Despite his lack of creativity when naming this album, Royce has delivered his best creative album to date in Street Hop. For those of you that have slept on Royce’s mic skills, we suggest that you pick this album up you as it showcases not-only-Royce’s-battle-raps but his storytelling-skills as well. And no, the Royce you heard on Slaughterhouse was not a full representation of what Royce can bring to the table as he and the rest of his crew were in full-on braggadocio/battle mode. Lyrically, Royce is not to be fucked with…and he goes out of his way to demonstrate that in most of the songs on the album. As you listen to him, you will realize that Royce has become the forgotten son of Detroit as he fights for notoriety amongst some of the great producers (Jay Dilla, Black Milk, Denaun Porter) and one of the greatest MC’s ever (Eminem) who all share a hometown with our unheralded MC of the monent.
Ultimately, Royce sounds very comfortable and at home on many of the beats provided by the likes of DJ Premiere (Shake This, Something 2 Ride 2), Emile (Gun Harmonizing, Far Away), Nottz (Count for Nothing), Mr. Porter (Mine In Thiz, Thing For Your Girlfriend), and Streetrunners (Warriors, New Money). With the exception of a few songs here and there, all of the producers have provided Royce with some top notch tracks to craft his rhymes upon from the gutter (Gun Harmonizing) to the haunting (Part of Me) to the commercial (Far Away.
Songs to check for:
- Something 2 Ride 2 (An unfamiliar styled laid back track by Premiere featuring Phonte on the hook who seems to be channeling his inner MJJ)
- Dinner Time (Royce steals the show which is saying a lot because this song features Busta Rhymes and we all know his history of stealing cats’ thunder)
- Shake This (This track was leaked a while ago, but it never gets old. Royce details some of his latest trials and tribulations over a mellow beat somewhat unfamiliar to expect from Premiere)
- Part of Me (Royce paints a grizzly tale of treachery, lust and hiphop all rolled into one)
As many albums do nowadays, Royce’s biggest miscue with Street Hop is the length. At 19 tracks deep, on your second or third listen, you will realize that the album is just too damn long. On a quick run-through, 2 skits, and at least 3 songs (On the Run, Bad Boy, Gangsta) should have been left on the cutting room floor of Royce’s studio. But I guess it wouldn’t be hip-hop if an album nowadays didn’t have filler cuts and senseless skits. Mental Note #1 to Aspiring MCs: Unless you’re Wu-Tang or Pharcyde, leave the skits alone. Mental Note #2 to Aspiring MC’s: Unless you’re putting out a mixtape, leave the filler cuts off your final product. Ugh.
Royce will need to keep all of these things in mind as puts in work for the next Slaughterhouse album and his next solo project. It is clear that Royce has the talent to be considered amongst hip-hop royalty, but he will need to narrow his focus and not stray too far from the course and hopefully put forth another solid effort.
Rating – 
This is What’s In My Headphones…
- Rdot
