When you look at how large the South has become within hip-hop, and how its influence has spread into various other genres of music, we have to go back to the innovators and pioneers of southern hip-hop. Many in the late eighties to early nineties look at the one and only, Luther Campbell, aka Uncle Luke, to that distinction, as he introduced bass music (along with the late, great DJ Magic Mike) that had trunks rattling and definitely booties shaking all over the south. However, when it came to storytelling and emceeing, one name comes to mind, and that's Brad Jordan, aka Scarface. Part of the iconic southern group, The Geto Boys, he, along with Bushwick Bill and Willie D (shouts to original members Sir Rap-A-Lot, DJ Reddy Red, Raheem, Prince Johnny C, and Sire Jukebox) paved the way for many southern acts to emerge south of the Mason-Dixon line and into the true dirty portions of the south. With vivid, and often violent and misogynistic rhymes, the group helped other pioneering southern acts like Eightball & MJG, Three 6 Mafia, and UGK establish their own voices within the south. Once Face began to go solo with his debut album, Mr. Scarface Is Back, we knew this was a special type of emcee. A more macabre version of Slick Rick, his knack for storytelling was second to none, as his tales of violence, hustling, pimping, drug usage, and paranoia often played major roles in his cuts. As time would go on, he would balance the gritty tales of the streets with signs of spirituality and introspection. Many southern emcees such as T.I., Ludacris, Gucci Mane, Killer Mike, and Outkast all give props and respect to arguably the most influential emcee to ever come from the south. His influence and respect have even had him collaborate with acts outside the south such as Nas, Jay-Z, Beanie Sigel, Common, Freddie Gibbs, Dr. Dre, Cube, and Snoop, making him among the first to receive that kind of love. His discography, likewise, is as epic as his career. A practically flawless discography, this was a hard list to compile, but we will try to organize this from least dope to classic. With that being said, let's handle this y'all!
12. My Homies Pt. 2
Production: artist, Tone Capone, N.O. Joe, Bigg Tyme, Mr. Lee, KLC, others
Guests: Do or Die, Beanie Sigel, The Game, Yukmouth, Lil Flip, UGK, Trae Tha Truth, Chamillionaire, PNC, Juvenile, Z-Ro, Ice Cube, Lil Keke, others
In '98, Scarface dropped a compilation called My Homies (which we will cover shortly). Overall, another success for Mr. Jordan and Rap-A-Lot, he decided to do a sequel to this project eight years later with My Homies 2. It follows much of the same formula that made the original dope: thumping tracks with respected colleagues and labelmates of his. He didn't reinvent the wheel here, nor did anyone on this double album for that matter. Tracks like "Definition of Real", "Never Snitch" (both original and the remix with Beanie Sigel and The Game), and "Gangsta" are straight out hard. These are cuts, along with several others, that exemplify the rough streets sounds of Face and company. While most of his collaborators of the first My Homies were primarily Rap-A-Lot artists, this album is more spread out, as he's garnered so much love and respect throughout the industry that it wasn't just limited to Rap-A-Lot artists, as other guests such as UGK (Pimp had a posthumous verse on the cut "Pimp Hard"), Wacko, Ice Cube, Mike Jones, Eightball & MJG, and Juvenile show up to deliver good to great performances and help out the triple O.G. Even previously unreleased cuts such as his track with his Geto Boys mates, Willie D and the late Bushwick Bill, "My Life" and the remix to Common's outstanding "The Corners" that he appears on, along with Kanye, The Last Poets, and even a verse from Mos "Yasiin Bey" Def show up here. The sequel to My Homies is just as hard and unapologetic as the first, with him celebrating his respect among his peers, yet still letting the world know who the godfather of southern hip-hop is.
11. Balls & My Word
Production: Mike Dean, N.O. Joe, Tone Capone, T-Mix, others
Guests: Bun B, Devin The Dude, Tela, Z-Ro, others
With as many efforts as Face had put out, one had to imagine there would be some loosies laying around on the cutting room floor and that they would show up sometime. Enter Balls & My Word. This is a collection of some of his unreleased tracks, and even a couple of new ones as well. One of the new cuts was a scathing diss at 50 Cent, "Bitch Nigga", featuring cold verses from Bun B, Dirt Bomb, and another H-Town legend, Z-Ro. Another controversy that surrounded it was reportedly Face wasn't happy about this album coming out, as this was a J. Prince decision. The cuts themselves were overall not bad at all, as evidenced with cuts like "Real Nigga Blues", "Stuck at A Standstill", and the dumb dope collaboration with Tela and Devin The Dude, "Only Your Mother". While this may not have been a project Face was especially proud of, Balls & My Word was definitely a Face-type effort. He's had obviously way stronger releases, but this wasn't as bad as he made it to be.
