There are aspects of this to appreciate, particularly some of the Cole's verses and flows, but after a few listens, I'm not left with anything memorable enough for a higher score. There isn't anything top-tier. '4 Your Eyez Only' aside, Cole seems to have reached out to outside producers more than his other projects, but there isn't much I like enough. Give me his beats from his first two albums any day of the week over the trap influenced production here. And the 'Do It Again' by The New Birth sample on 'Close' has been used so many times on some songs I love that is feels stale here. Best Tracks: 9 5 . s o u t h, p r i d e . i s . t h e . d e v i l

While never having the expectation of amazing song after amazing song, you used to always be able to count on Khaled for a banger or two on his albums, but this and his last project haven't even had that. The beat on 'Big Paper' got me feeling kind of hype but it didn't last. Boring. Generic production. A number of artists featured who I do not enjoy. Cringe Puffy screaming Scarface quotes. Not for me. Best Track: Sorry Not Sorry (feat. Nas, Jay-Z, James Fauntleroy & Harmonies By The Hive)

The best on this are among my favourite in the genre. Pun's fantastic rhymes with his brilliant skill over darkly themed beats like those on 'You Ain't a Killer' and 'Capital Punishment' are superb. The skills shown on other songs like 'Boomerang' and the cover, 'Twinz', are rare, and even when he is spitting over poppy beats, like 'Still Not a Player', he doesn't let up and entertains. The beats on this aren't fantastic overall and the skits would've been a pain in the non-digital age but there isn't anything poor here. A must listen for hip hop fans. Beats: ★★★★ Rapping/Bars: ★★★★★ Hooks: ★★★★ Best Tracks: Beware, You Ain't a Killer, Boomerang, Capital Punishment, The Dream Shatterer

Having to wait an extra month than the US for this album to be in stores was strange given the international version has no extra tracks. I'm sure there is some reason but surely this does nothing but encourages piracy... Anyway, once acquired and given a spin or two I find it to be a good album, but the production on most of his others are more my thing. Lyrically it's good as usual, content and delivery wise, but a lot of the tracks don't seem to grab me as much as Nasir's past albums which limit its lifespan. I listened to the previous 'Street's Disciple' and his other albums for ages and play them more often than this one. In saying all this, it's better than much of what's released today and it's still quality from Nas, being consistent and having some great bangers such as 'Black Republican' and 'Money Over Bullshit'. Best Tracks: Money Over Bullshit, Black Republican, Blunt Ashes, Let There Be Light, Hold Down the Block, Can't Forget About You. Good Songs: Carry On Tradition, Where Are They Now, Hip-Hop Is Dead, Play on Playa, Still Dreaming, Hustlers Average Songs: Who Killed It, You Can't Kill Me (the music reminds me of an earlier song he did on an earlier LP...It's not coming to though), Not Going Back, Hope (not a big fan of acapellas - great with a beat behind it though). "1995, eleven years from the day, I'm in the record shop with choices to make. Illmatic on the top shelf, The Chronic on the left homie Wanna cop both but only got a twenty on me So f*** it, I stole both, spent the twenty on a dub sack" - The Game on 'Hustlers'.

With this being the trio's first album together for over a decade, while being excited about the new material as I'm a big fan, it was hard to anticipate anything too special from one of the better rap groups of the nineties. Specifically when their last album together is easily the one I play least out of their discography. And also that the two or three singles they have released have not been up too the old standard. However, 'Icons', the last album from Naughty without DJ Kay Gee was a pretty good effort. And it isn't like they have reunited as such, as they have been touring the globe all this time everywhere from Iraq to Australia. The title of this album really suits the type of hip hop they've made, as plenty of their best tracks, while many not fitting under the pop-rap heading were chorus based tracks and can get a crowd moving. One thing to mention here is that Vinnie has really taken a back seat. He is barely on any of these new tracks, and doesn't spit a verse. Treach is the better rapper, so it isn't necessarily a bad thing, but it is perhaps surprising. The album itself begins quite well demonstrating that Treach has not lost any of his skills throughout the years, and the opening three songs are fairly hard hip hop. If you've been keeping yourself up to date you would have probably heard tracks four to six before. The pop rap begins from 'Perfect Party' and stretches for three tracks. There is nothing outstanding here, but 'Name Game' is a nice uplifting kind of track, and is similar to 'I Know It's Like' a few tracks further on. 'Perfect Party' is the weakest of these three tracks despite it fittingly featuring one the best artists mainstream R&B has had over the past two decades. The founder of Naughty, Queen Latifah combines with her former proteges on the conscious 'God Love Us' which isn't bad pop rap. 'Guns and Butta' is the most gutta track on the album, and it would have been nice to hear Treach on this for another verse as opposed to the features. Treach's rhyme pattern on 'Ride' is great over another hard beat. The hook is uncreative, that can be said for a few tracks, but Treach hits the verses. 'Impeach the Planet' could be cited as one of the better tracks here - nice hard beat, but again like 'Guns and Butta' it would have been good to hear Treach for another verse. Again the hook on 'Doozit' is simplistic, "That's how we doozit", but it's another reasonable track to close out the new songs. Being a celebration of Naughty By Nature's 20 years (22 if you include 'Independent Leaders') in the game, the album concludes with five of Naughty's classic anthems. All of these tracks have been remastered and rerapped. Listening to these show the slight change in Treach and Vinnie's vocals twenty years later. In comparison to the originals 'Uptown Anthem' is quite similar. The rapping isn't as crisp on 'Hip Hop Hooray', although maybe you'll be able to understand the lyrics with less effort. I think MJ's vocals have been removed from 'O.P.P.' and have been resung by someone. 'Feel Me Flow' sounds as if the production has been taken down a notch - probably the worst re-recorded track here. Treach sounds really hungry on 'Everything's Gonna Be Alright', and is perhaps easier to comprehend in some of the fast portions of the song compared to the original. Again the piano sounds more crisp, but the beat is pretty much the same. Overall all of these songs don't offer too much new - for newcomers I guess. Overall, I like the new tracks, KayGee has done a good job on most of the beats making it a very easy album to listen to, and you can tell he has been messing with R&B a lot over the years, and Treach is still an absolute joy to hear. I can't say that they have rediscovered the secrets to making a classic anthem in 2011 though, with there not being a superb song on offer. It provides a good mixture between hip hop and pop rap, although maybe the pop rap will be a touch too poppy for some, with songs like 'God Is Us'/'Flags'/'Perfect Party', being more poppy than they have created previously. There is nothing sensational, but if you like Treach's style then the beats are good enough to get something out of this. Best Tracks: Naughty Nation, Throw It Up, I Gotta Lotta, Name Game (Remember), Impeach the Planet