1001 Albums Generator
The Sun Rises In The East by Jeru The Damaja

The Sun Rises In The East

Jeru The Damaja

1994
2.89
Rating
22801
Votes
1
10%
2
24%
3
39%
4
21%
5
6%
Distribution
Genres: Hip-Hop Styles: Conscious, Boom Bap, Hardcore Hip-Hop, Turntablism

Reviews (page 3 of 8)

One star granted for acknowledging Shaq is an aphrodisiac. I don't think I would listen to this again, but nothing about it was objectionable to me aside from the misogyny (am I woke because of the times, or because I'm 50?). As usual, surprised in the strong reactions on both sides to an album like this. 2.5

Some good rap, but the same problem as I have with other early hip hop. It's basic talking on a simple beat with little to no variation. You could put any of the vocals on any of the beats, or even just run all the vocals one after the other on the same beat, and there would be no real difference. You Can't Stop The Prophet had a nice story at least. The best line in the whole album though? *'Cause I blow up spots like the World Trade Center* This song came out in 1994. Best song: You Can't Stop The Prophet

Really good! Insane beats and interesting narratives 🙌

Very underrated album. Glad it was on this list.

Pretty good, but I liked the previous album a lot more.

Favorite songs are "Ain't the Devil Happy" and "Come Clean". In the 90's, my high school friends were obsessed with Wu Tang and Nas, and we would drive around the southern suburbs on our way to the country club bumping east coast rap in the new cars our parents bought us. There was something alluring and provocative in this transgression; it was defiant, it was cool, and it was culturally necessary. I'm so surprised I've never heard of Jeru the Damaja before, or maybe I did at a catered pool party and just don't remember, but this is so freaking good I already know I'm bumping this in the school pick up line or on my way to hot yoga and day drinking margaritas tomorrow. Also, the album is short, not weighed down with unnecessary skits and collaborator shout outs, so it gets right to the point and I appreciate that.

Dirty Rotten Scoundrels… One of my fav hip hop albums. NYC represent. Guru, Premier, Group Home…

"Mental Stamina" sounds like that one Nathan For You episode when he gathers a band and makes the guitarist abandon his instrument to become the fire-alarm player. It's not the worst thing ever but at the same it is idk lowkey 1.5. I'll give it 2 cause it makes me laugh giving it the same rating as Rumours.

94 provided an embarrassment of riches

# In-Depth Review: *The Sun Rises In The East* by Jeru The Damaja (1994) ## Overview Released on May 24, 1994, *The Sun Rises In The East* stands as one of the most distinctive debuts of hip-hop's golden age. Produced entirely by DJ Premier at the peak of his powers, the album captures a 22-year-old Jeru The Damaja at his most righteous and hungry, delivering a raw, uncompromising vision of Brooklyn hip-hop that deliberately stood apart from the era's dominant gangsta rap and shiny suit trends . --- ## Production: DJ Premier's Mad Science This album represents Premier's most experimental and left-of-center work. Freed from the jazz-loop foundations of his Gang Starr productions, Premier crafted a sonic landscape that was stark, dissonant, and utterly unique . **Key Production Techniques:** - **"Come Clean"**: Premier's most famous beat on the album, built from Shelley Manne's percussion intro on "Infinity," manipulated to sound like Chinese water torture—dripping, banging, and relentless - **"D. Original"**: Intentionally off-key piano chords paired with off-beat drum patterns that shouldn't work but absolutely do - **"Statik"**: A minimalist masterpiece using literal vinyl static and pops as a primary element, creating the grimiest possible soundscape - **"Ain't The Devil Happy"**: Haunting strings and cinematic piano stabs that rank among Premier's finest work Premier's approach here was crate-digging as archaeology—unearthing bizarre sounds and making them hip-hop. The result is production that feels simultaneously primitive and futuristic, stripped-down yet incredibly dense . --- ## Lyrics & Flow Jeru's vocal presence is immediately striking: a deep, booming monotone that commands attention through sheer force of will rather than melodic variation. His flow is intentionally unorthodox—stopping, starting, shifting tempos mid-verse, refusing to sit comfortably within the pocket . **Lyrical Strengths:** - **Internal rhyme schemes**: "Deviant monks attack the mic, it's mental pandemonium / And then some, you go for your handgun" ("Mental Stamina") - **Five Percent ideology**: Heavy emphasis on "knowledge of self," mathematics, and spiritual enlightenment - **Anti-materialism**: Consistent attacks on gun culture, drug dealing, and fake gangster posturing—"Leave your nines at home and bring your skills to the battle" - **Narrative ambition**: "You Can't Stop The Prophet" casts Jeru as a superhero battling personified evils (Ignorance, Jealousy, Envy) with cinematic storytelling Jeru references kung-fu films (*Man With The Bronze Arm*) and anime (*Fist Of The North Star*), creating a nerdy-but-street persona that was genuinely novel in 1994 . --- ## Themes ### Knowledge of Self & Five Percent Philosophy The album functions as a spiritual manual, constantly urging listeners toward enlightenment and away from ignorance. Jeru positions himself as a teacher and prophet, delivering "truth" with evangelical fervor . ### Brooklyn as Mecca Tracks like "Brooklyn Took It" celebrate the borough's toughness and authenticity while acknowledging its struggles. Jeru paints East New York as both battleground and classroom . ### Anti-Commercialism & Anti-Gangsterism Jeru explicitly positioned himself against both West Coast gangsta rap and the emerging shiny suit aesthetic. His disdain for "fraudulent MCs" and materialism feels genuine, if occasionally preachy . ### Social Commentary "Ain't The Devil Happy" and "Jungle Music" explore systemic oppression, the African diaspora, and how music connects Black Americans to their heritage. The closing track "Statik" serves as a final warning about societal decay . --- ## Influence & Legacy Despite modest commercial performance (peaking at #36 on Billboard's Top R&B/Hip-Hop Albums), the album's influence is substantial : - **DJ Premier's reputation**: Cemented his status as hip-hop's most innovative producer in 1994—a year where he also produced *Hard To Earn*, contributed to *Illmatic* and *Ready to Die* - **Alternative hip-hop blueprint**: Provided a template for conscious, boom-bap revivalists who rejected commercial trends - **Underground classic**: Consistently ranked among the greatest hip-hop albums; *Rolling Stone* placed it at #155 on their 2022 list of the 200 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums of All Time - **Video game presence**: "You Can't Stop The Prophet" featured on *NBA 2K16* soundtrack, curated by Premier himself The album proved that hip-hop could be intellectually rigorous without sacrificing grit or street credibility. --- ## Pros | Strength | Details | |----------|---------| | **Revolutionary Production** | Premier's most experimental work—waterphones, off-key pianos, static loops—sounds like nothing else from the era | | **Lyrical Density** | Jeru's internal rhymes and wordplay remain impressive; "Mental Stamina" won *The Source*'s "Rhyme of the Year" in 1994 | | **Cohesive Vision** | Single-producer, single-MC format creates unified aesthetic; no filler tracks | | **Authenticity** | Genuine street perspective combined with intellectual depth; avoids preachiness through sheer conviction | | **Timeless Boom-Bap** | Despite experimental elements, the drum programming and sampling remain quintessentially hip-hop | | **Narrative Range** | From superhero tales ("Prophet") to personal history ("Jungle Music") to battle raps ("Come Clean") | --- ## Cons | Weakness | Details | |----------|---------| | **Monotonous Flow** | Jeru's deep, steady delivery lacks melodic variation; can feel exhausting over a full album | | **Preachy Tone** | The righteous teacher persona occasionally overpowers the music; "Da Bichez" tries to justify its misogyny with disclaimers that make it worse | | **Dated Gender Politics** | "Da Bichez" and "Come Clean" contain casual misogyny and homophobia that haven't aged well, despite Jeru's attempts to distinguish "queens" from "bitches" | | **Lack of Humor** | The "extremely serious vibe" (*Rolling Stone*) can feel heavy-handed; Jeru's superhero narratives occasionally tip into unintentional corniness | | **Limited Commercial Appeal** | Intentionally abrasive sound and anti-materialist message meant it was always destined for cult status rather than mainstream success | | **Afu-Ra's Limited Presence** | The sole feature on "Mental Stamina" leaves the album feeling slightly insular; more collaborative moments could have added variety | --- ## Conclusion *The Sun Rises In The East* is a singular achievement—a debut that announced Jeru as a major voice while showcasing DJ Premier at his most creatively unhinged. It's an album that demands attention: the production is too weird to ignore, the lyrics too dense to dismiss. While its moral absolutism and occasionally preachy tone can grate, the sheer artistic vision on display is undeniable. Thirty years later, it remains a testament to what happens when an MC and producer operate in perfect sync, willing to sacrifice commercial potential for creative integrity. For listeners seeking the raw, uncompromising essence of mid-90s Brooklyn hip-hop—unfiltered by industry concerns or trend-chasing—this album is essential .

