By Trenton Shaw
On the aptly named Me, Myself & I, Fat Joe eschews the R&B duets that have brought him radio success for a gritty, street-oriented album. With 12 songs, no skits and only three guest appearances, Fat Joe gets right down to business, spitting over the usual sample-heavy production supplied by Cool and Dre, Scott Storch and others. Above all, Me, Myself & I should be praised for its consistency, although Joe stays in familiar territory and yields little to satisfy the club audience, undoubtedly still hungry for bangers like “Lean Back.”
The New York rapper mixes it up on “Breathe and Stop,” a reggae-themed hustling anthem featuring The Game, who is now aligned with Joe in the fight against a common enemy:
50 Cent. With a funked-out Latin flavour and graphic, introspective rhymes, “Bendicion Mami” is not the usual ode to a rapper’s mother. “No Drama” reworks the beat from Rick Ross’ “Hustlin,” proving that Joe can hit the slower Southern beats just as hard as the rest.
Although chances of commercial success are small, Me, Myself & I is the album Fat Joe’s street fans have been waiting for.