ARTSETC.
Little Brother ‘gets back’ to preaching, stale beats
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by Daniel Sullivan
Tuesday, October 23, 2007
As Little Brother, made up of North Carolina MCs Phonte and Rapper Big Pooh, reminds the audience on just about every song, the group is a “throwback,” emphasizing topical lyrics over simplistic odes to materialism, or whatever it is they think other rappers do.
Their 2005 release The Minstrel Show was the culmination of this, an album focused on family, love and other easily relatable everyman subjects. Aiding this revival was the Frooty Loops soul of then up-and-coming super producer and former group member 9th Wonder. The album was well-received for its catchy tracks, but many (including this writer) criticized Little Brother for his loudly proclaimed superiority to other, more “mainstream” rappers. A mildly publicized falling out with 9th Wonder in 2006 curbed expectations for a Minstrel Show follow-up, but two years later, here it is.
GetBack begins with “Sirens” and the sample-heavy bounce of producer Illmind, who contributes three tracks to the album’s concise 11. Immediately, the problem with GetBack is apparent: simplistic, preachy rhymes combined with unconvincingly “empowering” lyrics. Fighting back against a faceless “them” played out effectively when Public Enemy dropped … in 1987. Still, that won’t stop Phonte from rapping about it.
The second track, “Can’t Win for Losing,” is actually exploitive of how whack an MC Phonte is. His self-pitying, overly analytical lyrics are zero fun, especially when the song’s simple boom-boom-clap is practically begging to be graced by a more dynamic showman. The mention of a “throwback sound that’s fresh” beats it into the listener’s head that Little Brother’s trying to take it back, y’all.
9th Wonder does show up for “Breakin’ My Heart,” far and away the album’s highlight. Phonte blesses 9th’s infectious soul-sample with more uncreative and simplistic MCing, but luckily, head-scratching guest spot Lil Wayne shows up out of the blue (or purp) and does his best to salvage the track. Unsurprisingly, Weezy F.’s clever references (Sade, the Texas Rangers, roller coasters) and humorous swagger are miles more fun than anything Little Brother brings to the table.
The rest of GetBack is probably best described as inoffensive but unremarkable. Denuan Porter drops off a solidly soulful effort on “ExtraHard,” while Hi-Tek lends the refreshingly understated “Step It Up.” Fellow Justus League member Khrysis, Rashid Hadee and Zo! also provide interchangeable, uninspiring tracks. Nottz’s “Two-Step Blues” is a bright spot, combining jazzy horns with lo-fi sampling to form a smoky, celebratory backdrop. Forgettable cameos by singers Darien Brockington and Carlitta Durand fail to really lend the R&B flavor for which they were included.
But no roster of cameos can mask the inherently flawed vision and execution of Little Brother. Lyrically, Phonte’s punch lines range from corny to lame (“Dig a little deeper for that PF change/ For PF Chang’s”…), and despite having one of the great names in hip-hop, Rapper Big Pooh is only slightly better. Their subject matter is mostly cultural criticism, with clubbing and weak game among Little Brother’s attempted targets. Time is still allotted for an ode to getting fly in “Good Clothes,” saved by Illmind’s Just Blaze-lite horns and a half-decent effort by Big Pooh. However, overall, neither MC spits with much conviction or enthusiasm on this album.
In evoking a sort of purist, “golden age” vibe, GetBack falls flat. Phonte and Pooh put forth a simply unexciting performance on the mic, devoid of memorable moments. Instead of trying to capture the fun and beautiful simplicity of “old school,” Little Brother uses it as a meaningless mantra. A rapper’s basic duties are to rap well and rap engagingly, but GetBack is too concerned with its agenda to feature either.
2 stars out of 5 stars
Anonymous (October 23, 2007 @ 10:13am):
And you're holding up Wheezy as the gold standard? Man. Wow. Man.
Anonymous (October 23, 2007 @ 11:19am):
Oh c'mon, you had probably picked "Breakin My Heart" as your favorite song before you even heard it,just because Weezy F. Baby makes a guest appearance. Wayne fails to impress, nearly all his material is sounding dull as of late. Maybe you should give GetBack another listen (check Sirens, ExtraHard, Dreams), pay a little closer attention to those beats and rhymes. LB brings it on all their CDs and mixtapes, and Lil' Wayne has been sounding the same since "Stuntin' Like My Daddy."