From the Vault #3 (January 22, 2026) We're back, and we are once again listening to Black (people). These 90s hip-hop album covers are impossible to take seriously, Imma be real widju. I'm not expecting anything radically different from the norm here. What would the style of hip-hop from this time be? Boom bap? Despite the hardcore cover photo, I'm not expecting gangsta rap from a guy called Jeru the Damaja. At best, he'll smash my car window and steal all of my CDs. This isn't Jeru the Frachura. This isn't Jeru the Pockmarka. Only then would I be intimidated, you see. Thirty-nine minutes. That runtime is fucking glorious. These hip-hop albums became bloated up the ass with the advent of the 90s, so I'm glad to have something which is manageable and doesn't cause my eyes to roll to the back of my skull from sheer disinterest. Anyways, this album wasn't very good. The instrumentals are stuck in a permanent purgatory that alternates between being shitty or tolerable. The more atmospheric aspects of the production are alright, but the leading instrumentation sucks a lotta dick. It's difficult for me to articulate why, but it just sounds tacky to me. The bass is flimsy on a lot of these tracks, which keeps them from having any depth. The instruments are also slightly compressed in a way that makes them sound unappealing rather than engaging. Book time. "...outstanding production values" - I'd venture to disagree. "...one of the best hip-hop albums of the mid-1990s." The cover of this album predicted friggen 9/11, yo. Wikipedia says that this album attracted some attention from critics, but that's about it. Jeru doesn't seem to be much of a critic act as far as his remaining albums are concerned, so snubbly snipping time. In place of this album, I humbly submit "The Dismemberment Plan Is Terrified" by The Dismemberment Plan for inclusion on the list.

Some of the songs are a little too out there lyrically for me (Da Bitchez is just comically funny with it's wierd ass misogyny), but still overall not too bad. Nice beats and interesting choice of samples. 8/10.

pretty funny and excellent storytelling, shaking my head whenever Da Bichez comes on so people know I don't agree favourite track: You Can't Stop The Prophet

8.5/10 I really enjoyed the beats on this, I found it more enjoyable during the less serious parts but it's a really good album overall.

If i was a thug in the 90's, I would've listen to this non stop

I think it’s not good. His voice is fine, but the lyrics are not clever or interesting and the production is weak. Sorry East Coast, this isn’t it.

Fine East Coast hip hop

Nothing special. The lyrics haven’t aged well, the music is no better than other stuff you have heard 1001 times before. Meh. There is a reason most of us have never heard of this guy.

A new one for me, I thought this was fine. I seemed to get a bit more into it about the halfway point (you cant stop the prophet onwards). Listened at the gym, it had good big beats for that

Strange one to include. Maybe it was influential but it feels like it’s been lapped and left in the dust by other east coast stuff. Also, state of your cover art mate.

It was alright. I bet he panicked more than most on 9/11

90’s Rap ⭐️Ain’t The Devil Happy

There's nothing offensive or off about this album at all, it just lacks any cut-through or noticeable high points to peak my interest. There's no doubting there is some quality to the delivery & production, but overall it felt like a very average listen.

# Album Name: The Sun Rises In The East # Artist: Jeru # Rating: 3/5 # Comments: OK, nothing amazing. Few good tracks. Better "early sound" hip/hop. I enjoyed it more than newer stuff. # Top Tunes: Come clean / Devil happy / The prophet # Would I listen to it again? Only some of it.

Yes it does

Amazing!

The flow and the beat made this surprisingly listenable, a couple of tracks were downright offensive in the lyrics but overall a decent album

Not so amazing flow and hooks But shit, Premier production is so good.

Не знаю что я могу сказать насчёт этого альбома, ну прикольно, и всё как бы. Для меня лично ничего примечательного в нём не было. Поэтому 3

Album No. 0165 on my list. I have very limited knowledge about hip hop, so I had never heard of Jeru The Damaja before. The whole thing was completely new to me. And I found that "The Sun Rises In The East" was actually a pretty solid album. I liked the very dynamic rapping style on this. The flow in pretty much all of the songs is really great. With my limited knowledge, I have rarely ever heard a hip hop album with such good flow actually. Most songs are not that spectacular and I'm not the biggest fan of the lyrics (they're fine in general, but the misogyny is certainly there, even though I didn't find it as pronounced as I had expected when I had read some other reviews of this). So all in all: solid, interesting hip hop album! I'll add "D. Original", "You Can't Stop The Prophet", and "Come Clean - E New Y Radio" to my playlist. 3/5 stars.

