As I’ve written before, hip-hop had become only a fraction of 50 Cent’s empire. The epitome of hip-hop hyper masculinity, 50 Cent had morphed from a hungry street emcee into a media personality, a corporate CEO, an actor and a Vitamin Water spokesman, but he was only nominally a rapper, and not surprisingly, his music suffered. Sure, he could still crush any rapper who dared offend him, but he did so with the weight of his media empire, not his rhymes. Perhaps sensing his microphone credibility slipping, 50 has returned to the basics for his new, fatalistically titled album Before I Self Destruct, a work that puts aside previous attempts to pander to radio (oh, hi Amusement Park, I didn’t see you there) and focuses instead on something so simple 50 Cent had seemingly forgotten it; making dope music.
Before I Self Destruct was originally supposed to drop in 2007, but apparently Fiddy wasn’t feeling self destructive enough at the time and instead released Curtis (a.k.a. the album Kanye crushed him on), saying he would hold Self Destruct until the time was right. The time still isn’t quite right – security isn’t tight enough around the G-Unit fortress and the album leaked on the internet several weeks early – but one way or another, Self Destruct has been unleashed upon the world. He won’t want me to put it this way, but this is a comeback album for 50, an album that’s his best since Get Rich or Die Trying, and possibly his best ever.
For most fans Crime Wave was the first “oh s**t, is 50 back?” moment. From the moment the track’s concrete heavy bass line dropped 50’s bad intentions were clear, and more importantly, he did the track’s devastating beat justice, dropping intentionally blunt and blistering lines that are more declarations of war than rhymes: “I’m not telling you to shoot somebody, but if somebody try to shoot you, shoot em.” Not exactly advice you’ll hear at school. Even better is Stretch, a track that not only harkens back to 50’s days as a street level drug dealer but reveals more about the album’s title: “I’m not supposed to be the boss, I’m supposed to be an enforcer.” 50 apparently believes it’s only a matter of time before his violent tendencies overwhelm his CEO responsibilities, and I’m not inclined to disagree. On occasion 50 takes his need to be intimidating a little too far, most notably on Psycho, a track that’s only too appropriate for guest artist Eminem but doesn’t quite work for 50, who’s far too calculating to truly pull off “psycho,” but when he misses on Self Destruct, at least 50 misses while trying to hit the right target.
Where Curtis really fell apart was when 50 turned his attention to the ladies, but on Self Destruct he mercifully avoids any attempts at reviving Candy Shop, and when he does turn his thoughts to women he does so with relative skill. Case in point, Baby Be Me, the album’s lead single and a track that softens 50’s killer persona without turning him soft, giving him a catchy beat by Polow da Don to work over and bringing in the always classy Ne-Yo to polish things off. Every modern hip-hop album that wants to sell big needs at least one track for the ladies, and Baby By Me should get the job done nicely, especially if gold-digging groupies officially adopt it as their anthem. While 50 never gets as sexy-romantic again on Self Destruct, the album does touch on relationships a few more times: on the soulfully regretful Do You Think About Me and the unintentionally hilarious Could’ve Been You, though most of the hilarity predictably comes from R. Kelly’s hook (“cause I be smellin my s**t too, now how you like that?”). In fact, the album’s only flat-out love song is Hold Me Down, and there the object of 50’s affection is his gun. Women weren’t weakening 50’s game, his desire to make radio hits for them was, and thankfully on Self Destruct he desire is mostly dead.
More important that what Self Destruct says about 50 as a public persona, or his place in the rap game, Before I Self Destruct is a hip-hop album that actually seems to care about hip-hop. Hell, the man even does a semi-quasi-cover of the Sugarhill Gang’s seminal Rapper’s Delight with his Gangsta’s Delight. So how long will it be until 50 once again forgets hip-hop in favor of a new clothing line or corporate deal? If history is any judge, not long. But for now, he’s just a damn good street rapper – exactly what we were all waiting for him to become again.
After reading this review over at DJBooth, I really couldn’t have done a better job so I just decided to publish it here.
Get the album:Before I Self Destruct
I give this album a 4……Leave your rating and feedback below.
11-12-2009
wat’s crazy is the movie is the album
NIGGA THIS AINT THE CARTER IT’S SPARTA IT’S HARDER
BEFORE I SELF DESTRUCT GOTTA LUV IT IT’S HIPHOP GGGG BACK TO REIGN KING
LLOYD BANKS UP NEXT GET READY THISIS50.COM P.L.K MIXTAPE SERIES
11-12-2009
I’m sorry Damnright but 50 is dunn dunn…
There’s 3 good tracks on BISD: Baby By Me, Psycho and Ok,you’re right.
