Black Rob's Mixtape/Rare Songs Reviewed
Note: this is a review of a collection of Black Rob's mixtape joints. Most of which are a few years old.
1. The Struggle feat. The Shark- (or is it The Shark feat. Black Rob?)
This standout track is a meditation on, well, the struggle over a hypnotic soul sample. The Shark's starved spit is balanced out by B.R.'s lazy flow, both are framed by Kay Slay's growls. Fantastic production. It's on some Lor Finesse ish.
A+
2. Non-Stop- Tony Touch feat. Black Rob, G. Dep, and P. Diddy
"I'm a Black that eye again..."
(Note: this isn't a typical mixtape track being that the Piecemaker 2 was released in stores.) This joint consists of a funky minimalist beat scratched up a little. I'd call it a hardcore party record. Diddy doing the hook with Dep, Rob, and T. Toca all trading verses. (What is this ballad of the underrated MCs?) Only negative is the pulsing beat might slightly repetitive...
"Act wild and I'm a touch that neck like Docta Spock" -B.R.
A-
3. Smoothness
Wow, a rare pre-Bad Boy Black Rob joint(dating back to like 1990 or so when he was Robbie-O and not Black Rob); probably the only one floating around. (This, like the Tony Touch joint is of an official mixtape.) Dan the Automator of Handsome Boy Modeling School fame worked with B.R. back in the day and released this track a couple years ago. A bumping bassline, old school feel, scratching and some straight hip hop rhymes from B.R. A newer added-on verse by an unlisted MC is at the end of the track.
"I got the smoothness. 'Ayo it's been a while Robbie-O, I thought you fell off!' How could I lose this?"
B-
4. Kissed by a Stranger feat. Illacoin-
This joint is raw(its off the Grand Theft Auto 3 soundtrack and can be found on a Kay Slay mixtape). B.R. is on some girlfriend breakup ish so its something you can relate to but its mad grimy, and hardcore.
"Harsh reality is the case. Like when you spitting to win, it might come back in ya face."
Chorus is off the chain, beat is ill-the other cat Illacoin's verse isn't bad at all but it's kind of weird. Check out a quote:
"If you get her high enough you can fvck her with a stick of dynamite." -Illacoin
?????What the fvck?!???????
A-
5. Bonecrusher
Classic Black Rob mixtape ish. No chorus, all flow. Bizanging beat.
"You like a straight watered down mamosa, I'm like an apartment in the projects, I stay with the toaster"
A
6. Welcome Back feat. Phenom-
Ill beat, with piano and horns. Phenom and Black rock the back and forth flow.
"And every city that I go to they love me der. Cuz I hold the bar down like Huggy Bear."
A
7. Long Live Black Rob
(Yes this track eventually made it to the Rob Report-it is one of the better if not the best track on the album) Over a slow piano and slight guitar beat which goes into royal-sounding horn chorus. Black Rob gives his side of the story on a crime he was accused of, and then muses on some thug life guidelines, and eventually paints a picture of going on vacation with his young children and his bad boy staff, then telling gossiping folks to keep his name out their mouth. A very conversational and easy to listen to track...makes you root for "the man B.R.". Oh, and the chorus is dope...
A+
8. The Game feat. Nate Dogg(or is it Nate Dogg feat. Black?)
This is a fun track. Different from the New York sound Rob is known for. The beat is an almost dre-like track with that blaxploitation wah-wah guitar over strings and a bouncing bassline. Nate Dogg sings about getting out of the bing, then meeting a "hustler" from back in the day. (Played by Black Rob) Rob comes in to tempting Nate Dogg to come back into the game. ("Let me enlighten you, that's tax-free stacks. I remember when you was doing it-you dying to go back!") The chorus sung throughout sums up the songs theme. ("the game keeps on calling you.")
A
9. Bad Boy feat.Kain and Loon
Oh my God. This song is dope. All three come nice. Black Rob especially. ("Cuz I be the one man army B. Rob I never been tooken out. Clear the whole central booking out. Frivolous *****z looking out, but watch what come out your mouth or I'll be running out your house.") And he keeps coming with hot sh!t. Loon spits a verse that is kinda foul. I'm not gonna quote it but basically the gist of it is 'we'll run up in your house, knock you out and rape your girl." He raps it well, and I'm sure he's only saying it for effect but it's so fukked up I can't cosign someone saying something like that.
A-
10. In The Hood feat John Doe(or it's probably feat. Black Rob)
The gist of the song is, the hood hates you when you're succcessful. John Doe isn't great but he's good and his voice is so gritty. It just sounds like the hood, and so does B.R.
"Now *****z like, 'he so trifle.' Even your mans from high school be trying to knife you."
There is another version of this track that is basically the same except Lil Kim is on it and ruins the whole song.
A-
11. They Just Don't Know feat. Madd Rapper and Nature
I think this joint is off of the Madd Rapper's "Tell em Why U Mad". The beat is straight up gutta sh!t, produced no doubt by d. Dot himself. Nature starts off spitting some gutta ish, then Black comes in "All these novice *****z...now'days I don't even know this *****.(Why Black?) Too many bogus *****z."
A-
12. Untitled (later named Smile In Ya Face)
Okay, this is the same track that is called Smile In Ya Face on the Rob Report. There is one significant difference however. They slowed down the joint, making Black Rob's voice sound deeper on the album. This version is faster. This joint has great lyrics but the delivery...ehh...it feels like there is something missing. Probably, why they slowed it down. I don't think slowing it down made it better though. They probably should have had B.R. do another take. Slowing the track down fukked up the pace and just sounded screwed and chopped. One more take Rob! This song has potential.
"Miiiiichelle, uh, my belle, sucked my dikk so well. I took her on tooour;***** was so raaaaw. Nice tits fat bookie, ock, yaknamsayin."
