Alright so this is our first album review over here @ Crown Squad Music, and we have chosen none other then the self-proclaimed "King of The South" T.I.'s latest effort 'No Mercy'. Before we begin, we rate the albums on a scale of 1-10 (simply because people may feel that a rating of say 2.5 out of 5 is neither good or bad where as 5 out of 10 is well for lack of better terms leaning more towards the 'bad' category). Feel free to comment, post your own opinions, etc.
T.I. has most definitely established himself as a hip-hop heavyweight. So when reviewing an album from him, you generally compare it to his previous efforts (there’s no competition like yourself). Although No Mercy will probably not reach the likes of TIP’s previous effort 2008’s Paper Trail, it is still a relatively solid listen and will keep the ball rolling for T.I. (if he can manage to stay out of jail).
Right off the bat the intro track featuring Kayne & Cudi ‘Welcome To The World’ delivers a satisfying listen. Now it’s not the track you’d hope to hear given the talent but it does serve the purpose of getting the ball rolling.
‘How Life Changed’ & ‘Get Back Up’ both follow up with T.I. revisiting roots and sharing his thoughts with fans on the whole jail ordeal (whether or not you want to hear about that is your choice). Neither track is disappointing, but may not deliver much replay value to listeners (Get Back Up of course already making much radio rotation).
I’m going to chose to skip over ‘I Can’t Help It’ simply because given T.I.’s previous hit-makers, this lacks that same feeling we received from previous singles. Which takes us to the Eminem assisted ‘All She Wrote’. Being two fan-favorites, there is a high expectation found for TIP & Shady especially after ‘Touchdown’ (The collab from 2007’s T.I. Vs. T.I.P), which failed to meet fan expectations. Much different can be said about this collab however. Both Slim & T.I. go in and deliver a solid track. This track stands out as one of the better listens.
The title track off the album featuring The Dream also serves as a high point of the album. “Could it be possibly, the second coming of Pac is me?” Whether or not you choose to agree or disagree, it’s a solid listen.
The next little bit of the album ranges from satisfactory to same old album fillers. ‘Strip’ featuring a very simple hook from Trey Songz, is enough to get a music video and radio airplay given its direction to please the female listeners. ‘Amazing’ featuring Pharrell may not be what fans hoped for, however I will admit that Pharrell’s hook sticks in the mind. ‘Everything On Me’ feels like he’s attempting to recycle formula’s used in pervious tracks.
‘Poppin Bottles’ featuring Drake is another enjoyable track for the club. Nothing spectacular but deserves a few listens. I am going to again choose to skip another track seeing how ‘Lay Me Down’ does not go with the concept the album has given us to this point (ironically it’s the second last track). ‘Castle Walls’ gives us a unique collab between T.I. and Christina Aguilera and another solid track. It fits as a finale to the album and allows T.I. to give us his final thoughts on all he’s been through with the media and jail time.
So, is No Mercy a step up for the ‘King of The South’? Die hard fans might not think so. The album is still a good listen delivering both satisfactory and great tracks. Not as good as his previous album but is enough to keep us through the wait until he’s out and ready for another album.
FINAL RATE: 7.5/10 Good
Keep That Shit On Replay:
-All She Wrote (Feat. Eminem)
-No Mercy (Feat. The Dream)
-Castle Walls (Feat. Christina Aguilera)
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