July 11, 2005 @ 12:36 pm

Tony Yayo - Thoughts of a Predicate Felon (G Unit)

by: Justin Monroe

For 50 Cent’s G Unit squad (Lloyd Banks, Young Buck, Tony Yayo), his record-breaking 2003 debut, Get Rich or Die Tryin’, serves as a guide on how to make a hit record. By sticking to the blueprint of singsongy choruses and party-time themes fit for women and thugs alike, every member of the rap syndicate (including the dishonorably discharged Game) has achieved a level of success — in spite of their unoriginal subject matter. Now Tony Yayo emerges as G Unit’s next solo threat with his post-incarceration debut, Thoughts of a Predicate Felon. Where imprisonment and his unabashed ghetto persona may suggest a grimier take on G Unit’s themes, Yayo surprisingly (but effectively) doesn’t break from the company mantra. Built on the same chassis as 50’s “In da Club,” Yayo’s “So Seductive” is the type of ultra-infectious tune that defines the Curtis Jackson administration. Still, though Yayo holds his own playing the role of the überthug dominating the club, it’s his incarcerated Scarface mind-set that makes the strongest impression.

Familiar with the prison setting, Yayo deftly handles convict tales, as with “Dear Suzie,” a vivid musical correspondence with a groupie. Using a woofing bass and guitar plinks as his pad, Yayo spits his perversions on wax. And this predicate (repeat) felon still lives by the code “death before dishonor,” as we see on “Tattle Teller,” which finds Yayo recounting the treachery of notorious informants while taking a stab at 50 nemesis Joey Crack: “The Sammy da Bull award goes to Fat Joe,” Yayo taunts over a scathing, violin-tinged track.

Outside the confines of prison, Yayo, who dubbed himself “50’s shooter,” is free to unleash the wild man within. Slashing strings and a pulse-pounding piano form a taut, sinister backdrop to “Homicide,” where he lunges like a ravenous pit bull. With an aggressive, gravelly voice, Yayo talks about disposing of his competition on “Drama Setter,” featuring Obie Trice. Over Eminem’s signature brooding sound, Yayo menaces, “I got niggas in Queens that will kill for Pamper money.”

Although he’s at his best covered with a layer of gunpowder residue, Yayo tries his hand at romance. Not as smooth as Banks or as romantic as 50, Yayo still imagines himself a gentleman of sorts. The sultry guitar groove on “Curious,” featuring R&B crooner Joe, finds him offering an abused woman a rather shallow — if admirable — pitch: “Ma, you don’t need your face blacked and blue / You need diamonds from Jacob that’s black and blue.” Should anyone mistake him for Shakespeare in love, he crassly notes, “I eat your fur burger,” on “Project Princess,” a syrupy serenade à la “21 Questions,” with Jagged Edge in tow.

Sadly, the G Unit formula draws Yayo out of his hard-core comfort zone for overkill cookie cutters “Pimpin’” and “I’m So High,” blatantly recycled versions of 50’s “P.I.M.P.” and “High All the Time.” The former may be the worst offense of all, as Yayo’s pimp cup runneth over with passionless clichés that indicate either disinterest or a serious topical ignorance. Though Predicate Felon safely fits the G Unit mold, Yayo’s brazen wildcard approach suffers when he’s forced to follow suit. Perhaps in the future, he’ll look to copy a blueprint that more accurately reflects his makeup.

Article tags: Tony Yayo, 50 Cent, G Unit