Introduction

This is my independent hip-hop review blog. The purpose of this blog is to help indie artists elevate and develop their skills by giving a completely objective, and sometimes harsh, review of submitted albums and mixtapes. While no one can be completely objective, I'll try as hard as I can to give a detailed critique based on my idea of what hip-hop is. Not only will I analyze your hard work for your own benefit, but it will also benefit me to bring forth to my conscious mind what I, and others, look for in a good hip-hop album or mixtape.

Please do notice that I have yet to mention the word "rap". I feel rap and hip-hop are two completely different things. What you hear on the radio is mostly rap. Commercialized, derivative, unimaginative, and "POPPY" rhyming. These songs usually lack introspection and are completely superficial. I do not endorse this. If you submit something like this to me, then I will have to put my bias into consideration. Having said that, I do recognize the place for that kind of music and it is what's making money for people these days. This is why when I review your work, I will also judge whether I think it's more appealing to The Underground or The Mainstream (ex. 55% Underground, 45% Mainstream). Could a 100% mainstream album earn a 9/10? Sure, of course. Anything is possible, and I fully believe that when it comes to life in general.

Will anyone ever get a 10/10? Possible. Is it probable? Nope. A 10/10 score will not be considered perfect since nothing can be perfect when it comes to music since everyone has their own tastes. A 10/10, which likely will never be awarded, would be something akin to "Capital Punishment" by Big Pun, "The Score" by the Fugees, or "All Eyez On Me" by Tupac. An album that, from production to lyrics, is the making of a classic. Scores will be broken down to each tenth of a point, making it as precise as possible without sounding pretentious (Ha!). So there is no confusion, here are what the numbers represent.


11: Perfect - "The Unicorn". Doesn't Exist.

10: Classic - "The Immortal". A rare gem that is few and far apart. In ten years, you could listen to this piece and still find relevance. It simply defies time.

9: Outstanding - "The Daaag". Impressive, amazing.. Whatever you wanna call it, this piece brings hip-hop to a new level with originality, depth, and catchiness. Only a few minor issues keep this from being a complete classic, but they're barely detectable. Although, it's possible there are SOME tracks on there which, in themselves, ARE indeed classics.

8: Great - "The Dope". Exceeding the standard of hip-hop today. This work has the right elements, save for a few somewhat perceptible blemishes. Maybe you shouldn't have done that one track about shoelaces. You're close to the top echelon. Just a few more steps and you're there!

7: Good - "The Trooper". This work is a mixed bag. There may be quite a few good parts to this piece, but there were also enough not-so-good parts to drag it down from dopeness. There's still a lot of potential, though.

6: Decent - "The Straggler". This album or mixtape shows a lot of effort and passion, but comes up short in many categories. Some facets aren't quite as listenable as others. There's still some good in there, but you may have to listen carefully to find them.

5: Mediocre - "The Lost Soul". There are major issues with this one. At this point, I'll be trying very hard to find something good to say about this piece. I will also likely get mean and vengeful on your ass and tear this thing apart for making me listen to the whole thing. But at least you'll know exactly what you need to save your hip-hop career. On the other hand, some may really like this joint. It may fall into a small niche I'm not privy to like "Electro-Pig Squeal-Death Rap".

4: Deficient - "The Cliffhanger". This is the moment in your life where you need to seriously ask yourself if the music business is right for you. Will you fight to pull yourself up out of the muck or will you fall 1000 feet to your sloppy death? The entirety of this piece is hardly listenable.

3: Bad - "The Torture Device". EVERYTHING about this goes against all that is good in the world. This is what interrogators use on captive terror suspects for quick answers. Yes, you could use this piece of work as a WEAPON. You shouldn't even be allowed to listen to OTHER people "rap".

Anything under that would just be an exercise in comedy. In any case, I aim to be highly selective in who's work I choose to review since the review process takes up a lot of my time.. and I'm NOT getting paid for this. Be very very surprised if I review anything under a 6.. They likely bribed me! Remember, my reviews are not written for promotional purposes, but are mainly for the MC's own elevation. Expect harsh reviews with no punches held. Throughout the years, I've learned that brutal critique is the BEST way for an MC to elevate his game. Welcome to Face Value.