Before us is the fifth studio record from Detroit, Michigan veteran Fat Ray. As a member of trio BR Gunna with Black Milk and Young RJ, he eventually went solo and released Criminal Slumber’s The Set Up in 2008, but it wasn’t until a full decade later that he released The Lunch Room mixtape and his sophomore effort, Perseus. Santa Barbara proved to be the strongest since its debut until Food of the Gods surpassed it, abandoning Santa Rosa in preparation for Food of the Gods II.
“Rap City in the Basement” skips a drum-less loop and talks about plenty of room for improvement and attitude on the mic, while “Plates” energetically tries to flip the script every time it steps off a national stage. “2 B’s” gives off a more aggressive vibe, talking about winning, which leads to “Fast Freddy” which features Black Thought bringing the two of them together to lyrically wage their battle.
The title track blends booming bap music with hints of jazz-rap talking about the shit going around America, while “K-Dot Pool” looks like it’s a bit of a show until it feels like sap to everyone else. “Good Sense” brings some trumpets and talks about how all his crew plots and manipulates, just as “High Score” featuring Marv Won discusses all these fake assholes who imitate their style and spread a lot of poison in today’s music industry.
“Lockdown” has Santa Rosa’s last stand warning that no one wants to be shot down by him, while “Big Worm” sounds a little funky, talking about having to make some turns because it’s all part of the process. Billy Woods’ “Change Us” leans in a drumless chipmunk soul direction, explaining that they grew up around dangerous homicides, while “Mickey Green/Scudded” presents two songs in the album’s final four minutes.
I’m really happy for Fat Ray seeing how much love last year’s Food of the Gods got, because it’s his way of showing how far he’s come since The Set Up, but I’m glad we’re getting a Santa Barbara sequel in preparation for Food of the Gods II, because fans of the original Santa Rosa game are going to love this sequel just as much. Ray’s hardcore/gangsta lyricism and Rafi’s diverse production made Santa Barbara so great that despite being amplified, it was brought back and brought in more high-profile guests.
Score: 8/10
