Lord Infamous/The Man, The Myth, The Legacy/Black Rain The Man, The Myth, The Legacy is the long-awaited second album from former Three 6 Mafia member Lord Infamous, and the album sounds how you’d expect an artist that began his career under the Hypnotize Mindz camp would sound. Memphis crunk is prevalent throughout, where production on songs like “Where Iz Da Love,” “These Hoes” and “You Don’t Want None” are the album’s strongpoint. Tracks like the ice flossing of “Frost” and the money and power themes of “Bank” are bonafide bangers, but others like “Pussy Stank” and “Parking Lot” add nothing to his legacy. The album would have been considerably better if a few tracks were left off but it’s still an ascertainment to Infamous’ ability to continue without the most known unknowns. — Randy Roper 40 Cal/Broken Safety 2/Koch The second album from Dip Set member 40 Cal won’t strike listeners as the most memorable album in the Diplomat’s catalog but Cal’s wordplay on “The Big Boys” featuring Jha Jha and “Neva Neva” with A-Mafia and Ru Spits are noteworthy tracks cut straight from Dip Set cloth. Another noticeable cut is “Stick ‘Em” where 40 brings Cam’ron out of hiding, as the two trade versus along with J.R. Writer. Broken Safety 2 isn’t an album that average rap fans will love but Diplomat fans will find a few joints to ride to. — Randy Roper Gucci Mane/Trap-A-Thon Big Cat Records Despite his beef with Young Jeezy and legal issues prior to the release of his 2005 debut album, Trap House, Gucci Mane has been able to bounce back with his hit single “Freaky Gurl” and street smash “Pillz.” And on Trap-A-Thon, Gucci’s easy sing-along hooks on tracks like “Bling Bling” and “Aw-Man” make this album fairly entertaining. But Gucci’s lack of mic skills makes this a difficult listen. You may need to pop some pills to make through the entire album. — Randy Roper (Ed. Note: Gucci is also releasing an album through Asylum Records and has released a statement saying that this album was unauthorized)
Bohagon & DJ Swatts/Black Cartel: Da New Beginning By now, the question isn’t, “Who is Bohagon?” But since fans haven’t seen much of the Georgia emcee since the “Wuz Up” video, the question is more like, “Where is Bohagon?” He resurfaces, BME-less, with DJ Swatts for Da New Beginning to introduce his new label, Black Cartel. And whether he’s kicking Georgia Durt tales (“Country Rap Shit”) or drooling over strippers (“Pussy Pop”), ‘Hagon is as lyrical as ever. Da New Beginning features guest appearances from Lil Scrappy, Young Dro, Yo Gotti, Bun B, Pimp C and a strong showing from newcomer Playboy Tre. Despite a few filler tracks on this mixtape, Bohagon’s brand new start sounds promising. — Randy Roper Billie Jean & DJ GQ/Billie Jean Vol. 1 With female emcee an endangered species, Miami newcomer Billie Jean makes her claim as the South’s new queen on Billie Jean Vol. 1. Through 29 tracks her flow is as mean and vicious as The Legend of Billie Jean character she adopted her moniker from. Notable tracks include “Whut Tha Bidness Is,” “Ring Tha Alarm” and “Half a Brick” with Rick Ross. After listening to this mixtape, Billie Jean is a female artist to get familiar with. — Randy Roper Jody Breeze & DJ Teknikz/Best Kept Secret 3: Patiently Waiting Jody Breeze may be a member of Block Ent. group Boyz N Da Hood but on the solo tip, he’s been patiently waiting his turn. Although his album A Day In The Life of Jody Breeze has been on the shelf longer than a pack of extra small snugger fit Lifestyle condoms, Breeze has been making his mark on the mixtape circuit through his Best Kept Secret mixtape series. On part three of the series, he rips through tracks like “Won’t Let You Down” featuring Gorilla Zoe, “Let’s Ride” produced by Cool-N-Dre and “Hard Out Here” with Trae, leaving listeners wondering why hasn’t he dropped a solo album yet. The tracks on this mixtape are enough to be pressed up, packaged and distributed and they’d probably sell more than the majority of Southern artists this year. — Randy Roper
Playaz Circle, Black Bill Gates & DJ Teknikz The Saga Begins Riding high off the success of their hit single “Duffle Bag Boyz,” Dollar Boy and Tity Boi put together a mixtape displaying what the Disturbing Tha Peace duo is capable of. Songs like “Everytime” with Rick Ross, “Bitch Chill” featuring Eightball and MJG, and “2nd To None,” with Raekwon are standouts where Playaz Circle shines next to rap veterans. And although songs like “Get Doe” and “I Love Money,” “Duffle Bag Boyz” and “Gucci Bag,” “We Workin’” and “We Are The Ones” have similar titles and recycled subject matters, the DB Boyz prove that they’re worth a listen even when Weezy F. isn’t spitting the hook. — Randy Roper
DJ Chuck T & Tum Tum/More Is Never Enough Although Tum Tum released his album Eat or Get Ate, the T-Town rapper still takes it to the streets with DJ Chuck T for a follow-up to their critically acclaimed 2006 Tum-Thousand Six mixtape. Freestyles over Shop Boyz’s “Party Like a Rockstar” and Young Buck’s “Get Buck” are weak, but songs like “Showtime” with Jim Jones, “TBG Thang” and “Bring It Back” make up for Tum’s occasional lackadaisical bars. Eat or Get Ate can be called a flop commercially but on the mixtape circuit, Tum Tum and Chuck T continue to eat on the streets. — Randy Roper
Big Mike & Remo Da Rap Star/One Hit Away The streets have been calling Remo Da Rap Star a name to know coming out of New York. And listeners find out why when Remo and company get busy on “Fresh (Remix)” as producer Doe Boy flips a Mannie Fresh adlib and rappers Ru Spits, S.A.S., and fallen emcee Stack Bundles take turns kicking rhymes. Some tracks like “Oh Yeah” sound like contrived radio play attempts or lame chick records like “Get It On” featuring Nina B, while others like “Larger Than Life” and “Like This” are oozing with the New York sound that’s not exactly hitting on much right now. The Bronx rookie shows some skills over Common’s “The People” and Cool-N-Dre’s “Be Somebody” and continues to shine on the Hi-Tek produced “I Just Wanna” and Stack Bundles dedication “Hard To Move On.” While Remo does show some mic skills, judging from this mixtape, he’s a little more than one hit away from being a contender to bring New York back. — Randy Roper
Below Zero, Big V & DJ Slikk/Street Fame Vol. 2 The music scene in Kentucky has been bubbling heavily over the last few years and 2007 Patiently Waiting Kentucky nominees, Below Zero, and Nappy Roots member, Big V, use Street Fame Vol. 2 to showcase the Bluegrass State’s talent. By far Big V is the superior MC on this mixtape but Below Zero show glimpses of star quality. If anyone doubts what these artists are capable of, V’s passionate bars on “Bowling Green” and the bounce and flows on “Get Down” will quickly convince listeners otherwise. — Randy Roper
Mixtape Man/New Orleans is the City of God Featuring new music from Young City Chopper, Magnolia Militia, Bayou Boy and Manny Lee, this mixtape is 21 tracks of New Orleans representation. Young City proves to be the sharpest of the emcee featured, as he rocks mics on tracks like “I Feel Like,” “Everyday” and “Rude Boys.” Magnolia Militia isn’t blessed with the most talent but the New Orleans group does contribute a couple notable tracks to the mixtape. Bayou Boy and Manny Lee drop a few 16s but neither of them stand out, both sounding exactly like every other rapper to come out of the N.O. — Randy Roper
OZONE MAG // 95