A diverse album if nothing else. I'm not sure Mims knew what type of album he wanted with this. It has a few rock/pop-inspired tracks, R&B/pop tracks, a couple southern/snap type tracks and one or two general east coast beats. Lyrically Mims isn't great but enjoyable enough to listen to at the same time and this album is better than I expected as all I've heard from him previously was 'This Is Why I'm Hot' which was fairly weak. You'll probably have to like R&B/pop rap to enjoy this at all due to the choruses. Overall, song for song though it's mostly reasonable-good pop rap. Best Tracks: On & On, Move (If You Wanna) (Reminds me a bit of Wayne's 'A Milli'), Chasing Sunshine, One Last Kiss

I don't know if this deserves its very low rating in other circles. It's all fairly non-offensive hip hop. There is nothing I hate with a few tracks worth going back to backed up with good production. As a rapper, Mims doesn't stand out from the crowd, but again, there is nothing terrible about the lyrics or his voice. Best Tracks: It's Alright, They Don't Wanna Play, I Did You Wrong

Forget about Hammer's rapping or the production itself, one of the biggest problems with this is the similarity in that everything has an almost gospel-like chorus making the songs sound too similar. Then there is 'Do Not Pass Me By' that is very 'Too Legit to Quit'-ish in its rhythm. 'This Is the Way We Roll' and the title track are decent uptempo pop jams. The emotion in the singing, particularly on the end of 'Brothers Hang On' is over the top. 'Living in a World Like This' is some conscious rap where the first few seconds sound like the intro from MJ's 'Heal the World'. The song has some anti-drug messages among others. 'Tell Me' follows the same theme before switching up the pace with 'Releasing Some Pressure'. 'Good to Go' is a decent slow vibey tune but it's ruined a bit with the "Cha-Cha-Cha" rubbish at the end. On 'Street Soldiers' Hammer just speaks over a beat like a PSA pushing an anti-gang/violence message. The idea is there but in the end it's boring. 'Do Not Pass Me By' again feels like something you see in movies when there is singing in a black church. There is nothing here I want to play again but it's okay. I can listen to most of it without strongly wanting to hit skip. Best Tracks: This Is the Way We Roll, Too Legit to Quit, Good to Go, Gaining Momentum

My second Hammer album in as many days after checking out 'Too Legit to Quit' yesterday. I know what you're wondering, why am I doing this to myself? This one is a bit better largely thanks to the highest moments, 'Pray' and the obvious 'U Can't Touch This' are probably his best songs. They both rely heavily on samples, the former being Prince's 'When Doves Cry' and the latter 'Super Freak' by Rick James. As he did with this follow up album, there's conscious rap present in 'Help the Children', 'Black Is Black' and 'Crime Story' that is something different with Hammer doing some storytelling in each verse. The premise is basically that crime doesn't pay and he is advocating for his listeners to stay away from it. He also appeals to his "brothers in the game" to help keep the kids out of it. I'm not sure if he just means his brothers in general or for his fellow rappers to stop rapping about those topics. The antepenultimate tune, 'Black Is Black', sees Hammer more aggressive on the mic which is a good thing here. He asks black people to be proud of their racial identity and to help the community. Despite its title, 'Let's Go Deeper', it isn't a sexual song, instead it's a motivational one encouraging the listener to push and "elevate... yo mind". 'Dancing Machine', the weakest song here, is placed smack-bang in the middle of the album so you may forget it which is a good thing as it has no redeeming qualities. It doesn't even get me tapping along to the beat. I don't find Hammer to be the complete laugh and horrendous artist that many do. His lyrics are simple and there are some corny tunes but I don't find much of this boring. However, at the same time, there isn't much to save for a rainy day. Best Tracks: U Can't Touch This, Help the Children, Pray, Crime Story

Day three of my Hammerthon brings me to his second album. I checked out his third and fourth album during the previous days as I complete looking through his discography, and while they are very similar, here Hammer sounds quite different. The energy and almost anger in the vocals is more reminiscent of other '80s rap staples like Run DMC and the Beastie Boys with even some similar bars present. 'They Put Me in the Mix' is a DJ track/instrumental that is also a product of its time. Unsurprisingly, given the year this is from, the pop attempts are more subtle. Songs like 'It's Gone' has a poppy undertone but there is still that '80s hardcore rap at its forefront. It's his most consistent album with the least amount of truly lackluster music and some more interesting aspects found in the production at times. 2.5-3 /5 Best Tracks: Let's Get It Started, It's Gone, They Put Me in the Mix, Son of the King