Lil Scrappy & G’$ UP
Silence and Secrecy: Black Rag Gang
(Good Hands Records)
After ridin’ shotgun alongside Lil Jon and G-Unit, Lil Scrappy takes a stab at boss status with the introduction of his own group, G’$ Up. Consisting of newcomers Young Vet and Pooh Baby, as well as Scrappy himself, the Atlanta trio attempts to make a name with their debut disc, Silence and Secrecy: Black Rag Gang.
Pooh takes the lead on the eerie “Crank It Up,” while Vet proves he’s about his moola on the supersynthy, singsongy “Gettin’ Money.” The ATLiens continue to flaunt their stacks on “Big Rubberbands,” but it’s Scrappy who raises the stock, when he compares drug prices to the cost of oil on “Gas.” On the latter, the G’$ Up general spits double entendres like, “I ain’t high, shawty, you can always find me/Scrap posted on the corner like the BP.” It isn’t all money and blow, though, as “Yummy Yum” finds the threesome switching the topic to groupie love, showing at least some semblance of a musical range.
Sadly, the album’s overbearing hustler ethos becomes repetitive during the course of the 12-song expedition. Even without displaying much lyrical variety, G’$ Up manage to slide by on solid beats and decent rhymes. So while Scrappy isn’t exactly the biggest boss that we’ve seen thus far, he’s still money in the bank. —DANNY TEJADA
