T.I.: Paper Trail
T.I. chases the Paper Trail on album six
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Two young boys whose bodies were found in Manchester this week were stabbed to death, post-mortems have shown. |  |
Sunday, 16, Nov 2008 08:16
Grand Hustle records, out November 17th.
In a nutshell.
Great flow, lyrically dull
What's it all about?
The 6th studio album from the Atlanta based rapper also known as Clifford Joseph Harris Jr. I had the chance to listen to 16 tracks on the promo version, although there's scheduled to be 19 on the UK release, with an impressive array of collaborations including Rihanna, Ludacris, Usher, Jay-Z, Kanye West, John Legend and Justin Timberlake. It's called Paper Trail as T.I. decided to go back to his roots and spend time writing down his lyrics instead of memorizing them.
Who's it by
T.I. - you'll have heard him on Justin Timberlake's smash My Love. You'll also have heard his new single which somehow samples Dragostea Din Tei by O-Zone with Rihanna taking on the yodelling duties. He's had run ins with numerous rappers and the law and his lyrics really do try and prove that point.
As an example...
"We in the club, homes gettin our thug on/Bottles of Patrone if you grown get your buzz on/We brought the broads out and brought the cars outI'm like the moon I shine and bring the stars out/When it dark out, get the squad out/We ball hard, suck a ****, eat ya heart out/I'm too advanced super swag in my Louis pants/Ballin on my Louis silk shirt match my Louis rag." - Swing Ya Rag
Likelihood of a trip to the Grammys
More than likely. It's the biggest selling album of the year in the States, so it'd be weird if not.
What the others say
T.I.'s sixth CD Paper Trail is full of self-reflection laced with gangsta bravado. He's haunted by the shooting death of his best friend, concerned that he'll meet a similar fate, and uncertain about his future... outstanding production prove(s) this beleaguered bad boy still knows how to have a good time." - Margeaux Watson, Entertainment Weekly
"The Atlanta rapper recorded his sixth album while under house arrest for weapons possessions charges, and he faces a year-long prison sentence beginning in 2009. But as the plodding "existential" concept album T.I. vs T.I.P. (2007) showed, he is a far better braggart than brooder." - Jody Rosen, Rolling Stone
So is it any good?
I had been eagerly anticipating this album, and so when inthenews.co.uk's Entertainments Editor gave us the option to review it, I barged my way to the front of the queue. It's not that it's bad, it's just really really underwhelming.
Hip-hop history is littered with rappers who are one track minded - talking about guns, women, drugs and how brilliant they are. Guys like T.Q., Xzibit, Mase, even people like 50 Cent whose career fell short due to a challenge from a more 'intelligent' rapper. A little while back, there was a shift to 'intelligent' hip-hop, with Kanye, Pharrell and even Jay-Z upping their games to take in more than just the norm. This album is a massive step backwards. Lyrically it's dull, and the production, which has been acclaimed, is boring. It's like listening to a Murder Inc. track, with the same two bars looped over and over.
That's not to say there's not good things about it. T.I. himself is a great rapper, you can feel his passion in each of his songs, it's just that thanks to the words, there's nothing to get a hold of. The best track is probably Swagga Like Us, the Zane Lowe-appreciated, four-verse-four-man collaboration featuring a sample from M.I.A. It sounds like a lot, but T.I. really holds his own with the powerhouses of Kanye, Jay-Z and Lil Wayne. Equally, John Legend continues his momentous year with a great cameo on Slide Show, whilst J.T. steals the show on Dead and Gone.
If you're a fan, get it. If not, I'd give it a miss. Instead, go out and buy Lupe Fiasco's albums. They're much better, as well as more intelligent and better produced. T.I.'s album is the biggest-selling album in the US, will more than likely be in the UK, and it's rappers like Lupe that will be missing out.
6/10
Rob Wheatley
"This review only highlights the bad points and not the good ones - actually Rob if you heard songs like No Matter What and Dead & Gone you would actually see that T.I. has made an album not entirely full of the normal lyrics rap albums have, the lyrics he wrote are far superior to normal rappers and I think it's a great album, it has everything. GO GET IT, I MEAN EVERYONE!!!!" - Ohidul Islam