One Hunid

by David JeffriesThe introductory release from Scarface's new Underground Railroad Movement imprint opens a brand new chapter in the Southern godfather's career. The Product, a collaboration between Scarface and talented newcomers Willie Hen and Young Malice, does what so many other Scarface releases couldn't: live up to the man's legend. One Hunid is dirty, grimy, street-level, and doesn't give a damn about what radio is doing, but more than anything, it's a lyric-lover's dream and often delivers its urban survival stories with poignant regret. Bleak and mature are two other adjectives you can throw at the album, but One Hunid is not without its reckless hunger and hedonism. Kick-off single "I'm A" breaks down the door like a dirty Westside Connection club track while the Alchemist's loopy backing track makes "G Type" a head-bobber of the highest order. Weekends were made for tracks like these, but what gives the album legs are the numerous soul-searching numbers that contrast fatherhood and family with gangsta lifestyle and how crime has consequences but it's the only way to get the family clan on top in less than five generations. The well-respected Scarface could have spun his Rolodex and had any number of Southern superstars in the studio, so it's fascinating how One Hunid relies on Scarface's new inner circle with no guest shots and production mostly from Tone Capone, J. Bido, and Scarface himself. Capone delivers dramatic grooves that could live in the house of G-Unit while J. Bido and Scarface cut hypnotic loops with the more alternative than underground "Don't Matter" being their masterpiece. Hen and Malice made some local noise -- in the Bay Area and Mississippi, respectively -- and they already sound like cynical victims of the game, ready to throw their hands in the air if the radio keeps ignoring the hardcore while also acknowledging the muse inside just won't let them give in. The background vocals of the sultry Tekia Hicks and the always Isley-sounding Tony Mac complete this closely knit crew, which in the end seems a conscious decision by Scarface. A Mariah, T.I., or even a Ludacris appearance would have taken the album in a totally different direction, stripping the intimacy and blunting the purpose. Not for nuthin', but Scarface's legend and his discography don't match up and some of the time he seemed better in theory than in practice. There's not even a whiff of that on One Hunid, an album the game really has been missing.