CD REVIEW: The Truth is that Dez doesn't have much talent
Erin Shea
Issue date: 4/24/08 Section: Entertainment
04/24/08 - Dez likes to think people don't listen to him because he raps about God. Really though, Dez, the truth is that God just hasn't given you enough musical talent for people to care about what you say.
For one, a phone call intro is usually a bad way to start off an album. And yet Dez uses that same overdone, '90s pop trick to kick off his album, The Truth Exposed.
In his intro, he calls some random guy and acts like some creepy stalker and says "Don't worry about who this is. That's not important. What's important is that you've been sleeping real comfortable for a long time now but the time of prophecy is here."
Does that make anyone else think about the crazy guys who talk about "prophecies" on top of a box in the middle of the sidewalk?
That, however, really was the highlight of The Truth Exposed. Of course, you can't really expect much from someone who thinks it's still cool to use "U" in a song title, can you?
The thing that really drags The Truth Exposed down though is that Dez never really says anything new. Every song talks about God's love saving people, but none of the songs have any real (read: not clichéd) stories behind them, which makes the songs sound like hollow proclamations.
Dez desperately tries to create gangsta music and it's quite shocking to hear the degree to which he fails. From the soft-rock sound of the background vocals in the closing track, "Unconditional Love," to the outdated Boyz II Men-feel of the chorus in "Show Me Love," every bit of The Truth Exposed sounds like it's been done before.
Dez is hardly Christian music's answer to 50 Cent (who Dez mocks on the album), but unfortunately for Dez, that doesn't make him look cool. Instead, it makes him look more desperate than ever.
Throw some mascara on him and Dez could almost pass as the Tammy Faye of rap. He's someone who's fun to listen to for amusement and not much more.
If the songs sounded different from each other, then it might have been okay, but, really, almost every song is interchangeable, except for the track, "Rise Up."
Dez spends this entire track talking about how anyone who doesn't believe in Jesus is going to Hell. Yes, Dez, well if that means I don't need to listen to your "music" for an eternity then I'm alright with that.
For one, a phone call intro is usually a bad way to start off an album. And yet Dez uses that same overdone, '90s pop trick to kick off his album, The Truth Exposed.
In his intro, he calls some random guy and acts like some creepy stalker and says "Don't worry about who this is. That's not important. What's important is that you've been sleeping real comfortable for a long time now but the time of prophecy is here."
Does that make anyone else think about the crazy guys who talk about "prophecies" on top of a box in the middle of the sidewalk?
That, however, really was the highlight of The Truth Exposed. Of course, you can't really expect much from someone who thinks it's still cool to use "U" in a song title, can you?
The thing that really drags The Truth Exposed down though is that Dez never really says anything new. Every song talks about God's love saving people, but none of the songs have any real (read: not clichéd) stories behind them, which makes the songs sound like hollow proclamations.
Dez desperately tries to create gangsta music and it's quite shocking to hear the degree to which he fails. From the soft-rock sound of the background vocals in the closing track, "Unconditional Love," to the outdated Boyz II Men-feel of the chorus in "Show Me Love," every bit of The Truth Exposed sounds like it's been done before.
Dez is hardly Christian music's answer to 50 Cent (who Dez mocks on the album), but unfortunately for Dez, that doesn't make him look cool. Instead, it makes him look more desperate than ever.
Throw some mascara on him and Dez could almost pass as the Tammy Faye of rap. He's someone who's fun to listen to for amusement and not much more.
If the songs sounded different from each other, then it might have been okay, but, really, almost every song is interchangeable, except for the track, "Rise Up."
Dez spends this entire track talking about how anyone who doesn't believe in Jesus is going to Hell. Yes, Dez, well if that means I don't need to listen to your "music" for an eternity then I'm alright with that.
