AZ has a bone to pick with his Hip Hop status. The rapper so often crowned “most underrated” was lambasted by Steve Stoute for not having enough talent during a famous “Drink Champs” podcast episode.
Anthony Cruz’s response comes in the form of Legacy: Freestyles and Features Edition. The 23-track mixtape showcases the dexterity AZ has always possessed as an MC but falls flat artistically.
There’s never been any doubt about AZ’s flow, not since his stunning verse on Nas’ “Life’s a Bitch.” He showcases the versatility of his flow, as he raps seamlessly with multiple beat changes on “Thank You.” This is Rap 101 for youngsters, and for a moment it seems as if AZ is going to make Stoute look foolish as he winks at his “haters.” His lyrical abilities remain sharp, as on “AZ Freestyle From Doo Wop Mixtape 2”: “The doer, could snatch the medulla off Medusa/Pursuer, pop off Rugers and fuck cougars.” Rhymes like these showcase why he’s developed a cult following from those who eat up punchlines.
The problem lies within a lack of substance. While AZ can raise eyebrows with his words, there are only so many times disassociated bars will connect before they lose their luster. “Oil Money,” which comes in at track 20, features enough scatterbrained rhymes to make Lil Wayne blush. “Horns and halos, fish, corn and potatoes/Perform love in the dawn, getting licked on in the cakeholes Caicos,” he rhymes, and while the multisyllabic component of his bars is impressive, there’s no denying how nonsensical the rhymes are.
Length is not an issue, because most of the songs are brief and there are plenty of interludes courtesy of mixtape host DJ Doo Wop. However, this also keeps the songs from sticking, because as soon as the listener finds their groove, most of the cuts are half over. “Da Jux” remains as an outlier, as AZ and Vado trade bars about a heist over appropriately Rotten Apple production. The rest of the music follows suit, with enough soulful cries and tapping drums to satiate Papoose. The production is solid but fails to stand out amidst East Coast production we’ve heard so many times before.
AZ brings plenty of outstanding rappers along for the ride. Yet, it’s telling that the two of the strongest joints on the album – “Honest Truth” with 38 Spesh and “The Season” with Nas – are cuts on which AZ is outshone by his peers.
That’s not the way to carve a legacy or respond to criticism from a popular podcast. AZ should have taken his time to craft a dense album filled with the most positive of his attributes. Instead, we have this mixtape, which is too half-baked to be a consumable finished product.
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Caicos not cakeholes lol.
Bitch* licked*
Disagree with the review. Not sure how able rap albums score 3.5 and above on this site while AZ gets a 2.8.
Not sure how mumble* rap albums
Would love to read an AZ review that doesn’t reference Life’s A Bitch.
What else would they reference? thats his biggest claim to fame!
no its not. It was his introduction to the world, sure. But he then put out a classic LP of his own.
If Do or Die is a classic then Illmatic is an angel.
You’re right, Illmatic is an angel. But they’re both classics. Sure Illmatic is “more” of a classic and certainly more highly revered, as it should be, as one of the greatest if not the greatest hip-hop album ever.. but that doesnt take away Doe or Die’s classic status of its own.
Fuego
This read like a review do akademoks would do. A guy who does not even know hip hop history from Soulja boys era but yet we have to trust his opinion on hip hop. To the reviewer, Ak is that you?
Whats is wrong with the reviewer? AZ a legend…he must anit hear most of the Bullshit rap that’s out now..
These are the same people that praise Future, Kodak Black, diss Lupe and praise Beyonce written Migos raps. Their words mean nothing
“Horns and halos, fish, corn and potatoes/Perform love in the dawn, getting licked on in the Caicos”
Not nonsensical at all, if you’ve ever read and analyzed poetry…
He’s on the Turks and Caicos Islands, presumably on vacation. He’s having sex a lot and enjoying the local cuisine. The experience is heavenly.
Made perfect sense to me.
“The doer, could snatch the medulla off Medusa/Pursuer, pop off Rugers and fuck cougars” is NOT a punchline! Yo who’s mans is this?
You momos reviewing albums would probably shit on GFKs Nutmeg in 2019 cause the rhymes be going over your medulla
I’d still give it a solid 3.5 or 4. The lyricism is definitely something that keeps me tuned in. However, since it sounded like a mistake of snippets, it makes it hard to give it a 5 or a “fair” 4.
Just this morning, I was shocked to find out that my penis had ballooned to the length and girth of a massive Negro schlonger donger hanging between my pasty white legs!!! I had been praying to Allah for months day and night that my teeny white Johnson would grow to the length and girth of that exhibited by the typical American Negroid specimen. Today, at long last, my prayers were answered! Where once there was a tiny pink wee wee, now there is a giant black mamba, a 10 inch boa constrictor hanging out of my boxers onto the floor! I thought my prayers had indeed been answered, my life was finally worth living, and I praised and thanked the Profit Muhammed until tears streamed from my eyes and snot dripped from my nose, but I was suddenly shocked to find that, though my penis is now Sambo-Sized, the money that was in my bank account has suddenly vanished, my fridge is full of nothing but two week old fried chicken and malt liquor, I have five illegitimate kids named Leroi, four fat, lazy baby mamas named Shaquana, Shanayay, Shanta, and Moesha, I have nothing in my wallet but a maxed out EBT card and a few expired food stamps, I have unpaid bills dating back ten years, I have three outstanding warrants for vagrancy, robbery, and public chicken consumption, I’m unemployed and live in a filthy trap house! HELP! HEEEELLLLPPPP!!!
A to the Z, there is no AZ songs in my iPhone. Why? Because he is corny.
Sugarhill is what you consider corny?WOW!! #CLASSIC
Utter garbage review.
AZ in his prime might have been better than 95% of today’s rappers but this is still just an average and brief project.
If AZ ain’t in your top 10, you didn’t check in for him. If The Firm was just AZ, Nas, and Cormega they would have been the best rap group of all time. Damn shame how the 90s played out for them. Still a boss.