DREAMWORKS
Swizz Beatz, aka Kaseem Dean, gathered an all-star supporting cast for "Ghetto Stories."
Fusion of metal and rap
needs polishing
"Swizz Beatz Presents G.H.E.T.T.O. Stories"
Swizz Beatz (DreamWorks)
Review by Gary C.W. Chun The ultrabusy producer-rapper's solo debut is more of a compilation, if anything else, a solid résumé that Kasseem Dean can throw down with confidence as the alter ego whose name was inspired both by the beats he creates and the K-Swiss sneaks he loves.
gchun@starbulletin.comAs co-CEO of Ruff Ryder Entertainment (whose label is responsible for two of my favorite rap albums this year, Styles' "A Gangster and a Gentleman" and Eve's "Eve-Olution"), his reputation as one of the genre's producer giants, on par with Dr. Dre, gives him the grease to put together an all-star assemblage of guests on this album: Ron Isley of the Isley Brothers, Busta Rhymes, LL Cool J, Lil' Kim, N.O.R.E. (formerly Noreaga), Eve, Nas, Fat Joe, Ja Rule and ... Metallica?
"We Did It Again" is a curious hybrid of hardcore metal and rap (courtesy of Ja Rule), and while it certainly isn't nü-metal, it sort of lunges along in a rather graceless way. But it's still kind of amusing to hear James Hetfield snarl, "I'll rip that smile right off your face!" in this context.
Otherwise, nice try, Swizz, but uh-uh. It's like what your 7-year-old brother T.J. seriously intones in his little-boy voice on "The Start" -- "I represent ghetto!" You do much better working with people like the Lox's Jadakiss and Ron Isley, who lends his silky lover-man persona to the bouncy ballad "Big Business."
A hilarious skit called "Alien" leads into Styles' "Good Times (I Get High)," which made an appearance on Styles' solo album four months ago. Using a sped-up sample of Freda Payne's original version, Styles and Swizz lay down the need for some satisfyin' blunts to mellow out the ghetto attitude still in and around them.
"Island Spice," recorded for Eve's "Eve-Olution" album, didn't make the final cut but appears here instead. It's a light, Caribbean-influenced, party-hearty song. And the Queen Bee herself, Lil' Kim, gets busy with "Gone Delirious." It re-establishes her raw style in time to have fans anticipating her next album early in 2003.
A couple of collaborations sound too much like jes' messing 'round in the studio: "Endalay," with Busta Rhymes, and the remix of "Salute Me," with Nas, Fat Joe and Cassidy, get by on star power only.
One of the better tracks pairs Swizz Beatz with reggae fave Bounty Killer on "Guilty," where the beats are laid out with an offhand assurance. (Angie Stone drops additional vocals on the remixed single version.)
Swizz even gets his girl and rock-of-his-life Mashonda Tifrere on a couple of tracks, and she offers a sweet and cool counterpoint to Shyne's rough-dog contribution (cut just before he started serving a 10-year sentence for attempted murder) and floats along with LL Cool J on "Ghetto Love."
With Kasseem Dean keeping a level head in both his professional and personal lives, the sky's the limit for this talented multitasker. And the future looks just as strong for Swizz Beatz. Like his earlier score work on "On Any Sunday," he'll also be scoring -- and acting in -- the upcoming action movie "Biker Boyz," starring Laurence Fishburne and Lisa Bonet.
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