Curious Production

As the 4th quarter becomes increasingly less star studded, it seems the only albums we'll hear are Kanye and Luda's. I suppose this supposed "Carter 3" with all new tracks (how does this not make it "The Carter 4", someone please explain this to me) is also going to drop before Christmas, according to Kanye. After hearing Dedication 3, that doesn't even sound all that exicting. Wayne's downswing has now continued to the point where he even phones in verses on his supposed event tape. I found myself enjoying Gudda Gudda and Willie The Kid's apperances more than Wayne's sporadic AutoTuned meandering verses that clearly sound like he's high off his ass and just rambling to hear himself talk.


Jadakiss and E-40's albums have lost essentially all of their buzz. People have clearly tired of the trend of giving Akon & T-Pain each a song on your album. The label wanted to jump right into "U & Dat" before giving his core audience "Tell Me When To Go". The roll-out for The Last Kiss is baffling. Def Jam better have one of those NYC megaton-bomb joints on the level of "I Get Money" or "Lean Back" ready to go in the next three weeks or I see 'Kiss dropping with a whimper and being forgotten about within a month, much like Sheek and Styles' solo albums, post A Gangster & A Gentleman. Why no one sprung for a posse cut with Beanie Sigel & 50 Cent is also puzzling. (Although why pay either of these gentleman, when you have Ne-Yo for free labor) It's not like either of them have any reason not to do it. Beans' chances of releasing another solo album are slim to none, and it seems like we'll have to hope Scarface wasn't lying when he said he was only going to do joint albums with people like Beans, Ice Cube, Nas, Jay-Z, etc.


I figure 50's next move will inevitably be the collabo with someone he used to "beef" with. If he can't drop in December, who can? Which is a shame, because "Get Up" isn't half bad and the album seems as if it'll be free of attempts to woo the ladies. Either way, I'm sure a reunion with The Game can't be too far off, or dare I say, Ja Rule?


No disrespect to Plies, but all these developments make Theater Of The Mind and Emeritus two of the last LPs of the year I'm even remotely excited to listen to. Theater Of The Mind is of particular interest, just for the simple fact that it counts DJ Premier among its producers. And that Jay-Z & Nas appear on a track together, though not the Premier one. It's a symptom of the sad state of hip-hop that it takes Southern rappers and Christina Aguilera for the guy to get regular work. Ironically, one of his best recent major-label beats also to a southern artist, Cee-Lo, for "Evening News". With all of the horrific beats now used on many East Coast albums, it's shocking no one ever thinks to give Premier a call. Nas should really have given up whatever reason he has for not working with him by now. Anyone who would choose Polow over Premo (he's becoming a real pain in the ass, he even talks all over tracks he hasn't even produced) just simply has been raised on the wrong kind of hip-hop.