By Kyle Francis
There was a time when rap could be defended on an intellectual level. When the writing in rap songs was poetic and heartfelt, but still had a bad-ass bass thump in the background. The beginning of the end started when music about shooting people and violently raping police officers caught on with the “underprivileged” white kids in the suburbs. Thus making thugs like 50 Cent into superstars and his newest album, The Massacre, is his desperate attempt to stay relevant with all the snot nose kids. And with the G-Unit label flagging, he’s in trouble.
The opening track on the new album begins with the peaceful sounds of children playing at a playground, but it’s quickly interrupted by semi-automatic gunfire and screaming. No doubt this is meant to be shocking and show us all what a bad motherfucker 50 is. It just comes off as moronic. Nice try, asshole.
If you listened to 50’s first album, then you’ve heard this one too. It’s basically just a guy with a speech impediment rapping slowly overtop sounds of guns firing and sometimes–not always, but sometimes–reloading.
It’s impossible to recommend this album to anyone, but if daddy didn’t buy you that edible golden beamer and you feel the need to rebel against authority, then this just may be for you.