Mini-Reviews: Rick Ross – Teflon Don – Def Jam.
Posted by benny
Let’s get this out of the way first. This *could* have been (almost) flawless if it didn’t have a song with f*ckin’ Trey Songz. Let’s be clear: inclusion of Trey Songz = preclusion of classic status. I just deleted that one off the bat. Now with that out of the way… You listen to this album and you get the feeling that Rozay really cares about making good music. The officer’s subject matter is far from honest in most cases, but the lyricism and production will pull you in without fail. Notable exceptions include the one–two punch of “MC Hammer” and “BMF” in which lyricism is tossed in favor of over the top fraternal twin Lex Luger beats and a big fat ass yelling at you about his foreskin, which I happen to enjoy a great deal. Ross gets to flex his wordplay a bit on the Illuminati flavored “Free Mason” with Satan himself, Mr. Shawn Corey, and celebrate excess with its current king, Kanye Tudda on "Live Fast, Die Young." DJ Clark Kent and Ne-yo (I know…) help cook up a lush banker on “Super High”, and surprising collabs with Cee-Lo (took me awhile to warm up to "Tears Of Joy" - had to dig it back out of my recycle bin), Raphael Saddiq and Erykah Badu resemble the guest list on a late ‘90s Common album. I liked "Aston Martin Music" too, but I can't stand hearing it on the radio now every time I eject my iPod adapter tape to hide it in my glovebox when I park downtown. It's about to be deleted, lest it pop up on my iTunes shuffle and embarrass me while I'm with someone in the car. To sum up, its one of the better .rar files of the past year. Take out the Trey Songz joint, substitute the mixtape banger “Knife Fight” w/ Kool G Rap and you’re in business.