From the opening notes of his sophomore album Time Is Money, it is clear Styles P is doing his best to set himself apart from the droves of gangsta rappers on the market. G-Joint"" begins as few hip-hop songs do, considering very few rap joints begin with the endearingly cheesy synths from Asia's ""Only Time Will Tell."" ""G-Joint's"" lyrics tie in to the absurd '80s sampling, name checking everything from Slick Rick to Rambo to the wonderfully dated Van Damme flick ""Bloodsport."" Though Styles P doesn't do much with the Asia sample other than put some grinding beats over it, he does make a convincing argument that so-bad-they're-amazing '80s songs have a future in rap music.
The next track, ""Testify,"" is a genuinely impressive song. Soul music is this song's blueprint, but the focus is on P's rapping, which is best on tracks like this; he holds back, doesn't try to sound hard and lets his impassioned, world-weary rapping carry the song. That Talib Kweli, hip-hop's greatest lyricist, comes in halfway through the song with a vitriolic flow doesn't hurt things, either.
""How We Live"" is one of those beautiful hip-hop songs""the kind Jay-Z and Kanye West made popular with The Black Album""where legitimately melodramatic strings somehow reside comfortably alongside slow, hard beats and depressing lyrics. With no samples or guest stars, ""How We Live"" indicates how good Styles P can be when he focuses his attention on the song and not the attitude.
Unfortunately, Styles P's focus seems to gradually dissolve over the course of the album, and though the album's misses""tracks like ""Real Shit"" and ""Fire & Pain""""are hardly embarrassing, they're nothing more than standard, albeit enjoyable, hip-hop filler.
""Can You Believe It"" is a club-ready song produced by Lil Jon, featuring Akon, and it sounds exactly like you'd expect. Lil Jon gives the song some crunky, high-pitched synths reminiscent of his Usher collaboration, which would have made for a great song had Akon not handled the hook. Unsurprisingly, he hits all the right notes but never sounds like he cares about a thing he's saying. As with all songs he guests on, his all-too-smooth voice is just too dull to keep interest after repeated listens. Akon seems to sing song hooks like some people work in cubicles.
""I'm Black"" is a great black pride song, harkening back to a time when the Black Panthers, black pride and civil rights activism were lifestyles instead of pages in a history book. The lyrics don't go much further past straightforward observations on lingering racism in society and hope for the future, but that's what anthems do""they make their point and sound good at the same time, which this song does perfectly.
The album ends with ""Leave a Message,"" a haunting song where Styles P sums up his feelings toward his wife, children, his crew and society in general. What makes this song work so well is that it's subtly melodic, putting you into a trance as you listen to Styles P's ruminations on life. He says what he's thinking without pretending he has the right to tell people how things should be""he merely talks about what he's experienced and what seems apparent to him. ""A message to the rich, you should spread love before niggers like me go ahead and spread clips,"" is chilling in its honesty, and ""A message to the world, I don't give a fuck, we smoke till we high and drink till we hurl,"" is just plain great. It's not Langston Hughes, but you can't argue with that kind of candor. Which is how hip-hop should be, anyway: real, direct and a lot of fun to listen to.