I ain’t a big fan of Officer Ricky but the dude got him on this one.
Deeper Than Rap >> Before I Self Destruct
11-13-2009
ahh, shut the fuck up!
11-13-2009
i dont get what this guy is talking about. he’s praising before i self destruct saying its better possibly than get rich or die tryin’…. this album was shit. teal talk is right the good songs are baby by me, psycho, and ok, you’re right. none of the others match up and its just sloppy slurry words to a crappy beat. its a better album than curtis but thats not hard to beat.
11-13-2009
you listen to the radio too dam much. Just like your boy RealTalk, that commercial shit got you all fucked up in the head. I could tell cause you both picked the three tracks most likely to become singles… I bet both you fags got mohawk’s and skinny jeans hun? You probably look like Kanye West, or stupied fuck tattoed face like LiL Wayne.
11-13-2009
k too bad i DONT have a mohawk and DONT wear skinny jeans but go ahead and keep guessing… theres a reason they’re most likely to become singles.. because they’re actually good. i dont even listen to the radio and for someone who listens to mostly necro and slaughterhouse i highly doubt u can say commercial shit got me all fucked up in the head truthfully. 50 cents album sucked get over it
12-10-2009
you a bitch
11-14-2009
The Narrator BROKE IT DOWN LIKE A G REAL NIGGA LISTEN TO EVERYTHING BUT THE RADIO SONG.
11-14-2009
HONEST I MEANT FUCK THAT DICKSUCKA The Narrator
11-13-2009
Im sorry that all of your tastes have been diluted by the new rap that is solely to sell money with no truth or substance. This album is real gangsta rap at its finest, none better right now. 50 is back on his grizzy the only difference is that everyone is on the new fad of soft rap for the ladies, 50 is still the best gangsta rapper in the game.
11-13-2009
mr reviewer, pliz get off 50′s dick and js tell the truth.. BISD TOTALY SUCKED!! seriously is ths the shit we waited a year for?? the album’s gt abt 2 good songs, so disrespectful and baby by me. tht physco track could hav been better. m not a rick ross fan bt deeper than rap iz way better than this shit..
this nigga aint shit nomore. m inclined to say curtis was better, bt i’ll wait until all ths hype dies down
11-13-2009
case of HYPE over content…50 is a good Hype man, he keeps hype on him…but content-wise he has 2 to 3 songs on each cd content worthy of the hype…to many blinded and tone deaf fans, we see ass/money and hear controversy then we immortalize rappers…for no reason, i’m just sayin
11-13-2009
WE GOT SOME 50 HATERS!!!!!!
11-13-2009
LOL, this kid “The Narrator” said he listens to Necro and you think that does what? give you credibility? necro is a joke kid… the reason you dont like 50 is because you dont relate to what hes talking about, and you cant grasp or envision it cause youve never seen anything close to what hes referring to… yall are stupid
11-14-2009
gives me credibility? everyone has credibility, everyone has a right to their own opinion. i said i listen to necro to prove the point that no i dont listen to just radio music like i was accused of. necro isnt a joke its just a different genre. nobody relates to 50, not even 50. he raps about dealing drugs and killing people. he sits in his mansion living the life anyones dreamed of. thats not what hes rapping about at all. hes rapping about a life he once knew, but no longer has.
11-18-2009
This was a bad album…I’m sorry everyone likes it so much. songs with him makin kiss kiss noises tell enough…..
11-19-2009
go hang yourself 50 your projected to sell 160,000 copies !!! LMFAO Curtis sold 650,000 copies and the only reason why was because the Kanye battle ….By the way Officer Ricky Sold 155,000 copies in his last solo CD !!!!!Karma IS a BITCHHHHH!!!!!
11-24-2009
“Men lie, women lie numbers don’t ha ha ha”, an obvious return fire at 50 for BISD projected low sales (est. 160k).
12-8-2009
narrator can sukk my dick
3-20-2012
oh 50 50 50 what happend man, i listen to this album sometimes back and cant even remember nuthing from it, , and i mean nuthing, not the beat, not the words, i might sound like a 50cent hatter but am not. am still listening to his get rich or die tryin album. hate 50 or like him, you have to give him his respect . but this album we have here, feels more like a mixtape,, ,a bad mixtape