Ma$e- Double Up

5th Letter

5th Letter

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Mod Squad
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Double Up was released on June 19th 1999 by Bad Boy Records and Arista Records, it was his second album. This album has received mixed reviews. Today I’ll review this album to see how it holds up after all these years.

Track 1. Intro produced by Mario Winans. Diddy gives a quick introduction to Mase over a 70’s beat.

Track 2. Stay Out of My Way featuring Total produced by Lawrence Combs. Solid song. He’s talking about people hating on him. I just didn’t like the chorus. 6.5/10

Track 3. Get Ready featuring Blackstreet produced by Fanatic Heard. This was the first and only single from this album. I remember liking this song back in the day. But I’ll touch on a greater issue at the end of this review… 7/10

Track 4. Make Me Cry produced by Harve Pierre and Face Foote, he talks about a woman that hurt him. I liked Beans sample of the beat a little more (Oh Daddy). Solid track. 6.5/10

Track 5. Awards Show Interlude, Mase is accepting an award in a skit.

Track 6. Same Niggas with uncredited vocals from Carl Thomas produced by Nashiem Myrick, he is talking about people who act like they’re cool with you but will plot on you behind your back or pretend to be your friend once you get on. They edited out Brandy’s name… 7/10

Track 7. No Matter What featuring Puff Daddy doing ad libs produced by Prestige Vanderpool. I didn’t like this song at all. 5/10

Track 8. If You Want To Party produced by Prestige Vanderpool. Off key singing on the chorus, bad beat, but solid enough rhymes by Mase. Goes to show how charisma can salvage a song. Still though. 5/10

Track 9. Jail Visit Interlude a skit where Mase and his friend visits someone in jail and they tell him that his woman was caught hanging with their enemy
 
Track 10. Fuck Me, Fuck You featuring Mysonne produced by D Dot, song is about reciprocating energy. It’s an alright song. 6/10


Track 11. Do It Again featuring Puff Daddy produced by Prestige Vanderpool. Awful beat. Mase and Puff going back and forth ⏸️. They were talking their shit though. 5.5/10


Track 12. Another Story To Tell produced by Buckwild. Best song on here by far imo. Mase using Big’s Story To Tell concept to tell a story about a woman he knows. 7/10


Track 13. Blood Is Thicker produced by Righteous Funk Boogie, a song about being loyal to family over outsiders. I like what he was saying I just hate the beat. 5.5/10


Track 14. You Ain’t Smart produced by Nashiem Myrick. A song about guys not moving correct. Solid track. 5.5/10


Track 15. All I Ever Wanted produced by Nashiem Myrick. Decent track. 6/10


Track 16. Mad Rapper Interlude


Track 17. From Scratch featuring Shyne, Loon, Harlem World and Mysonne produced by Mario Winans. A worse version of 24 Hours To Live. 6/10


Track 18. Gettin It featuring Funkmaster Flex produced by Shim Kirkland. I don’t like this beat, I’ve heard this beat get sampled better on other songs. Chorus is terrible too. 5/10
 
This album was not good at all. There was not a single standout song at all. And the problem with this album was that they went back to the well from what worked two years earlier. But the 90’s was ever evolving and what was hot 2 years ago might not be hot now. At this point we were in the era of Ruff Ryders, Roc a Fella and Cash Money. This Bad Boy sound was already dated. This was a complete miss of an album and what made it worse Mase was going through things outside of music which led to him retiring and getting into religion.

Final rating 60/100
 
Worse thing about this album is the production then features

Also mase’s rapping took a step back
 
I was a big fan back then to, this shit legit hurt my feelings.
 
Same Niggas and Get Ready were my shit. But this album was hella cheeks. You can tell Mase phoned it in, he was on his way out of the rap game and into the chuchhh lol
 
Gotta disagree, the album was dope imo... Im gonna give a spin Monday as Ive not checked it in years...

Album brings back dope nostalgia too, used to bump the fck outta it back in school...
 
Was just thinking Mase has been on 3 GOAT labels, Bad Boy, So So Def (as part of Harlem World) and G Unit... Cant think of anyother artists who have been on 3 such high profile labels...
 
GOAT said:
I had no idea Mase was GUnit
Click to expand...

I just Googled it after this comment and AI says he actually never offically singed to them...

'No, Mase never officially signed to G-Unit, but he did spend time touring and recording with the group. The deal with 50 Cent's G-Unit fell apart because Diddy, Mase's former label head, blocked it by demanding a large payment of money that 50 Cent was unwilling to pay. Mase was featured on G-Unit projects and performed with the group, but remained technically under his existing contract with Bad Boy Records'
 
Water Ur Seeds said:
I just Googled it after this comment and AI says he actually never offically singed to them...

'No, Mase never officially signed to G-Unit, but he did spend time touring and recording with the group. The deal with 50 Cent's G-Unit fell apart because Diddy, Mase's former label head, blocked it by demanding a large payment of money that 50 Cent was unwilling to pay. Mase was featured on G-Unit projects and performed with the group, but remained technically under his existing contract with Bad Boy Records'
Click to expand...
Diddy musta been holdin a grudge cuz 50 wouldn't let him take him shoppin
 
Water Ur Seeds said:
Was just thinking Mase has been on 3 GOAT labels, Bad Boy, So So Def (as part of Harlem World) and G Unit... Cant think of anyother artists who have been on 3 such high profile labels...
Click to expand...
He wasn't in G Unit, Puff was bullshitting with how much 50 had to pay to get Mase out his Bad Boy contract.
 
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