Cassidy review in Stylus today. I probably would've given it a B!
Note: In light of the end of Stylus in 2007, I decided to archive the text of all my reviews for the site on this blog for posterity, since I don't what the future holds for the Stylus domain, and have included both the letter grade ratting that accompanied the original review, and an adjusted rating that I would give the record now in retrospect.
Cassidy
I’m A Hustla
Full Surface/J
2005
Stylus rating: C
Adjusted rating by reviewer: B
Last year, Cassidy gambled with crossover success and fell flat on his face. After years as a third string Ruff Ryder and ghostwriter for the stars, most of Cassidy’s advance buzz rode on his reputation as a battle rapper and an infamous battle with fellow Philadelphia rising star Freeway. But when his time to shine came as the flagship star of Swizz Beatz’s label Full Surface, instead of releasing a hard song to cement his rep, Cassidy opted to go straight to R&B radio with his first single, “Hotel” featuring R. Kelly.
Perhaps sensing the cognitive dissonance between the two biggest sources of his fame, Cassidy named his debut album Split Personality, and tried to pass it off as a concept album, dividing the tracklist into three personas. But the album struggled to go gold, giving Cassidy neither street cred nor the sales he was aiming for. A year later, Cassidy resurfaced with the single “I’m A Hustla,” flowing relentlessly over one of Swizz’s hardest, iciest beats. And thanks to the hook, a chopped up Jay-Z sample, the song became a surprise hit, and Cassidy began to turn around his image, grimacing like he wanted everyone to forget his babyfaced grin in the “Hotel” video.
Cassidy’s second album was originally titled Personality Change to reflect his new approach, but was switched to I’m A Hustla to capitalize on the single’s success. The first track brings back Split Personality’s theme, though, resurrecting one of Cassidy’s old personas to battle with his new persona on “The Problem Vs. The Hustla.” Again, he doesn’t quite pull off the concept, mainly because the two personalities not only have the same voice, but also flow in more or less the same way. But it turns into a great exhibition of Cassidy’s self-awareness and wit, as he becomes his own worst critic. The Hustla gets in the best jibes against The Problem: “You a disgrace, who wrote your shit? Mase? / Your album wasn't nothing like the shit on the mixtapes / First you was hustling, bustin’ them shells / Then you went commercial to get a couple of sells / That's what you got, a couple of sells / And you probably wouldn't have sold those if wasn't for Kels.” The Problem comes back strong with what many thought of “I’m A Hustla”, though: “That track would have been wack if it wasn't for Jigga.”
For the most part, Cassidy plays the part of The Hustla convincingly throughout the album, keeping the R&B jams to a relative minimum and keeping everything else grimy. Essentially, it’s the album people wanted from him the first time. This doesn’t mean he entirely lives up to his boasts or rep as a lyricist, though, and the more serious tracks serve to highlight the limitations of his repetitive style, saying the same word at the end of every line and rhyming the second-to-last word in the same style as Beanie Sigel.
Considering that over the past year, practically every MC on the East coast has been once again running to late 90’s kingpin Swizz Beatz for a single, Cassidy has the hometeam advantage in being on the super producer’s own label. Swizz doesn’t dominate his protege’s album, though, only producing four songs and performing the hook on another, although all his contributions, especially the title track and the dazzling “C-Bonics” instrumental are clearly from the top shelf of his vault. More highlights come from lesser known beatmakers, including G-Unit producer Needlz and Ruff Ryders’ own Neo Da Matrix. Neo, currently best known for Juelz Santana’s “Mic Check,” laces three tracks with the kind of chaotic, seesawing string loops that Dipset fans go nuts for when lesser lyricists than Cassidy spit on them.
I’m A Hustla has a short but promising roster of guest MCs that’s deployed inconsistently. Nas shows up on “Can’t Fade Me,” but his agenda is clearly to give exposure to his dull new protege Quan. And Raekwon’s appearance is oddly on one of the album’s few soft R&B records, “So Long.” But Lil Wayne and Fabolous aren’t wasted on “6 Minutes,” with the 3 MCs spitting 32 bars or more each with no chorus over a frantic Neo beat.
If Cassidy was worried about proving his street cred with I’m A Hustla, the murder charges he was arrested on shortly before the album’s release sadly did a better job of that than his rhymes. His current incarceration also casts an unpleasant irony on the album’s last song, “The Message” which laments the multitude of black entertainers who have been prosecuted by the law. And while the album is a step in the right direction, it doesn’t quite give Cassidy a strong legacy to leave behind if he does go behind bars for a long time.
