Ohio is not exactly considered the mecca of hip hop, but the talent that represents OH does not seem to care. Copywrite, Jakki, Tage, Camu Tao, Illogic, Greenhouse Effect, Lone Catalysts, Five Deez, Hi-Tek, Mood, Tash and E-Swift all trace their roots back to Ohio. There are two other OH artists that seem destined to give their state the respect it deserves; Rjd2 and Blueprint, aka Soul Position. Most know Blueprint as a producer and not an emcee and assume that this is an instrumental album seeing as that is Rj’s forte. That certainly is not the case, Blueprint is only on the mic device, and seems to be after the title of “best producer on the mic.”
Rj picks up where he left off on his recent near-classic “Dead Ringer.” He continues to prove himself as one of hip hop’s best producers. The musical quality on this album is outstanding. The beats are thick, soulful, catchy and just flat-out dope. “Unlimited,” “Mic Control” and “Take Your Time” are just vintage Rj. On “Night To Remember” he flips the script a bit and shows that he can make a track that you can dance to. The albums sole instrumental track, “Oxford You Really Owe Me,” is just further evidence that Rjd2 is one of hip hop’s premier beatsmiths.
Blueprint is in top-form here as well, he keeps up with Rj every step of the way. He has improved his skills considerably and proves himself worthy of the production. The most noticeably trait that Blueprint conveys is that he is an asshole. His insulting battle raps delivered with his condescending tone is bound to piss off any emcee that is targeted. From “Unlimited”: “My momma used tell me that I should speak my mind/so why would I change over beats and rhymes?/But some of y’all change every LP/now you gangsta, you used to emcee/or maybe you the art-fag, nose in the air/or maybe you the double-time down south player/I can’t forget by abstract star-trek niggaz/and fake battle-rappers that only use writtens/it’s ill what you see when you watch it from a distance/and how many people out there are really hypocrites/anything different and they dis it/but Soul Position still be keeping it exquisite.”
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There is only one negative aspect of this album, it is only 21 minutes long. That is just criminal. 21 minutes leaves you drooling for another 60, thankfully it’s coming. This EP was only meant to be an appetizer for their upcoming LP, “8 Million Stories.” But don’t sleep, none of these songs will be on the LP. It may be a third of the length of most albums, but you’ll likely listen to it 3 or 4 times in a row.
8.5/10
