MC Eiht was
tearing up the West Coast long before The
Game knew how to say “Dr. Dre.”
The veteran emcee has been making albums since the 80’s and hasn’t stopped
since. With time, some emcees gain momentum, improve and learn how to adapt to
the audience’s changing tastes. Others do like athletes and deteriorate with
age. Luckily, Eiht hasn’t completely
deteriorated but sadly, this album isn’t exactly showing signs of
growth either.
Born
Aaron Tyler, he gained his notoriety
as the front man of Compton’s Most
Wanted; a group that made some of the dopest music on the West Coast in the
early 90’s only to be overshadowed NWA
and later Death Row. “Representin'” shows
Eiht keeping with his gangsta roots.
Mostly, the production is the same, with all tracks featuring some sort of West
Coast feel. “Livin’ Like Gangstas” shows off the typical Westside keys combined
with a vicious bump. Scratches also enhance the tracks by adding vocals from Busta Rhymes and the Beastie Boys. But beats aren’t enough
to save an album.
Lyrically,
the man’s still a G. Weaving through stories about a gangster’s lifestyle and
booty lovin’ enthusiasm, Eiht
falters by sticking to the same old songs. Hood Certified? “This is Compton.”
Cash lovin’ track? “Get Money.” Drug-Trafficking? “Slang my Keys.” The
drug/money/hoes stuff gets old, and at 40, a different kind of growth should be
expected.
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Tracks
like “What You Like it Like” and “Them Niggaz” display this lack of growth
quite well. It’s sad to see some weak punch lines from Eiht as well.
“Cram like Golden Graham” – “100%”
“All in together now, like Limp Bizkit.”- “Representin'”
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Those
lines are enough to make anyone question whether his time has passed. Still, he
manages to create something better with “Then U Gone” as he shares words of
wisdom with the youth of today and plans for a brighter tomorrow. “All Around
the Hood” also gives us more talented offerings from DJ Quik‘s old rival. I can’t help but think that these are the
types of songs Eiht should be
leaning towards 20 years into his career and fully exhausting anything he can
possibly say at this point about his life as a gangbanger.
I’m
not going to fault his to sticking to his guns, but I will fault him for
failing to come close to the rhymes he spit on album’s like “Straight Check’n
Em” and “We Come Strapped.” It’s great to hear the West Coast legend, but it’s
hurtful to see him rhyme in this unimaginative, cliché manner over largely
average production. While Representin’
a slew of folks in the community, he also let some down with this release.