Anonymous (October 23, 2007 @ 1:41pm):
This reviewer is an idiot. I guess he should just stick to listening to Soulja Boy.
Anonymous (October 23, 2007 @ 1:50pm):
Weezy's verse on the song is one of his worst, even compared to his lackluster verse on Barry Bonds. Phonte is one of the wittiest rappers in the game period, Eg. "thought kissin ass was in my blood type, O, negative." This is just one of the many, therefore to say he is a simplistic just seems ridiculous, which leads the reader to simply disregard the review. Also, how can you blame Little Brother to have feelings of superiority when the mainstream consists of Soulja Boy and Hurricane Chris with some of the worst lyrics ever penned. Or even worse, the rapper MIMS clearly stating the problem with Hip Hop today, "I can make a mil sayin nothing on the track," which is exactly what he did.
Anonymous (October 24, 2007 @ 2:25am):
Some more compelling stories you should have added to this review in place of your disgraceful to real hip-hop, one-track-minded, Little Brother bashing massacre of an article:
"Super producer" (you got at least one thing right in the article) 9th Wonder's departure doesn't hurt Little Brother, it only shows Phonte's and Pooh's vast versatility on the mic.
Little Brother isn't all talk. Phonte personally leaked his own CD onto the internet, making it available for fans over a week before it's release. His willingness to sacrifice a few dollars (and give a big FU to the industry) is a fresh spin much needed in a particularly drap era in hip-hop. Hopefully Lupe's release in under a week can keep the positive momentum going.
This article can't be taken seriously. It's as if you hardly listened to the CD at all. The only serious blemish of the record (which you gave no mention at all) is that all the skits in between songs disrupt the natural flow of an otherwise solid album.
Anonymous (October 24, 2007 @ 3:09am):
You useless reviewer you lol. Read this out loud to yourself to hear how silly you sound. You're obviously being a limited a__ on purpose because you didn't listen to what Phonte spits with your lottery rhyme knit-pickin'. This ain't a freakin' lottery! Like the other dude said "YOUUUUUUUUU" need to go peep some Soulja Boi 'cause you're obviously not ready for LB. Your whole argument has too many weak a__ premises man. You need to "Step it Up".
Anonymous (October 28, 2007 @ 10:35am):
*AHEM*
Simply put, the reviewer is an idiot.
Phonte is wack??? Dude, you need to stay off that crack...
"Get Back" is an absolutely stellar album. 4 out of 5 stars AT WORST.
Anonymous (October 30, 2007 @ 1:14pm):
Artists' street teams rehashing the same argument ad nauseum ("you don't like Phonte, you must like Soulja Boy or MIMS", et. al.) are neat.
Anonymous (November 2, 2007 @ 10:36am):
This is brilliant marketing... excellent way to use the art of uninformed critique to start a buzz for album sales!
More bashing = More revenue!
Anonymous (November 8, 2007 @ 2:05pm):
damn why u mad
Anonymous (December 30, 2007 @ 3:51am):
obviously some people sayin they like this album and some not, but we can live with that in the world. if a reviewer spendin his time and tryin to make valid points, show the boy some respec please. he writin shit for you to read, so think of it as a favor (bringin up new ideas, arguments that piss you off, whatever). d sully stay gully and lets seriously get along
q-tip
Faceless Hillbrooks (April 17, 2008 @ 1:52am):
Does whoever wrote this review even listen to Hip Hop? Phonte is wack? are you out of your mind! one of the most silly reviews i've read in a long time.Actually i wouldn't call it a review i would call it brainless hating.No but serious,did this dude even listen to the record?
Anonymous (June 12, 2008 @ 2:58am):
This reviewer is deplorably inept in his or her ability to even remotely comprehend what a good lyricist or a solid album is in hip hop.
His rationale for so badly dissing a strong Little Brother album is as lacking of pure common sense as are the responses on this page without 1 single person who appears to agree with his comments.
I think I can speak for this page's readers collectively when I say we hereby admonish The Badge Herald to ban this reviewer from reviewing this or any genre of art about which he or she displays obvious ignorance.
Simply put, this reviewer is awful!
Big up Little Brother! Haters "Get Back"! LB keep doing what y'all do!
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