Trinidad Jame$ – 10 PC Mild (Mixtape Review) DX Consensus: “Just A Mixtape”
To say the video for “All Gold Everything” drew attention to Trinidad Jame$ would be an understatement. It launched his career. Once people took time to listen to the song and video’s accompanying body of work, Don’t Be S.A.F.E, they may or may not have found other songs they liked. But had it not been for that video, many wonder if Trinidad Jame$ would be where he is now. The title “one hit wonder” has been lobbed at Jame$ from all directions, including the South, and when people celebrated the “Death of Molly Rap” in Kendrick Lamar’s “Bitch Don’t Kill My Vibe” video, many viewed “Molly Rap” as something the Trinidadian helped usher into the game, with the popular refrain, “Popped a Molly, I’m sweatin…whoo!” With 10 PC Mild, Trinidad Jame$ gives listeners a chance to see where he’s at now, and also something to hold them off until he releases a physical album. Those who enjoyed Don’t Be S.A.F.E. will probably also find enjoyment in Jame$’ latest project.
Much ado has been made about how long Trinidad Jame$ has been rapping, and on 10 PC Mild, his lack of experience rears its head across the project. The simplistic rhyme patterns displayed on “Material Thing$ Hard to Deal With” come off terribly, with rhymes like, “If you never knew nothing, know nothing / All the money in the world ain’t nothing / You can’t please these bitches for nothing / All these bitches want to think they something, they not…” On “Shut Up!!!” he raps “Don’t pat me down nigga / I might Pacquiáo a nigga/ I say don’t even laugh, when I’m passing y’all niggas…” While Jame$ lacks in the lyrics department, he definitely succeeds at bringing energy to a track, which makes songs like “Hip$ter $trip Club” seem like even more questionable selections. On the aforementioned song, Jame$ raps, “She live by fear, she die by choice / Her skin the color, of your choice / Fishnets for stockings tryna’ get her stock up / Rubber bands tie her locks up, the music open hearts, that lock up…”
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One of the major differences between Don’t Be S.A.F.E. and 10 PC Mild is the presence of a budget. While Trinidad’s last project was powered by beats he acquired from the Internet, it lacked the features from big name rappers. This time around, 10 PC Mild features known producers and rappers; however, the results are further proof that throwing money at a product won’t necessarily improve its quality. Young Chop provides the instrumentation for “Jumpin Off Texa$” and “Shut Up!!!,” both of which sound like lower-grade versions of Big Sean’s “Mula.” The 808-heavy production of J. Padron fits Trinidad Jame$’ high-energy style better, and doesn’t bear as close of a resemblance to anything else in the market. The combination of Padron on the track and Jame$ on vocals gives a vibe reminiscent of Lil John and Lil Scrappy. Perhaps featuring the “Love and Hip Hop Atlanta” mainstay would have been a better move than bringing back Fabo of D4L. Most of the features on 10 PC Mild fit the tracks, but they don’t enhance the product. Gucci Mane, Young Scooter and Alley Boy undoubtedly fit right in on “Ea$tside,” however they bring nothing memorable. The same can be said for Cyhi Da Prynce and Danny Brown on “Material Thing$ Hard to Deal With” and “Quez” respectively. On “Material Things$ Hard to Deal With,” Cyhi raps, “All the real niggas sayin church, the only thing missing is the choir robes / Pimpin’ is like being a fire fighter, ‘cause you always gotta fire hoes…”
Ultimately, most of Jame$’ verses come up short—both in terms of length (with some songs featuring six bar verses instead of the standard 16)—and they all offer similar cadences and the standard “locks up / lock up” and “fire hoes / fire hose” homophones in terms of the lyrics. Those who liked Don’t Be S.A.F.E. probably won’t be checking 10 PC Mild for complex lyrics though. For those looking for high energy vocals and heavy 808s, 10 PC Mild has what you want, however, that alone doesn’t make for a great mixtape; “10 PC Mild” is an overstatement.
