It’s been an interesting few years for the man that calls himself Rick Ross (original name: William Roberts II). Between multiple arrests, at least one targeted shooting, and a significant weight loss, the Maybach Music leader has surely managed to remain relevant. However, the results are not the same when it comes to his latest music releases.
Since a highly successful year in 2012 with releases Rich Forever and God Forgives, I Don’t, Ross has been responsible for some lackluster albums. After taking off musically in 2013, he dropped his long awaited Mastermind project. While pretty solid for Rick Ross standards, it was nowhere near as successful as his previous album. Ross then proceeded to rush his follow-up into production, titled Hood Billionaire. Outside of the lead singles, this project was very lazy and disappointing to say the least.
Rozay has now graced us with his first free album since the successful 2012 Rich Forever, titled Black Dollar. With this newest release it seems apparent Ross has gone back to the drawing board, creating an album with high-quality tracks that are sure to become some of his classics. What’s more interesting is that he has chosen to release this new project for absolutely free, another example of hip hop artists bucking the system of a major record label release.
Ross begins the album properly with its two lead singles, starting off with ‘Foreclosures.’ This track, produced by J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, gives us that classic Ross flow his fans know and love. That classic flow continues with ‘Money Dance,’ featuring The-Dream. One thing important to note with tracks like these is that Ross is giving us a full effort (for absolutely free!).
Black Dollar also includes tracks that address issues ranging from the Baltimore riots of earlier this year with ‘We Gon Make It;’ to calling out ‘Freeway’ Ricky Ross, the notorious hustler Mr. Roberts II took his stage name from. It’s nice to hear some substance from Rick Ross tracks, which has been a rare occasion as of late.
Sure, there are plenty of mindless tracks that sound like they were done in one take like ‘Turn Ya Back’ and ‘2 Shots.’ With that said: What’s a Rick Ross albums without some album filler? There is sure to be someone out there who enjoys them. At the same time, Rozay could have easily did away with the lackluster tracks on Black Dollar and have himself an album that competes with the hottest in the game. This is easily the biggest drawback, but it’s hard to complain about an album that’s free (was that mentioned yet?).
If you’re someone who isn’t looking to swim through the mediocre stops on Black Dollar, there are definitely a handful of tracks worth a listen. Besides the two lead tracks, these standouts include ‘Icon,’ ‘Geechi Liberace,’ ‘Bel Air,’ and ‘Dead Rappers.’ There is also the Meek Mill-featured ‘World’s Finest,’ which has a solid beat and solid work from Ross, but Meek Mill delivers one of his two tired guest verses from Black Dollar (Meek, you own many rolexes. WE GET IT).
As always, the question remains: Is Black Dollar worth a listen? It all depends on if you enjoy Maybach Music in the first place. This is like any other Ross album so feel free to skip this one like all the rest if you aren't a fan. If you only like a select few Rozay tracks, feel free to listen to the suggested ones above, and you surely won't be disappointed. If you’re a fan, you’re gonna be satisfied with this entire release, because Rick Ross is back in full force!
