Tag: crime

audio review : What Happened To The World ( mixtape ) … The Jacka

audio review : What Happened To The World ( mixtape ) ... The Jacka

The Jacka is better than the average rapper but not because of his raps. His retarded delivery is barely adequate. It’s his singing that stands out. My biggest complaint when it comes to rap songs is their tendency to falter during the breaks. The Jacka croons his hooks and seems to have a knack for composing catchy melodies, which does wonders for his songs.

Prime examples include What Are We and The Way We Was. Their only real flaws are that they’re cut too short at the end, which probably has to do with this set being a sloppy “audio documentary” mixtape, full with annoying DJ (Child) tags and all, than a proper album. Other highlights include The President’s Face, See It Thru, I’m Leaving and Love.

my rating : 4 of 5

2014

video review : All In The Family : Archie And The KKK

video review : All In The Family : Archie And The KKK

“We’re not gonna be driven out of our house screaming in terror,” Michael Stivic insists in response to a threat from The Ku Klux Klan. “What are we gonna do,” his wife asks in a state of panic. “We’re gonna leave quietly,” he says. It’s the funniest bit of the episode; a two-parter that doesn’t start to get good until the second half.

The drama begins when Archie inadvertently becomes a KKK member after he’s overheard at the bar condemning the social unrest happening; black people rioting and such; in the neighborhood. He may be racist but regrets being duped into joining, especially when he catches wind of their plan to burn a cross in front of his family’s house.

my rating : 3 of 5

1977

audio review : Didn’t Mean To Kill A Man ( song ) … Max B

I’m guessing “the icy man” is the man who drove the ice cream truck. Max B says his mom wouldn’t give him money to buy some as a kid because “she’d rather go see the dealer”. It seems he’s suggesting her drug addiction set him on the wrong path. These vocals were recorded not in a posh studio but a prison as he serves what was initially a life sentence for killing a man.

That makes the title, which would be better if it included the word “I”, and concept a bit of a surprise, though the alleged crime is only mentioned in a hook that further establishes the rapper slash singer as the best in the game. The beat, led by a poignant piano loop, is also a banger. My only major complaint is that it doesn’t continue to play after the final chorus section.

my rating : 4 of 5

2020

audio review : Charly ( EP ) ... Max B

audio review : Bruce Wayne [ Gothom City 1987 ] ( album ) … Esham

audio review : Bruce Wayne [ Gothom City 1987 ] ( album ) ... Esham

I don’t know what the 1987 bit is about; he says that’s when he “came up”; but Gothom City is Detroit, which makes Esham Bruce Wayne. Batman is, of course, a member of The Justice League and the rapper embraces a life of crime. Perhaps the moniker has to do with the fact that they’re both millionaires with a thing for sexy women.

“We can fuck like animals, bitch, I’m not soft,” he tells one before vowing to “take the dick out the pussy and jack the fuck off… all over your body.” How’s that for romance? When he’s not chasing females, or fading “that little pussy like Telly Savalas”, he’s riding down 7 Mile Road in his Volvo 850 with a heavy stash of cash, drugs and guns.

There are almost enough good songs here to make a short album; You Betta Ask Somebody, a fun summer anthem based on Rock With You by Michael Jackson, is easily the best of the bunch; but Esham revels in excess, so he gives us another album with too many songs on it. There are some demos near the end he didn’t even bother to title.

my rating : 3 of 5

1997

audio review : The Curb Commentator [ Channel 2 ] ( EP ) … E-40

audio review : The Curb Commentator [ Channel 2 ] ( EP ) ... E-40

It’s disappointing to hear E-40 jump on the BLM bandwagon. “Racism is heavy; it still exists,” he complains, but he only focuses on white people, ironically enough, when black people are just as racist. Racism isn’t exclusive to certain races. Neither is violence, but he ignores “black on black crime” to cover “police brutality”, which, in the mind of a black racist, automatically means the white cop is racist when the victim is black. That said, Channel 2 is what Donald Trump would call fake news.

Conceptual disagreements aside, this second Curb Commentator EP is about as decent as the first one if not a little better. The aforementioned race anthems, Black Is Beautiful And The Funk Is Still Pending, are on-point musically. The latter has a weak hook, but the rapper makes up for it by talking during the breaks, which he should do more often. The best song is Born In It, featuring Chippas and Milla, which does have a good chorus. It’s about growing-up in the inner city.

my rating : 3 of 5

2020