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With surprisingly little filler, renewed energy, and the unique glimpse Before I Self Destruct offers into the psyche of a public figure as intriguing as Curtis Jackson, 50 Cent has crafted easily his best album since "Get Rich or Die Trying."
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Call it voyeur. Call it artificial. Call it exploitative. Just don’t call it boring. It’s the first 50 Cent album in some time that can boast that.
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Before I Self Destruct is still a fantastic juggernaut of a 50 album if you exit early, and a very good one even if you don't.
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Growling violent threats over hard beats, 50 sounds the hungriest he has in years. Of course, there’s nothing remotely original about the formula he’s returning to, but at least he’s going through the motions with gusto.
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On the lyrical side of things, 50 seems to have his edge back. Whether he's orchestrating a robbery or bucking (pun intended) shots at his foes, it seems apparent that the criticisms got to him. For the hard core fans, the softer songs are skippable, but I can't hold that against him too much.
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If Destruct qualifies as a pleasant surprise, it’s only because 50 Cent’s last few releases set the bar so low. Still, for the first time since The Massacre, it’s once again intermittently fun to root for the bad guy
Awards & Rankings
User score distribution:
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Positive: 64 out of 99
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Mixed: 19 out of 99
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Negative: 16 out of 99
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GarzaBloodNov 24, 2009
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Jan 2, 2014
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ValeriySDec 6, 2009I do think that it is the best thing he did except brilliant Massacre, and among the best rap albums of this year.