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Rick Ross - Mastermind</div>

Rich Is Gangsta: 3.75/5
"For me moving forward from here on I need 50 / I ain't talking 50 cent neither, haha" SHOTS FIRED. This one starts off with a track that feels misplaced. Now, it is a good track. I like Ross' verses and the beat from Black Metaphor is good as well. However, on that note, the beat sounds...celebratory. Like a victory lap or a celebration of some sorts. It certainly does not feel like the first actual track on the album, yet it is. But, that does not really matter. At the end of the day, this one is a solid start to the album and gives the upcoming tracks something to live up to.

Drug Dealers Dream: 4.25/5
-The beat works really well here, but it plays second fiddle to Rick Ross here. I am not typically a fan of Rick Ross, but damn, dude went IN on this track. He flows really nicely on this beat and paints a very vivid picture of what it is like to be a drug dealer (I am SURE he is speaking from experience here). Now, on the negative, I could do without the "ahhh" at the end of the hook, but otherwise, the hook works really well and while not completely catchy, it blends in really well with the verses and helps to add that icing to the cake that every song needs.

Nobody (ft. French Montana & Diddy): 4.75/5
-Diddy gets his Birdman handrub on here as he provides inspirational words for the intro and outro of this one and well...even that is effective. Like, I was pumped up for this one when I heard Diddy's voice in my headphones. Yet, I was still skeptical. I mean, French Montana is on the hook. How good can this one be? French has handled hook duties in the past on Pusha T's "Doesn't Matter" off of the mixtape Wrath of Caine to surprisingly positive results and he continues that here. Now, French is a terrible singer, but is version of "singing" is actually pleasant to here. He is not trying to be Justin Timberlake or something, but on tracks like these, it sounds quite good. Moving onto Rozay, he is at the top of his game here. I heard this track last week for the first time and my eyebrows noticeably raised when I first heard this track. I knew Rick Ross could spit (thanks "Devil In A New Dress" and "Hold On"), but I never thought he was this good. Much like the prior track, Ross gets his storyteller on here to great results. When he wants to, Ricky Ross can really paint a great picture of what is on his mind. If only he did more often.

The Devil Is a Lie (ft. Jay Z): 3.5/5
-The lead single of this one and it has held up to repeated listens. This one has all the makings of a dud, especially with Jay Z in his recent poor form (seriously fuck Magna Carta Holy Grail). However, while not great, this one turns out pretty ok. I like the beat from Major Seven & KE on the Track and both Ross and Hova flow well on it. None of the verses are outright phenomenal and there is a noticeable difference in quality between this and the prior two tracks, but there is nothing horrible about this track. Now, I will likely not be bumping this many many times, but I do not see myself skipping this one if it pops up.

Mafia Music III (ft. Sizzla & Mavado): 3.5/5
"Wale a genius, Meek Mill a superstar". Say what you want about Ross' past life and how he is not a gangster and whatever else, but he has never told a lie this big in his life. Wale is not a genius and Meek is not a superstar. Stop lieing to us Rozay. Anyways, the song. The beat is pretty smooth and feels generally quite laid back to me. There are some weird, I do not know what to call them, but like bubbling pops or something of the sort. If you have heard the track, you may know what I mean, that I do not enjoy that much at all and take away from the track. This one turns into a Sizzla and Mavado track at the end and even though I am not a reggae guy, I have no problems with that. I think the reggae portion at the end is relatively effective, but I just wish Ross either limited their role or gave himself a couple words at the end. Their portion is so long, I forgot it was a Rick Ross song.

War Ready (ft. Jeezy): 4.25/5
-Love the intro, it really sets the tone for the track and then when the beat creeps in every so slowly...oooooooo. This is what I call a banger. The beat is heavily trap-influenced and Ross easily transitions from the storytelling of tracks such as "Drug Dealers Dream" and "Nobody" to the ignant area of his game. I am not a fan of the hook from Tracy T, however. I do not like the flow he uses on it and while it obviously used for emphasis and to make it feel more intense, I think it could either be skipped or sped up a bit. But, once Jeezy comes in and spits the quickest verse I think I have heard him spit, this shit picks up once more. I mean, much like Ross, Jeezy ain't saying much, but I cannot help but love it. He will soon be upstaged as the best feature on this album, but up to now, Jeezy's turn was a great one. That is not to say that Ross does not do well on this, as he absolutely does. Really solid track overall from two unexpected sources. This track may be seven minutes, but a great long track does not show its length and this one does not show its length at all.

What a Shame (ft. French Montana): 3/5
-As good as his hook on "Nobody" was, that is how bad French Montana's hook is on this track. Now, it does not ruin the track as I do like Ross' verses, but he harkens back a bit to "FuckWithMeYouKnowIGotIt" as he rhymes ***** with ***** on two occasions and that is always a turn off for me. ***** does not rhyme with ***** because they are the same word. Stop trying it.

Supreme: 2.75/5
-When I saw Scott Storch produced this one, I got really excited. It has been a cool minute since I heard a track produced by Scott Storch and this is not what I expected. Honestly, I am not a huge fan of the beat on this one and was admittedly hoping for a mid-2000s Storch beat a la the ones he blessed The Game with on Doctor's Advocate. Ross' verses are not bad, but they do not strike a cord in me like some of his verses on this album. Overall, I am left feeling no type of way other than "meh". Very skippable.