B-
13. DJ Clue freestyle w/ the Lox
On paper this is a classic joint. In execution not quite.The beat is really hot but too repetitive, and Sheek's verse isn't bad but his voice is annoying. Jada comes nice as does B.R.
I wanna quote Black Rob saying something like, "I'll send that ass through the E.R." but I can't make out what he says after that..."
B-
14. How You Want That Remix- feat Loon, Jada and Sheek
Loon comes nice. B.R. is lyrically okay delivery not great, overall could be better. Lox come nice. Loon should have finished it off with another verse at the end. The intro of the bea sounds bad, but the beat gets much better as the song starts.
"***** be at the bar, *****z think I'm bragggin. Why? Cuz I'm a criminal?Four star general? Shine like emerald? Flow far from minimal?"
"The defintion of a thug is, that right now we can get up and go with no luggage." Black Rob
"How you want it, daddy? Automatic or revolver? The beef solver. Go get your father." Jada and Sheek
B-
15. Stretch Armstrong Freestyle
(Note: The sound quality is poor but that only adds to the raw feel in my opinion.)Yooo, B fukkin R goes all fukkin out on this one. He puts so much heart into this one. Beat is just simple gutter new york **** that suits the freestyle just fine.
"I ain't blink at you, ***** you hard? Let's a bank or two."
"Just did ten with Puffy bout to do five on my own you fukkin *****es"
A-
16. Give Me One More Chance feat. the Jackson Five
What a weird, funny song. The beat is well-made but it seems off. They start mixing B.I.G.'s Going Back To Cali beat into the beat as well. The beat is too hip hop not enough soul. The song takes the Jackson Five song and just lays it on the beat. If Kanye would have done the beat this song would be a classic. Robbie-O rips it well.
"Like that, Black gon slide with Mike Jack. Puff done remixed one helluva track, put me on it. Let me know how many want it. Damn, it feels goood to see people up on it."
A-
17. Kay Slay Freestyle
Hot beat with some flute flourishes. Here's a taste:
"Next year make it where he rock his own fukkin sneaker. That's what striving do, light blue driving shoe, love when ya driving through. And wit dat I'll be done, I ain't gotta pull my gun to make you Doo Run Run."
Then there's a pause and Kay Slay yells: "Knowhat I'm sayin, Yo Rob, show these *****z you ain't never went nowhere. Rep uptown *****!"
"I'm untouchable I move with the license. I'm about to bake my own cake with the icing..."
You gotta hear it. Straight freestyle fire.
A
18. Scam Life- Gotham City feat. Black Rob and G. Dep.
Sacam Life are "Some thugs from Harlem who walk the streets with face mean." Yelling the raps over some nyc rap beat with flutes similiar to the afforementioned Kay slay Freestyle. G. Dep spits the chorus and his verse well. B.R. spits an old verse of his I've heard once before but I ain't mad cuz it's fitting to the Gotham City them(you'll see)and it's fukkin hot.
"Yo! Back! *****z made me pop up outta hiding. Out these bowels of Gotham. Who gon stop him?" Black Rob
A
19. Everybody Wanna Shine- feat. G. Dep and Craig Mack
This joint is off of one of Kay Slay's official(as in you can get it at Tower) mixtapes. Hot D. Dot beat that sounds like ghetto circus(crazy horns). In the first ring, Black Rob. "Fukkin right it ain't all love-this ain't Wimbledom". Applause. In the next ring the word juggler G. Dep. "Yo get a handle on ya scandal 'fore I scramble and bust. Pause. Sometimes I think y'all don't gamble enough, y'all don't know when to hold and when to fold..." The crowd goes wild. The spotlight goes back to Black Rob. "Okay, now we ballin; me Mack, Slay and a G lady. Just put all that rap to the side cuz we shady." Standing ovation. In ring three Craig Mack, "Sit back and eat a nacho and watch this *****. As my story unfold like my couch do *****." Kay Slay the ringmaster gives his parting wisdom.
All I(Donnie Dopeflow) have to say is, "When I say big top you say circus!"
haha
A+
20. Song Keeps on Playing
Joe Hooker on the hook(duh). B. Rob talking about Whoa. Going to jail coming back and "Whoa still uncontested". Talking about doing shows with Ice Cube.
Newsflash: "Source Awards: Black done done it."
"On MTV full mink with money from NSYNC."
Talking about he can get around he can "get around ya lowjack and take ya whole stack but I'm a chill and fall back "Whoa" sold like crack."
Basically, cool song about how he blew up, and how Whoa is still the sh!t.
A-
21. ???????- Black Rob feat. Buckshot
Really short song. Funny intro with a cop pulling over Rob similar to the skit on, hmm...both of is albums...haha. His flow is fiyah, but he is kinda foul. For, example "Man, I seen that ***** at the strip joint, I'm like 'is you blowing or what?" I thought that was kinda raw.
I thought this was funny as hell though.
"Walked up said, "what the deal?" Kicked the ***** right in his nuts." Black Rob
haha
Buckshot comes nice and the beat is nice as hell. I wish there was a longer version of this...Buckshot does the chorus which sounds really dope but Kay Slay talks over it so you can barely hear it...then the song ends.
: (
A-
22. B.R. part 2
This is on the Rob Report. I'm not sure if they are the same version. I'm pretty sure they are...fun little song. Sounds like an interlude more than an actual song. He raps about "ordering a burger and a shake". Crumblin erb, and "getting shot at the crap game just cause he was rolling straight 7s."
A-
Overall I'll give this collection an A-.
And that's it! It's a turban!
Peace,
Donnie Dopeflow
Last edited by Donnie Dopeflow; 01-04-06 at 10:00 AM.
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..sohh help me out
