Timbaland Timbaland Presents Shock Value/Interscope Some producers need to stick to just making beats. Timbaland is one of those producers. As a producer/rapper, Timbo falls somewhere behind Diddy (and we all know how badly Diddy raps). At least Timbaland is smart enough to know he needs talented artists to bless his surefire production, so Shock Value features guest appearances from 50 Cent, Missy Elliot, Justin Timberlake and Elton John. Unfortunately, those guests aren’t enough to clean up the mess Timbaland makes on the mic, and I won’t even mention Magoo. — RR
Termanology/Statik Seletak/Tony Touch/DJ Dead Eye 50 Bodies On 50 Bodies Tony Toca flips his “50 MCs” theme to emblazon Lawrence, Massachusetts newcomer Termanology as the next great Latino rapper by showcasing the MC’s best 50 verses. 50 Bodies is a straight-to-the-point declaration of Temanology’s lyrical abilities and reaffirms why he’s being touted as the most prolific Latin emcee since the late, great Big Pun. But the short verses make the mixtape difficult to fully get into. — RR
J-Bo & DJ Rip/Still Against The Grain While Sean Paul has been racking up guest appearances, J-Bo has been the Youngblood member seemingly forgotten. Not to be outdone, J-Bo’s hooks up with the CORE DJ’s DJ Rip for his first solo mixtape Still Against The Grain. On this mixtape J-Bo dishes out that presidential Southern lyricism that the Youngbloodz have been known for since the duo appeared on the scene with their debut album Against The Grain. But listening to J-Bo without his drankin’ partna doesn’t have the same effect. Unfortunately, the mixtape is cluttered with features from unknown artists, taking away from J-Bo’s solo spotlight. — RR
Young Money Entertainment & Raj Smoove Lil Weezy Ana Volume 1 On Lil Weezy Ana, Weezy F. continues the lyrical onslaught that has his name being thrown around in “best rapper alive” discussions. In typical KobeBryant-of-rap fashion, Lil’ Wayne seems to ignore his Young Money team members, Mack Maine, Dizzy and Curren$y, who are noticeably out of their league when trading verses with Young Carter. We’d much rather hear Wayne show what he’s got over Jay-Z’s comeback single with lines like, “Gotta talk about the flow cause you is concerned / Only down South rapper coulda been in the Firm / Or the Commission or Wu Tang, nigga / Tryin’ to tell you I can kick it like Liu Kang / Got that sub-zero flow, how you want me ma? / Make her get over here like Scorpion.” — RR
Young Chris/DJ Noodles Hired Gun Since we haven’t heard a peep out of the Young Gunz since “Can’t Stop, Wouldn’t Stop,” we just assumed they changed their minds and quit. But nothing could be further from the truth as one half of the Gunz, Young Chris, embarks on a solo career. On Hired Gun, Young C impressively redefines himself as an artist capable of handling solo duties on tracks like “North Philly Nigga” and the Junior Reid assisted “Things I’ve Done In Life.” — RR
Cardan & DJ Envy/The Rebirth Vol. 1 You may recognize Cardan’s name from Mase’s Harlem World days, but he’s determined to make listeners remember him for being his own entity, even if he’s busting on other people’s beats. He makes bold proclamations on “Hip Hop’s Alive,” shooting numerous holes in Nas’ argument. Cardi even takes on the challenge of rapping on Gnarles Barkley’s “Crazy” to create “Shady,” a humorous, what-if song about kicking another man in the nuts out of self-defense (trust, it’s worth a listen). However, the highlight of the CD is “Harlem Story,” where he borrows Slick Rick’s classic beat and weaves an equally entertaining tale. — MGG
Foxx/The Mixtape Now that Webbie and Boosie have established Trill Entertainment as a bonafide Southern rap label, it’s time for Foxx to carry the baton. On The Mixtape, Mr. Wipe Me Down parallels Boosie’s street tales on songs like “Try Me” and Kill Yo Self.” He lets Webbie know that he can hit a bad bitch too on “Tap Out” and “So Wet.” But Foxx stumbles on many of his jacked instrumentals and makes a wrong turn in remaking Beyonce’s “Irreplaceable” by telling police, “You must don’t know ‘bout me / I can have another brick in a minute / Matter of fact, it’ll be here in a minute.” Foxx does rebound with standout lyrics over Trae’s “Swang” and Bun B’s “Pushin’,” so the few mishaps on his first mixtape are forgivable. — RR
Curren$y/Life At 30,000 Feet “Where Da Cash At” was supposed to be the breakthrough single to position Curren$y as Cash Money’s next superstar. Things didn’t go as planned, but Curren$y is still grinding as he verbally releases his frustrations on Life At 30,000 Feet. Throughout 27 tracks the Fly Spitta flaunts his skills over instrumentals like JayZ’s “Dead Presidents,” Bone Thugs N Harmony’s “Foe Tha Love of $” and the Clipse’s “Wamp, Wamp (What It Do),” and shows the ability to switch flows when needed. Although many mixtapes get boring because of poor instrumental selections, Currensy’s mixtape offers refreshing twists to favorites like A Tribe Called Quest’s “Electric Relaxation” and Tha Dogg Pound’s “New York, New York.” — RR
Dutty Laundry & Boyz N Da Hood Welcome To Atlanta Now that Gorilla Zoe has joined Boyz N Da Hood and Block Ent., BNDH teamed up with Dutty Laundry to debut new tracks with their newest member. Welcome To Atlanta is a prequel of what’s to come when Boyz N Da Hood’s second album hits streets later this year. And from the sound of things, Gorilla Zoe will fill in nicely for the departed Young Jeezy. - RR
Petey Pablo Missing Pages Volume 1 After a long hiatus from the rap game Petey Pablo returns to fill in some missing pages of his diary. Missing Pages has quite a few gems, like the West Coast anthem “L.A. Dreamer” and the dirty South bounce of “Sticky Man.” But other tracks like the overlooped “If I Did It” need explanation, and “Fire” is a poor try at recreating the “Freak-A-Leak” vibe. But it’s evident Petey Pablo still has stories to tell, the passion for rap and skills to carry the torch for the Carolinas when his next album Proper Procedures drops. - RR OZONE MAG // 109