On T.I.'s sixth studio album, 'Paper Trail', a direct reference to his return to literally writing down his lyrics - a practice he hasn't engaged in since his debut album, sees him relieving the stress on his chest concerning his impending prison sentence, but also sees him remaining smart enough to include enough bankable hits in the mix.
The opening track, '56 Barz', he says, "Ya'll been waiting on this sh-t since 'What You Know", referring to a lot of the fans lack to connect to 2007's 'T.I. vs. T.I.P.', since the album failed to be consistent on many levels going back and forth between the two split personalities.
On the lead single, 'Whatever You Like', he turns on the charm of an R&B Casanova and does so with little effort. 'No Matter What', sees him delivering his lyrical abilities in full force with great flow and astonishing rhythm. The uplifting 'Live Your Life, is an addictive track with help from Pop beauty Rihanna and her vocoded vocals, as she chants:
"You’re gonna be a shining star
fancy clothes, fancy car
And then you’ll see, you’re gonna go far
Cause everyone knows, who you are
So live your life"
The album is also extremely heavy on the guest features (which isn't always a good thing), the collaboration with one time enemy Ludacris, 'On Top of the World', the Kanye West produced 'Swagga Like Us' featuring Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Lil' Wayne, and the Usher assisted 'My Life Your Entertainment', all of which are enthralling tracks, but also show his counterparts stealing the spotlight.
Other notable standouts include: the mainstream friendly 'Porn Star', the high energy Swizz Beatz produced 'Swing Ya Rag', the reflective John Legend assisted 'Slide Show', the Justin Timberlake featured 'Dead and Gone', and the street single 'What's Up, What's Happenin'.
The albums disappointments come from his lack of subject range, being that most of the songs contain references to upcoming jail stint or radio friendly hooks that will quickly ignite at radio.
Just like his previous albums. he spends a extremely too much time bragging instead of actually trying to deliver a lyrical compelling product.
3.5 out of 5
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