E-40 needs to see a brake specialist. His "slanguage" may be cute, but his beats are unrelenting. He was probably too preoccupied thinking of a clever name for his latest album, "My Ghetto Report Card," to bother with break-beat techniques. At first his songs are infectious, but after a minute of monotony, it's apparent that each of his tracks are in need of a transition or two.
"My Ghetto Report Card" was released March 14 with the intention of capturing the current Hyphy movement of rap in the San Francisco Bay area. E-40 caters to his Hyphy audience with thick bass lines and clubbin' tracks.
His hit single "Tell Me When to Go" (featuring Keak Da Sneak) resonates with the freestyle dance culture, in which dancers try to go "dumb." Going "dumb" is a term used to describe off-the-wall freestyle dancing. It's similar to speaking in tongues but instead of the person having any religious affiliations, they're more likely to have a deep faith in pop culture.
"Ooh, Jesus Christ had dreads, so shake 'em/ I ain't got none, but I'm plannin' on growing some/ Imagine all the Hebrews who went dumb/ Dancing on top of chariots and turning tight ones/ Ooh, tell me when to go (dumb)," he sings.
E-40's voice is like taffy. He's got depth like Tuna Fish from the Jurassic 5, but his vocals waver and wobble around giving each song a youthful buoyancy. The vocals seem to have more presence than the beat, a sound typical to hip-hop, but E-40's rhythm, lyricism and beats resemble pop-rap.
Just like every other pop-rap album, "My Ghetto Report Card" comes complete with cussing, obnoxious segue skits, and at least one song for the ladies. E-40 slows his roll in "Just F***in" (featuring Bosko) to appeal to the more sensitive listener.
"Now we ain't in love but we can damn sure pretend to be/ Get a sack of that broccoli and a bottle of Hennessy/ Check into a room at the Fairfield Inn/ Fire up some Purp and let the beatings begin/ We're not in love but we pretend/ We both know we're just f***in," he sings.
Considering the flimsy standards of pop-rap, E-40 has compiled a well-rounded album, but if you listen to music for reasons other than getting "dumb" or humping something, stay away from these Hyphy beats.
