Rating:
Genre:
Rap
Release Date: 03/09/2004
A career-spanning compilation from
Bad Boy could have come at a worse time -- like when
Diddy was singing the praises of
G. Dep, the man who ended up releasing the lowest-selling
Bad Boy record ever -- but 2004 doesn't find a lot of love being thrown toward
Diddy's music.
Eminem passed on a guest spot on the newly recorded
"Victory 2004," sending
50 Cent in his place,
Puffy's Sean Jean clothing label had been outselling
Bad Boy for a while, and the most exciting thing the label had done in some time is announce the signing of a reunited
New Edition.
Bad Boy's 10th Anniversary... The Hits ignores
G. Dep (and unfortunately
Faith Evans) and all of the other problems the label had suffered past the untimely death of
the Notorious B.I.G. Of course all the drama doesn't matter as much as the music, and for that the collection works here and there. All of
Biggie's cuts are still classics,
Craig Mack and
112 still sound great, and
Diddy's own
"All About the Benjamins" will forever be the benchmark for crossover
rap that saves face. Too bad the tracks are ordered haphazardly with too many bangers in a row and no interludes to tie it all together. Past criticisms of
Puffy's oversampling are now proven when some productions come off as clever rather than inspired (in hindsight
We Invented the Remix could have been
We Invented the Mash-up). It might be callous to point how heavily the collection relies on
Biggie, but the swiftly evolving world of
rap demands that you move on. This collection never does, and only a couple differing tracks separate it from 1998's
Bad Boy's Greatest Hits. If the collection had taken its name from
Biggie's
"Mo' Money Mo' Problems" it would have been more endearing and honest. Most of the reasons for the demise of
Bad Boy were beyond
Puffy's control, so a warts and all collection could have been enlightening. We like
Puffy more than archenemy
Suge Knight, so we want to know what happened. But not when he boasts and brags, ignores what we really want to know, and gives us nearly the same collection he did six years ago.
~David Jeffries, All Music Guide
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