Artist: Young BuckTitle: Straight Outta CashvilleRating: 4 StarsReviewed by: Javid Louis Straight Outta Cashville (Interscope), G-Unit is back on the scene with the debut album from Young Buck. After the astronomical success of 50 Cent and the platinum, and growing, success of Lloyd Banks, many wondered how the first Southern release from the New York […]

Artist: MaseTitle: Welcome BackRating: 3 StarsReviewed by: Matt Barone “I’m just a Bad Boy gone clean,” admits the newly reformed Mase on the title track from his third disc, Welcome Back (Bad Boy/Universal). Back like the Prodigal Son featured in his favorite read, M-A-dollar sign-E has put down the Holy Book for his rhyme book […]

Artist: The Foreign ExchangeTitle: ConnectedRating: 3 1/2 StarsReviewed by: Mark Cilantro Way back in 2002 I was in Cue’s record store in the heart of Philly right before The Roots Phrenology hit the streets. Steph Tatas had the advance promo copy and a friend and I were bugging off of “Water.” At that point he […]

Artist: InsightTitle: The Blast RadiusRating: 3 1/2 StarsReviewed by: Maurice Downes It’s difficult to know what angle to take when talking about a new album from Insight, this one called The Blast Radius. Long-awaited doesn’t quite cut it as you could say that about a bunch of releases, though with the respect he’s garnered in […]

Artist: ShyneTitle: Godfather Buried AliveRating: 4 StarsReviewed by: Robert DeGracia Shyne Po has been manifesting lasting warfare memories long before droning gavel knockings set the prelude to his conviction. Although 2009 dates his prison release, Godfather Buried Alive not only provides answers for today, but stirs echoes of gangster classics past. Shyne radiates a newer […]

Artist: SabacTitle: SabacolypseRating: 3 1/2 StarsReviewed by: DJ L.K. (Low Key) Think Non-Phixion is all about sex, drugs and violence? You don’t even know the half. Sabac Red, the groups most overlooked member, is an emcee with a message. Following in the footsteps of great social and political emcees like Chuck D, Sabac is a […]

Artist: Mobb DeepTitle: Americaz NightmareRating: 4 StarsReviewed by: Matt Barone Weathering the hip-hop game’s always-turbulent storm for ten years, Queensbridge projects’ proud soldiers Mobb Deep return to their original grimy form on their sixth album, Amerikaz Nightmare (Jive). While many bickered about 2001’s Infamy sounding slightly watered-down with its assists from Lil’ Mo and 112, […]

Artist: 213Title: The Hard WayRating: 2 1/2 StarsReviewed by: Paine 213 has always been revered as the West Coast super-group that the public never got to hear. But the demo tapes and leaked basement sessions were always a tease to the fans of the braidless Snoop Dogg, the DJ Warren G, and the pre-fedora Nate […]

Artist: Brand NubianTitle: Fire In The HoleRating: 3 1/2 StarsReviewed by: Mr. Opus After a six year layoff, the original members of Brand Nubian have returned with Fire In The Hole (Babygrande) their 3rd studio album as complete unit–actually the 5th Brand Nu project for Sadat X and Lord Jamar–with mixed results. It seems clear […]

Artist: Lil’ WayneTitle: Tha CarterRating: 3 1/2 StarsReviewed by: DJ L.K. (Low-Key) “The best rapper alive, since the best rapper retired”, that is what Lil Wayne proclaims on his fourth studio album, Tha Carter. While Weezy may not live up to such a bold claim, he certainly provides his best outing yet with his latest […]

Artist: Theodore UnitTitle: 718Rating: 3 1/2 StarsReviewed by: Jayson Rodriguez Ghostface is his own man, there’s no question about it. The Staten Island emcee is as much an enigma as say Ricky Williams, the recently retired RB who chose pot over the pigskin. The two Miami residents, however, share more in common than just their […]

Artist: Prince PoTitle: The SlicknessRating: 3 1/2 StarsReviewed by: A.P. Ghetto King General If you have ever asked “What happened to the other guy from Organized Konfusion?”, you can finally stop wondering. Prince Po is finally staking his claim with his long due solo project The Slickness. Just as Prince Po has moved on from […]

Artist: Viktor VaughnTitle: (VV:2) Venomous VillainRating: 3 1/2 StarsReviewed by: Paine MF DOOM is on the verge of either sealing his crown as underground king, or over-saturating the market worse than the Roc-A-Fella franchise. Never short on creativity, DOOM closed 2003 with his Madlib collaboration, MadVillainy, one of his most successful works to date. Earlier […]

Artist: Main FlowTitle: Hip-HopulationRating: 3 1/2 StarsReviewed by: Kenny Rodriguez Main Flow has been in the rap game for a minute now. Debuting in 1997 alongside DJ Jahson and MC Dante (MOOD), the Cincinnati-bred trio achieved quite an underground buzz with their hypnotic anthem “Karma.” Backed by a then-unheard of DJ Hi-Tek, their oft-overlooked album […]

Artist: Kool Keith f/ Kutmasta KurtTitle: Diesel TruckersRating: 3 1/2 StarsReviewed by: Paine<font face="verdana" size="2" Kool Keith is either one of Hip-Hop’s most creative artists, or he’s just smoked too much dust. In the last decade, we’ve watched Keith transform from the one-time star of Ultramagnetic MC’s to a pimp, an Elvis, a S###### freak […]

Artist: Masta AceTitle: A Long Hot SummerRating: 4 1/2 StarsReviewed by: Matt Barone Masta Ace is one of the game’s all-time greats, but you’d be hard-pressed to find a large number of 2004’s rap fans that would mention his name on their “Best MCs” lists. With classic albums Take A Look Around and Slaughtahouse under […]

Artist: Hangar 18Title: The Multi-Platinum Debut AlbumRating: 3 StarsReviewed by: N. Context Introducing the infamous Hangar 18. No, you won’t find any UFO’s, government conspiracies or any other “X-Files” type themes. The Hangar, as they are commonly known by many of their fans, is an underground Hip-Hop group hailing from NYC. Consisting of Windnbreez, Alaska […]

Artist: Terror SquadTitle: True StoryRating: 4 StarsReviewed by: Martin A. Berrios History will tell you that keeping a Rap crew together is a tough undertaking, and no one understands this better than Fat Joe. With the release of their first project Terror Squad: The Album five years ago, the click had a formidable line up […]

Artist: Wale OyejideTitle: One Day Everything ChangedRating: 4 StarsReviewed by: Paine Wale Oyejide is the real name of the artist formerly known as Science Fiction. Last year his spring release of Walls Don’t Exist, made for a fabulous album. Rich musical texture with strong emotion proved it a true jumping off point for Radiohead and […]

Artist: Goodie MobTitle: One Monkey Don’t Stop No ShowRating: 3 StarsReviewed by: Paine As Outkast’s status has continually snowballed since their debut a decade ago, Goodie Mob’s rep has gone in the opposite direction. Despite an unmoving cult following, Goodbie Mob has struggled to explore new audiences despite the cross appeal (mostly critical) by ex-member […]