Reviews Styles P - Super Gangster

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"There's a part of me that loves to be gangster / All of me / I couldn't help but get in the game / The shit was calling me."

AND THE VERDICT IS... Styles P still got it. After a long hard fight with industry politics and having his 2nd album drop a whole year after his first single was released, his 3rd album "Super Gangster/Extraordinary Gentleman" (Koch Records) has finally been released and it is exceptionally real.

Coming in at 16 tracks strong (not including the intro and hilarious interludes) every song has on point lyrics and the beats are very fitting for the subject matter which is self explanatory given the title. Truthfully there is not one bad song on this album. Styles takes it back to the days when A&R's, producers, and ghostwriters were irrelevant. Super Gangster is reminiscent of the days when an album was a reflection of the artist and not a compilation of other's contributions. Styles has his fair share of features (11 in all including GhostFace, Akon, Ray J, Alchemist, Bully, Beanie Sigel, Black Thought, Max B, Swizz Beats, Jadakiss and Sheek) but all are well placed, except for MaxB. Besides the fact that this combination doesn't even sound good on paper, Max's voice can be very irritating.

The tracklist is like a regular day in the hood. With song titles like "Look At Her" (Poobs), "Shoot Niggas" (Dame Grease), "Green Piece of Paper" (Alchemist), "Alone in the Street" (Vinny Idol), "Cause I'm Black" (Poobs), "All I Know is Pain" (Alchemist), and "In it To Win It" (Mr. Divine) it's like Styles is really trying to put you in his shoes on any given day in Yonkers, NY. Never one to beat around the bush Styles gives it to you straight forward and whether he's attempting to intimidate, educate or uplift his message is sincere.

This album definitely lives up to its name. Every song is hard but, even the gangsters don't bang out all the time. Sometimes you gotta show 'em your gentleman. Non-gangster songs like "Let's Go" Ft. RayJ, and "Look At Her" provide necessary gentleman breaks. The rest of the album is straight hardcore. Starting from the top the intro is very unnecessary. Styles says "This is the point of the album I should have some fly shit to say..." and he does. "I'm better than all you niggas..." and many Styles fans would not argue with this opinion but for a casual listener it's like "Ok, so what. Put your money where your mouth is". At least that's what I was thinking. The intro is just not a good summary of the album as a whole. The beat is corny and this is not the first thing you wanna hear from somebody you haven't heard from in almost 2 years. Styles however, with time does show and prove.

Styles is the best at what he does and this disc shows his growth as an artist (Check the quotes in the liner notes for more proof of Styles maturation). His beat selection is cool and he's managed to create an album that straddles the line between mainstream appeal and hood love comfortably. Notice the difference between appeal and love. Styles knows who really loves him and he gives them what they want. The title track is a smash produced by Vinny Idol who taps into the lunchroom boom bap with a touch of Swizz circa 1998. The next track "Star of the State" is a collab that couldn't have come at a better time. The "Twin Ghost Experiment" as Tony Starks puts it is very satisfying. What has been very clear since the Lox first album is that it does not matter who else is on the track Styles is gonna go hard, and the same applies to Ghostface. GFK sounds severely agitated on his verse and the intensity he brings to this track is like a mirror to SP's aggression.

On the very next track we get Sigel. We all remember the beef but, fuck that it's a whole different game and the gangsters gotta stick together. The format for this collab is normally reserved for Jada but, Sigel makes for a nice alternative. It sounds like they've been friends forever the way they trade gully statements on this song. The beat sounds like closing time at the steel mill, and that's as hard as it gets right? No, even the no name features Raw Buck ("Shoot Niggas") and Bully ("In It To Win It") sound professional as hell. Another pleasant surprise is an appearance by Kid Capri who does not say anything (thank god) but provides a dope beat for "Da 80's". Styles saves one of the best songs ("Gangster Gangster") for his crew. Over a beautiful Pete Rock beat The Lox give us a dope prelude to the album which should be coming soon. Between Styles and Sheek (Who did his thing on this album... and I hate Sheek) there is an understanding that they will be overlooked by the masses regardless of what they do. Their careers have pretty much leveled off as far as appeal goes. This is a positive thing in a sense because they know exactly who their fans are. They know exactly who they make music for and don't have to deal with chasing the revolving door of 13-16 year olds who do the 106 and Park thing or appealing to fickle fans who support you one day and wipe they ass with you the next. On the other hand there are those in the industry who are comfortable with the position that the Lox are in (particularly Styles) and often keep them from keeping up wit the times and competing with other artist for fans. This holds true for radio and tv. You only hear from Styles when he's smoking or killin. He had the opportunity of his life to expand his fan base and grab a gang of mainstream sales a few years back with "I'm Black" Ft. Marsha of Floetry (How crossover is that?) but the media basically refused to play it. Styles even addresses this on "Cause I'm Black" Ft Black Thought with the line "I'm black' did me greasy kid/I'm better off saying nigga like Eazy did...". Sometimes it sucks to have a reputation. It just goes to show how underrated Styles really is.

To be completely honest I was very surprised by this album's quality. After so much turmoil, artists who have been through what Styles has been through normally lose the edge and the hunger that it takes to compete in rap. Styles has retained both and took it up a notch, even despite the fact that Justin Combs Publishing is on every song credit. The title made me skeptical because A Gangster & A Gentleman was one of my favorite albums and the best solo album of any LOX member to date in my opinion. Usually it's not a good sign when artists try to capitalize off their past success but if any of these "old" rappers can duplicate the feeling that went into creating this album then maybe there's hope for Cuban Linx II...

One Song You Need To Hear: Shoot Niggas Ft. Raw Buck (Prod by Dame Grease)

"If you ain't gettin spins / You ain't gonna win / But if you came from the bottom / You should stay goin in..."

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