This was solid. Good sounds and an easy listen. Had me moving for a bit.

this is exactly the kind of thing I am here for, unbelievable that this is me discovering this artist and album right now but it is an instant classic I will return to over and over. 5 star banger.

Some top tier beat production and great flow. I feel like jay z too inspo from his flow. However, a little problematic in some of the misogyny.

Decent writing and beats, not a huge fan of the flow. Really forgettable, but wasn't terrible either.

Yes, better than expected. I like this kinda rap. 3-4 stars, I think 4

Blimey. This is one from my youth. I can remember the excitement I felt when I listened to “Come Clean” for the first time, having bought it entirely based on a review in a magazine. It’s still an amazing sounding track. The album itself has not aged quite as well as I’d hoped - there’s definitely an uncomfortable amount of casual misogyny & homophobia, despite Jeru’s positioning of himself as diametrically opposed to the “fake gangster MCs” of the time - but Jeru’s flow is still a wonderful thing to behold, his wordplay & references are on point throughout. Primo puts in one of his best sets outside of Gang Starr (at this point) and it sums up why for so many of us, this period of East Coast hip hop really was head and shoulders above anything else coming out. It’s abstract, dense, ambitious and really, really clever.

Nothing much to love about it

Before starting on the 1001 albums project, I didn’t really like hip hop, but I feel like it’s because I never listened to stuff like this. While not as lyrically impressive as some of its contemporaries, this album delivers the same sonic satisfaction.

good fun fresh

D. Original: the instrumental is quite disturbing to listen to. Same comment for the rest actually. Da Bichez: much better Same problem after. Ain't the devil happy: ok Overall, meh. Saw someone who had written: this album is (c)rap perfect description

r a p D.original instrumental PTDR instrumentals really are peculiar speaking like a noble

Really enjoyed it! I really like the sparse, icy beats. His delivery and flow is great, there are some quite dense rhymes. Occasionally the lyrics are a little cheesy.

Strangely nostalgic for some reason

This was so much fun. While there wasn't much sonic variability among the songs, I still found them all pretty enjoyable. I felt like I was in the 90s.

i like it

Never heard of this guy before. This was good!

It was fine: 90s rap, good flow.

Not the worst rap album I’ve heard, but nothing too special about it. Just straightforward to me, for better or worse.

There's a lot to like about this one; it's got the type of relaxed flow I like, and the production and beats are fantastic. No real standout tracks for me, apart from Da Bichez which stands out for the wrong reasons. That track alone drops it from a 4 to a 3

Average hip hop

pesma da bichez... oh.. n.. no... "i body slam her but im not a misogynist" BRUHH cela ova pesma likeee, very much a product of its time ali ne zanima me, veoma je lako samo ne mrzeti zene, pardon, da bichez... the random british accent at the end of you cant stop the prophet IM CRYING "Rap brainiacs have cardiacs soon after the attack When it comes to ryhmin I slam harder than Shaq" "Idealist not an opportunist Don't molest no shorty still in all, I'm dangerous Mentally" AHAHHAHAHAAHAHAHAHAH "I snatch fake gangster MCs and make 'em faggot flambé" bruhhh sta se desavaaaaa hahahhahah gotovoo, okej je album, hiphop, ne moj omiljeni zanr, ali ako si u tom fazonu, dobar je. ovaj ima dobar flow or whatever, produkcija je malo ista na svakoj pesmi ali nekako mi to ne smeta, zapravo mi je skroz okej to.

It’s good but why was it included

Pretty good, I'm starting to feel like 90's rap is one of the better times

6/10 - Fresh beats from the 90s, refreshing listen

Gritty and raw...with a delivery like a right cross to the jaw. This is essential 90s rap.

top 3 - D. Original, You Can’t Stop The Prophet, Mental Stamina Fine listen, nothing crazy. Liked the beats, also liked the first half better.

ай гес май фьорст евер одиниця, говно якесь чесно

p725. 1994. 1 star. (C)rap. This no better (and probably a bit worse) than the rest of the 1 star rap albums on this list. The rule still applies: if no-one is talking about an album 5 or more years after it's release, it's not essential listening.

Splitting the difference between Illmatic and 36 Chambers, this album is pure 90s NY hip hop with classic boom bap beats, lively rhymes, and a hard hitting sound.

This is basically what most hip hop sounded like during this era.

Jeru sounds really cool. He has big beats, a nice voice, great lyrics, and a really good flow.

Some of the lyrics here seem like they are crowbarred into place, but it's got a really good flow and groove to it.

Pretty bland hiphop with the usual misogyny, etc

Meh. Rapping all about how he’s a good rapper and bitches and money and crime. Where is the substance? Not even that good of a lyricist. And I bet they don’t even have Project Pat or DJ Quik on this list.

More than 30 years post-release, and I’m not seeing what’s so special here. Sure Jeru has some clever, (sometimes) conscious lyrics and interesting moments of off-centered flow that are supported by DJ Premier’s beats that occasionally get wonky and discordant (those are the best moments). Otherwise there’s a few songs I dug, a few were fine, and a few I didn’t love. This one won’t leave a lasting impression.

Some old school hip hop I hadn't heard before. Nicely done, may listen again, but as no track particularly rose up, don't think I can give it higher than a three.

Should not have made this list. In hindsight, this is a biased pick

Homophobic and sexist. So you have two stars removed already, and it would never be a perfect album. It feels a bit bloated which for a 35 minute record is not ok.

Not being a big rap/hip-hop listener, I can’t really compare it to much. I thought it wasn’t bad, some of the songs I liked okay, some really not so much. It was okay, but probably wouldn’t listen to it again. 3/5

I saw the cover and audibly let out a sound of disappointment. How bad can this be? It sucks.

Ah yes, the classic 90s hip-hop sound. Some really good beats here, and in general I quite like this. Some of the lyrics are quite cringe, but that goes hand in hand with the genre. High 3 or a low 4 for me… I’ll edge just towards 4.

Sounds like all the other mid-90s hip hop albums. For better or worse. Ain't the Devil Happy stood out. 3/5

Nao é para mim. Mas tem bons versos.

distinctly early 90s east coast hip hop, both good and bad. it's completely fine. i generally tend to lean more towards west coast hip hop since that's a lot more of what i've heard, but this is solid. the production is clean and i really like his flow. i don't think it's super notable if only because contextually i feel like he is overshadowed by his peers, but almost all of these tracks if i heard a friend play them i'd be tapping my foot saying "oh, classic". the main exception is "da bichez", which i really don't think i need to explain why "no i'm not misogynistic i just [vile misogyny]" is Bad.

