“One bullet. One target. One choice.”- Rick Ross on “Foreclosure”
Black Dollar has Ross sounding like a trap Farrakhan while struggling to avoid spots of creative complacency common for a rapper with over ten years under his belt. Ross’ last great free album, 2012’s Rich Forever was powered by a 2011 that saw Maybach Music Group enjoy its most commercial success, still to this date. However, Black Dollar has rage pumping through its veins from three years of pushed back albums, internal label fighting and near death shootouts.
Ross still has aspirations to be Rich Forever, he’s just decided to do it with the Black Dollar.
Black Dollar plays like the narration of Martin Scorsese’s classic mobster flick Goodfellas with Ross as Henry Hill, disgraced gangster running away from the mob lifestyle actively trying to murder him while telling his side of the story before he’s rubbed out of history by those same forces. Ross does not snitch on Black Dollar, but it does contain the most detailed lyrics of his inner-workings to date. Take the mixtape intro, “Foreclosure” for instance. A blistering mixture of profound metaphors (“reap what you sew and they talking RE(reap)possession”) and business talk (“the paper gets funny when publishing involved”) with the latter seemingly addressing claims that Ted Lucas, Slip-N-Slide CEO and founder, retained 75% of Ross’ publishing even after Ross left the label.
But, it’s the final five bars where all of Ross’ frustrations congeal in a torrential storm of ferocity:
“I never met an artist who fully recouped / These the deals the deal dealers wanna deal to you / Young niggas, time to act your wage / Buying belts you seen on other niggas’ waists / Hoes fucking for photos they wanna post online / Whole time, shorty knowing I’m the goldmine / Put her on all he needed was a co sign / Black minks and gloves, nigga, the whole nine / See me on the road, shit, I had to hold mine / You’ll foreclose or fold just for soul (sold) signs”
On “Take Advantage,” a Future-featured song that sounds ripe for the club, he calls Atlantic Records “fake” after mentioning how he had to put up his $2 million bail over his kidnapping charge from this summer. He’s “throwing bricks at the man (demand), we gon make it” because “genocide not in the plans, we gon make it” on the “We Gon Make It.” Then he follows that song with “Bill Gates” where he boasts he put a “100 bricks on the stock exchange” before ending the song with “fuck 100 bricks, flip 100 restaurants.”
If there is one thing that has never depreciated over the last three years of commercial failures for Ross is his golden ear for beats and Black Dollar reminds us of this immutable fact. J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League laced Ross with an orchestral myriad of hard drums, soft strings and piano keys on “Foreclosure” that sounds like it’d be perfect for the pushed back Maybach Music V. After serving Ross a heatrock on his Mastermind album with “Rich Is Gangsta,” Black Metaphor returns with a simple boom-bap beat mixed to perfection on “We Gon Make It” With Jake One on “Geechi Liberace” and “Money Dance,” Nonstop Da Hitman on “Beautiful Lie” and Key Wayne on “Money & Powder.” Ross assembled a collection of producers known for fleshing out the dirtiest of rap songs.
While Ross is in redemptive mode on this mixtape, he’s not a completely changed man. Titling your mixtape Black Dollar and speaking on Black people coming together, owning their own land and becoming a superpower on “Knights of the Templar” enobles Ross message. But, constantly comparing yourself to white symbols of dominance (Bill Gates, Bob Dylan) and confusingly referring to yourself as an “ex slave, proud field nigga” on “Geechi Liberace” dilutes that same message. Also, while rapping over the same Ohio Players sample used for Jay Z and Notorious B.I.G.’s best collaboration, “Brooklyn’s Finest,” Ross and Meek delivered flat performances on “World’s Finest,” disrespectful to such a classic sample. There are moments of what I call “Autopilot Ross” where he sounds as if he’s simply making enough words rhyme to get to the chorus, but those are few and far between on Black Dollar.
He’s not “re-selling my soul,” seemingly referring to either his solo artist deal with Def Jam, the Atlantic Records label deal for Maybach Music or why even Slip-N-Slid Records, which curiously still appear on all of his album credits. With Black Dollar, Ross has extended his time as a top tier rap talent, But, how long before the Black Dollars run out?
dreams more important than talent
MAYBACK MUSIC
the devil is a lie
Ross going in
People that listen to this garbage must think that Drake & Justin Bieber have street cred as well. I bet this piece of shit got the idea to become a rapper after watching CB4, then while at work as a correctional officer he began to steal real gangster’s identities & stories that they actually lived. This bitch should just change his name to MC Gusto. FUCK ANYBODY TRYING TO PORTRAY SOME FAKE ASS IMAGE OF THEMSELVES THAT THEY’RE NOT! Fuck MMG!
When I was an immature Hip Hop head I wanted these raps to be real. Kinda like WWF. But then I grew and appreciated this beautiful 16 bar art as an opportunity to listen to a movie in audio format. If I want real I watch a documentary or read a book. This is entertainment and although far from the best RR is good with his.
You must not like Nas, Jay-Z or 2pac as well as many other rappers cause all these rappers emulate and tell stories about other people and made money off their identities. The only difference with Ross is that he was a CO. People like to hate on Ross because they feel like its a cool thing to do. I don’t like him because I think his music is trash and thats the only reason someone shouldn’t like him. Leave his personal life out of it.
the Prophet Muhammad came to me in a dream and said that he would rather gag on his camel Clyde’s schlonger donger than listen to this hot steaming poopie.
This Rozay character is the biggest sham rap has ever scene (Has he ever mentioned the real Ricky Ross by name and given him any acknowledgement except maybe when he had to address the lawsuit). He is a cancer not so much for what he says but because he he doesn’t understand it, its like a kid pretending he is some bad ass action hero after watching a movie but Rozay is not a kid. he is almost 40 years old with his tits hanging out acting like something he is not.
My friend so many rappers are fake. Nas, Jay-Z, Mobb Deep, 2Pac, Big L, Big Pun etc never were REAL gangstas. Deal with it.
they never lied about their past tho, never called someone a liar who was speaking the truth about their not go gangsta past
Solid.
This album is terrible not hip hop like
Everyone agrees he should just work at burger king as the king
it is dope
I can’t front this is solid and I usually can’t stand this dude.
very good mmusic. i still luh dat maybach music it’s contagious. realest niggas support rozay to da fullest cuz dey know da strugle. it ain’t easy being black nigga im murica.
I can’t believe (or maybe I can) that you would put this on the same level as Dr Dre’s Compton, what a goddamn shame.
This is the album i always wanted from Ross. That real smooth gangster music. MMG
Dope
That song is horrible!
Best album for sure
nice album