10. My Homies
Production: artist, N.O. Joe, Mr. Lee, Tone Capone, Mike Dean, 88-Keyz, others
Guests: Facemob, 2Pac, Master P, Menace Clan, Mr. 3-2, UGK, A-G-2-A-Ke, Ghetto Twinz, Do Or Die, Willie D, Ice Cube, DMG, Johnny P, others
Earlier, we covered the sequel to the original My Homies with My Homies 2. The original was certainly dope enough. Seen as a compilation for Rap-A-Lot Records (the home J. Prince and The Geto Boys built as seen by many), Face brought forth mostly his Rap-A-Lot labelmates for one big hood barbecue on wax. The majority of this double album, Face doesn't even appear on, thus more of a compilation album more than a Face album with tons of guest appearances. However, in the cuts he does appear on such as the cautionary cut with DMG, late vocalist Johnny P, and Lo-Ke, "Win, Lose Or Draw", the collab with Devin and Tela, "Southside Houston", "Ma Homiez" (which is one of only two cuts that Face does solo), and the cut with his Facemob crew, "You Owe Me", he commands the cuts with his usual fiery baritone delivery. He mainly shares the stage to allow his labelmates some shine such as A-G-2-A-Ke, Ghetto Twinz, Menace Clan, and the original Po' Pimps themselves, Do Or Die. Some of these acts deliver good to great performances, and others tend to miss the mark. However, as a whole, this is a strong compilation worthy of being in the talks of great Face (or Face related) projects. From the likes of Cube, bay area legend B-Legit, and Master P to UGK, Face brought some heavyweights (for the most part) with him on My Homies, and this was worth the bump
9. Last Of a Dying Breed
Production: artist, Erick Sermon, N.O. Joe, Mr. Lee, Tone Capone, Mike Dean
Guests: Jay-Z, UGK, Tha Dogg Pound, Jayo Felony, Redman, Young Noble of Tha Outlawz, Too $hort, Devin The Dude
By the turn of the century, Face was clearly among the most acclaimed and revered emcees of them all, and his 2000 offering, Last of A Dying Breed, didn't derail things one bit. On the heels of the aforementioned My Homies album, Uncle Face kept the momentum going with his seventh album, Last of A Dying Breed. This album was a bit more mixed, stylistically speaking. While most Face albums would be macabre and dark yet with context and introspection, this didn't have quite as much of this element. Don't get it twisted folks. This was still a Face album. Cuts like the ominous title track, "In My Time" and "Look Me in My Eyes" are as typical Face as you could get. While not overly menacing like a lot of his previous work, they still harness brooding imagery and chilling lyrics. However, he brings some sunshine into his cloudy days here as well, in the form of lighter cuts like the disrespectfully funky Erick Sermon-produced, "It Ain't Pt. 2", the throwback tribute to BDP featuring UGK, "They Down with Us", and the Redman/Young Noble of Tha Outlawz-assisted "And Yo". Jay-Z even makes an appearance on the cut "Get Out", and of course there's the misogynistic "In & Out" with Devin and Too $hort to keep things flavorful with any Face album. While the latter may not quite be up to the standard as previous sleazy classics like "The Pimp" and "Goin' Down", it still serves a notion that Mr. Jordan still has his brand of crass humor that he's known for. While he's stated that he wasn't necessarily jumping overt the moon for this album, to his fans, this was plenty dope for them. Maybe not the most consistent in terms of fluidity, but LOADB still is a great bumper for diehard Face heads.
8. Made
Production: Nottz, N.O. Joe, Mike Dean, John Bido, Mr. Lee, Enigma
Guests: Trey Songz, Wacko, Z-Ro, others
The year of 2007 wasn't exactly the most heralded in hip-hop. While some albums such as Blu & Exile's outstanding Below The Heavens, Brother Ali's awesome The Undisputed Truth, Kanye's Graduation, Common's tremendous Finding Forever, and Aesop Rock's abstract excellence, None Shall Pass, for the most part it was a good year, not as great one. One of the other albums that deserves to be mentioned on the great one's list is Face's Made album. Gangsta and rugged, Made is Face with an apparent chip on his shoulder. Thumpers like "Dollar", "Burn", and the anthemic "Big Dogg Status" help define the album and what it represents. The O.G. of O.G.s stomps through the hood with reverence and respect all at his feet and reminds us of this throughout this effort. He brings forth messages with depth and clarity on more serious cuts like "Boy Meets Girl" and the unbelievable "Suicide Note", but Face also tries his hand at the radio with the Trey Songz-assisted rework of the classic Lenny Williams cut "Because I Love You", "Girl U know" and it's enough to be a neck snapper. Face didn't reinvent the wheel with Made, but then again, he didn't have to. That's not what this effort was for. This was to further assert who he is and that he's your favorite's favorite.
