Album Review: Von Pea – Pea’s Gotta Have It

11/21/10 | By Brandon Rae | No Comments

Von Pea – Pea’s Gotta Have It
Interdependent Media: 2010

Remember when The Foreign Exchange was born? Remember who we first saw after the title theme brought us into the proper state of mind? “Von Sees” was my first taste of Von Pea and what he could bring to the great hip-hop conversation. Even as a mere passing of the baton, Pea’s “Ace any master course with no syllabus / watermark my heart, you can’t get as real as this” left a lasting impression. Through great solo projects and his fantastic work with Tanya Morgan, he’s back at the plate with Pea’s Gotta Have It. Does he hit a home run? Fans of the Brooklyn emcee know from a familiar sample that he always makes contact.

“I get it, your raps aren’t on par / Maybe you should treat your craft like your Armor All’ed car / Or I could beat your ass while you’ callin’ all cars…” Freestyle to kick things off? Gladly. Pea’s “Freestyle Live At Low Key’s” displays what’s so commendable about his substance. North-south, no-nonsense lyricism.

“You ain’t in control of a thing but Xbox.” A track that plays similar to Busta’s Swizz-produced “New York Shit”, “The Yorker” is an accolade to the Big Apple; Pea’s hometown that he shows, has certainly helped shaped the emcee as we know him. Fitting towards the city that never sleeps, it’s a lively tune that energizes the first half of the album.

“Think I’m too cute to drop a hot line? All these words not mine? / When you spit your rhyme, you make mine look just like Einstein.” Nobody should sleep on Keisha Shontelle, though I wouldn’t be surprised if some doze off on “I Know We’re Right”. She’s a brilliant female lyricist — every bit as powerful with her words as Jean Grae — whose featherweight voice may hold her back from leaving a huge impact. The hook is flimsy, but Keisha’s verse makes up for it and then some.

“Iron Horse” is a much-needed interlude which is a subway ride away from two frail female-focused tracks in “We Should Be Rocking” and “There U Were” and transitioning towards more of Pea’s adolescent memories, with much more emphasis on his school years and the trials and tribulations that came along with them. If there are any weak areas on Pea’s Gotta Have It, they are not found past this underground commute.

The forte of the record is found from “Thanks For Your Children” to “Ahead of the Class”. Those two tracks, and the few in between, combine for thirteen minutes of hip-hop excellence. A lot of it has to do with Von Pea’s brilliance, but some props are due for the guest appearances. Che Grand’s verse on “Thanks For Your Children” keeps him on the rise, and Danny! continues to shine as one of my favorite emcees as of late on “Open School”.

Von Pea and The Park team up on “Get Violated”, sampling Andre 3000′s “Love Hater” from The Love Below. The sneaker-swapping tale is simple enough to follow, but I cannot seem to wrap my head around how cleverly crafted the production is on this track. I’d call it a pleasant surprise, but really, how can I be surprised with anything that Pea’s been putting out? He hits early in the lineup; far from flashy but, as mentioned, always makes contact.

3.5 out of 5

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