Tape by Thomas "Tommy Nova" Peterson, Jr., rapper from the Bronx. A third is self-produced, the remaining rhythms are performed by Eargasm Productions, A-1, Beat Chefs, Selasi, Tonebeatz, Mo, Juga-Naut and Blue Rocks. The guests are Mean Doe Green, Cali Carma BigRec, Selasi Flint, Juga-Naut, Panic, but the name you might most easily recognize is that of the Wu-Tang Clan rapper Raekwon.
The cover is interesting: in the midst of dozens of generic rappers (light blue), Tommy Nova stands out (in red) as the guy who's raising his hand or greeting someone I don't know, his name, still in red, invests a couple of guys in the crowd and at the bottom there's the title of the album in white, with the writing that indicates the presence of the Chef. Curiously, the Wu-Tang is mentioned twice only on the cover: the Lex Diamonds name features the supergroup logo, again in red, although his moniker has a "w" that can naturally lend itself to being replaced by the logo, this is the first and only time that his name uses it.
Tommy Nova is a competent performer, there's a lot of passion in this effort and the tape holds up as long as the boom bap production supports it. "Surrender" boasts an accessible, simple rhythm, correct drum and a soulish rnb loop, which adequately support Tommy Nova's style. Also "Coffee Shop" is well-made, dry drum midtempo, soul loop that breathes, slow rap of the interpreter. This is followed by a skit-outro of over three minutes, and after a while a sort of hidden track begins, I think, a freestyle on the unmistakable rhythm that Just Blaze created for Jay Electronica's mythical "Exhibit C". After the first few songs, the quality of the music drops into forgettable generic territory and the tape doesn't stand out from the modern rap scene, even Raekwon's feats are weakened by an amateur rhythm set. 5/10.
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