Album Review: Really Doe – First Impressions (2009)

Album Review: Really Doe – First Impressions (2009)
Rating: 3 out of 5 Potholes

You may have heard Really Doe lace the hook on Kanye West’s “We Major” or the bars he laid on Consequence’s “Disperse”, featuring his best friend Gangsta L Crisis (GLC). But, Really Doe has been making moves ever since the mid 90’s. The “Go Getters” was a rap group formed by West and fellow Chicago natives, Doe and GLC in 1996. The group even found success and spawned a single “Oh Oh Oh” which got major airplay in Chicago’s South Side. After the trio disbanded, West took Doe under his wing and signed the Chicago emcee to his Record Label, G.O.O.D. Music in ‘05. Finally, in 2009, Really Doe inked a deal with Cartel Records – headed by producer Griffin Guess. Guess has worked with some great artists in the industry such as Kanye West, Busta Rhymes, Andre 3000, and Eminem. With no mixtape hype, no release delays, no viral marketing, just plain old word-of-mouth buzz as a name associated to Yeezy, Really Doe steps into the spotlight with his Cartel Records debut release First Impressions.

The debut album opens up with the tenacious “Sew It Up”. The soulful track is an ode to Doe’s personal street struggles and being humble through the distractions of stardom. Next up is the symphonic, piano driven “RPS”. The track is also dealing with modesty as the hook suggests: “Paper, Scissors, Rocks, we solid (x2)/First get the paper, then you cut the fake niggas/Everybody eating now we all grow bigger.” The album did generate its second single (first single being “Plastic”), “Mesmerized”, which is featured and produced by Danny Klein. It is easy to compare the single to Lupe Fiasco’s “Superstar” but the mellow track highlights Danny Klein’s impressive production and shows its Doe’s slow tempo flow is where he shines brightest. The upbeat, jazz-fused “Marvelous” produced by Jaye Jeffers’ allows Doe’s slow flow to shine yet again on the clichéd love song.

At moments during First Impressions, it seems as though the up-and-coming emcee is trying to find a happy medium from radio friendly to emotionally compelling. He ultimately finds comfortable skin somewhere in the middle. Another example of Doe living in that middle ground is the Paul Davis-sampled “They Say”. The redemptive love song is surely one of the high points of the solo LP. A majority of the album’s climax has to deal with Doe spitting about love.

The debut album does possess a few downturns. Doe’s punchy flow hurt tracks such as the consequent “Roll Out”. In “Roll Out” Really Doe finds himself chasing the hypnotic keyboard synth bounce and later spots out an ill-advised delivery. The vexatious “Million Dolla” and “Checkin’ In” we hear Doe’s attempt at describing an alluring lifestyle while rhyming asinine lyrics in the process. From here forward, it’s clear that Doe’s first solo effort lost the strong direction it started with. In turn, the listener may feel inclined to lose interest in another affiliate of the Kanye West Camp. In the closing moments of the album, Really Doe calls on Go Getters alumnus, Mr. West, on the album’s first single, the credit card carnival “Plastic”. The Grammy award winner is a sonic relief and eventual savior of the subpar track. The record First Impressions loses steam late as the first half tracks are the upper echelon of the record, collectively. Doe’s album is best at fragments but as an actual whole the 29-year-old emcee left much to be desired.