Rap from the 90s can sometimes sound a tad archaic to me, but in a way I enjoy. As a genre, it probably has undergone more evolution since inception then basically any other. It's hard to seperate from the era it was made in, and I definitely don't think this is as good as a lot of the east coast rap revival era. At the same time, that's a very hard bar to reach considering it sits alongside some of the best rap albums of the 90s. Taking it on its own, its a pretty good album though- I really like Brooklyn Took It, but at the same time songs like Da Bichez just doesn't feel like they've aged well at all. I'm of two minds what to rate this: On the one hand I think its a pretty solid album with a few occassional hiccups that sounds a little out of date even for the time it came out, and on the other hand there's a reason I think I haven't listened to this album when you look at everything else that was coming out at the same time and how good the scene was doing.

I had Wrath of the Math a long time ago and think it's a better album, but this is pretty dope. Wow the b****s song walks a fine line, but I guess ... didn't really age well, haha.

Wasn’t it all familiar with this, very pleasantly surprised. Nice addition to the roster!

Cohesive, short, nice hiphop

Solid beats and very 90s

I really liked his storytelling. Especially the song about the Prophet.

Never listened. Expectations: None - Verdict: Alright - It's definitely good, and there are some bangers but it doesn't quite hit the same way as some other albums from the era.

Fine. I love Illmatic but this isn't on that level.

This album is great. I'd never heard of Jeru before but there are some cracking tracks on this. I was convinced that that was going to be a 5 star album after the first few but I don't think the later tracks were quite as good as the first ones. I'll definitely listen to this again and I might like it more and more. It's a peach.

Good 90’s hip hop.

rap music... !! 01/20/2026

I hadn't heard this one. Love this era of hip-hop, and there's a lot to like here. Of the rap albums that came out in 94, I don't know if this even enters the top 10, but it's good. 6/10

Da bichez

I don't have many words to say for this album, but I did really enjoy the laid back beats + flows. As a whole this felt a little long, which is weird since it has a sub 40 minute runtime. Really enjoyed Mental Stamina and the flow on Ain't the Devil Happy. Come Clean and Statik were also solid -- the flow on the former reminded me a bit of Del The Funky Homosapien. I think for me this falls in at a really high 3. Interesting and worth the listen, but probably won't get a ton of replay from me.

Pretty solid hip hop. This guys voice and flow sounds so familiar that I was trying to figure out if this was a different alias or if he worked in a group, but it doesn't seem like he is. If I were to put this album into a bowling analogy I would say it is like bowling a 9 after a spare. Can't be mad, but you aren't celebrating this one.

This just sounded like if you asked AI to create an album of every single 90s rap album combined. Only good thing about it was that it was only 39 minutes long rather than an hour plus. Incredibly low 2

Never heard of this guy but definitely a tough time to come out with a banger album smushed in with Pac, Big, Wu Tang, and Nas. I don't find it as good as those acts, but his flow is really great and production is solid. Not sure we needed this with the other 90's hip hop on here that is better, but not mad about hearing it.

A rap album released in 1994 thats deemed something you must listen to before you die? Illmatic by Nas (had that a few days ago and it still hits), Ready To Die by Notorious B.I.G. (all time classic), Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik by OutKast (the south got something to say), and this aint it... It aint even at the level of Regulate... G Funk Era by Warren G or Tical by Method Man or Ill Communication by Beastie Boys or even 6 Feet Deep by Gravediggaz and Funkdafied by Da Brat, so what are we even doing here? Really?

Album was pretty cool, 90s hip hop vibes. Nothing really much to say otherwise, I enjoyed a lot of the songs but none really stuck out to me honestly. I’d listen to the album again though, I think it’s an album you’ll appreciate more after multiple listens

репір ну як всігда посередня

Still great technicality wise, but its overall theme and messaging have overstayed their welcome.

No, no, no

OMG. Real awful.

Solid, preferred some other hip-hop albums on here but rounding up as 3* seemed very stingy for something that I enjoyed! :)

Easy one to rate for me. With a song titled "Da Bichez" you simply cannot later defend your choices in by saying in songs that you are not misogynistic and not sexist - your lyrics are evidently both of these things. Pick a lane and stay in it. Again, like the previous album by the Sex Pistols, using slurs against the LGBTQ+ community is unnecessary. Punching down detracts from any message trying to be presented in this album. 1/5 stars for ignorant lyrics.

I liked some songs, but not something I'd listen to.

Not my kind I'm afraid. Crap rap. Nothing new.

i feel kind of unfair giving this a two because he has better underlying beats than Ice Cube and perhaps better lyricism and i gave that album a three. i’m only comparing the two because they were assigned to me two days in a row. i just can’t give this more than a two because it was so difficult and tedious to finish. i also don’t think he’s as good a rapper as Ice even if the rap lyrics themselves are better. wouldnt listen again and didn’t download anything. but he seems like a cool guy.

I'd never heard of this guy, but this was a good record. I'm not sure it counts as an essential hip-hop album but it's a good underground thing

i like this

1 added to my favorites. Would not listen again.

Foundational. Phenomenal.

not amazing, but not terrible. good listen.

I liked this one, maybe not quite 4 stars, but it was good enough that I actually listened to the entire album… sad to say that doesn’t always happen unless I’m listening while working. I’m not necessarily intrigued enough to look into his other albums but I would definitely be okay if someone put this on at a party or something like that.

Good, but there's something weird in the production that I can't quite put my finger on. Lyrically, it's excellent, but the production seemed almost bass free at points and some of the samples didn't seem to accent anything. So, 3.5 rounded up to 4 for me, definitely one I'll head back into at some point.

Not too intrigued by this album, some good beats, a few decent track mostly stock tropes and rhymes

A little les rhythmic of rap than I like, but cool.

Old ass hip hop. Just rapping in a straightforward flow over a monotonous beat. Boring. What's up with the album cover tho?

Not a hip-hop fan but this seems fine

Not for me, there have been some enjoyable hip-hop/rap albums on the list, but this is not one of them.

6.0/10 Liked this quite a bit...

Another forgettable rap album.

Yeah, no I’m good.

