Riding high on the success of one
pop
-crossover single after another (
"Trade It All,"
"Can't Let You Go,"
"Into You"
),
Fabolous
kept the cash registers ringing in 2003 with a timely holiday-season release,
More Street Dreams, Pt. 2: The Mixtape
. A thrown-together compilation of his previously street-released mixtape tracks, this follow-up to his
Street Dreams
album from earlier in the year consists mostly of freestyles (
rapping over the instrumentals of previously released songs by others), along with a couple of standout remixes, a couple skits, and more. The relatively brief 45-minute sum is surprisingly listenable given its hodgepodge nature, surely attributable to
' considerable MC skills. The rapper may be best known for his
-crossover hits, most of which are anchored by sugar-sweet
R&B
hooks, but he's a hell of a rapper, and that comes to light particularly on these street-oriented recordings, where
doesn't compromise his skills for the masses. In particular, the remixes stand out:
steals the spotlight on the impressive remix of
Joe Budden
's not especially impressive
"Fire"
single, and
Just Blaze
totally flips
"Can't Let You Go"
for its remix, serving up a hot song with little relation to the original. Elsewhere,
hijacks (often in conjunction with co-conspirator
Paul Cain
) the beats from
Half-A-Mill
's
"Some Niggaz"
(here retitled
"Niggaz"
Eve
"What"
(
"Now What"
Kelly Rowland
"Make You Wanna Stay"
"Make U Mine"
R. Kelly
"Who's That"
"Faboloso"
Jay-Z
"Renegade"
the LOX
"Fuck You"
"F You Too"
), and
Lil' Kim
"This Is Who I Am"
"B.K. Style"
). If you're mainly a fan of
' radio hits, you'll be disappointed by the utter lack of sappy slow jams here (and perhaps also by the edgy
gangsta
posturing). Yet if you're more a fan of
' rapping and the street side of his persona, you should find much to savor on
More Street Dreams
, assuming you don't mind wading through a little filler. ~ Jason Birchmeier