The B Side: Curren$y's Pilot Talk 2

I made one and a half errors in my Pilot Talk 2 review for HHDX:

Error #1: I miss quoted Curren$y on “Airborne Aquarium”, stating that he referred to his chick as the one calming his bad nerves so he calls her is Ritalin, when really it was his whip.

The actual line is “The car that that I’m sitting in / calms my bad nerves / I call her my Ritalin”.

Error #1.5: In the closing paragraph, I mentioned that Wiz Khalifa was on the original Pilot Talk, when technically he wasn’t. He was on bonus track “Scaling The Building”, but didn’t make the album because of clearance issues.

As minor as it seems, journalistic integrity is not only imperative, it’s what we pride ourselves on here at The-Quotable. It’s what we value first as the foundation of our reputation. So mistakes, however minuscule, must be rectified.

I’ll own that.

Regardless, Curren$y’s second solo endeavor is solid. More than solid, actually. Ski Beatz jazz club backdrop is the perfect soundscape for the New Orleans‘ Emcee’s lazy, off kilter flow, adding diversity to his smoked out ramblings.

It changes the paradigm. It makes Spitta sound different when he’s still rapping about the same three topics: whips, women and weed.

However redundant Curren$y seems after dropping twelve projects in two years triangulated around those same three subjects, he remains listenable because he’s unconventional in approach.

He found his market, honed in on his fan base and caters to them full Monty with no apologies. That’s why he retains ears despite continuously drawing the same picture. With Spitta, it’s expect the expected and sometimes that’s good enough.

What’s most impressive is how Curren$y avoids falling into the same trap that ensnares most rappers who rise through the mixtape circuit when time comes to release a proper studio project: maintaining that raw, underground appeal while reaching for commercial recognition.

Delivering the same edge to the fans who essentially put on for the movement while appeasing the boardroom blood suckers salivating over sales potential is often an impassable albatross. Ask Wale. He couldn’t deliver a Top 10 hit with Lady Gaga on the track, while his mixtapes are still revered.

Here’s the point: Spitta remains Spitta, but how much can Spitta spit the same ish before running stale? How long can he ride without diversifying? How many times can he make the same album?

Creatively, the stakes rise with every release and Pilot Talk 2 sounds like Pilot Talk’s complimentary leftovers -- complete with supbar guest appearances (excluding Dom Kennedy. “Real Estates” rocks any day of the week) and sometimes repetitive production.

Curren$y is clearly nice enough to pimp redundancy farther than the average Emcee. Unfortunately, redundancy, no matter who’s spitting, always equals an average album.

I may have made one and a half errors in the review, but the rating wasn't one.