Mixtape Mayhem: 50 Cent

5: Murder By Numbers

Hip-Hop megastar 50 Cent released his newest mix tape 5: Murder By Numbers. This mixtape was actually suppose to be Fif’s last official album under Interscope, however the Queens MC dropped it for free on multiple web sites such as Datpiff.com. The leader of G-Unit had stated that this mixtape was released to please fans’ appetites before his proper fifth and final album for Interscope. The tape starts off with the introduction track “My Crown”. This track has 50 Cent staking his claim to the throne over quirky reggae-hop flavor song, which jumpstarts the record off on a solid note. That good start, however, would soon be lost and forgotten.

50 becomes the first rapper to ever rhyme about his philanthropic life and how much money he’s making on “United Nations”. On the record he raps, “I’m back off a paycation / Can you believe it? I’m getting paid on vacation / Yeah, I’mma keep n****s forever hatin’ / They thought I was going down, now look, I’m levitating’/ I’m with Deepak, meditating’… / Funding the World Food Program / Finna solve world hunger, g**damn.” Some may argue that the line was weak and has no place in hip-hop, but it’s good to see that Fifty has matured since Get Rich or Die Tryin’.

“Business Mind” is produced like previous 50 Cent records with better cinematic production than other songs on the album. The song features Hayes more than adequately and seems to be Fif’s best effort on the mixtape. “Leave the Lights On” contains funky production, but it’s wasted on 50’s weak bedroom talk, which makes the song feel like a bootleg “Magic Stick”. Although “Be My B***h” is extremely catchy, it calls to question if Fif took this project seriously at all. “Can I Speak To You” is the breakout song on the mixtape. With Schoolboy Q providing some much-needed energy on the mic, which easily becomes best song/verse on the mix tape.

5: Murder By Numbers clocks in at just over half an hour. Whether it was label issues or trouble of matching his past success, it seems Fif just isn’t having fun making music anymore and just going through the motions. The best aspect about the record was Fif shameless promotion of his SMS audio headphones.

By Mike J

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Mixtape Mayhem: M.O.T.Y.
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