Gold teeth, bronze records: Gangsta wrap-up

Trapped in Crime, C-Murder; No Limit

By Dustin Seibert

For the Daily

Two years ago, there were very few rap fans that did not have music from Colonel Master P and his No Limit soldiers blaring out of their stereos. They single-handedly dominated the charts in the summer of 1998 with their then-innovative "Dirty South" music style. P and his brothers, C-Murder and Silkk The Shocker, were among the most well-paid and influential entertainers at the time. Unfortunately, their reign on the top has ended, and the label is now plagued by extremely lackluster releases. C-Murder's Trapped In Crime is no exception.

To rate each individual track would be a complete waste of time, as each track is similar and full of repetitive material in both the beats and the lyrics. While the No Limit camp has never been known for strong, imaginative lyrics, listening to the same "The ghetto's got me trapped," "I'm a G" and "The streets raised me" lyrics from these millionaire rappers gets quite tiring. C-Murder enlists the help of a wide range of guest stars, from Da Brat and Jermaine Dupri to D.I.T.C.'s Fat Joe. Aside from the valiant lyrical efforts of Joe, the guests do absolutely nothing to better this abomination of an album. The fact that Master P let go of nearly the entire Beats By The Pound crew (who have produced on every single No Limit album to date) is an insult to lyrical injury. The replacement beat makers can't hold a candle to the old crew, leaving the C-Murder and the No Limit bandwagon no leg to stand on.

The only guilty pleasure on this album is the first single, "Down For My N's," featuring Magic and Snoop Dogg. The infectious beat eerie of horns and drums sounds nice coming from a system with worthy bass kick. Unfortunately, this track cannot carry the entire record. Cash Money Records has definitely taken over as the premier New Orleans rap label and the sooner No Limit realizes it, the sooner they will STOP making these awful records. I'm sorry, but it's over. Don't buy It. Don't burn it. Bury it.

Grade: D