- Critic score
- Publication
- By date
-
LL does DEFinition with a superstar panache that never gets into that dangerously cheesy Will Smith territory and keeps it streetwise without putting on a front.
-
Light on filler, "The DEFinition" proves that, after 21 years in the industry, LL is as relevant as many of his contemporaries.
-
LL offers up "you rap for the thugs/I rap for the ladies" on the album, but there's some tough, near-"Mama Said Knock You Out"'s here, and from any hardcore thug's point of view, he's getting better at splitting the difference.
-
Rolling StoneLL Cool J has as much swaggering presence as ever. [30 Sep 2004, p.188]
-
Entertainment WeeklyThe party jams and lovemaking odes are merely competent genre exercises that bury his still-sharp voice. [10 Sep 2004, p.164]
-
There’s a distinct lack of personality, meaning that LL Cool J’s eleventh long player is merely good, and his reputation (and bank balance) will be neither tarnished nor expanded.
-
Q MagazineThere's nothing wrong with this record... Yet it's only on Feel The Beat, in which he lets his ego off the leash, that LL gets into gear. [Oct 2004, p.128]
-
Mostly the music is sufficiently inventive... Lyrically, though, this is mostly hip-hop by numbers.
-
BlenderMostly, he's outmuscled by the production. [Oct 2004, p.122]
User score distribution:
-
Positive: 6 out of 9
-
Mixed: 2 out of 9
-
Negative: 1 out of 9
-
mashpacMar 21, 2005ll cool j has proved his mettle again
-
raymondvNov 7, 2004excellent album all of it and especially "Headsprung and Hush"
-
BrandonMOct 24, 2004