Joe Budden’s
Mood Muzik mixtape series graduates from the underground with this fourth volume, and with a slight sacrifice. Originally 19 tracks were planned for this eOne Music release, but the final product is attractively lean at 13, leaving no room for filler and finishing long before it has worn out its welcome. Cold hard street rhymes and a colder heart drive the lyrics, all of them strung together sensibly for what
Budden correctly dubs the “memoirs of the defeated” on key cut “Sober Up.” The rebellion-filled rapper’s war with the industry reaches new heights on the excellent “Come Along,” which gives the young upstarts some sage advice with “When the label stops backin’ you/So do the fans.”
Budden’s off the majors, but his no-sellout attitude keeps the following strong, meaning there are no superstar features or club tracks here, just like-minded wordsmiths like
Lloyd Banks and
Royce da 5’9” and soulful, late-night beats from producers J. Cardim and Beewirks. The one curve ball is the epic “Short Summer,” as this major number could have been saved for an even more major release, but the man gave up on the traditional career path long ago, so don’t be too surprised when he sneaks a true
Budden classic onto the fourth volume of the mixtape series. ~ David Jeffries