“In 2002, if you asked me to make a wish/I simply woulda wished that my music would be a hit.”-50 Cent in “I’m Supposed To Die Tonight.”
Sometimes, dreams do come true and wishes are granted. Back with his new album “The Massacre,” 50 Cent’s has once again risen to the top of the charts.With more than 1 million albums sold his first week and three singles in the top five of the billboard charts, “The Massacre” has got to be a good album, right? G-Unit fans might want to sit down before reading this.Filled with mumbling raps, crooning hooks and nursery school-quality rhymes about guns, drugs, wealth, cars, women and nothing more, “The Massacre” gets old quickly. Since 50 Cent rarely switches his flow or subject matter, many of the songs end up sounding the same. This album falls painfully short of the bar that he set with 2003’s “Get Rich or Die Tryin.'” Despite nice production, this album is way too repetitive. However, there are certain moments when 50 tries to let us see a different side. “I’m Supposed To Die Tonight,” one of the best tracks on the disc, is reminiscent of “Many Men,” from his debut. He gives us a gun-shot infested portrait of how he believes his enemies view him. He also takes a look at himself and realizes the life he leads is conducive to violent behavior. “Sometimes I sit and look at life from a different angle/don’t know if I’m God’s child or I’m Satan’s angel,” 50 reflects at the end of the first verse. “A Baltimore Love Thing” is this album’s most unique track. In this song, 50 personifies heroin and speaks to an addict. This cut is a welcome relief from the gunplay and stagnant rhymes prevalent on other tracks. However, the song still comes up short due to 50 Cent’s weak wordplay and uninspired delivery. Like many other tracks on “The Massacre,” if you listen close enough, you can actually visualize him reading the rhyme off a sheet of paper in the studio.What does one of the most successful artists in rap do when he hasn’t been shot in a couple years and needs new material? 50 Cent made “Piggybank” in which he disses Jadakiss and Fat Joe because they did a song with Ja Rule. Not only is the reason for the track childish, his rhymes aren’t much better. 50 Cent insults Jadakiss by bragging about how he has sold many more records. He also throws his album sales at Fat Joe and then hits him with the worse diss of all. He calls him fat! In case you haven’t noticed, I expected a little bit more when this track got as much publicity as it did. In the end, it’s mediocre just like the rest of the album, and Jadakiss and Fat Joe have responded with lyrical assaults of their own.This may be the beginning of a long war of words that ends with 50 Cent being exposed as an overrated artist with below-average lyrics and great production.The album is a sub par effort that displays a lack of creativity and talent. For lack of a better term, this album is g-g-g-garbage!
Grade D
Contact Kyle Hopewell at kihopewell@comcast.net.