Finally the day that everyone has been anticipating. Even though the album has been floating around for over a week, fans of the game whether there Pro-Drake or not, have been attentive to June 15 as it mark the day that the new poster boy of Hip-Hop drops what is to be his debut album. Now if you’re a regular visitor, you know that yea I am a fan of Drake’s music. Even I was expecting a higher quality and better production of So Far Gone.  In reality, So Far Gone was the foundation of the album because it really is just a continuation of it. We start off with “Fireworks” which was a great way to kick off an album. Songs like these are why I listen to drake. His ability to vent on songs and almost give us a glimpse into his thought process is the over all feel of the album and we get a good sense with the first track. “Karaoke” was a nice transition into the actual album with Drake listening to his fans I guess, and putting his vocal skills to work. For those who might not know, the dude can actually sing about as good as he can rap. Another more personal song titled “the Resistance” which is almost like an inner conflict, and addressing a few issues that might have happened to him. He ends the song with a line with “Over” that gives the album a nice feel of every song flowing together. “Over” has been a successful first single and has been getting crazy play as well as recognition from some real Hip-Hop fans.  We get to a feel good type song that talks on party but ironically the beat isn’t that danceable. Well that’s just my opinion though.  So far we have had a good set of tracks with out any collaboration, and the next track really picks up the album featuring fellow Young Money label mate, Nicki Minaj. These two are subject of debate a lot on the internet. Some say they are all hype others say they are artist worth the hype. Honestly this song shouldn’t even be judge off of that because this has to be one of Nicki’s better verses and gets her time to shine.  “Up All Night” was a good track and from there we move on too a track featuring T.I. and Swizz Beatz titled “Fancy”. You see Swizz and it can be a hit or miss sometimes but this track had everything there; A Nice beat that can knock, a tight verse from T.I. and Drakes catchy and clever lines.  “Shut It Down” is one of my personal favorite tracks off the album, and to me would make a great future single.  “Unforgettable” is the next song featuring one of Drake’s favorite rappers, Jeezy. It’s a great song, the intro to the song can kind of throw you off but I remember the first thing I thought when I heard it first was “Damn”. “Light It Up”, a song that we ALL have been anxiously waiting for since we heard “Off That” from BP-3. Jay-Z and Drake on one track? Instant Classic? Say what you want but bottom line is that this is one of, if not the BEST song on the album. It’s a great song, the way that they both just flow, and the way that Jay-Z just breaks the game down to Drake, it seems as we saw a passing of the torch. From there we go to what sounds like an unofficial hip-hop duo of Drake and Lil Wayne. No doubt that these 2 have great chemistry. I was kind of disappointed when he announced that “My Darling Baby” was replaced by this song because that’s one of my favorite tracks from last year. Not to talk down on this song cause its badass as well, but it’s just my preference. “CeCe’s Interlude” was a different way of kind of slowing down the pace of the album, but we hear Drake’s latest single “Find Your Love”. This song did its job and has ladies singing its simple, yet catchy mini verses and a nice repetitive hook over a Kanye beat. I mean, did we really have a chance? No doubt one of the better r&b-ish tracks this year. My Second favorite track is the last track titled, “Thank Me Now”. Drake goes in and was the best way to end this album. “At this point, Me is who Im trying to save myself from,” one line that really stuck with me. After letting the songs just marinate for a week on iPod, I have to say that Drake met all standards and exceeded mine. Will he go Platinum the first week? Well if you support any artist, I’d have to say go support this album. All those push backs seem as if they were worth it as we have here a solid and quality album. To think that a rookie from Canada who doesn’t portray the gangster image that The U.S. is almost obsessed with, just came out and had one of the better albums in years? The only recent album I can say I enjoyed more was Eminem, but we’ll get to that album later. Hope you guys enjoyed the album as much as I did.