Not for me

Not my style, but it was enjoyable. ★★★

"I'm not a misogynist." Like hell you are. You just made an entire song called 'Da Bichez' for God's sake. I mean Jesus Christ no other subculture cranks out as many misogynists as rap/hip hop.

not my vibe but rly cool music still

Standardan njorški hip hop, nije ni ovo najsretnije ostarilo

decent rap record, i liked the production and vocals

Started out weak, but there were some tracks that kinda hit

"The Damaja"? That name alone already signals that I can't take this artist seriously. I was fast forwarding through everything and feeling a generous 2-stars until I got to "Da Bichez". The sentiment and spelling dropped this album to a 1-star and I couldn't listen to any more.

1. intro - 0 2. original - 1 3. brooklyn -1.5 4. monkz -0 5. mental - 1 6. bitchez - 0 7. prophet - 1.5 8. House - 1 9. Devil - 1 10. Mind - 0 11. Clean -1.5 12. Jungle - 1.5 13. Static - 1

Chad the Damaja. Chad to have a 90's rap album with only 1 skit and only 40 minutes long.

I love the kung fu elements, but it wasn’t enough to carry the record.

Yeah, this one didn't make an impression one way or another. I liked the beats and samples.

Some good classic east coast boom bap, only really familiar with You Cant Stop the Prophet but I liked a few others too like Jungle Music. Still, its a bit run of the mill, definitely representative of the time period but there's better examples of the style that could be on the list instead

I had never heard of this artist before and was pleasantly surprised. Great album.

Another rapping album. It's hard to relate to this genre when your life and perspective and experience differs as greatly as mine. Lacking the draw and hook of music I like, it fails to draw my interest. Certainly the creativity of multiple rappers proves interesting, but the subject matter - the same base subject as all of this genre - appeals to the school yard basketball court rather than the suburban angst of my youth.

This was nice. Really chill and well produced. I enjoyed it

Phenomenal, never heard of this dude before, in a similar vein as Del/A Tribe Called Quest. Can't wait to circle back around to this

Caca de vaca. Peñazo.

I’m not sure how I feel exactly, but the beats were fire and the grooves were groovin, so I think pretty highly

Pretty good tbh.

Meh, pretty average as far as hip hop goes. Can't see why it's hyped.

Really liked this. It does feel like one of those lost rap albums from the 90s. Would listen again.

Some big tunes on here, 'You Can't Stop the Prophet' is heavy. Never heard of this before but I'm a fan. Pep beats type beat.

'Even though I'm righteous / Rotten's what you're yellin' / But I'm not chain-snatchin' / Or drug-sellin'.' Jeru's debut is, in every way, just as innovative and imaginative as Nas's, tho it lacks the seismic quality of that greatest of all hip-hop albums. What I venerate most about this record is the aspect of an east-coast cacophony: Gang Starr, Organized Konfusion, Boot Camp Clik, Nas, Wu-Tang, Mobb Deep, Kool G, Chuck D, De La, Jungle Bros. It is, in other words, NYC hip-hop incarnate. And yet, Jeru is sui generis: a flow that's funky and disjointed, a voice that's sonorous and pastoral, and lyrics that are memorably righteous. 'Your nine spay, my mind spray.' +, Preemo proves that he's the east-coast Dr. Dre: at times, he out-funks the G-funk.

Excellent album. 90s rap and hip hop is my favorite of the genre. Jeru hits on all cylinders here. Evan Da Bichez will agree.

Debut album. Hip Hop. The beats and flow were pretty chilled to listen to after getting back from the beach. Sure, some of the themes haven't aged well, however overall I liked it.

Repetitive, slow AND boring? 1988-style raps in 1994? Where do I sign up? Hey he has a rap called “Da Bitchez” on here. You will never guess what he thinks of da bitchez. Not in a million years. Aw, you guessed!

3 Stars (8/15)

Good grooves but with lyrics I can’t blast with my car windows down.

Didn’t know this. Not bad at all, but very reminiscent of better artists I think.

I had not heard of this, but I really liked it.

This was kinda cool but doesn't live up to Gang-Starr I gotta be honest.

Damn, this was really good, and I'd never even heard of Jeru! Lots of different sounds, good depth in the lyrics, and altogether refreshing vibe. And he's still touring! Anyone want to go to the Old but Gold Ü30 Hip Hop Festival in Hamburg, July 2026??

Some decent 90s hip hop. Some very strong tracks and good beats all round.

Dated and misogynistic. It just doesn’t do it for me.

Not for me

Some cool beats here and there, but overall not too crazy about it. 6/10 Favourite track: Brooklyn Took It

I cringed a few times at the lyrics, but appreciated their authentic representation of that era especially. The music around it was amazing

I was hoping it would be better

Pretty solid old school hip hop. Not the most creative bars, but the beats are good. I'm into this type of old school but there's better out there and this feels like it was included on the list just to meet some sort of quota

Das Album hani widermal gekonnt geskippedi-skippedi-skipped.

Was für e klassische fall vu old school hiphop. Besser und weniger nervös als anderi. Aber langeds für 3 kid straight outa hood?? Hmm knapp nöd maybe

I quite enjoyed this - wasn't expecting to, though does feel quiet dated

Well this is distinctly 90s East coast hip hop. I can't help but compare it to Wu Tang Clan, who did the street kung fu style thing before this and did it better. It does not feel as modern as contemporaries like Wu Tang or Nas, i.e. Jeru's flow feels more 80s than 90s, but a lot of this is really great. I think the singles "D. Original" and "Come Clean" are indeed the strongest and most memorable songs, but I also liked the laid back jazz feel in "Da Bichez" and the dark strings in "Ain't the Devil Happy". However there are so many instances were the hook is just plain annoying and too short to be laid on so repetitively, like in "Brooklyn Took It" or "Mental Stamina". A lot of sounds are cool, then you hear them about 50 times and it feels like Chinese water torture. Overall there are a lot of good ideas here, but not always executed the best.

It's funny. It's spunky. It's New York City early '90s Hip Hop, and it's a fun sub-40 minute affair. Favorite Track: "Da Bichez".

There are some really strong tracks here, but I have to imagine this album would have hit a lot harder if it hadn't come out a year after Enter the Wu-Tang (36 Chambers). Still, no shame in not being quite as good as one of the best albums of the 1990s.

Not entirely my thing but I didn’t hate it. It gets an extra star for the random reference to Mr Myxlplyx in My Mind Spray.

Dum-da-di-dum-dum-da. Dum-da-di-dum-dum-da. Dum-da-di-dum-dum-da. Dum-da-di-dum-dum-da. Dum-da-di-dum-dum-da. Dum-da-di-dum-dum-da. Dum-da-di-dum-dum-da

Have we seen any Tupac on this list yet? I don't think we have. There's been a lot of Rap/Hip-Hop coming up here lately, and I'm STILL waiting on some RTJ. What gives? Anyway... this was a pretty good album. Some real interesting beats going on.

