Link: Official Dynasty Records Site
The Inside Pulse:
Dominic (Crooked I) Wickliffe is determined to prove that there is life after Death Row Records. Signed by an incarcerated Suge Knight in 1999, Crook was hailed as the savior of the once mighty label. He followed the usual Death Row formula with a few anonymous appearances on Suge’s never-ending array of “soundtracks” and “compilations”, peaking with his lead single (Still Tha Row) on the Dysfunktional Family album in 2003. With a long-promised solo album repeatedly pushed backed, delayed and eventually shelved, Crook attempted to leave the label in 2004. Over 12 months of legal maneuverings followed as the Long Beach-bred lyricist eventually found freedom and, along the way, started his own label, Dynasty Records. Crooked I remains one of the few lyrically-gifted gangsta rappers on the scene and his mixtape appearances have generated buzz up and down the coast of California. Can Crook lead a West Coast resurrection that’s in its 10th year of not happening?
Positives:
Crooked I has, for the most part, a tight, effortless flow that features an AK-caliber cadence, while boiling over with bravado. His rhymes hold several polysyllabic jabs that alternately seem to come out of nowhere, yet fit in everywhere. On 40 Barz, he slips in “Hippocratic oath” after he “aims a gun at your throat”. On Renegade, over the beat of the Jigga/Shady classic of the same name, he spits in a low growl on a cut that takes a more politically conscious approach, while maintaining his inherent infectious arrogance. Welcome to LBC, the best track on here, is absolute fire (despite its none-too-subtle diss at Eminem) and includes solid work from The Dynamic. On that note, the guest spots (Crook’s Horse Shoe Gang, One-2 and former Snoop Dogg protégé, Yac) all hold their own.
Negatives:
Another writer on this site, whose Hip Hop opinion is highly respected, once asked “Why would anyone buy a Cali mixtape?”…even comparing it to buying milk you knew was expired. Admittedly, this left coast effort is lacking in several areas. It’s usually pointless to rip on mixtape beats, but the ones here lift liberally from Dr. Dre’s overrated and outdated 2001 album. Also, as talented as Crook is, his gangsta subject matter gets old towards the end, before the album limps to its finish with the inane Man Up and the disappointing Long Beach to Brooklyn, featuring Jay-Z’s verse from Welcome to New York City
Cross-Breed:
This one is pretty much the glory of the West Coast’s gangsta rap heyday mashed with the lyrical lasting power of your favorite East Coast artists.
Reason to Buy:
While it might be damning with faint praise, Crooked I is one of the more promising of the new West Coast acts. Admittedly, this is an uneven effort, with significantly more reasons to rewind than not, but it’s worth hunting down for the usual $5-$10 mixtape price.
