10 2002 Album

LL Cool J

Firstly, the title of this is misleading. One of his projects included in the 10 was a compilation... It's really his 9th album. As I revisit this to review it, I only gave it a 2/5 back when I first listened a long time ago, so let's see what I think now. 'Born to Love You' is a poor way to start the album. Either start the album off with some proper spitting like you did on the last one, L, or one of the better pop rap songs this has. Instead we have maybe the most boring song here. The Neptunes do a great job with the following 'Luv U Better'. The chorus could have been sung more... Gets Kells or someone on it. Good, but could've been better. Next up, Trackmasters/Poke & Tone redeem themselves from the opener with a much better pop rap song, featuring the delicious Amerie. 'Luv U Better' has more interesting production, but this is the best pop rap song on the album. 'Fa Ha' is the first non-pop rap track. The chorus barely differentiates itself from the verses. Then we have 'Niggy Nuts'. This is the chorus: "Get off my niggy niggy nuts! (ha ha, ha ha-hah ha) / (ha-hah, ha-hah-ha, ha ha-hah) Get off my niggy niggy nuts! / (ha ha, ha ha-hah ha) / (ha-hah, ha-hah-ha, ha ha-hah) Get off my niggy niggy nuts!" I like LL's angrier and harder delivery, but this is another skip. Then we are back to pop rap with 'Amazin''. The production change up about two minutes in saves it to be worth a second listen. 'Paradise' is much better though. The chorus of 'Clockin G's' reminds me of the Outkast song 'Myintrotoletuknow'. It's so similar that it surely can't just be a coincidence. The Neptunes should be proud of this one too. I think this is my pick from the disc. I think 'Lollipop' is the worst thing here and 'After School' is a skip too. 'Throw Ya L's Up' is a decent pump-up song thanks to its hook. 'U Should' is another decently produced pop rap song by The Neptunes. '10 Million Stars' is hard. This and 'Clockin G's' are the best 'real' hip hop songs here. 'Mirror Mirror' isn't a great song but it has interesting lyrics with LL mentioning lots of his previous songs within them. There was a song with the same title on his previous album, but they are completely different. 'Big Mama (Unconditional Love)' is a tribute to his grandmother. The 'Sadie' by The Spinners sample makes it hard to dislike it and then we have the collaboration with Jennifer Lopez, 'All I Have' to finish '10'. The UK version also has the James Yarde Mix of 'Paradise'. It offers a more relaxed vibe. I don't think this is better than the original but it's worth checking out. There is lots of pop rap that isn't as great. The pop rap was better on the last album, as were the couple of songs closer to hardcore hip hop. As I've been giving this repeated listens, and it could be because I've listened to nothing but LL Cool J for five days, but this feels like it's been the most forced. Interestingly, one thing this album lacks, that his last couple of albums have, is some legends as rap features. All we have here is Diddy. LL is less interesting on here too. I think there are more moments on his other projects where his delivery or lyrics are more noteworthy. My original 2/5 will remain but it's a decent 2/5. Up until this point in his career, mid-80s production aside with Radio, I think this is his worst album. Beats: ★★★ Rapping/Bars: ★★★ Hooks: ★★☆ Best Tracks: Luv U Better, Paradise, Clockin G's, 10 Million Stars