Nice hip hop flow and musically interesting. Not as revolutionary as some other hip hop albums on the list, but there’s some musical variation here that sets it apart. Lyrically kind of meh. Notable tracks include D. Original, You Can’t Stop the Prophet, Ain’t the Devil Happy, Come Clean.

I'm always going to have a soft spot for 90s NYC hip hop. I still roll my eyes at the misogyny (that's not really misogyny, apparently?), but overall, a fab listen.

Yesterday I got the Beastie Boys. This is nowhere near as good. Too monotonous, but at least he's not yelling at me all the time.

I really liked this album (outside of the most egregiously misogynistic parts) esp come clean and jungle music.

The only thing this album does is mess with my Spotify.

This felt like a run of the mill 90s rap album. Didn't hate, didn't love. Won't listen again but I didn't find myself wanting to turn it off, either.

I appreciated his flow and the general vibe, but I should get more into the lyrics for his social criticism

If I had a low rider car I would have been using it to go up and down on the beat of these songs. There are some questionable lyrics though

Liked it more than I thought I would.

I got laughed at by a coworker for not knowing how to pronounce the name of this artist... "Jay-ru the damager" is the colloquial version.

I had never heard of this band before, but enjoyed it.

Good beats, like his vlixw

Decent 90s hip hop.

Boom bap? More like boom crap.

Deserves another listen.

I find the beats on most of these old school rap albums to be super annoying. They just spam the same sound ad nauseum.

What a messy album. Something annoying is happening in the background of nearly every track. Did someone let a cat randomly walk across a piano while they were recording D. Original? In Mental Stamina it’s impossible to listen to the rhymes because some kind of missile warning alarm is constantly going off. At other times people clatter around with drums or toot a trumpet for absolutely no reason connected to the song. There might be a good album hiding in there somewhere but you would need more concentration that I have to find it underneath all the random crap happening.

Really amazing wordply, great beats, top album

For a 90’s hip hop album I had never heard of, I quite enjoyed this. It didn’t feel like anything groundbreaking and is definitely a product of the times, but that’s not a bad thing. Great listen

I really try, this is a genre I don't like and I try to listen to the album but uuugh. I couldn't finish this one either.

Very good hip hop album with beats that are ahead of its time. Jeru references Wu Tang and Illmatic on this album and it very nearly reaches the level of those albums. Jeru's lyrics are smart and generally positive - he can border on preachy but that's really hard not to do in conscious hip hop. Tracks like "Mental Stamina" show off his vocabulary and "Ain't the Devil Happy" hits hard. That said, the majority of his topics aren't that unique and his flow isn't as smooth as the best rappers of his era; t's unfair to hold him to that standard but when you're referencing Illmatic the listener's going to notice. The beats here are also a bit too minimal for my tastes. The piano and horns hit hard but I wish there was a bit more going on. An album that doesn't quite match up to its contemporaries but which still shouldn't be forgotten.

Rap de la costa este.. pero claro es que ese año Nas publicó su debut y Wu-Tang Clan ya habían desembarcado. Aquí tenenos sonido DJ Premier (Gang Starr) lo que es sinónimo de calidad. No soy experto en hip-hop, en ese estilo mis gustos van a Digable Planets (más Brooklyn) o A tibred called quest, pero sonar suena muy bien especialmente en Jungle Music.

It was alright, not sure the hype. Hated the piano on the first track

It was alright, got some chuckles out of the references in the lyrics, though I sighed at the "I'm not misogynist BUT" song

Ok. Come clean sounds cool. A good hip hop album. Beats and hooks are mediocre tbh.

I’ll always dig this type of hip hop. Old school style beats with some good flow on top. Would definitely see myself going back to and listening to

I absolutely prefer the more lyrical sounds of 90s rap and that is especially apparent after getting two albums on each end of the spectrum this week. Within the golden runtime bracket for an album and had just enough variation to keep you on your toes. Great lyricism as well. Easy four star album.

Early 90s rap has to be really good for me to enjoy it. This wasn't bad, but it didn't do anything great. I got bored of it early on. I wouldn't have finished it if it wasn't on the list.

I listen to every rap album but can NEVER make it to the end!

Some run of the mill 90's hip hop. Definitely prefer the other bigger names that we've had on the list.

strong flow, less clunky than the roots, but doesn't feel distinctive

An underrated underground Rap classic.

Rock solid great production. Jeru showcases east coast rap just before the genre was really elevated by Nas and Biggie. Still great sound from this guy.

If this hadcome out a year or two earlier I think more people would have heard of it. The style is dated for when it came out, mostly because some absolute behemoths of rap music would release some incredible albums basically at the same time. I liked this, modern lyrical sensibilities aside, and the beats are some of premiers best. The cacophonous instrumental sampling actually works well with Jeru’s style. That said, the flow is a bit primitive and while Jeru is a good rapper he sometime seems to bite off rhyming techniques (finishing sentences on the on beat, splitting words at the end of a line) that he can’t quite land. Again, a year or two earlier and I think this would’ve been remembered in a better light. Strangely I never wanted to skip a track; the whole thing was good enough to listen to all the way and I even replayed a few songs (You Can’t Stop the Prophet, Come Clean). It’s better than average but not quite that 4 level for me.

You know, not my kind of music but it's actually pretty solid. That flow is smooth and clear as fuck. Lyrics are deep and still fun. I feel like I'm listening to a Spike Lee movie. The song I hated the most was Come Clean, which seems to have the most plays on Spotify. I think this could be a good album to run to....might give that a shot.

I don't know, it's a mixed bag... Some tracks have really cool lyrics, others less so... The beats are less interesting, so overall, it's ok.

Not interested

3.5 - Good

good stuff here by a legend of hip hop 3.5/5

There's nothing wrong with this, but it hasn't had the staying power of other albums at the time.

Buen álbum en general, buenos beats

I think there has definitely been better hiphop on here so far, but still it was a pretty fun album. Might return to it again sometime.

It’s hard to rate this objectively when there are kids today making music identical in quality if not better alone in their bedrooms. It’s great boom bap but it’s such an oversaturated market now that this wouldn’t stand out against anything coming out right now, which seemed to be the problem when this came out too. Mental stamina was the worst example of lyrical miracle ever. Da bichez is also stupid as shit, I hate when people try to validate calling women dumb whores by saying shit like “not all of em!!! Just these ones! And I really hate them!!” Such misogynistic shit. This was a full album of a man bragging about how great of a rapper he is, which he is skilled but the lyrical content seems to be focused solely on how good he is, and when he moves away from bragging it’s very forgettable or misogynistic. Feeling a light 2 overall and mainly just for the instrumentals, which are incredible.

