Over a decade ago when the Wu-Tang Clan was on top of the rap world, you would have been hard pressed to find someone willing to proclaim Ghostface Killah the elite of the Clan and the man who would perch himself atop the hip-hop world in the next 10 years. Yet, this is just what has happened.

Before The Big Doe Rehab, his seventh and latest album, even came out it proved how respected he has become as a solo artist. It was originally scheduled to be released the same day as the Wu-Tang Clan’s first release in six years, 8 Diagrams. However, when he expressed frustration at the possibility of a simultaneous release, the Clan delayed their release a week in favor of his wishes. This is a result of Ghostface Killah coming through time and again with solid albums, and he delivers another stellar effort this year with The Big Doe Rehab.

Stepping away from the cocaine-themed lyrics he used last year in his biggest solo success, Fishscale, he comes back down to earth for this effort. This time around, Ghostface sticks to real life situations, making the album a little more relatable, but the real story and the real success of The Big Doe Rehab is Ghostface’s ability to keep varying his styles while continuing to use his traditional aggressive and in-your-face beats.

Ghostface shows his diversity early, often starting the album off with the aggressive, hard-nosed “Toney Sigel.” This is followed by the more soulful “Yolanda’s House,” while the next track uses a famous sample from “I Just Wanna Celebrate” by Rare Earth, to back a contrasting hook in “We Celebrate,” which, aside from a handful of weak lines, is another solid track. “Walk Around” also prominently features a sample and uses more talking than rapping, yet the expressive background beat keeps it moving nicely and keeps your head bobbing.

All of these different elements keep the listener on edge and interested in each upcoming track. The album even throws in a soulful and impressively vocal song, “The Prayer,” which uses nothing but snapping as an accompanying beat.

With this type of continuous diversity from track to track and repeated successes from album to album, it is hard to think of a rapper who has been more consistently impressive than Ghostface Killah. This album puts the ball back in Nas’ court and challenges him to come back and match successes, as he seems to be the only other rapper able to keep up with Ghostface’s efforts.