CD Review: Timbaland shows great versatility on Shock Value
Jackie Cole
Issue date: 4/6/07 Section: Entertainment
He has successfully blended several different genres of music together in several different tracks, all on one album. He has combined punk, hip-hop, 1960s rock and club-esque techno into cohesive tracks.
During a recent interview on MTV, Timbaland said, "I'm not just hip-hop ... My mission is to take over Top 40 radio, what they call popular music, different genres of music, and reach all types of people." This in itself is definitely credit-worthy.
However, as far as the lyrical content of his music goes, Tim needs some major assistance, perhaps even from his fellow musician Elton John. The majority of the songs contain lyrics about the same stuff we hear about in nearly EVERY single rap or hip-hop song.
You could go down a checklist and you'd probably end with every requirement of rap lyrics checked off. Threatens to kill at least one person: check. Talks about how damn clever he is: check. Talks about how damn rich he is: check. Talks, in some derogatory way, about one or all parts of the female body (ass, boobs...): check. The list goes on.
However, as I said before, I can't completely knock Timbo's stuff because as far as music goes, which in my opinion is the hardest part, he's got it goin' on.
So next time you're feeling confused, perplexed, indecisive, and you can't figure out whether to wear your Uggs or flip-flops, black eyeliner or brown, pizza or ice cream, punk or hip-hop, just go out, buy Shock Value and relax, knowing that you don't have to make a decision just yet.
During a recent interview on MTV, Timbaland said, "I'm not just hip-hop ... My mission is to take over Top 40 radio, what they call popular music, different genres of music, and reach all types of people." This in itself is definitely credit-worthy.
However, as far as the lyrical content of his music goes, Tim needs some major assistance, perhaps even from his fellow musician Elton John. The majority of the songs contain lyrics about the same stuff we hear about in nearly EVERY single rap or hip-hop song.
You could go down a checklist and you'd probably end with every requirement of rap lyrics checked off. Threatens to kill at least one person: check. Talks about how damn clever he is: check. Talks about how damn rich he is: check. Talks, in some derogatory way, about one or all parts of the female body (ass, boobs...): check. The list goes on.
However, as I said before, I can't completely knock Timbo's stuff because as far as music goes, which in my opinion is the hardest part, he's got it goin' on.
So next time you're feeling confused, perplexed, indecisive, and you can't figure out whether to wear your Uggs or flip-flops, black eyeliner or brown, pizza or ice cream, punk or hip-hop, just go out, buy Shock Value and relax, knowing that you don't have to make a decision just yet.
