Let’s be honest, “excusive” mixtapes have very little play back material. Clue changed the game with the way he presented his joints. As with any good thing, several Dj’s modeled themselves after him and although I’ve never particularly found any Envy mixtape some shit to roll up to, he’s by far the most successful of the trend takers. Kay Slay bullied his way in the game and at one point Big Mike was a close friend of “The Drama King”. When they split like a big bitch titties laying on her back, Mike hooked up with D Block and the legend began. DJ L came along and mastered the internet game, long before a lot of other dudes and started dropping mixtapes every week. That shit worked for a year or two, then every bed wetter found the same sites L was going to and the game went the way of Converse once the youngsters started using Nike’s in the league. This is the legacy that Diggz and Rated R are birthed from. How they manage to make anything entertaining is unbeknownst to me.

“Money Mechanic” is straight gangster music and reminiscent of the old P. It’s amazing what a bid will do for a nigga lyrics. There’s a lot of hot shit on “Potent Product 10”, but I had to mention “The Last Lap” by Un Pacino. Dude is starting to be one of my favorite “bullets and gun smoke” spittin’ niggas. I love that conscious vibe, but some dudes are on their hustle when their slinggin’ crack and smacking hoes. To go from that “crack music” to the God Rakim is odd in itself, but the Fizzy Womack production on “I’m Back” is exactly where Rakim should be in 2008.

It’s unexplainable to me when dudes say East Coast Hip Hop is dead. AZ’s album dropped today (GO GET THAT SHIT!!!) and “Heavy In The Game” is proof that niggas might not sell a million records, but true spittin’ is far from extinct out here. Diggz and Rated R’s series are usually put together rough, meaning the transitions are jagged like a muthafucka, but they take risk and that’s more than I can say for most of these dudes. Along with those risk there’s a hit or miss factor, so the “dynamic duo” isn’t always going to win that battle. Gotham can rejoice, for our trustee heroes have won another encounter with the infamous Rapmullet.com. (4/01/08)