7. Emeritus
Production: artist, N.O. Joe, !llmind, Cool & Dre, Nottz, Green Lantern, Sha Money XL, Mike Dean, Scram Jones, Jake One, Tone Capone
Guests: Lil Wayne, Wacko, Bun B, Z-Ro, Bilal, Slim Thug, K-Rhino, others
In very similar fashion to the aforementioned Made, Face delivered Emeritus a couple of years later. It was arguably seen as another Made, but with perhaps more introspection than before with Made. He's starting to realize the game is changing around him and that it just may be time to hang up that mic and go out like the G he's always been. Unapologetically street and most certainly ten toes in for the hood, tracks like "Redemption Song", "Unexpected" and the title track reminds the listener he's still THAT one, and all respect better be given to him with threatening bars and no-nonsense delivery. While he's undoubtedly a hero to the hood, there are still people that doubt his legacy going into this album, and on cuts like "We Need You" and the resounding aura of the Bun B/Lil Wayne-assisted "Forgot About You", it's clear there's a bitterness that's there where he feels unappreciated and an afterthought with some people. originally, this was supposed to be his swan song, but that would end up being nearly a decade later with Deeply Rooted. However, with Emeritus, this would be his last one until then, and it was a statement that, although he was going out with low key resentment within him, the real still knew Uncle Face was still the realest of the real, and this album, although at times uneven, still was as much Scarface as any other project that made him a southern icon.
6. The World Is Yours
Production: artist, N.O. Joe, John Bido
Guests: DMG, J. Prince
Following up one of the single hardest debuts in hip-hop history, Scarface was faced with the task of following up such an enormous work in Mr. Scarface Is Back. Being the fearless emcee and artist he was, he continued to "let his nuts hang" with the release of his sophomore album, The World Is Yours. In many aspects, this was almost an extension of his debut, as cuts filled with utter violence, vivid rhymes, and the occasional introspective cut or two are prevalent here as well. He comes rugged on cuts like "Still That Aggin", "Mr. Scarface III", and the DMG-assisted "You Don't Hear Me Doe". It's when he comes with different approaches where we see where he shines the most, however. On the second, and most known, single, "Now I Feel Ya", we hear from a very introspective and reflective Face spitting about fatherhood and in a way that shows almost immense maturity and growth from the first album. Also, on the conceptual "Dying with Ya Boots On", he details a story of a seemingly shady cop and a homeboy-turned-rat, in which he deals with both his way. Meanwhile cuts like "The Wall" and "I'm Black" tackle subjects of depression, suicide, and racism respectively. Many scoff that the production is nothing to brag about and compared to his debut and previous Geto Boys releases, that can be argued. However, with The World Is Yours, Face continued to propel himself as one of the game's most command spitters and one of the gangsta rap's most intriguing storytellers.
5. Deeply Rooted
Production: artist, N.O. Joe, Mike Dean, Nottz, others
Guests: Alex Isley, Nas, Z-Ro, Rick Ross, John Legend, Avant, Cee-Lo, others
After venomously declaring he was leaving the game with the aforementioned Emeritus, he decided to go out in a less bitter, more appreciative manner in 2015 with Deeply Rooted. Unlike Emeritus, this album has a more healed and reflective, yet still occasionally menacing and non-nonsense, Uncle Face. He had realized his place in the upper echelon of not just southern emcees, but emcees period, not matter what part of the world you represented or what subgenre. Therefore, he seemingly wanted to leave on better terms, and the result was the best album he had delivered, top to bottom, since another opus of his, The Fix. He starts the album off with his patented screw-faced styles cuts like "Rooted", "Fuck You Too", and the trunk-bumping "Dope Man Pushing". We get into more jewel-dropping cuts once we reach the Nas/Rick Ross/Z-Ro-assisted "Do What I Do", as well as the slightly conceptually intense, "Steer", and the ode to The Most High with John Legend, "God". His spirituality had started coming into play on The Diary, and since then has been tackled in at least some part of his following albums (especially on The Fix). He tackles the delicate subject of mental illness, anxiety, and depression on the solemn cuts "Voices" and the Alex Isley-assisted "Mental Exorcism". Aiming to not have this be a completely heavy album, he gets into the inspirational, church organ-sampled "All Bad", however he brings it back with the breakup ode, the Avant-crooned, "Keep It Movin'". Gone are the juvenile, misogynistic cuts in his past like "Goin' Down" and "The Pimp", but heavily included are more very wise and jewel-dropping cuts that show that Face is indeed that OG. One would scoff that there are R&B hooks on over half the album practically, but these hooks perfectly fit each song, therefore really not overstaying their welcome. As an elder statesman in hip-hop, Face could've rested with that shoulder chip with Emeritus, but he gave it one last try with Deeply Rooted, and we are all the more appreciative of this. In a year that ranks among the single best of the century in 2015 (To Pimp A Butterfly, Compton, All Love Lost, Tetsuo & Youth, The Documentary 2 & Documentary 2.5 among several others), this album was Scarface's swan song and fits right up there with not only among his career best, but among the best of that decade.
