Review Summary: I want to Stay Fly but I never knew how to........
Ha, I remember this album, back in 10th grade when I was trying to get in with the gangster crowd. It was hard for me to do it since I was representing Linkin Park’s Reanimation. I also didn’t have enough gangster clothes either, oh yeah and I also got beat up by the 6th grader representing Crips when I was in 8th grade, so my reputation was basically tarnished right there. Anyways, this is Three Six Mafia’s sixth studio album entitled “Most Known Unknown”. A Memphis rap group made up of rappers Juicy J, DJ Paul, and Crunchy Black.
Juicy J and DJ Paul are the producers of this album. The basic sound of this disc is a cross between gangsta rap and southern crunk. These rappers aren’t really good lyricist, especially Crunchy Black, he is horrible. Fortunately Crunchy Black left the group. From the group of the three, I have to say that Juicy J is the best out of all of them, mostly because of his hilarious punch lines (“ Her name wasn’t Silk, but the face was the Shockah!”, low blow to the rapper Silk the Shocker). All of the lyrics relates to; violence, hoes, intercourse, drugs, and popping the collar. Some of the beats have an eerie ambiance feeling to it, almost as if they can play it in a horror movie before something jumps out. There are several guest artists that appear on this album; Mike Jones, Paul Wall, Slim Thug, Trick Daddy, Young Buck, and Lil Flip just to name a few. The album starts with a pretty epic intro I must say.
It starts off with DJ Paul explaining the meaning to the album’s name. “The Most known Unknown means, that Three Six Mafia is known, but at the same time we unknown ya know what I mean.” He basically goes on to saying that they had a lot to do with the industry but they aren’t recognized for it. After that a synth comes in and three-four second samples from their past songs plays for the next 50 seconds while the synth gets louder and louder.
Stay Fly starts soon after that, one of the highlight tracks on the album. The chorus is just catchy, with one of the albums most cheery beats. The instrumentals are a sample from “Tell Me Why Our Love turned Cold” by Willie Hutch. This track features six artists; the extra artists are Young Buck, 8 Ball, and MJG. Crunchy Black did a lame verse in this track. “Since I have met you girl you ruined my brain (ruined my brain)
You stole my heart (You stole my heart)
Right from the start (Right from the start)
So I broke you down lil mama and hit you in the dark (hit you in the dark)”
The next great track is “Don’t Violate”, with guest appearance by Frayser Boy. Even Crunchy Black put in a worthy verse, Frayser Boy put in some good verse, lyrically it is average but the flow of it was great. Another great track is “Body Parts 3” which is basically a track with 8 different artists, one of them including Lil Wyte. Everybody put in a great verse on this track over a hauting beat. A times on the track, a underlying voice chants “Kill 'em and rob 'em and beat 'em and dump all these body parts into my trunk”, it is a great track altogether. “Lets Plan a Robbery” is another great track, it has a very haunting beat with a piano melody in it. The first verse is another one of Crunchy Black’s worthy verses. Then DJ Paul comes in and spits a story about him running into somebody’s house and robbing them.
(“I ran up in his spot, with the glock, his jaw dropped, he knew I came for money and da weight I heard he got, I cracked him in the middle of his face with da tome, tied his *** up and ransacked his home, I had to rep his bitch cuz da hoe was stacked, I ***ed her from the back, with my gun to her back.
While he is rapping his verse Juicy J basically tells the guy the phone better not be tapped, etc. pretty cool track.
Sadly that is all the only tracks worth listening too, all the other tracks are either average or lower. There is a cool track called “Roll With It”, where the tone of the voices are like chirping through a phone.Side to Side is another average track with a good chorus. Juicy J did one of his comedic punch lines "Walk up to a gal tell her bitch I'm Rick James". Sadly Juicy J was the only one that did a great verse, DJ Paul and Crunchy Black did a poor job, it was over a great beat too. “Swervin” is a horrible track that samples some of Mike Jone’s material in the beginning. The boring beats and the corny lyrics is what severely plague this album. This is sad because this group got 10+ years under their belt and they are basically putting out material an up and coming group could put together.
Recommended tracks:
Stay Fly original and Remix
Body Parts 3
Don’t Violate
Lets Plan a Robbery
Tracks to stay away from:
Dancin On a Pole
Swervin
Knock the Black off yo Ass
Half on sack