Final Rating: 9/10

Plies may not be in many people’s top 10 list, but the dude has had hits and has been very consistent. Since his mainstream debut with the Real Testament back in 2007, we have seen hits such as “Shawty”, “Bust It Baby pt2” and more. This marks his 4^th album and as always, the album ranges from the “gangster” image and hood anthems, to love. Plies kicks off the album with “Go Live”, one of my favorite on the album, with high energy and a catchy hook, its one of those songs that you can hear and it gets you hyped and ready to go out and handle your business. “Rob Myself” takes us to the hood mentality that Plies seems to always try and portray. In a way it reminded me of the “T.I. vs TIP” concept into one song, just not as good. Along with “Awesome” seem to be somewhat like fillers for the album.“Bruh Bruh”, is a phrase that to me was WAY to over used through out the whole album (yes even more then Real), and that may be the reason why I wasn’t feeling the track at all. Saying Bruh Bruh after everything just made it worse to me. A song that the streets would identify with, “Get My Niggas Out”, is a song for those who have loved ones, or friends in jail. The album seems to pick up with “Flaw”, a song that I can relate too, and I’m sure we all can. From there we move on to the all so familiar and still one of my favorite songs, “Becky”. I honestly feel bad for any girl named Becky now but the song is dope and was a great choice for first single. For his next track he recruits Trey Songz to jump on the hook. The song was another good move as a single. “What Ever I say” was pretty much another filler and break form the Love/Sex Type songs. “Goonette” sounded like an attempt at remaking “Bust It Baby”, and “Good Dick” wasn’t quite there. “Model” was sort of drowned out by the following tracks. “All I Know” was another of my favorite tracks and he ended with “She Got It Made”. Easily the best track in the album was “Look Like” Ft Jeezy and Loso.  Over all I half to say the album wasn’t bad but wasn’t his best. The production was on point, I enjoyed most of the beats but the concepts and over all what Plies does is starting to be too predictable, too much the same. It would be nice to hear him do something to kick it up a notch.

Final Rating: 5/10

So... I'ma just say it right now: The Adventures of Bobby Ray is fucking AWESOME. In what will inevitably become one of my favorite albums this year, B.o.B. has hit mainstream with a bang.

You've all heard of B.o.B. "Nothin' On You" is a chart topping (literally) monster hit that can only put a smile on your face. It is the perfect example of what Bobby Ray is all about, and that is mixing together genres in a way that would make even Kanye West proud. Rapping over folk music or singing over an acoustic guitar, B.o.B. knows what he's doing. With such confidence, it really doesn't feel that The Adventures of Bobby Ray is his first album.

If you honestly haven't heard of B.o.B., please do yourself a favor and don't sleep on him. "Don't Let Me Fall" kicks off the album with B.o.B. explaining his struggles as a dreamer. "Nothin' On You" is the #1 song in the world the week of the release of The Adventures of Bobby Ray. Is there much more one could say about it? "Satellite" is a self-produced catchy song that puts you in space.  "Magic" has B.o.B. delve into the rock realm with an upbeat story of magic with the help of Cuemo. "Lovelier Than You" is my favorite track on the album; a strong mix of soul and guitar.

On the collabs, B.o.B works with some eclectic figures, as well as some heavy hitters. "Past My Shades" featuring Lupe Fiasco is what the staff here at RTM will be bumping in our speakers this summer. "Bet I" featuring Playboy Tre & T.I. is actually the weakest track on the album. It's not that it's bad (kind of insane when the worst track on the album is still good), but it simply feels like a forced song, made for the sake of having B.o.B. and T.I. on the same track. "Airplanes" is an incredible song, pushed even higher into the air by Alex Da Kid's perfect beat. Airplanes Part II, on the other hand, is going to get a grammy nod. Adding Eminem on top of Hayley Williams and B.o.B. makes for such a great track it's almost unfair.

"You don't just have to be a rapper, you don't just have to be a trapper; you can be anything you want to be and whatever you do, just love it and it will show." - B.o.B. You can listen to the album preview/purchase it below. 10/10

Kurupt is an OG in the rapping business, but he's not done yet. In his latest album, Streetlights, he pulled what I'd like to call "An Eminem." All but two tracks on the album areproduced by Terrace Martin, who is an OG producer from the west coast. With some fantastic tracks and good beats, Streetlights shows Kurupt's strengths as a rapper.

