"If Jay-Z can rap about the NYC / Why can’t I talk about the shit I see? / Without Alicia Keys, without going R&B / This ain’t Mowtown, this is R-A-P / ...California swagger - f**k record sales / Industry outlaw like Josey Wales"
As stated above, Cube is no position to even want to cater to the industry modus operandi. Having acquired the wealth he has (yes, even starring in family fare), he’s also in a position that he doesn’t even have to. Having that kind of freedom allows Cube to do it how he feels it.
Oddly enough, the beats Cube feels sound a lot like the Southern type. Some of the classic Funk of the West Coast sound (pioneered by Dr. Dre, who almost appeared on the album) is present. “Drink The Kool Aid” could have come from The Chronic if Dre and Cube were on speaking terms back then. However, a lot of the jerkier rhythms of the South style stand out like a sore thumb as well.
No matter the beat, Ice Cube is in form. “No Country For Young Men” is four-and-a-quarter minutes of old-school Cube at his finest. When Cube is on, focused, and alone, this is one of his best efforts in years. However, it takes eight tracks in to hit that momentum, as much of what comes before (like “Soul On Ice”) is rather sparse in content save for soundbites and tired tricks.
Part of the issue is that Cube, admirably, lets others have the spotlight on his record at times to mixed effect. OMG and Doughboy, his two sons, take turns on “You Know Who I Am”. WC and Maylay are also on the track and stick around for “Too West Coast”. Cube’s sons are dismissed in a move that almost suggests that it’s time for the adults to get serious, as “Too West Coast” rails against the dismissal of the West Coast sound and attitude by the mainstream.
Were it more focused and free of some of the guest stars, I Am The West could have been THE comeback for Ice Cube. Even though there is quite a bit of the worn-out, eye-rolling same-as-it-ever-was that pollutes Hip-Hop today, Cube shows he’s able to rise above that and deliver some of the best songs in the genre to this day. If only he could commit to something like that over an entire record, he’d be back to being unstoppable in music.
Article comments
1 - allee-zha-zha-roderick-gyu
ice t me listion to yours check mind muzic konsept orizhanhalithee in thee south innir bellville go to youtube type in zhaalleezha acktuallee i need a recording deal because these recording deals in south africa is korrupted zust like thee sistim so onourabill upfront me never had famillee so muzic is my provider innir thue-morealithee brother
2 - grimmless
That's straight. I might actually listen to this album.
3 - Jordan Richardson
Hilarious when these guys refer to themselves as "industry outlaws." Ice Cube is currently on Are We There Yet?, a family sitcom, and is also in Lottery Ticket along with...wait for it...Bow Wow.
That's a real outlaw there, kids.
It'd be nice to see Cube be a little progressive with his music for a change. Instead, he seems stuck on recreating the high point of his career over and over again while making the real money in movies and TV. Music is just an afterthought for him.
4 - Big Smitty
You know what, to many people is hung up on is movie gigs. Yo that is money and its call "ACTING"!!! Yall still dont get that yet! But he still been him on is records!!! He still that O.G. say what he wants with out static!!!!
Cube is still that G!!!
5 - MC Lindsay
I picked this up at the CD Re-sell store and I found out why. This is far from one of his best efforts. Compared to his Classic Death to Certificate this is one of his worst efforts. Here's a review that is spot on.
Cubes gone soft, lazy, or both. I don't expect another classic album when clearly his ear isn't close to the streets as it used to be, but at least fake it better. Titling this "I am the West" and sticking with odd, southern beats is far from West Coast. This will go back to the CD Re-sell store. You should waste your time once, download 1 or 2 of the singles, and return it. Cube, I thought you were better than this.
6 - suck my dick
fuck the west coast its all aboth the mutherfucking east coast