Review by Loose Cannonz

Envy & Tapemasters Inc. - Down & Dirty Pt. 2: Purple Codeine

The South is so big that even New York DJ's are playin the down bottom material to def. You know shit is wrong in this hip-hop biz when southern emcees are leading the way artistically; no I don't refer to them being better with the pen and pad, I'm just hearing more originality from their music in general. The stylings of the rappers is much more distinct than that of the upper coast, as many of these southern slangers are flowin' it any which way they can. Y'all wanna talk about crunk, I'm not referring to the crunk on this disc: you know, Bonecrusher, with his wyle-out-singing-silliness over corny electric licks, or the mosh pit presence of 3-6-Mafia, Trill, and the next Jay-Z Lil Wyte on "Who I Is." Y'all wanna talk about subject matter. Well what kina subject matter is G-Unit throwin out there, for instance? Are they that much versatile than T.I. or Killer Mike? Rhetoric aside… Envy and Tapemasters Inc. continue their alliance with a flurry of tapes, beginning with Purple Codeine. To drop some cuts I haven't heard before-since many may be easily recognizable to you-the Clipse join Pharell and ODB for a live drumming remix to "Operator." But wait, VA ain't that much South now is it? Not really, but it's not like many of these discs are limited to ATL, NO, and TX anymore anyhow. Fat Joe, Missy Elliot and M.O.P. all represent. The pots and pans production on "Got That Drink" also sucks the shit up with rhymes from Swisha's Mike Jones and Paul Wall that we know we've heard before, not to mention the mediocrity of Frayser Boy. Nonetheless, it's great to see the return of the legendary Master P ("I'mma show you what Shaq should've done to Kobe / Slap him in his mouth, nigga fuck Jerry Buss / That fool still talkin' beat his bitch ass up / You a rookie under me so respect ya elders / And get a country ass whoopin tryin' to be rebellious…") with Young Buck on the bass flailin', hi-hat hoppin' "Yappin"; another favorite of mine is the sub-poppin and piano runnin backdrop of Trina and Lil Wayne's "Don't Trip," definitely havin' Mannie Fresh's signature all over it; tho, Mannie's production lacks the groundbreaking material we're used to on the Youngbloodz' ironically-titled "Brand New." Let's hope he doesn't get all formulaic on us. In all, Purple Codeine is exactly that; diehard Southern flavor. Even with DJ Envy's signa on it, it doesn't take a philosopher to know who this disc gon' appeal to.

RATING SYSTEM
	Trash
	Step Ya Game Up
	Diehards only
	In the Deck
	Straight Crack
	Among Year's Best
	Mixtape Classic