Streetlights definitely has its bright spots. Kurupt and Problem tell each other about their faded times on "I'm Burnt," starting the album off on a strong track. In "Questions" and "In Gotti We Trust," Kurupt gets serious about is lyrics and blasts the West Coast and his enemies in the rap game.

Not all is good in a world filled with Streetlights though, as the album had a fair share of misses. The super slow "Face Down" just sounds lame with Kurupts weak lyrics over Martin's over-produced beat. One of the tracks not produced by Martin, "Riot In The Club," simply fails to do what the title promised to do. It's a shame too, since (as the title might suggest) the track was produced by the one and only crunk master, Lil Jon.

In what's probably Kurupt's final album, he leaves on a good note. With a lot of new blood coming in from all over the country, it's good to see OGs leave on strong notes, and this is a gem that seriously went under the radar. I know what you're all thinking right now; I'm thinking it too. Detox better not suck, but we'll do that discussion another day. Right now,  you can listen to the album preview/purchase the album below. 7/10

After a 6-year hiatus, Cypress Hill is back with a new album, Rise Up. Appropriately released on 4/20, this is their Priority Records debut since breaking their relationship with Columbia. Older listeners, or just people like me who try to listen to every song ever made, will remember that Cypress Hill was the first Latin rap group to gain success in American culture, as well as being one of the  pioneers of the Rock/Rap hybrid that many bands use today. If I were making a "Greatest Bands/Groups of All Time" list, Cypress Hill would definitely be on that list. Rise Up, however, is just an awkward rehash of the past.

Cypress Hill collaborates with an A-List of rock performers; everyone from Daron Malakian of System of a Down on "Trouble Seeker" to Tom Morello of Rage Against the Machine on "Rise Up" and "Shut 'Em Down." The most impressive rock feature has to be "Get It Anyway," which combines old-school nineties hip hop with alternative rock. Sadly, it stands out among the other rock tracks, which are mostly too aggressive for their own good. An honorable mention goes to "Carry Away" and it's super mellow (damn RIGHT they were high) beat that will surely carry anyone away.

Dog and B-Real use their 20-year old flow through the album, and even do something they've only done once, MAYBE twice: rap about weed. With track titles like "Pass the Dutch" and "Light It Up" we can't really expect much else. Honestly this wouldn't be an issue if the production didn't completely suck. Cypress Hill marijuana songs have always been just decent, and it was always the creepy atmosphere that the production brought that made them hits. The production here definitely needs a prescription from Dr. Greenthumb.

The album finale is my favorite track on the album. "Armada Latina" sounds like nothing else on the album, taking you through claps and drums with a sampling of "Suite: Judy Blue Eyes" with the help of Pitbull and Marc Anthony.

In conclusion, Rise Up simply suffered from a case of gross overproduction that would be suitable for headbanging, and not kicking back with a blunt. I hope on their next outing, Cypress Hill will deliver the latin-fused, electric guitar-strumming music we all love. You can listen to the album preview/purchase it below. 5/10

Wu-Tang Clan released a reunion album, 8 Diagrams, back in 2007. It was, to put it nicely, a piece of shit. This is sort of another attempt at it, except this time, it's only the top 3 Clan members coming at it. When I first heard about this album, and heard the first few tracks released from it, I felt it was going to be a throwback to the old times in the mid 90s where the Wu was in its prime. I was half-right. While it's obvious it's at least part throwback when the first 2 tracks on the album are literal recalls of tracks on Only Built 4 Cuban Linx and Tical, what makes the album so well-crafted is that use of nostalgia combined with what's essentially a presentation of how badass Meth, Ghost, and Rae are in 2010. Think of this album more as a "this is what we are, and this is what we're good at" album. It clocks in at just over 30 minutes, and it really doesn't need to be longer than that. Each track leaves you feeling satisfied and shocked at how great hip hop can be. Production is great all around, though RZA deserves a special mention on " Our Dreams" that shows he needs to produce more.

