Spice 1 — Spice 1

Debut studio album for Oakland rapper Spice 1, released by Jive Records and Californian label Triad Records. Production is often entrusted to Ant Banks, but Blackjack, Ea-Ski, CMT and Spice 1 himself also work behind the keyboards, creating a funky and relaxed musical carpet, typical of mobb music that emerged in the Bay Area, with good funky samples, bass lines and synths.

The lyricism chosen by the rapper heads in the gangsta direction: his lyrics fall within this standard, with a lot of aggression, drugs and violence in which he stands out from the others for the attempt not to glorify his bars, if not in the braggadocio traits, and insert also socio-conscious passages. For the track of "Peace to My Nine" that boasts a sample from George Clinton's group Funkadelic's "One Nation Under a Groove", George Clinton himself leaves a brief note in which he states that he grants the sample, but does not agree with what Spice 1 wrote and recited in his track.

Technically speaking, this Too Short protégé has good talent and possesses great flow and energetic rapping, offering some variation and even falling into reggae influenced cuts ("East Boy Gangster" and "1-800-Spice"). The album is one of his most personal records (Oakland's MC Ant is the only guest), doesn't have too many weaknesses as a whole, and is consistent despite a long run (close to the hour), thanks to his hardcore bars and an intriguing storytelling.

"In My Neighborhood" is chosen as the first single and is dope: amazing relaxed rhythm, light jazzy boom bap, light skeletal, slow and syncopated drum machine, sample from George Duke's "Reach for It", hardcore slow syncopated delivery by the MC. "Young Nigga" is another high point of the record. Simple rhythm, boom bap jazzy with a dope sample from Parliament's "Mothership Connection (Star Child)", good drum, simple chorus, smooth slow syncopated delivery. "Welcome to the Ghetto" is the second single of the LP and is a hit: fresh rhythm, lean slow drum machine, good silky rapping, good lyrics, the sample from The S.O.S. Band's "No One's Gonna Love You" sounds perfect.

Releasing by Jive and Triad, the record achieves good commercial success leaded by the singles ("Welcome to the Ghetto" stops at number five on the rap singles chart), peaking #14 on the hip-hop chart, becoming one of the best-selling gangsta rap albums of the season, and went gold by the RIAA for half a milion physical copies certified in the late 1993. In summary, is one of the best rap album of the year, later included in The Source's "100 Greatest Hip-Hop Albums".

Rating: 8/10.