Phenomenon 1997 Album

LL Cool J

From checking out the mega 23 track deluxe edition of 'Mr. Smith', I'm pleased that we only have 10 tracks here. After Mr. Smith broke the trend, we have a banger back as the opening track to an LL album. The title track is dope and one of his best songs. The next, 'Candy', gives off a bit of a 'Doin It' vibe with the melody. I don't mind pop rap but this doesn't do much for me. Busta is always a welcome addition to any song, but unfortuantely 'Starsky & Hutch' is a letdown from the song topic, the hook and the production. It sounds like Busta's adlibs are on the next, 'Another Dollar' too. It's another poor song. LeShaun returns from 'Doin It' on 'Nobody Can Freak You', with LL seemingly going for a 'Doin It' part two, with the two trading sexual bars again, but the production is nowhere near as fresh. Five songs in, apart from the title track, this is a very poor album. The Hitmen return to the boards for the first time since track 1, and while 'Hot, Hot, Hot' is a minor improvement on the last few tracks maybe, the run of average songs hasn't stopped. With Erick Sermon's '4, 3, 2, 1' featuring DMX, Canibus, Meth and Red we have the first non pop rap song. This song was the genesis for the LL/Canibus beef and also features Master P on the extended version. It's great to hear these legends together. The beat ain't award winning though. 'Wanna Get Paid' tells cautionary tales about being careful with what you do for money. It keeps up the 'real' hip hop feel and is the first to get my head banging. Dope! With 'Father' LL shares his experience with his mother's abusive partner. The choir-like female vocals and subject matter help the song be of note. Then LL's shortest album finishes with a soft love pop rap song. Tamia offers up a nice chorus and the song is alright... The second half of this album is defintiely better than the first, so if you are a new listener, don't turn it off too early. Forgetting about my distaste for a lot of mid '80s hip hop production, like what LL's debut has, this was comfortably his worst album up until this point. Much of the production is poor, there is too much poor pop rap, not enough spitting from LL and the producers-especially Puffy as the executive producer-dropped the ball here. Beats: ★★ Rapping/Bars: ★★★ Hooks: ★★ Best Tracks: Phenomenon, 4,3,2,1, Wanna Get Paid, Father