The Game is one of the polarizing figures in the rap game. You either love his Piru-filled antics and take no shit attitude, or you think it’s time for him to grow up.
Regardless, he’s made his mark in the hip-hop book of life and looks to raise his stature with The Documentary 2.
The first thing most of us will ask upon pressing play: “Where’s the Kendrick feature?”
Don’t worry, after the expected gangster interlude opening, the album slides into the Erykah Badu sampled “On Me” featuring K-dot himself.
This kind of experimentation that Game sprinkles amongst his gangster posturing makes him engaging.
The track works, as the two trade bars over evolving production. This kind of experimentation that Game sprinkles amongst his gangster posturing makes him engaging. Moments when he focuses just on the music are when his talent really shines.
However, as usual with a Game album, there are features everywhere.
There’s the obvious pairings like Ice Cube and Dr. Dre popping up with will.i.am on “Don’t Trip” – a smooth, bass heavy, golden era cut that fits perfect with the elder statesmen’s mature flow.
The simplistic and contrived “Standing on Ferraris” … should have been left on the cutting room floor.
Same goes for on “LA” featuring Snoop Dogg and Fergie. The Just Blaze-esque loop with a cutting snare really creates that cruising along Sunset Drive feel.
This is the Game many of us know and love: a west coast kid who is known for paying homage to his heroes on every bar, while still constantly trying to outshine them.
Unfortunately, we only catch glimpses of this on the album.
You’ll get something experimental like the haunting chat of “Made in America”. Devoid of drums, but heavy on guitar rhythm, it’s the type of track that lets you appreciate Game’s depth of artistry.
For every dreary “Bitch You Ain’t Shit” there’s an exceptional “Mula”.
Then there’s the simplistic and contrived “Standing on Ferraris”. Don’t get me wrong, I always love hearing the loop for Biggie’s “Kick in the Door”, but it’s the type of track that adds nothing to the album and should have been left on the cutting room floor.
That said, for every dreary “Bitch You Ain’t Shit” there’s an exceptional “Mula”.
If The Game can get a solid executive producer on deck (Dr. Dre and 50 co-executive produced The Documentary 10 years ago), someone to guide and mould his sound into one continuous, cohesive train of thought in order to deliver it in album form, he could have another classic on his hands.
The Documentary 2, however, just isn’t it.
Comments are closed.