Customer Reviews

The Predator

5 star:		(18)
4 star:		(5)
3 star:		(4)
2 star:		(0)
1 star:		(0)

 

 

"The Predator" came out in 1992, when gangsta rap was at its peak and shortly after Ice Cube made his acting debut in the spectacular "Boyz N the Hood." Not surprisingly, the CD became Ice Cube's biggest seller, with over 2 million copies moved. During this time, Ice Cube was a vocal advocate for African-Americans and some of his earlier songs were seen as tirades against the white establishment. Although this CD is not political on the scale of Public Enemy or a few other rap artists of the time, it's right up there.

"The Predator" starts with a bang - a brief skit of prisoners being searched before entering prison. The song really sets the tone for the CD, a screed by an angry young man who has been mistreated by society and has to struggle every day with the violence in his community. The CD is also filled with timely references, including the LA riots, the Simi Valley trial of the officers who beat Rodney King, and so on.

The songs are also uniformly excellent, especially "It Was a Good Day" - his biggest hit and arguably best song ever. The song samples the Isley Brother's "Footsteps in the Dark," and has some truly indelible lines. The poignancy of the song is incredibly strong, telling of a young man who considers a day in which he wasn't carjacked, didn't have to use his AK, or didn't knew someone who was killed to be a "good" one. The song is highly evocative of early 90s rap - a true classic. Another highlight is "Check Yo Self" featuring Das EFX, which was a #1 R&B hit and went platinum.

Although much of the music is serious, Ice Cube's clever humor often shows through, such as his reference to Kris Kross's "Jump" on "Gangsta's Fairytale 2" - he also calls Cinderella a "snitch"! Overall, "The Predator" is one of the strongest rap CDs of its era. Ice Cube has obviously gone on to focus on acting, but he leaves behind a strong music legacy, of which "The Predator" is clearly a highlight. Highly recommended.

I like albums of his from before and after this one, but if I had to keep just one, it would be "The Predator". There's numerous great raps here, like "Wicked", "Dirty Mack", and the huge "It Was A Good Day". Plus most of the skits hold up to repeat listenings also. I don't notice any major improvement from the remastering, but the extra tracks are awesome. The two remixes are cool, and "U Ain't Gonna Take My Life" is amazing. Both that track and "24 Wit An L" were previously on his "Bootlegs And B-sides" album. If anyone tells you this disc is wack, "Don't Trust 'em".

This is probably the most famous album of the man all rap artists should try and emulate. Nearly 20 yrs after he hit the scene he's still a touchstone of the industry. Bizarre parodied his "Good Day" which still gets airplay as does "Check yo self" years after the albums debut. This is not perhaps his best album, but certainly the one that he will be remembered by, either way it is a great album.

This is just to tell all wondering what is on this bonus DVD that THERE IS NOT A DVD! I finally got tired with hunting around trying to find out what is on it, bucked -up and ordered it last month from Amazon. Just as I suspected - there is no DVD. I think they mixed up a version of the Greatest Hits CD with this one - you can buy both the Greatest Hits CD and DVD packaged together. Anyhow - there is no DVD packaged with the Predator.

As for the CD itself - no it is not Amerikkka's Most or Deathe Certificate, but it still has a lot on it (though I agree the Gangsta's Fairytale sequel is maaaad weak. When Will They Shoot is bangin' Who Got the Camera? is bangin' - the last reviewer thought Lethal Injection was better than The Predator? Ridiculous! Ghetto Bird, You Know How We Do It, Make it Ruff? Those are - and Lethal Injection is the absolute WORST original [meaning not G/H or compilation releases] album of his career. But that's another review. The Predator has Cube falling a few steps backward, but with enough hot tracks to bury the few weak ones. "Lethal" is another story. Open your ears, loc.

