Cam'ron: Crime Pays
8/10
After a lengthy hiatus which included the implosion of his Dipset crew, a beef with 50 Cent, a small pool, and a hot summer that never came to be, Dipset leader Cam'ron returns with "Crime Pays."
The album opens with the title track, where Cam questions the foolhardy souls who believe that obtaining a college degree and becoming firemen or police officers will eventually get them the luxury cars they envision ("this ain't math class/this isn't adding up," he says).
It's clear that Cam is channeling those frustrated with the recession, especially with songs like "My Job," where Cam spits from the perspective of, get this, the average joe. The theme is quickly squandered by songs like "Chalupa" and "Who" where Cam is in rare form, speaking about mustard colored jeeps and money stacks galore.
The only thing Cam isn't as rare is coming up with memorable hooks, as songs like "Cookies N Apple Juice" (I dont know what that means either) and "Spend The Night" contain some embarrassing choruses. The hilariously named "Silky (No Homo" (yes, it's really called that) is one of the album's most notorious filler tracks that could have been left off.
"Crime" is an LP that in some ways, harkens back to Cam's second album, "S.D.E," in it's underground grittiness, there is no mainstream pandering here. The album's production, handled mostly by longtime Dipset producer Skitzo, is light on cookie cutter synth tracks and is more in line with the mixtape version of Killa Cam, where his wordplay and multis flow excellently with the basement-like beats.
"Crime Pays" is a return to form for Cam'ron, proving that he has missed few steps in coming back to glory.
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