Ghetto Postage (Edited) Review

07/13/2005 6:59 AM, AMG


It's hard to attribute musical quality to Master P's success in the late '90s, but primarily based upon the quality of Ghetto Postage rather than marketing gimmicks or musical trends, the rapper has come close to rivaling his best album of the 1990s, Ghetto D. Like that breakthrough album, Ghetto Postage is a simplistic tour de force through a myriad of proven gangsta rap motifs. Beginning with the standard "I'm Bout It" variation, this time titled "Bout Dat," Master P and his post-Beats by the Pound production team -- primarily Carlos Stephens, XL, Ke-Noe, Myke Diesel, and Suga Bear -- move through the motifs without making them seem too clichéd and, more importantly, performing with an aura of confidence and poise, two attributes sorely lacking on Only God Can Judge Me, this album's clumsy predecessor. So while Ghetto Postage doesn't win any awards for finesse or craft, even if it is one of the better No Limit albums, it does deserve acclaim for not surrendering to the trite stunnin'-bling-bling-flossfest clichés littering the rap world at the end of 2000 and for at least being a blatant motif exercise with integrity -- thug farce or not, Master P is actually a rather likable guy here. And more than anything, he does what he does best here: he gives his fans exactly what they want -- ultrasimple, call-and-response gangsta rap with charisma -- without any self-serving, egocentric attempts to be an "artist." [The "clean" version of Ghetto Postage removes the album's profanity.] ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide