Although I have to admit that this was partly due to the 60-minute tape I shortened it to.
But in early 1998 “My Homies” was a revelation nevertheless, causing me to keep it in constant rotation. I hold the precursor to this year’s “My Homies Part 2” in high regard, even though there’s never been a moment where I thought it lived up to my (admittedly high) expectations. Scarface’s “My Homies” is such an album for me. Rap-A-Lot never dissapoints.Sometimes average or even below average albums can hold a disproportionately prominent position in one’s listening log. You can see it from the albums cover - No fancy rides, iced out chains and watches or bit**s with bigg a**es. This album is all about the streets, the hustlas, the thugs. This is a must-have, because there are too many classics on it, and you shouldn't miss that. Scarface is awesome as usual (he is on about hald of the songs, so it's more of a compilation than a solo album), delivering his usual smart raps about life and the streets. But Double CDs were popular at that time, so Rap-A-Lot decided to go with it, especially with the huge success of the timeless classic "Thugged Out" (which has gone GOLD!). This album could easily be a classic masterpiece had it been a single CD with about 20 songs on it. There are no wack songs on the album, it's just that a few songs aren't at the same level as the great ones (that are the most). The album is not perfect, beacuse some of the songs sound a bit like filler to me, and not all the featured artists deliver as they should. Lee, NO Joe, Brad Jordan (That's Scarface for those of you who don't know), Tone Capone and a few others. Every rapper on this song delivers an unforgettable verse! Production on the album is flawless, as always with Rap-A-Lot, and is handled by Mike Dean, Mr. However the best song is "The Ghetto" - Scarface, featuring KB, Ice Cube and Willie D. Do or Die and The Snypaz), In My Blood (Yukmouth, DMG and Big Mike", "Do What YOu Do" (B-Legit and Bushwick Bill over a tight a** beat by Tone Capone) and quite a few others. Master P and an awesome verse by 2PAC - although it's just a freestyle, which obviously wasn't recorded in a studio so it doesn't really fit the beat, and sounds wack, but who cares), Overnight (feat. Too Short, Devin and Tela), Southside Houston Texas (feat. All on the same album!! As far as the album goes, it's not perfect, it's not a 5 stars album, but it's still a 4 star, and also a classic! It's just that it's got a lot of classics, especially the timeless "F*** Faces" (feat. Most of the label's members are featured on "My Homies": Yukmouth and Tela (who were the newscommers to the label), Devin, DMG, Facemob, Do Or Die, Willie D, Bushwick Bill, KB, 3-2, Snypaz, Hoodlumz, 5th Ward Boyz, Seagram, Big Mike, Ghetto Twinz and a few others. And as you all know, RAL has got one of the tightest rosters in the industry. However, most of the rappers featured are Rap-A-Lot rappers. Scarface hooked up with many rappers from all over: He had downsouth rappers (UGK, Master P) and Westcoast legends 2Pac, Too $hort, Ice Cube and B-Legit showed him love too. And I don't mean gangsta, like thoso "mafioso", big-ballin' so-called-gangsta rappers - "My homies" is all about the streets. "My Homies" is Scarface's 5ht album and he came out with a blast.
They released a lot of classic albums that year - Tela's album "Now or Never" (his debut on Rap-A-Lot), Yukmouth's debut "Thugged Out" and Devin's debut "The Dude". Anyway, 1998 was a very strong year for Rap-A-Lot. This label has always been a house for some of the best rappers and producers in the buisness, and J Prince is a very respected figure in the business (It's also nice to see a label owner not trying to be in the spotlight!). Rap-A-Lot has always been the best indipendent label, always coming out with tight releases year after year, and never ever falling appart or losing it's artists (unlike other great labels in the past - such as Death Row, Suave, Cash Money, No Limit etc.).