August 05, 2015

Grand Puba "2000" (Hip-Hop Connection, 8/95)


"Around '92 Grand Puba had the mad flava. After splitting from Brand Nubian he was appearing on everyone else's tracks, and stealing the show on every posse cut he appeared on. It was the building up of this profile that made his '93 debut album something of a disappointment. Undoubtedly Puba had the lyrical skills, but the production let him down. On '2000' there are no such problems. It's more musical than his last effort with mellow, laidback, radio-friendly loops rather than just the hard beats, with the likes of Quincy Jones and Barry White getting slung into the SP1200." Cont'd below, but first check out the visuals for Grand Puba's smash single, "I Like It."


"It could be seen as more commercial, but not so much as to offend the hardcore ... And Puba is by no means backward in coming forward to the mic, still the master of the slick metaphor and clever rhyming couplet ... Subject matter is traditional Puba bragging and boasting of his prowess with the hoes and on the mic ... With Puba's ever present lyrical ability and the easier-on-the-ear production, there isn't a weak track on '2000.' A consistently pleasing effort." - via Lee Pinkerton at Hip-Hop Connection, 8/95. The full 2000 album review can be read below. Revisit the album HERE.