4. The Untouchable
Production: artist, Dr. Dre, N.O. Joe, Tone Capone, Mike Dean
Guests: Dr. Dre, Ice Cube, Too $hort, Devin The Dude, 2Pac, Roger Troutman, Johnny P, Daz Dillinger
Following up an all-time classic in The Diary was not simple. However, in '97, he absolutely succeeded with The Untouchable. The album starts with a slow creep going into the title track, but once we're in, we're definitely in. With the late, great Roger Troutman providing the hook, Face is in full Face mode, and he doesn't let his foot off the gas one bit for the next several songs especially. Cuts such as the vivid "Southside", the clash of money and fame versus self-morality "Ya Money or Ya Life", and the utterly dope "For Real" are all heavy-handed standouts that exemplify Face's ability to immediately wrap you into his world and his mindstate with the eloquence of his delivery. What's notable about the album is his continued exploration into the spiritual realm and where he belongs in it while still trying to maintain his street credibility. Of course, the heavy favorite here is the cut "Smile", which featured an excellent posthumous from 2Pac and the late Johnny P providing his vocals on the somberly inspirational track. He also brings more of this on the very haunting and atmospheric "Faith". With other dumb dope cuts like "Mary Jane" (which you would later hear the sample of this cut redone by Ashanti for her track "Baby"), the menacing "Sunshine", and the Dr. Dre/Ice Cube/Too $hort-assisted monster, "Game Over", this album is as close to The Diary in its aesthetics as you could get without actually being The Diary. A monster effort, Face officially established himself with The Untouchable among the true elite, commercially and critically, within hip-hop.
3. The Fix
Production: artist, Kanye West, Nottz, The Neptunes, Mike Dean, Nasheim Myrick, Lee Stone, T-Mix, others
Guests: Nas, Jay-Z, Beanie Sigel, Faith Evans, Kelly Price, Kanye West, WC, others
When trying to balance the streets with personal and spiritual growth, it can be a complex and, often times, difficult journey. Uncle Face displays this in raw and, at times, vulnerable pieces on his 2002 epic, The Fix. In context, the title would suggest that the more he tries to get out the game and the streets that made him, the more he gets swept back in like an addiction, and his only "fix" is to absorb his "addiction", knowing there's regret that will come from his relapse. We see this complex nature on cuts like the absolutely excellent first single with Jay-Z, Kanye West, and Beanie Sigel "Guess Who's Back", the WC-assisted "I Ain't The One", and the blistering, Nottz-produced "In Cold Blood" that are saturated in street-lore and being the OG of OGs in the game. He starts assessing his role in the hood and with issues such as beef and loyalty on cuts like the Nas-assisted "In Between Us", the vivid "Safe", and "Sellout", which attacks those artists and people in general that are willing to shade their own and abandon their own identities in order to get ahead. While we are never too tired to hear Face be that highly respected and heralded OG that brings you his form of ghetto journalism as only he can, it's his travel into his more vulnerable and open self that becomes the bigger story. He dives into his own self mortality and his walk with God on the tracks "What Can I Do", the incredible "Heaven" (both of which feature the immaculate vocals of Kelly Price) and the Neptunes-crafted, Faith Evans blessed "Someday" in unforgettable fashion and detail. Along with the tremendous second single "My Block" and the snapping "Hold Me Down", The Fix is a marvelous piece of work that deserved all five mics The Source Magazine gave it. In this transition from manically depraved sociopath to reflective street legend turned family man who's trying to find his purpose, The Fix encapsulates it all and it became more of a diary than his own album, The Diary.