It helped that I listened to this with someone who loves this guy's style and spent the drive picking out and repeating the lines he liked. 3 from me, 4 or 5 from him.

there's a lot of great 90s hiphop that shoots itself in the foot with slurs and this is some of it

This was enjoyable enough, but I mostly wanted to revisit a prior Ice T album or maybe a TLC album for a lot of it. Maybe it's a familiarity issue. 2.5

This was so surprisingly good

This was ok, I suppose it gets a bit forgotten given what a fertile time the mid 90s was for hip-hop. Reminds me a bit of Illmatic in a few ways, even the cover, so it might have been influential I'm not as big a fan of the beats as some comments allude to.. to me the dissonance is a bit jarring and I also find them a bit sparse at times. The drums are pretty dominant and sound kinda tinny. I did like most of the rapping though, he has quite an easy flow and it's a chilled out listen

There were a couple of tracks I quite liked but for the most part nothing overly memorable on this one. Top Track - Come Clean - E New Y Radio

The Sun Rises In The East is a pretty enjoyable album. I've never really heard of this album or this rapper but if i hadn't had the info this site and Wikipedia gave me, i probably would have thought this album came out in the late 80s because it has all the vibes of a late 80s hip-hop album. There were definitely some pretty fun bits of this album and some boring ones but those were pretty few and far between. This album still had quite a lot of the cheesiness i enjoy from these sorts of albums. I was also pretty surprised about the length of this album being only around 40 minutes when i would typically expect hip-hop albums to be an hour. I'm not sure i can justify giving this album any higher than 3 stars but i still like it. Best Song: Da Bichez Worst Song: Ain't The Devil Happy

Absolutely of a time but what a great time it was.

Nice to know that I don't like hiphop at all. It really suprised was nice to listen to Best tracks: Brooklin Took It, Jungle Music

Has a golden-era-of-rap sound to it but fell flat for me. There were two songs that I might listen to again.

Great classic 90s rap, fun to listen to, varied

a gem-- sick beats and some real ass shit.

This one was alright. I liked a lot of the mixing and instruments used but nothing grabbed me except You Can't Stop the Prophet. It was like a while movie pitch in a song.

This album has an interesting stripped-down sound that's unique to my experience. Still not my bag, but easy to see why it receives praise.

I really enjoyed this one! Very in line with east coast rap at the time, but with a bit of a unique perspective. I'd never heard of Jeru before. I'm looking forward to tracking down more of his stuff. Also interesting to hear early DJ Premier!

I had never heard of this artist and I loved the listening experience. East coast, 90s rap to a T. The flow was good, the production was even better. Will definitely be listening again.

This album seems to be from an alternate dimension. It is clearly from the East Coast '90s scene that birthed so many rappers I love but I've never even heard of him. The raps are angry, passionate, and often introspective, it's kind of like what if WuTang rapped about things other than guns and drugs? I liked it a lot, will definitely listen again. The cover is awful, like I don't even know where to begin, a 1/5.

1 - not a fan

it reminded me of a time long past. east coast vs west coast beef

Interesting ideas but the beats were just a step off. It’s probably intentional

Älskar 10/10 precis min smak, kan lyssna på det om och om igen Minuspoäng för misogyna texter men eftersom jag för det mesta ignorerar låttexter när jag lyssnar på musik så kvarstår mina 5 stjärnor.

matige rap

Surprised by the release year on this album. It sounded like 80s hip-hop, but with contemporary references. Nice flow and beats, to be honest. But there wasn't much beyond that, I couldn't enjoy the sketches in the album experience, and he was in fact misogynistic.

Not bad.

Good listen. I enjoyed Jeru old school Boom-Bap-Rap🔥🔥🔥

not mine

I like what it did to East coast hiphop, but I can’t enjoy it as much as most of the albums that came after it. Low 3

Hippety hop... niet de favoriet van mij, maar wel uit de jaren 90! Dat is vaak een stuk behapbaarder. Dus ik ben toch wel benieuwd ergens. Oke nee, eerste nummer is schrikbarend vervelend, meine gute. Zit een piano rif in, waar het lijkt alsof een kleuter random noten heeft ingespeeld en dat wordt herhaald. De tandjes. Oke, het 6e nummer is de eerste die mij echte 90's hiphop vibes geeft. En dat is prima te nassen. Maar wat een eikengezeik hiervoor zeg. 2e deel van het album was echt stukke beter, geen gekke herhalende irritante geluiden, maar gwn beats en lyrics. Toch komt idt voor mij niet verder dan een 2.

Gillar, bra gung. Would listen again

Very repetitive

Not for me in any way shape or form

Pas mon style

I love the vibe of 90s hip hop, but this one is not doing much for me.

Not my style but I really enjoyed it. I like how clearly he rapped so I could understand everything that was said- you can tell he made sure to annunciate with intentionality. Not a Fan of Da Bitchez, but it was kinda catchy, lol. "Bitch!" This album definitely throws me back to early '90s rap. ...I can't be sure, but I think this guy might be from Brooklyn.

very ordinary macho hip hop - "Da Bitchez"

Excellent hip-hop

While hip hop is not my favorite genre, I can appreciate its high points - the goofiness of De La Soul, the emotional depth of Kendrick Llamar, the soul-shattering lyricism of Public Enemy, heck, I even like Outkast. Jeru was someone I was not familiar with, and I was a bit puzzled as to why this album is regarded as one of the best of the genre. Maybe it's because of the production, because DJ Premier is on fire here. The dissonant blocks of piano in "D. Original" are as experimental as something by Dälek, the beat in "My Mind Spray" is amazing. But I was not too keen on Jeru's verses, especially in "Da Bichez", which has not aged well. So, this is a mixed bag for me, but ultimately, I didn't find it too interesting or engaging. Just a typical 90s hip hop record, apart from said highlights when it got a little more experimental.

Oh my, is this list "1001 hip-hop albums you must hear before you die"? I like the general sound of this album but there's better (NAS etc.)

Nice vinyl old school beats in this but not feeling much otherwise. Not bad but I don’t think this is very memorable or worth revisiting. Da Bichez has aged poorly

Never heard this before but the production was so cool.

