The Bronx, New York emcee, songwriter & actor Fat Joe back for his 12th studio LP. A member of D.I.T.C. & the Terror Squad, his first 3 albums Represent, J.O.E. (Jealous Ones Envy) & Don Cartagena are considered by many to be the best in his discography. However, much of his output since then has been either hit or miss from the underrated The Elephant in the Room to the horrendous J.O.S.E. 2 (Jealous Ones Still Envy 2). Cool & Dre produced the What Would Big Do? EP few years back & that was the most I’ve enjoyed Joey Crack’s music in a while, so them producing Organized Rhyme had me knowing I’d like it more than The World Changed on Me.
After the “Narcos” intro, “2 Plots” opens up on some soulful shit talking about never losing whereas “The Aroma” featuring Jadakiss & Stove God Cook$ finds the trio on some mobster shit having the ability to smell the product off the coast. After the “Coach Mike Brown” interlude, “Victory Lap (Him)” featuring Jadakiss & Yung Miami samples “Victory” by Puff Daddy & the late Notorious B.I.G. to get celebratory while “Back It Up” comes through with a mediocre strip club ode.
“Heavy Price to Pay (Chef’s Kiss)” co-produced by Mike Dean incorporates more sampling chops talking about the money coming with a tax while “Dead or Alive” featuring Remy Ma boasts top 5 status although the auto-tuned hook wasn’t good. “Not Goin’” produced by STREETRUNNER talks about not fallin’ for bullshit & after “Set of Keys” featuring Pusha T gets on some coke shit, “Feelin’ a Way” discusses having the world in his palms. “They Wanna Know” lastly ends Organized Rhyme answering some questions people have had.
Seems like Cool & Dre heard what many including myself had to say regarding them producing over half of The World Changed on Me because them handling Organized Rhyme’s beats gives us some of the most enjoyable music Fat Joe has made in years & that shouldn’t be a surprise considering their previous output in recent memory. The list of guests has been minimized to a respectably brief number, the production hits harder & Joey Crack takes it back to his roots for a little over a half hour.
Score: 3.5/5
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