2. Mr. Scarface Is Back
Production: artist, Crazy C
Guests: N/A
There was arguably no other more controversial group act in hip-hop that wasn't named N.W.A. in the end of the eighties, and into the early nineties than The Geto Boys. The hard-as-nails southern hip hop act delivered their auspicious debut, Making Trouble, in '88 and it made some buzz with Face and Willie D brought in the replace the ousted Johnny C and Jukebox. They took things higher, and damn sure more offensively, with the BUMPIN' Grip It! On That Other Level, which was considered an uncompromising piece of work strictly made for the hardest of the hardcores. Eyes and ears were primarily on this cat previously known as DJ Akshun. Along with their self-titled album, The Geto Boys were on our radars collectively. However, it was their breakout album, We Can't Be Stopped, that made them nationwide names, thanks to their massively successful cut "Mind's Playing Tricks on Me". the funky and bluesy, yet vivid and disturbing, cut was made that big primarily thanks to the unforgettable verses from Scarface. Months after dropping this timeless piece of work, he came out with his much-anticipated debut, Mr. Scarface Is Back, and this was dynamite. Filled with funk and bluesy production provided by Crazy C, Face is young, raw, and nihilistic as hell throughout this album. Cuts like the brutal opener "Mr. Scarface", the unsettling "Born Killer" and the straight vicious "Murder by Reason of Insanity" are filled with enough violent lyrics and vicious imagery that you would swear you were believing Face was actually the way he was depicting himself in the songs. He continues his descent into madness with other cuts like "Diary of A Madman" and "Body Snatchers", but he also paints mental pictures such as "Good Girl Gone Bad" and "A Minute to Pray, A Second to Die" with such detail, they're like audio movies. Once we reach the closer, "I'm Dead", you've been on one of the damnedest rides ever. Brad Jordan delivered a landmark within the gangsta rap subgenre with his debut, Mr. Scarface Is Back. Ruthless, vengeful, and straight out maniacal at times, he showed he was the south's Slick Rick, only way more graphic and violent. This was the beginning of one of the most decorated and celebrated careers in hip-hop history, and it was trunk-rattling and blood-soaked at the same time.
1. The Diary
Production: artist, N.O. Joe, Mike Dean
Guests: Ice Cube, Devin The Dude
By the time we hit '94, we've grown accustomed to Scarface and his brilliant talents with that pen. His work with The Geto Boys is widely acclaimed, and his solo works of his aforementioned efforts, Mr. Scarface Is Back and The World Is Yours, have been handling their businesses out the tape decks of cars, especially all over the south. Once we hit this VERY seminal year (Illmatic, Ready To Die, Stress: The Extinction Agenda, The Main Ingredient, Southernplayalisticadillacmuzik, Word...Life, and Resurrection all dropped this year), Face decides he wants to hit an entire new level. He does so and then some with his third solo album, The Diary. Lyrically, he gets a bit more sophisticated with his killings and more deliberate, yet still unapologetic on cuts like "Jesse James" and the dumb dope opener "The White Sheet". Death and darkness are the prevalent issues here just like the prior albums, only with no hope and no future at the end of it all. Detailing the despair and bleak surroundings of the streets on "G's", he then dives into a more intrinsic, yet systematically morbid, way of wiring. The amazing first single, "I Seen a Man Die", has him narrating a drug addict that fell off the wagon badly and it all leads up to his death. It's the compelling third verse that has him portraying himself almost like a grim reaper or a merciful angel of death that took this album officially to way new heights. He keeps the epic penmanship going with his excellent collaboration with Ice Cube and Devin The Dude on "Hand of The Dead Body", in which they highlight the media's portrayal of rap as big contributors to "inner city" violence. He gets back brooding, yet very psychological, with his sequel of Geto Boys' ever heralded "Mind's Playin' Tricks on Me" in "Mind's Playin' Tricks '94" and the title track, both of which exemplify not so much of a mind of a lunatic, but more so the mind of a reflective masochist that puts a contextual spin on his narratives. While the playful sounding "Goin' Down" may sound like a misstep compared to the rest of this macabre album, don't let this fool you. It's a very needed cut, albeit misogynistic in nature, but is tame compared to the rest of the album. Unlike subsequent albums to follow, there are zero outcomes of hope or faith. Brad Jordan hit his most bleak apex point with The Diary, and somewhere in his head, this world of hell is the only world he knew, and with this album, he was quite content with it, and expressed it in such articulate and masterful fashion. Rarely have we ever run across an album of this magnitude since but leave it to Scarface to present an album that still is considered one of the greatest albums of all-time to this very day.
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