Aldrig hört talas om Jeru. Men samma era som många hip-hop-album vi lyssnat på nu. Tycker nog att detta är mer behagligt och skönare än mycket av det andra. Intressant och rätt varierar. Kul

Oj, verkligen otippat att denna dök upp här. En riktig undergroundklassiker och en skiva jag har, men ändå inte lyssnat lika mycket på som mycket annat som släpptes vid den tiden, kanske för att det släpptes så mycket som är ÄNNU bättre då. Denna är inte direkt Illmatic, Ready to die eller 36 chambers, men forfarande en bra och framförallt välproducerad skiva. Stabil fyra.

East Coast at its best

It's fine. Political rap is good I just think i've gotten the jist

fun listen v chill

Slow, steady beats with weird, atonal piano loops that work well with his gritty, street-preacher flow. Afu-Ra adds a sharp contrast, and tracks like Da Bichez give brief, smooth jazzy breaks before the darkness creeps back in. I quite like the superhero fighting ignorance schtick, part scientist, part preacher, although he hammers the same themes over and over. It makes the message strong, but it’s not always an easy, casual listen. Favourite track - My Mind Spray. 7.5/10

Boring as fuck

Overall: 4/10 My rating would truly be higher if it wasn't for his lyrics cause the beats and flow are actually pretty entertaining and remind me of Wu-Tang a bit. Unfortunately, I find him to be an abysmal lyricist. I don't understand misogyny in any capacity and there's lots of it here. I just don't think he has the talent to pull it off and I found myself getting uncomfortable on multiple occasions. Fav Song: Brooklyn Took It

Pretty good. Catchy hooks and performance.

First thing I think of? Is this some failed audition tape to joint Wu Tang? There’s hints of ODB and Method Man in this, splashed with KRS One. I have never heard of this guy and the 90’s were when I was deepest into hip hop. I guess this is a learning day for me. I guess this would have been a pretty good album back in the day. This was the sound. It’s not bad. Well in the past though. I can’t see this being a big album nowadays with the trash “hip hop” that is out now. Choice cut: Da Bitchez

Jeru used the word "sacroiliac" on this album 4 years after Maestro Fresh Wes. Just saying.

First he predicted 9/11... then the Fyre Festival. Impossible to estimate the amount of damaj this man has caused.

Thought it was pretty good! Unlikely to listen again but I liked what I heard.

Good lyrics, good rhymes, good beats. I have never heard of Jeru so it was cool to be exposed to a new artist. I did appreciate that his lyrics were deeper and not just talking about how amazing he was (sometimes that is all rappers focus on). Instead it was more about culture and oppression, some deeper topics.

Jeru is new to me. Sonically, I enjoyed this record for being gangsta-ish rap with undertones of New York jazz rap (ala Guru or A Tribe Called Quest). So very 1994. Lyrically, he so uncreatively dips his toes into misogyny and homophobia. It was and still is so completely unnecessary to getting a point across. That brings this score down a couple points. So overall not great all the way through but cherry picking a few tracks for a larger playlist does just the trick.

I was so-so on this at the beginning, but I thought the album got better and better as it went on. Great lyrics on race and culture and oppression and I thought it was really creative too.

Jeru! I did not expect to see this pop up. Prime DJ Premier production. For my money the greatest hip hop producer of all time. This is the era where he had so many great beats he’d just waste 2 or 3 an album on a 45 second interlude. Much like Guru, Jeru just can’t rise to the level of the production. Like most Gangstarr albums it’s B+ rhymes over A+ beats, good but not great. That being said “Jungle Music” is an A+ song buried at the end of the album. Jeru softens his style a bit and rides the beat rather than competes with it. 4 stars

4.1 I have never heard of Jeru before, but this came up and then again in a Mark Ronson Trackstar video I watched on the same day. Very solid. come clean was a standout

2.5 A bit disappointed by this tbh. It’s something that should be right up my alley - 90s NYC rap with thoughtful lyrics - and I’ve heard of this MC before, as someone who was influential but I hadn’t ever really heard much of him. I was ready to like this! But even tho it’s certainly not BAD (it’s well produced, Jeru has a solid flow) it just never got GREAT to me. Lacking in hooks, it all kinda sucked a together at a certain point.

I think Jeru the Damaja was on the committee because that's the only way this album makes this list.

Fun east coast vibes, not my typical cup of tea but really enjoyable.

I asked my students if they had ever heard of Jeru The Damaja, and none of them had said "yes." That doesn't mean anything, fame is fleeting. Particularly in music. He has some good flow, although there were a couple of moments that seemed... off. It's interesting that three of the songs are uncredited, and to me two were some of the better pieces. "Da Bichez," however, could have stayed in the can. Yikes. Top tracks: "You Can't Stop the Prophet," "Come Clean," "Statik"

I started listening to this album a few times while working but I never made it past a couple songs. Too distracting. That can happen to me when listening to rap (too close to talking to concentrate) but I think it's more than that. It's the spastic and off-kilter beats, like repeated flat or sharp piano strokes in D. Original or Brooklyn Took It. Ugh. It also made it hard to focus on the lyrics, which apparently is what makes this album special. It got easier in the middle of the album, but he rotated between intelligent lyrical wordplay and juvenile topics or silly sidebars, including within songs like on You Can't Stop the Prophet. It would've been better if he stayed on the high road the whole time, like on Ain't the Devil Happy. I not so patiently waited for the big single Come Clean (track 11) and wasn't moved by it. So, struggling to see what made this one of the last albums I had to hear before I die.

Interesting/cool samples, particularly the dissonant piano chords on D. Original. And, wow, that's some smooth jazz to rap about Da Bichez. But a lot of the songs got dull after a while, even when the samples they were based on were cool (e.g., Brooklyn Took It, My Mind Spray, Come Clean). I'll go with the 3 because there was nothing I disliked, but I probably wouldn't revisit. Favorite tracks: D. Original, Ain't the Devil Happy, Jungle Music.

This really hasn't aged well. The production is great, the number of skits is manageable, and the flow is fine. Nothing really stands out as interesting though.

Pretty much what I expected from a 90’s rap album. Which is generally good. But this one doesn’t really stand out from the pack for me on first listen.

Rapping is pretty good but the beats are incredibly inconsistent in quality, with most being off in some way.

Not for me.

Solid vintage

Dope ass early nineties hip hop

East coast rapper, collaborated with Gang Starr. Eh.

The beats were good, the lyrics weren't safe for the office and got played at a low volume.

A while ago I started saying "damage" instead of "cringe". This won't stop me

Standard 90s hip hop. Nothing about it stands out in a way.

All I know is I just got Drive Like Jehu the other day, and I used to see ads for both of these artists a lot back in the day, so in my mind they go together, even though they don’t. Really enjoyed this though!