Jermaine Dupri - Jermaine Dupri Presents...Young, Fly & Flashy Vol. 1

HHH Official Rating: 1.5/5
Beats rating: 2/5
Lyrics rating: 1/5
Music Quality: 1/5



by the god Dirty Backpacks




On my TV show, I'm known to be a pretty harsh critic when it comes to some things in Hip Hop. And while a lot of people respect my opinions and more agree than disagree, there are those who have come to me and said "why do you always seem to give good grades on Hiphophavoc? Are you afraid to dis the albums you review? Were you told to be nice?"

It's not that at all. But this has honestly been a banner year for Hip Hop - truth be told, there's a lot more good than bad that has come out this year, from ALL regions, new school and old school. There's just a lot of good albums to choose from.

THIS IS NOT ONE OF THOSE ALBUMS.

(Sigh)....Jermaine Dupri. Say what you want about the guy, but he's a winner when it comes to this music biz. This guy is responsible for Kriss Kross, Jagged Edge, Bow Wow, Da Brat, and other top-selling acts. He's worked with damn-near everyone in the music biz, from Jay-Z to Biggie, Dru Hill to Xscape (I'm taking y'all back, right?). Super-producer Lil' Jon learned his skills working for - you guessed it - JD. And, he is single-handedly responsible for the resurgence in the careers of Bow Wow, Usher (he handled Usher's 1st really big album, My Way) and Mariah Carey (The Emancipation Of Mimi is the comeback story of the year and is around 5x platinum at this point). Hell, he's done so much for so long, he even once foolishly stated on BET's 106 & Park that he was a better producer than Dr. Dre AND Timbaland!

Plus, I think his girl is kinda fly (Janet - Miss Jackson if ya nasty!)

So, with this pedigree and the undeniable penchant for making hits, I have one question:

WHAT THE F**K IS THIS CRAP?!?

I don't think I'm exxagerating or overstating it when I say this is THE worst Southern album of the year (thus far). I've listened to it 4 times from beginning to end, and it just gets worse each time. How could you do this, JD?

My first thought when looking at the back was "where's SunN.Y.?" Surely, the 106 & Park freestyle legend deserved to be on JD's 1st So So Def compilation in some time, right?

Believe me, he may have saved his career by not putting him on this - that's how bad this is. And really, there's no excuse - JD is an excellent producer, and he's got Daz in his camp, a very good producer in his own right. Yet, Daz produces nothing on the album, and JD himself only co-produces the lead single "Gotta Getcha", which, as you've already heard, is an anemic, generic club single about tricking dollars. I don't trick and don't like talk about tricking, so this song holds no value for me. The best part of this song is getting to see Janet's a$$ in the video, but even that makes you say "Damn - JD got Janet ho-in' in his own video?"

Normally, I would go through all the producers, but I figure I'll save them and their families the embarassment of associating their names with this project. Actually, in all fairness, the beats aren't horrible at all - I'd say they were okay, or at least so-so (get it - So So?). But this cadre of rappers he's assembled - ugh.

These no-name bums should never be allowed near a mic again. Oh, he was smart enough to sprinkle some known commodities throughout the CD, but this tactic actually backfires - artists like Pastor Troy, Bun B, Daz, Bow Wow, and Da Brat only serve to accentuate how crappy the unknowns are. And when you include J-Kwon in anything, you're already acknowledging you're not exactly looking for quality. Even the promising newcomer Stat Quo offers nothing on the ear-bleed inducing "10 Toes", where even Daz's lyrics can't save this track from being pure caca.

EVERY song isn't horrible - the remix to "I Think They Like Me" has been moving butts on the dancefloor for sometime now, and the beat definitely makes you want to move. But when you think about the fact that the hottest lines on the song come from BOW WOW, well....'nuff said. And Pastor Troy's tear the club up anthem "Just To Fight" is guaranteed to hype a ni99a up in the club - this may be the best complete song on the album. Finally, "Kodak Moment" has Bun B and Pastor Troy not neccesarily at their best, but still good enough to make this song a decent listen. The thing that ruins it - Kavious. Where'd he find this clown - karaoke night at TGI Friday's?

KP & Envyi (remember them from the hit "Swing My Way" back in the day?) serve up a semi-decent offering with "Put Cha Hands Up", but the song probably would've been better without KP's corny rhymes. Or Envyi - I'm not sure who's the singer and who's the rapper. Suffice to say, it should've simply been a song without the raps.

But everything else is just crap. There's no other way I can put it. The Miss B. song "Grown Man" (featuring Torica) is just tired, corny subject matter about a chick wanting a thug to get "his grown man on". And Cato is trash. Young Capone and T-Rock are trash. And T.Waters? I actually heard this kid had a buzz. Where - in his headphones?

And let me say this with all sincerity - the "bonus track" "Young, Fly & Flashy" is the worst song I've heard all year. In any genre. By any artist. Period.

I like JD. But to offer this type of crap to the public is insulting. My only guess is that he's been promising to release stuff from these "artists" and to shut them up put them all on a compilation to see how they'd do. JD, if this is the best these cats have to offer, cut all ties to them NOW - before they ruin your stellar reputation.

People, the only good use for this CD is to use it as a coaster for your drinks. Other than maybe 3 songs, this is worthless. And believe me, I think I was actually generous with my grade - the remix to "I Think They Like Me" and solid contributions by Bun B and Pastor Troy really save this album from getting a worse mark.

If you want a good Southern compilation, try Big Boi's Got Purp joint. But if you want good stuff from Jermaine Dupri, you better go cop Mariah's album - cuz this ain't it.



Track List:


1. "I'm Hot" (Young Capone w/Daz & T-Rock) [1.5]
2. "Gotta Get'Cha" (Jermaine Dupri) [2]
3. "Kodak Moment" remix (Kavious, Bun B & Pastor Troy) [2.5]
4. "I Think They Like Me" remix (Dem Franchise Boyz w/Jermaine Dupri, Da Brat & Bow Wow) [2.5]
5. "So What" (Cato) [0.5]
6. "Throw'd Off" (T.Waters) [1]
7. "Just To Fight" (Pastor Troy) [3]
8. "Grown Man" (Miss B. w/Torica) [1.5]
9. "10 Toes" (Jermaine Dupri w/The Kid Slim, Daz, J-Kwon & Stat Quo) [0.5]
10. "Put Cha Hands Up" (KP & Envyi) [2.0]
11. BONUS TRACK: "Young, Fly & Flashy" (Young Capone w/Midnight, Champagne Shawty & C-Dirt) [0]