Ja Rule - The Last Temptation
Reviewed By: ULTIMATECDLINK
Album Rate: 3.5 out of 5 Stars
Ja Rule just released his 4th solo album on Murder Inc. Records behind the strong radio single "Thug Lovin" w/ Bobby Brown. The new 13-track album also features Nas, 2Pac, Ashanti, Charli Baltimore, Cadillac Tah, Chink Santana, Crooked I, Eastwood, Young Life, & Alexi.
1. Intro
2. Thug Lovin (f/ Bobby Brown)-- this track is the first single from the album and has a nice guitar midtempo beat. The song has more of a R&B feel to it than a rap song. It's not a bad track if you like Ja Rule's radio friendly stuff.
3. Mesmerize (f/ Ashanti)-- this track gave me deja vu listening to it because it follows the almost exact pattern of Ja Rule's big single "Always On Time". I would be shocked if this song isn't released as a single because it has all the makings of a song that would major radio airplay. Again, if you're a fan of the radio friendly Ja Rule, you'll love this one.
4. Pop Niggas-- this track has a nice lil organ, snare drum-snappin Neptunes beat. Ja Rule has a harder flow on this song than on the previous two. It's a pretty decent track.
5. The Pledge Remix (f/ Nas, Ashanti, & 2Pac)-- this is the single released from the recent Irv Gotti Remix album. Nas has a decent flow on his verse. Ja Rule drops an all right verse while Irv Gotti mixes in some talkin by 2Pac. It's an all right track.
6. Murder Reign-- Ja Rule sings/raps over a beat that sounds like something out of a movie score. The hook sounds horrible to me and I'm not really feeling the track overall.
7. Last Temptation (f/ Charli Baltimore)-- this track has an old school 80's beat. It's more of a dance and party type track that I can't really get into. I wasn't really feelin this track either.
8. Murder Me (f/ Cadillac Tah & Alexi)-- this track has a nice laid back head bobbin beat. Ja Rule raps about new down ass bitch. Alexi is a newcomer who fills the role of singin the R&B hooks. Cadillac Tah comes pretty hard on the mic on his verse. This is pretty nice track.
9. The Warning-- this track also has a nice midtempo beat. Ja Rule sings the hook and sing-raps about he's gonna take out his enemies who want to get him dead or alive. The beat is nice but Ja singin all his verses can get old.
10. Connected (f/ Eastwood & Crooked I)-- Ja Rule hooks up with Tha Row over a West Coast beat. Crooked I spits a nice verse while Ja Rule brings some lyrics callin out DMX (when he says "lil Earl...should've been lil girl) and 50 Cent. Nice track.
11. Emerica (f/ Young Life & Chink Santana)-- Ja Rule does more singing on this track about what life would be like if he was running the country. The beat has a little bit of a jazz feel to it. Young Life has a decent flow with his raspy voice. It's a decent track but Ja Rule is probably the worst part of the song.
12. Rock Star-- this track has an electric guitar rock and roll beat. Ja Rule sings the hook in which he declares himself a rock star. I absolutely hated this song and didn't find anything good to say about it.
13. Destiny (outro)
Overall, the production by Irv Gotti and Chink Santana is on point for the most part. The album is really short though. Also, it seems like Ja Rule does a lot more singing than he did on his previous album and I'm not sure that's a good thing. If you're a fan of Ja Rule's radio friendly rap, you'll like this album. If you're expecting more of Ja Rule's street sound that he usually reserves for the Murder Inc. compilations, don't expect to find it here.
Ja Rule - The Last Temptation