Search - DJ Clue :: Professional (Clean)

An album that only a devout New York rap-radio fan could enjoy, DJ Clue's The Professional is filled with tracks by chart-topping hip-hop acts who've already been overexposed. It's not even a true DJ album: Clue doesn't mix the songs (which is probably a blessing), and there's a minimum of turntable tricks--just beats, rhymes, and redundancy. Artists like DMX, Big Pun, Noreaga, Nas, and Jay-Z practically have side careers as cameo artists, and while they--along with the rest of the usual suspects--appear here as "featured" guests, fans of their work are better off seeking out albums under their own names. While some tracks are better than others, there are simply too many songs that fall into a New York rap aesthetic already taken to the brink of exhaustion. If that's your cup of tea, sip away. Otherwise, reach for something else. --Oliver Wang