This begins well, with some standard g-rap, but the quality slowly dips bit by bit, hitting a low with the generic Swizz Beatz cut ‘What They Want’. 'Ghetto Children' is slightly better with some reggae vibes. Then we have the first of two Latin hip hop/reggaeton tracks that are skips for me. Flashy and Scarlett (who?) breathe life back into the album with ‘What Ryders Do’, a smooth pop-rap track laced with soul. Akon produces and features on the following 'Stay Down'. While not his best, Akon didn't miss on hooks from this era. Flashy spits some stories of struggle on the verses. The momentum continues with the Scott Storch produced ‘Get Wild’, the lone DMX appearance, and easily one of the project’s highlights. The beat doesn’t break new ground, but it bangs and the energy is undeniable. That’s the album’s best stretch. 'Blood in the Streets' has weak production and is a skip. Aja Smith's 'Stupid Bitch' isn't bad. Swizz Beatz redeems himself with 'Aim 4 the Head' where Cassidy, Jin & J-Hood spit solid gangsta bars. From there, Drag-On's 'Throw It Up' is weak. The gun cocking sound effect heavy 'Keep the Gunz Cocked (If It's Beef... RMX)' is more decent gangsta rap and on the tier below the best tracks. 'Dale Poppi Dale' s the second reggaeton skip that I alluded to earlier. The final hip hop track sees Flash appear again with '100 Bars of Crack' that features almost six minutes of bars/punchlines that catch the ear often enough to be worth a listen. Given the amount Flashy is on this (six tracks) you'd think Ruff Ryders had bigger plans for him, but we never got anything aside from mixtapes. Then, on the finale we have the softest shit ever from Lynne Timmes that feels completely out of place on this project. All in all, it's inconsistent, but has its moments Beats: ★★☆ Rapping/Bars: ★★★ Hooks: ★★☆ Best Tracks: Ruff Ryders 4 Life, What Ryders Do, Stay Down, Get Wild, Aim 4 the Head 1. Ruff Ryders 4 Life 80 2. If It's Beef... 70 3. Knock Knock 60 4. What They Want 40 5. Ghetto Children 54 6. Dame Reggaeton (Skit) 7. Dame Reggaeton 30 8. What Ryders Do 76 9. Stay Down 72 10. Get Wild 80 11. Blood in the Streets 54 12. Stupid Bitch 60 13. Aim 4 the Head 74 14. Throw It Up 44 15. Keep the Gunz Cocked (If It's Beef... RMX) 70 16. Dale Poppi Dale 30 BONUS TRACKS 17. 100 Bars of Crack 61 18. So Serious 60

Yung Wun took around 4–5 years from first linking with Swizz Beatz and appearing on Ruff Ryders tracks to finally releasing this, his only album. His voice carries shades of DMX and Mystikal, and even reminds me of someone from the No Limit era, though I can’t quite place who. I don’t hear any of the Pac comparisons another reviewer mentioned. Interestingly, he had a YouTube channel with videos from around 2012 and even dropped a single then, possibly suggesting he was considering a comeback. The album’s biggest moment is 'Tear It Up' with DMX, Flip, and David Banner, flipping The Jackson 5’s 'Dancing Machine' for horns in an aggressive anthem. 'Load ’Em Up' appears later with a punchy, high-energy hook, while 'Cadillac Doors' shifts gears into funkier, smoother territory. 'Let It Bump' adds a soulful touch, sampling The Temptations with crisp production from The Koul Kats. While there are some solid tracks, much of the album feels forgettable. Wun brings energy and believable struggle, but not enough distinct personality to really separate himself from his peers. Beats: ★★☆ Rapping/Bars: ★★☆ Hooks: ★★☆ Best Tracks: Tear It Up, Yung Wun Anthem, Load 'Em Up, Cadillac Doors, Let It Bump

