not release
his own album. Andre’s verse is by far
the best on the entire album. That is a
big statement considering that Jay-Z and Nas both have memorable verses on the
album. On the song, Andre 3000 tells one
of the most clear, candid stories I have ever heard. Slick Rick would be proud. He rhymes: “I feel right at home, you’ll sitting right at home all Kelly green with
envy while I’m jelly beans descending into the palm of a child, looks up at
mama and smiles with such a devilish grin, like “where the hell have you been”
she yelling selling’s a sin, well so is telling young men that selling is a
sin, if you don’t offer new ways to win, a dolphin gon shake his fin,
regardless if he get in or out of water, most important thing is for him to
swim and Flipper didn’t hold his nose, so why shall I hold my tongue . . . ? Even if you do not like Rick Ross, please do
yourself a favor and listen to 3000’s verse on “Sixteen.”
My
next favorite song is “Rich Forever” featuring John Legend. If you heard Rick Ross’ “Rich Forever”
mixtape, you already know what the song is about. If not, you are in for a treat. Ross begins the song in an awkward manner; he
basically tells a story by talking as opposed to rapping. He does a lot of bragging and rhyming about
his personal belongings, but, it fits the name of the song. My favorite line from the song is: Big face Rolie, rose gold cost 40, platinum
twenty-one, it’s time to go and spoil shorty, you only live once I’m screaming
YOLO in the V.I. . .
Another
one of my favorite songs is “3 Kings.”
This song features Jay-Z and Dr. Dre, two serious hip hop heavyweights. Jay-Z is arguably the greatest hip hop artist
ever to bless the microphone and Dr. Dre is arguably the greatest hip hop
producer. I listened to Dr. Dre’s “the
Chronic” and Snoop Dogg’s “Doggy Style” the other day, and Dre has been
producing classic projects for well over 15 years. That said, Dr. Dre is an amazing
producer. I certainly understand the
point Ross was trying to prove by naming the song 3 Kings. However, I only see two kings and maybe one
pawn (no shade Ross), but it is still a great song. My favorite line from this song comes from
Jay-Z. He rhymes: Been hoppin out the BM with your BM, taking her places you can’t go
with your per diem, screaming carpe diem until I’m a dead poet, Robin Williams
s**t I deserve a Golden Globe b***h!
A
few other notable tracks are “Pirates,” “Diced Pineapples,” and “Triple Beam
Dreams.” This album is definitely worth
purchasing. Support Real Hip Hop.
Peace
Made some good points: 1)Ross only similar to B.I.G. cosmetically; and 2)Ross has solid guest appearances (Jay's verse is strongest on 3 Kings; Andre 3 Stacks overshadows Ross on Sixteen and Nasty's verse on Triple Beam Dreams was Nasty). I think Nas had the best feature verse w/Jay at a close second. Overall a very good hip hop album. If this album dropped when The Source was relevant/objective, I'd say 3 mics to Ross.
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