Fat Joe - Don Cartagena

The third album from power-Bronx Latino rapper Fat Joe tones down his once-prevalent gangsta leans -- they're still there, though, from the album's title to rhythmic gunshot bursts guiding the cuts -- and builds up his hood and familial loyalties through a series of melodically enticing (and vaguely Wu-tang-ish) songs. Like he did on Big Punisher's album from the same year, Capital Punishment, Fat Joe works Don Cartagena's slinky street beats into a semi-sublime hip-hop opera that's more than a sum of its parts. Read More