Reviewed by: Al Shipley
Reviewed on: 2005-08-09
Note: In light of the end of Stylus in 2007, I decided to archive the text of all my reviews for the site on this blog for posterity, since I don't what the future holds for the Stylus domain, and have included both the letter grade ratting that accompanied the original review, and an adjusted rating that I would give the record now in retrospect.
Cassidy
I’m A Hustla
Full Surface/J
2005
Stylus rating: C
Adjusted rating by reviewer: B
Last year, Cassidy gambled with crossover success and fell flat on his face. After years as a third string Ruff Ryder and ghostwriter for the stars, most of Cassidy’s advance buzz rode on his reputation as a battle rapper and an infamous battle with fellow Philadelphia rising star Freeway. But when his time to shine came as the flagship star of Swizz Beatz’s label Full Surface, instead of releasing a hard song to cement his rep, Cassidy opted to go straight to R&B radio with his first single, “Hotel” featuring R. Kelly.
Perhaps sensing the cognitive dissonance between the two biggest sources of his fame, Cassidy named his debut album Split Personality, and tried to pass it off as a concept album, dividing the tracklist into three personas. But the album struggled to go gold, giving Cassidy neither street cred nor the sales he was aiming for. A year later, Cassidy resurfaced with the single “I’m A Hustla,” flowing relentlessly over one of Swizz’s hardest, iciest beats. And thanks to the hook, a chopped up Jay-Z sample, the song became a surprise hit, and Cassidy began to turn around his image, grimacing like he wanted everyone to forget his babyfaced grin in the “Hotel” video.
Cassidy’s second album was originally titled Personality Change to reflect his new approach, but was switched to I’m A Hustla to capitalize on the single’s success. The first track brings back Split Personality’s theme, though, resurrecting one of Cassidy’s old personas to battle with his new persona on “The Problem Vs. The Hustla.” Again, he doesn’t quite pull off the concept, mainly because the two personalities not only have the same voice, but also flow in more or less the same way. But it turns into a great exhibition of Cassidy’s self-awareness and wit, as he becomes his own worst critic. The Hustla gets in the best jibes against The Problem: “You a disgrace, who wrote your shit? Mase? / Your album wasn't nothing like the shit on the mixtapes / First you was hustling, bustin’ them shells / Then you went commercial to get a couple of sells / That's what you got, a couple of sells / And you probably wouldn't have sold those if wasn't for Kels.” The Problem comes back strong with what many thought of “I’m A Hustla”, though: “That track would have been wack if it wasn't for Jigga.”
For the most part, Cassidy plays the part of The Hustla convincingly throughout the album, keeping the R&B jams to a relative minimum and keeping everything else grimy. Essentially, it’s the album people wanted from him the first time. This doesn’t mean he entirely lives up to his boasts or rep as a lyricist, though, and the more serious tracks serve to highlight the limitations of his repetitive style, saying the same word at the end of every line and rhyming the second-to-last word in the same style as Beanie Sigel.
Considering that over the past year, practically every MC on the East coast has been once again running to late 90’s kingpin Swizz Beatz for a single, Cassidy has the hometeam advantage in being on the super producer’s own label. Swizz doesn’t dominate his protege’s album, though, only producing four songs and performing the hook on another, although all his contributions, especially the title track and the dazzling “C-Bonics” instrumental are clearly from the top shelf of his vault. More highlights come from lesser known beatmakers, including G-Unit producer Needlz and Ruff Ryders’ own Neo Da Matrix. Neo, currently best known for Juelz Santana’s “Mic Check,” laces three tracks with the kind of chaotic, seesawing string loops that Dipset fans go nuts for when lesser lyricists than Cassidy spit on them.
I’m A Hustla has a short but promising roster of guest MCs that’s deployed inconsistently. Nas shows up on “Can’t Fade Me,” but his agenda is clearly to give exposure to his dull new protege Quan. And Raekwon’s appearance is oddly on one of the album’s few soft R&B records, “So Long.” But Lil Wayne and Fabolous aren’t wasted on “6 Minutes,” with the 3 MCs spitting 32 bars or more each with no chorus over a frantic Neo beat.
If Cassidy was worried about proving his street cred with I’m A Hustla, the murder charges he was arrested on shortly before the album’s release sadly did a better job of that than his rhymes. His current incarceration also casts an unpleasant irony on the album’s last song, “The Message” which laments the multitude of black entertainers who have been prosecuted by the law. And while the album is a step in the right direction, it doesn’t quite give Cassidy a strong legacy to leave behind if he does go behind bars for a long time.
Reviewed by: Al Shipley
Reviewed on: 2005-08-09
Labels: hip hop, some shit I wrote, Stylus
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hillary : 1:41 PM