BLK & WHT: 2.5/5
-If it smells like, sounds like, and tastes like filler, it may just be filler. This one fits all three of those criteria. It is not outright horrible or anything, but I just do not really care for this one, especially his flow and the hook. His flow is noticeably poor at the end of verse 2 when he says, "Trayvon Martin, I'm never missing my target / Bitch niggas hating, tell me it's what I'm parking / Wingstop owner, lemon pepper aroma / Young, black *****, barely got a diploma". Now, these lines are not terrible, but the one he says them, just made me cringe. Same with the hook. I get what he is going for, but saying "A ***** black, but he selling black", just does not work. A hook is supposed to either be catchy or help amplify the verses in some way and attract attention to the song. This hook does not do that. I think Ross himself does well on the hook, but the lyrics to this fall short.

In Vein (ft. The Weeknd): 5/5
-As this one starts off, I am not a fan of the vocal distortion at the very beginning, but that is where my problems with this track end. Once The Weeknd starts getting his sexed up croon on. The Weeknd picks his features very well and this track is no exception. Typically, he hooks up with lesser rappers, whether it be on "Remember You" (Wiz Khalifa), "One of Those Nights" (Juicy J), and "Gifted" (French Montana), but here he manages to hook up with Rick Ross and boy does he bring his A-game. Typically sexed up and dripping with sexual tension, The Weeknd dominates this song. While Ross is the best rapper he has worked with, Abel continues his streak of killing dudes on their own song. However, Rick Ross puts up the best fight of the bunch as he completely shocks me. I mean, this track is produced by The Weeknd, but the way the beat switches (I would not call it a complete switch, as the feel is very much the same) after Abel's part ends is perfect and really accomodates Rick Ross well. His flow on this one is great and he does not say that much, but regardless, it comes off as very appropriate for this track. It is hard to imagine a track on this album topping this one.

Sanctified (ft. Kanye West & Big Sean): 4.75/5
-Lord Yeezus Christ turns water to wine on this track as he blesses us with his daily bread. Thank our lord and savior, Yeezus Christ. First off, the sample is very effective on this one and feels like a beat from My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy (though less dark). You can also hear the contributions of DJ Mustard as you get that trap-influenced "hit" (not sure on the term, but I think that describes it sort of well). Now, onto the verses, Kanye blesses us with yet another classic verse. Make this the second track in a row where Ross gets renegaded against his will, but it is hard to think of him turning in a hotter verse than Yeezus. While I think he gets upstaged here, I do still enjoy his verse. Honestly, it may be one of the best verses from Ross on the entire album. Finally, and here is the real shocker, Medium Sean did not blow this. I know, shocking.

Walkin’ on Air (ft. Meek Mill): 2.25/5
-"Meek, I'm sorry I'm sorry! I didn't mean to do it, please just stop yelling and calm down! Oh no, not you too Rozay, you don't need to yell at me too! I'm liking your album, please don't be so mad at me!"

That about sums this one up as Meek Milly gets his scream on and Rick Ross' flow stealing becomes obvious as hell on this one as he gets his scream on, though significantly toned down in comparsion to Meek. Like, Meek sounds PISSED OFF, as if he just walked in on his main bitch fucking another dude. Any potential this track had = ruined.

Thug Cry (ft. Lil Wayne): 4.25/5
-An album full of surprises and this one will chalk up as the biggest surprise of them all. A 2014 track with Rick Ross and Lil Wayne? Shit gonna be certified trash. But wait, it is not and in fact, is a great closing track. I like the beat from J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League a good bit and the sampled hook is really beautiful and works well on this track. Now, here comes the biggest surprise; Wayne went in. Yes, 2014 Lil Wayne restores hope nationwide in The Carter V on this track. Now, he needs to continue this, but this made me at least take notice. Another plus, he never mentions eating pussy in his verse. I think the last time that happened was about 2007 or so. Seven year drought ended in a minute. Damn. Overall, a shockingly good closing track that makes me want to check out Rick Ross' prior discography again (though I will not, because I do not like diappointment.

48.5/65 -> 3.73/5

Honestly, the biggest surprise of the year thus far. Definitely my favorite Rick Ross album up to this point, next probably being Teflon Don. The guest features are solid throughout, aside from Meek Mill and French Montana's second feature. But, most importantly, Rick Ross continuously killed it. He had a few weak tracks and those are what dragged this album down, but he also had some verses where he killed it, on tracks such as "Drug Dealers Dream", "Nobody", and "Sanctified". Add in the clear standout track "In Vein" and the solid closing track "Thug Cry" and you have a pretty damn good effort from Ricky Ross. While he feels more lyrical than usual here, he does not fully abandon the hype trap tracks and actually turns in solid songs on those with both "The Devil Is A Lie" and "War Ready" serving as shining examples of Ross' flexibility. Now, not everything was great here and the filler from 9-11 and the useless skit "Dope Bitch" serve as true negatives, but the good definitely outweigh the bad here. Mastermind proves that Ross can rap to any doubters, now let us see if he can continue this.