The second of five Ruff Ryder compilations and the first thing I noticed is that the production is poor. This doesn't come as a surprise as Swizz Beatz produces a handful of tracks. No one could honestly say the 'WW III' beat is worthy of the array of rappers on it. I also don't think anyone would want an instrumental version of this album, but in saying that, they have grown on me slightly across my listens of this project. The hard-hitting, engaging rapping, along with some strong hooks, is boosted by the variety of artists featured, with most appearing on only one track. Red and Meth kill the second track making it one of the strongest on the album which is another example of a weak beat saved by the rappers. 'Eve' fits 'Got It All' well with it toeing the line nicely between pop rap and street hop. The main man of Ruff Ryders, DMX, is just on the one song, 'The Great', which is one of the strongest tracks here, but nowhere near his greatest hits. You'd think he'd at least also be on the opener as well. The album closes with a bonus track, that is the one R&B song, performed by Parlé. It does use a cheat code, sampling The Gap Band's 'Yearning for Your Love', that even I would sound solid over, but nevertheless is a strong closer. It's one of those albums that if you were skimming through it, you wouldn't think much of it because the beats are average, but once the verses are flowing it makes them better. There's not a lot to rush back to but it's a fairly easy album to get through with some catchy moments. Beats: ★★ Rapping/Bars: ★★★☆ Hooks: ★★★ Best Tracks: WW III, 2 Tears in a Bucket, Got It All, The Great, It’s Going Down 01 WW III (feat. Snoop Dogg, Scarface, Jadakiss & Yung Wun) 70 02 2 Tears in a Bucket (feat. Redman, Method Man & Sheek Louch) 74 03 Got It All (feat. Eve & Jadakiss) 74 04 Ryde or Die Boyz (feat. Yung Wun & Larsiny) 61 05 It’s a Holiday (Skit) 06 Holiday (feat. Styles P) 60 07 Weed, Hoes, Dough (feat. Drag-On) 54 08 Fuck Da’ Haters (Skit) 09 Fright Night (feat. Busta Rhymes & Swizz Beatz) 63 10 My Name Is Kiss (feat. Jadakiss) 66 11 Twisted Heat (feat. Twista & Drag-On) 60 12 Go Head (feat. The LOX) 69 13 I’m a H-O-E (Skit) 14 Stomp (feat. Yung Wun & Trick Daddy) 44 15 The Great (feat. DMX) 70 16 It’s Going Down (feat. Parlé) 75

Rakim is back with a remix album to the strong 'Gods Network' project from last year plus one additional song - 'Not To Be Defined'. The remixes mostly strip the originals back. For example, the remix of 'Be Ill' loses a lot of its energy along with a less intense hook compared to the original. There are different rappers featured to. The new track mentioned earlier is above decent, with Lazarus spitting well and the bars a re strong overall. They offer a different sound, but at this stage I prefer the originals in all cases. If you listen to 'Be Ill' on this and think it's as good or better than the original, you'll probably prefer this to 'Gods Network'. If you think it doesn't touch it like me, then you'll find these remixes underwhelming. Best Tracks: Be Ill, Pendulum, Sign of 7even, Not To Be Defined

This completely passed me by. I didn't realise Snoop released this until two months post release. While there are some veteran producers providing their talent such as Rick Rock, Soopafly, DJ Battlecat and Nottz, it's his most trap sounding album with some sounding like DJ Mustard beats. Unlike his last 75 minute album, this cuts the running time by more than half and also doesn't play around with other genres and sounds, making it an easier listen than his last effort, 'I Wanna Thank Me'. However, while it starts off hopeful, with the first song being strong and the next couple being good as well, it loses some steam. Some of the hooks aren't great and the features don't all hit the mark for me. The Eastsidaz, who released a couple of albums that I would recommend listening to if you haven't, reunite on 'Fetty in the Bag', but the production gets a bit monotonous with little change up between the hook and verses. 'Talk Dat Shit To Me' is a highlight largely thanks to Snoop rapping with constant alliteration that always sounds good. It's a consistent listen, but if you are only going to give me ten tracks, there needs to be more high moments. There is nothing great, or, maybe apart from the alliteration spitting, that Snoop hasn't done before. Beats: ★★★ Rapping/Bars: ★★★☆ Hooks: ★★★ Best Tracks: CEO, Talk Dat Shit To Me, Sittin on Blades, Left My Weed