Very good all the way through. This album mixes a number of genres including funk, soft rock, hip hop, reggae, soul and R&B. Patrice has a great distinctive voice, and almost every song is first-rate. Musically it features some atmospheric and emotive music which are further enhanced and matched vocally and lyrically. A very good album which I would recommend.
Best Tracks: Today, Soulstorm, Only Believers, Rememba, Have You Seen It?, Gun, Slave to the River
With a better singer this would be an easy 4/5. She ruins track 4 and 5, but particularly 4 with the whining voice. It's near unlistenable. 'Roads' is the highlight and the first song to make me think this had something special. The backend is a lot stronger than the front. Good, but I don't get what separates this from the many other similar albums around.
If you have kept up to date with the theories regarding the death of Pac and Big, this is a fairly pointless documentary that takes about 75 minutes to get to the point of the film that is to claim what the 'Unsolved: The Murders of Tupac and The Notorious B.I.G' TV series claimed to debunk - that being the Biggie murders had LAPD cops involved. Most of the movie plays more like a documentary about Suge's life, how Pac was influenced by him and was never the gangsta he portrayed once he went to Death Row. A highlight of the interviews for me was Danny Boy who offers an interesting insight into living through the downfall of the Row at such a young age. One of the female interviewees also says that she didn't want what she was saying to be shown, but it was... I imagine Nick got the okay from her but it does leave a bit of bad taste in the mouth. As an interviewer and narrator, Nick Broomfield lacks much charm. I never mind reliving the story of the west and east coast beef as I find it to be an interesting topic, and there are interesting tidbits from the guests interviewed, but if you are well versed in the history of the two artists and Suge, you are better off putting on 'All Eyez on Me' and vibing to that classic album again.
There are times when Nicki is likeable, the beats good enough, and the guests come correct. However, then there is an annoying accent, cringe-worthy lyrics ("d*** in your face"-'Cone on a Cone') or some wack crossover tune. I feel like she could make an album I could enjoy if she held back a touch. But then again, I guess there are many people who feel that her distinctive randomness makes her what she is. The weakest portion of the album for me is the five dance-pop tunes from 'Starships' to 'Beautiful Sinner' that we've all heard many times before. It goes okay, fans should enjoy most of this.
Best Tracks: Roman Holiday, Champion, Gun Shot
This is a decent pop album and better than certain garbage websites with moronic mods (R*M) would have you believe with its sub 2/5 rating. it's heaps better than I thought it would be based on the fact that it's by someone who's famous for being famous. The production and writing team is fairly stacked, who provide some different flavours, led by Scott Storch, who was hitting a lot of winners around '06. 'Jealousy' reminds me a bit of a Garbage song and then 'Heartbeat' feels like an '80s synthpop tune. I don't know if it's a case of extremely low expectations leading to me enjoying this more than I otherwise would have, but some songs go hard. It does somewhat die towards the end with the last three songs being the weakest and the cover of Rod Stewart's 'Do Ya Think I'm Sexy?' feeling unnecessary.
Best Tracks: Turn It Up, Stars Are Blind, Jealousy, Heartbeat, Nothing in This World