Again…i am not hating on Royce!! it’s rather the opposite but like some of y’all already said, it’s a pitty that such a good lyricist (who has several fellow rappers with the same problem) has not (yet) been able to make a classic album!

peace…

Props for another Axelrod wonder.

jj

I’m gonna assume that was a fake post. Because if it was real, that would be the indicator of why this album let you down right there. Being a gangster and shooting guns has nothing to do with creating a classic album. I know people who hold down 90,000 a year jobs as pharma techs who shoot guns every weekend. That doesn’t mean shit.

What happened on this album to me is what happens when you hear any SINGLE Royce track.

His songs have one, maybe two hot lines. And then everything else is filler. And bad filler at that. Like the Dinner Time song. Nowhere close to original. Cassidy had an almost identical song on one of his albums where you have a war beat and instead of a chorus you have an interlude.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hor4dLRwUZk

What makes Dinner Time dope is THE BEAT, Royce’s flow and the one hot line about the hand on big ben getting numbers around the clock. Now you would think that is enough to make it classic but… the whole first 4 bars were horrible which holds the song back from being EPIC. Any emcee in today’s day and age who says “They are changing the game” I almost immediately stop listening to. When you have emcees like Electronica running around spitting right now, those kinda lines almost bury a track to me. But I think Royce’s whole career is like that in my opinion. All of his songs are one or two “hot lines” followed by a bunch of garbage filler. That is the problem with Royce. His whole demeanor is “I AM ROYCE THE 5 9 AND I Am EPIC”. But then you hear his work and it fails short of epic because there is a lot of garbage floating around it.

You know what it’s like? It’s like buying Jordans and then painting them/ Why would you do that? It doesn’t work. Or putting some flashing lights on it. It takes away from what makes a great shoe. Or buying a dope as car like a lambo and then putting some 15 inch rims on it. Even though YOU KNOW that car is dope, it’s got something dumb on it. Royce’s work is like that to me. He has a few hot lines but then he says something lame and dumb. Or he matches up on a dumb beat. And he is not alone in that regard. A lot of great emcees do that. I think Cannibus is the king of doing that.

I think that is what you are trying to say when you say certain songs seem out of place and this feels like a bunch of junk just smashed together. I think that’s because his whole angle as an artist is just that, a bunch of stuff just smashed together.

And the only reason I am saying anything is because it is frustrating to see someone as talented as Royce not be able to really come through the way you want because we need this kind of hip hop to keep the craft developing and improving to fight against all this wack ass Stanky Leg shit.

Like yall said, he should have had an album completely produced by Primo

Some of the songs just didn’t seem to fit. Its not a ish album by any means, but not great as its hyped to be. I would disagree with the Preem tracks being the best b/c “Street Hop,” “Gun Harmonizing,” “Dinner Time,” and “Warriors” are dope lyrically and production wise.

@Stallion good post.

Its a skill to be able to craft an album some have it and some don’t.

Still worth a buy tho.

I don’t feel like it was a cohesive effort. In fact, its similar to this in many aspects

great review..on point..the chorus selection is one the same reasons “the seventh seal” will be a disappointing album to me..we need a ROYCE & PREMO album..PROPS on the great review SEAN DEEZ..PEACE

I wouldn’t argue that Royce is a top 5 lyricist or whatever, but he still needs an album to fully flesh out his career for him to be remembered like a Nas or Big.

I just look at some of the wasted potential on this album, it’s a little frustrating

I think Royce is just one of those rappers that will always be considered a top 5 lyricist, which I think is justified given his amazing and steady improving lyrical ability! However, I also believe that he will never be able to drop “THE” album that would finally give him the credit of being one of the best in an overall perspective (i.e. not only in terms of verbal ability). There are a few other rappers with similar mc skills and yet have the same problem. eg.Styles P, Papoose and yes…even Jadakiss. All of them are definitely among the best mc’s but just can’t make a classic album…of course, i love a gangster and a gentleman, as well as kiss da game goodbye…however, given the potential of these rappers (royce included) as well as the access to some of the best beats, feature guests etc. one has to argue that a real classic (e.g. moment of truth, cuban linx etc.) is still missing.

The question is, can or will it ever be delivered? I personally think that there are 2 kinds of rappers. The first kind is the one who can more or less independently determine his success and the second, the one that needs one (mastermind) producer to guide and help design the album with the matching beats, advices etc.
I think that the rappers that i mentioned earlier are rather in the second category. Fruthermore, i think that the majority of the “crazy und undeniably amazing spitters” are in that category. Some of them maybe because they are too focused on being the best writers and rappers (which is a good thing actually) that they forget the music aspect of it all. Others maybe because they collapse under the huge task of creating an album that is structured and makes sense throughout.

I believe Royce for instance will need a Premo to produce his whole album for him to finally drop a classic. Jadakiss may need someone to assist him with his choice of beats…
maybe it should also remain the way it is because hip hop needs those street poets and spitters that no one would dare to battle…and maybe the reason for them being so gutter, real and hungry is the fact that they still haven’t accomplished what a Jay-Z has with more than 1 album (even if you leave those out that are not considered aboslute classics)…

in the end, there is a slot for everyone who is a real artist. for some the slots are bigger because they have more abilities eg. musicality or a healthy environment of musicians, producers etc. For others it will be smaller. However, a Royce, Styles and Jadakiss will still go down in history as some of the best to ever do it, despite the fact they might never drop a classic…

History has shown that it can be cruel if you lack the talent to pick the right beats and select the right cast for your album. It has also shown, that having one producer throughout is the best way to create a successful album (especially for a talented mc, who might need someone to tell him to focus when he gets lost in his lyrical strive for perfection or someone to channel all his lyrical potential in a way that it makes sense).

Group Home, Jeru, Guru, Afu-Ra are perfect examples of artists whose careers took severe stabs after quitting to work with Premo. Of course, Premo is a genius and of the best, if not THE best and not everyone can have his album produced by him. However other examples show that it works if the people behind the project are reduced to a minimum. The most successful rap groups or artists (especially in terms of longevity) are those that are able to produce themselves. EPMD, Mobb Deep, Kanye, Pete Rock, Alchemist, Dilated Peoples, Eminem etc.

A recent example is Fashawn’s album. I was praying that this gifted kid would deliver an album where the beat choice would not distract the listener from his skills. Having Exile produce the whole album definitely prevented that and made it a great album. Not saying it wouldn’t have been without him. But especially for a debut album the risk is always high. When you are done listening to the album you definitely have the feeling you just heard an harmonious piece of art. Let’s see how he develops from here.

peace,

ps: love this site! keep up the good work! thx