Putting out half an hour of quality music is not something that we see often in urban music nowadays. We see a lot of albums with 4-5 great tracks and a bunch of filler. Just because an album comes at us with 20 tracks doesn't mean it's even decent. Wu-Massacre is a must-buy this year that shows how powerful the phrase "quality over quantity" is. The album released just last week, and the vinyl comes out later this month. You can listen to the album preview/purchase it below. 9/10

Alright so earlier this month, Dj Kaylsay released his latest album More Than Just A Dj. Prior to the release of the album, Kayslay said that the album is bringing back Hip Hop. After I read that My expectations did rise a little bit. In short the album isn't bringing Hip Hop back but, it was something that I did enjoy listening to. I guess I can put it to you this way, its like the Dj Khaled albums, only with out his constant screaming and with lesser known artist. The artist are all mostly from East Coast and it would have been nicer to have a broader variety, although Bun-B, Maino and Jae Millz among others did make an appearance. Well, Busta Rhymes kicks off the album on the intro. At first he begins to talk but turns into a a dope verse. The album does have a good variety of different styles of Hip Hop. "Bad Girls" is a song that really stands out since its a song with all female rappers. Of coarse "Blockstars" was a memorable song and with reason since its the leading single. Like I said before, The album features a mix of styles. We have the radio play worthy songs, an all female song, to a Cam'Ron, "blam-blam, like bam-bam, im cam-cam" style. We get some good collaborations that we might not have expected. We see the Wu-Tang make themselves heard on 2 skits and "See The Light". "Thug Luv" is one of my favorite tracks and features Ray J, Maino, Papoose, and Red Café. All three rappers deliver comical and effective  verses that really made the song work. D-Block is also on the album with "You Heard of Us Remix" which is another hot track. At the end of the listen, Ima give this album a 7.5 out of 10, and this is taking into consideration the lack of good albums out now a days.What I really did like about the album is the way the album felt like a mixtape, each track flowed with the next. I do recommend anyone to go out and buy, so far its the one of the better albums to drop this year. I leave you guys with a few of my favorite tracks from the album.

LAyed Out (Featuring Bun-B, Papoose, Dorrough, Twista, Young Chris, and J Rock)

Thug Luv (Featuring Ray J, Maino, Papoose, and Red Café)

Ya Heard Of Us Remix (Featuring Sheek Louch, Styles P & Ray J)

Months of pushbacks have come to an end; the official release date for Rebirth has finally arrived. Sadly and surprisingly, it's nothing more than a heaping pile of shit.

When Prom Queen came out and Weezy announced he was going to do a rock album, I had flashbacks to Kanye's 808s. At first, I thought Kanye was crazy and that he should just have stuck to what he's been good with: brutally good lyrics over incredible beats. I gladly ate my words when his album came out, and bumped all of the fantastic tracks on his album. Because of this past experience, I decided to give Weezy the benefit of the doubt. Prom Queen had some cheesy lyrics, but overall the rock rhythm was hot, and the theme was nice. Leaks came out over the last year, and I was still unimpressed. Yet, I still decided to wait for the final product to give my judgment. Now that it's out, I'm dissapointed in Weezy for thinking he's as creative as Kanye.

Don't get me wrong; Weezy is incredibly talented. For those of you that don't know: he actually doesn't write down lyrics at all. He sits in the recording booth and freestyles for hours, and then starts piecing together verses. This is why he's able to get his witty, smiling lyrics that everyone loves out so frequently. The difference between Kanye and Weezy, however, is that Ye is an incredible producer first, and incredible rapper second. Vs. Wayne, who is only a great rapper. When it comes to experimentation, Weezy just went too far with Rebirth; it's as if he took himself too seriously. His lyrics were weak, and the rock background was both heavily out of place and abysmal compared to actual rock songs.

The album starts off with American Star, which carries weak lyrics, and annoying production. While Weezy is known for his witty lyrics (tell me who the two stars of "We Are Young Money" are), Rebirth is filled with humorless lyrics.  “Listen to my own voice, in my black Rolls-Royce; get the girls of my choice to take off their shorts and blouses, I take off my trousers.” Prom Queen is one of the few lights in the album, of which I have nothing bad to say about. The track was decent, and the album would have been phenomenal had it more tracks like this one. Tracks like Ground Zero and Knockout are prime examples of how bad mixing punk, auto-tune, and bad rap can be.

