has been in limbo for two years, but it still sounds fresh. Jay-Z lights up a remix of the brain-searing single "Hell Yeah (Pimp the System)," which describes scraping up scratch and sticking up the pizza guy. But Dead Prez are worlds away from standard-issue iced-up criminality: Over popping electro beats, Stic and M1 deliver lines such as "Modern-day slave conditions/Got me flippin'/Burgers with no power/Can't even buy one with what I make in an hour."
Revolutionary But Gangsta is a vicious, conscious kick.
LAURA SINAGRA
(RS 947, April 29, 2004)
Arguably the best politically-minded hip-hop crew in the game, dead prez have been taking aim at The Man ever since their classic 2000 debut, Let's Get Free. On RBG, Sticman and M-1 continue to sound off against racism, classism, and shady police, backed by rock-solid production throughout