Rick Ross‘s album Hood Billionaire releases today, so we thought that before you stream it on Spotify or even buy it on iTunes you’d like to read what people are saying about Rozay’s second album in one year.
Long story short–it’s not very good. Yes, we’re all impressed that he can release two albums in one year but the subject matter is old and the lyrics aren’t all that hot. And even though it’s always fun to listen to the Bawwse, sometimes less is more.
Rick Ross Hood Billionaire Reviews
The AV Club thinks that Hood Billionaire is just Rick Ross yelling about coke for another hour.
“Hood Billionaire is perhaps the most obstinate comeback attempt in recent memory. Ross is declaring nothing is wrong, and that he will not change a lick, even as he releases his second full hour of music in 2014, loaded with non-starting singles. Like March’s Mastermind, Hood Billionaire is an overlong 16 tracks of Ross luxuriating in his excesses, including the most expensive productions this side of Watch The Throne. For a while, it works.” [source]
Consequence of Sound believes that Hood Billionaire is a heavyhanded ploy to legitimize Ross as a boss with serious street cred.
“Hood Billionaire is defined by a lack of subtlety. “Coke Like the 80’s”, “Hood Billionaire”, and “Neighborhood Drug Dealer” are what you’d expect: Ross extols the wealth and power he gains from being a major player in the drug trade. His vision of grandeur does show some promise with a boxing analogy in “Heavyweight”. If you’ve ever longed to hear Ross shout “ding ding” over the sound of a boxing bell, you’re in for a treat. Elsewhere on the track, however, Ross makes a questionable lyrical choice: “Heavyweight/ Don King/ Robin Givens/ Big dreams.” Maybe we should give Ross the benefit of the doubt, but on a track about punching people in the face, it seems dubious to name-drop Givens, especially since she responded to the Ray Rice controversy by explaining to TIME why she stayed in an abusive relationship with Mike Tyson.” [source]
Billboard claims that Rick Ross went for quantity over quality on Hood Billionaire.
“And indeed, Hood Billionaire is instantly one of the tamest entries in Ross’ discography. Like its predecessor, Mastermind, it’s nostalgic, though he sets its Instagram filter on turn-of-the-century Southern trap classicism rather than mid-’90s Bad Boy worship this time around. Ross seems to be in the victory-lap phase of his career: Hood Billionaire lands in a dull gray area between feel-good retro rap (its first two singles are the Memphis homage “Elvis Presley Blvd” and the pleasant but forgettable jazz jangle of “Keep Doin’ That [Rich Bitch]”) and Rozay greatest-hits karaoke that tries and fails to recapture the impact of his bulletproofTeflon Don bombast. Album cut “Heavyweight” is a retread of his 2010 hit “B.M.F.”; synthesizer/808 combination “Nickel Rock” packs a punch, but the narrative richness of Lil Boosie‘s guest verse makes Ross’ paint-by-numbers hedonism seem empty.” [source]
MTV believes that the album is good overall.
“Every Hood Billionaire had to start somewhere, and when Ross is able to capture what got him here, while reflecting on what that means to him now, we’re all richer for it.”
Complex doesn’t give Rick Ross a pass, claiming that Hood Billionaire is a mulligan.
“With his second album of the year, Hood Billionaire, Rick Ross closes Q4 FY2014 with a mulligan. With a different classification and more robust promo run, Hood Billionaire might have made for one hell of a comeback mixtape, at least satisfying his fans who prefer his collaborations with Meek and Jeezy to his alternative sparkling, pretty boy style when paired with the J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, Ne-Yo, and Nas. Much unlike Mastermind, Hood Billionaire is a street rap album down to the gravel and grassroots. The soul singer loops are ghastly background to bass quakes, trap snare stutter, and the occasional gunshot, courtesy of Beat Billionaire, DJ Toomp, Timbaland, and the possibly resurgent Lex Luger.”