Drop The World is unarguably the best track on the album. Ironically, the track itself is just a rip off of what has made Linkin Park one of the biggest rock groups of all time. Eminem tears it up, and even Wayne sounds great on the track.

I was wrong with Ye, but I'm spot on with Weezy. Weezy should stick with what he's good at. After giving the world Tha Carter III, which was, in my opinion, the best rap album of 2008, Rebirth is a polar opposite. You can stream the entire album below on Wayne's Myspace. You might completely disagree with me, so be sure to at least give it a run once through. The album should get a 0/10, but because it did have 2 decent tracks I'll give it a 1.5/10 and wait for Tha Carter IV.

After making a controversial decision to leave Young Money last year, Omarion started Starworld Entertainment, and with that he brings us the first new mainstream R&B album of 2010. With a surprising explicit-lyrics sticker on the front and a mere 10 tracks, I must say the album was nothing more than a bland, boring attempt at sounding more mature.

Omarion has been classified in the "kiddy" category ever since his venture with B2K, and has never been able to truly shake that off. That's his fault, of course. He's the one that decided to sing about crushes along with constant "cute" lyrics.

His lyrics have noticeably changed right when you start with the lead single of the album, I Get It In. While the track is decent with a catchy hook, the rest of the song and unnecesarry use of auto-tune keep the track from becoming a hit. In Wet, he essentially gets all R. Kelly up in this bitch and gets detailed about what he wants to do to a woman. Interesting titled tracks like I Think My Girl is Bi and Code Red are interesting only because of their titles, and sound more like what end up being leftovers for albums, rather than strong tracks that make the album. The best song on the album is Speedin', and it's interesting that it along with the other great tracks on the album (Hoodie and Sweet Hangover) have him in a playful mood, rather than the more evolved identity he was shooting for.

Overall, Ollusion is a failed attempt at sounding more mature, and while it has its high moments, the album overall isn't exciting. 6/10

You can preview the album below. You might completely disagree with me and love the whole thing.

It has been a little over 2 years since we have heard a R. Kelly album. The wait is finally over, as the undisputed king of R&B has dropped his latest, Untitled.  Now lets get started with the album itself. The intro to the album is called Crazy Night. The beat is dope reminds me of something that Ron Browz would do, both production and singing wise. It features R City who adds a Jamaican style feel to it. Over all it does a good job of getting the album started. The second song we begin with the style of music that Kell's is known for. "Exit" has a great feel too it but in my opinion, it is not something that I would essentially be listening to here and there. Not to say its bad though. The third track is one of my favorite songs. "Echo" is that get laid music that is responsible for a good majority of the population. What else can I say about that track? Its great point blank. Banging the Headboard is another good track but my only complaint is a simple hook and same for a "Whole Lotta Kisses", they seem more like filler tracks. From there we have "Like I Do" which is like echo in the sense of a great f**k song. The track really steps up the album, and is another of my favorite from it. "Number 1" with Ms. Keri is a song we are all familiar with and was a great selection for a single. "I Love The Dj" is next and it was really surprising to hear as it is a Electro-r&b style. This is something diffidently for the clubs. After hearing it for a few times it really grew on me. "Superman High" Features OJ da Juiceman and is your typical trap house song. "Be My #2" is a throwback song has a real 70's feel to it. It might sound like something weird but to be honest is a great track as he sort of sounds like something on "Off The Wall" from legendary MJ. From there he slows down the pace with "Text Me", "Religious" and "Elsewhere". The final track is "Pregnant" featuring fellow r&b artists, Tyreese, Robin Thicke, and The-Dream. This song if you haven't heard this one this track is amazingly good. I'll give you one guess what its about... Over all R. Kelly Drops another solid album. Was it better than Double up? Possibly, was it as good as Chocolate factory? No, but I do recommend anyone to go out and get this album. It has great real R&B Tracks with the right mix of guest artist. Now with all that, I ask you, What album is better? Trey Songz or R. Kelly? Make Sure To Vote on the poll and on the forum.