This is Ice Cube's best album, easily. While Chuck D and KRS 1 are undoubtedly great rappers with a political twist, I feel that Cube did them 1 better because he was a great MC. For all his anger and shouting, he knows how to ride a beat. What a shame NWA split up, and by that I mean Dr.Dre and Ice Cube, because the rest were not really that talented, though Eazy-E had the most Charisma. Cube is one of the smartest lyricist ever, and has you chuckling at some of his ramblings. The use of the word "cracka" is funny to me. In short, that brilliant group NWA, for a time anyway, and some of their associates like The DOC released some of the finest records, not just rap records, in history. Straight Outta Compton, No One Can Do It Better, then later on after they split, Amerikkas Most Wanted, The Predator and The Chronic. What a time.

I can't believe that I'm the first reviewer for this album. Its a shame that something this good is going unpraised. This album (and Ice Cube in general) is what first made me a hip hop fan. Most people will probably be familiar with 'It Was a Good Day' but this album is much deeper than that. From the hard hitting Public Enemy style beat of 'When Will They Shoot?' all the way through to the tongue-in-cheek boast and bravado of 'Say Hi to the Bad Guy' there's not one song of filler. This is Cube's best, and consequently one of the best rap records ever.

"It was a good day" was such a big hit and good for Cube but I hated that so many people got into Ice Cube with that song.
This album is not as strong as the first two and there are some really good songs but there are also some duds.
But, it's definitely worth buying new or used.

Around this time, Cube was putting out albums year after year. "Amerikka's Most Wanted" is a classic and one of my favorites. Then he dropped "Death Certificate" which is another classic. Next up to bat was his third (full length) album, "The Predator".

This was considered Ice Cube's most sold album. His biggest hit song "It Was A Good Day" still gets a lot of rotation on the radio, and is still dope to listen to as well. Cube was still in his political stance though. It wasn't as heavy as "Death Certificate" and "Amerikka's Most Wanted". Around this time people might have been calling him a racist, but he was out trying to prove otherwise. If you hear the inserts that are on this album ("I'm Scared") you can hear some of the opinions that people had towards him about what he was saying.

Now for the music itself, it's overall dope. There are a some tracks that easilly became some stadouts. As popular as "It Was A Good Day" was, people forgot that "Wicked" was another single (and I think it was the first), featured Don Gorgon. "We Had To Tear This _______ Up" is another track that I found interesting, and Cube showing off his hatred towards what was going on around that time. The origonal version of "Check Ya Self" is also a hot track that featured Das Efx, which I find to be better than the remix.

This album is flawed though. I find a few tracks that fall under skip material here. "Whos Got The Camera" is one of them. Another one would be the weak sounding "Dirty Mack". Another one I didn't have the feel for was "Gangsta's Fairytale 2".

And if you purchased this after 2003, you get a few bonus tracks. You receive the radio edit of "Check Ya Self (remix)" a single that was just as popular as "It Was A Good Day". The remix to "It Was A Good Day" just didn't work in my opinion and falls under skip material. "24 With An L" and "U Ain't Gonna Take My Life" are some good tracks in addition to this album. All of these tracks would also appear on the "Bootlegs And B-Sides" album.

Overall, this is a dope album. It showcased Cube's anger with issues that were going on around that time back in the 90's. This is a good album to have in any hip hop collection, although I don't find it to be good as everyone is saying. There are good tracks on here, but I also find a lot of skippable tracks here as well. When it comes to the remastered albums Cube has had between 1990-1993, "The Predator" is his highest selling album, but in my opinion, I also find it to be his weakest out of the group. Don't hesitate to pick this up though. You probably will have a different opinion that I have.

Lyrics: B
Production: B
Guest Appearances: B
Musical Vibes: B+
Overall: B

Favorite Tracks: When Will They Shoot, Wicked, It Was A Good Day, Don't Trust 'Em, Check Yo Self (both origonal and remix), 24 With An L, U Ain't Gonna Take My Life.

Peace Everyone!!!

Great beats and lyrics to match. Why? The lyrics talked about social problems in serious but sometimes humorous and clever ways. That makes the music relevant. Most other rappers talk about themselves which is tiresome. But Ice Cube masterfully talks about society such that you are entertained but also makes you think on a few points about where we are as a society.

this brings you back to the day about not giving a f*ck. pop this cd in and listen to the stories ice cube tells. i enjoy this cd and this was my second ice cube cd i ever owned and to this day i still listen to it. highly recommended
rating A+