Snoop had raised some pretty high expectations with the release of this album. This was his final No Limit release and the streets was getting heated for it. His last No Limit release was the No Limit Top Dogg album, my second-best after Doggystyle. Tha Doggfather was average and da Game... was just horrible.

First of all, it did not reach my expectations. But it still has some very good parts. The album starts off with an awesome first track Hennessy N Buddah. This song has a great beat and Snoop has some really tight delivery. But it is topped off with Kokane's hyperactive ranting. This is something I found happens quite a bit in the album. Then there is the first single Snoop Dogg (Whats My Name, Pt. 2) which is alright but not really a standout track in my mind. The best thing about it is the nice beat.

Then there are a number of songs with a G-Funk vibe and Kokane on the chorus. Kokane is funny most of the time but after a while he gets pretty predictable and boring. That brings to us to a great posse cut Set It Off. MC Ren, Lady Of Rage, Ice Cube and Nate Dogg pitch up on the song. It has an outastanding beat that sounds very east coast and is laced by Timbaland. this is instantly one of my best songs on the album.

Following this is Stacey Adams, which is another good song with a smooth pimped-out flow.

then there is another banger with Lay Low, produced by Dre. The song is another posse cut featuring Tha Eastsidaz, Master P and Nate. The beat is not groundbreaking but it's very good. Nate drops a memorable hook on this one.

The next standout song is the short but entertaining Issues. There is nothing really amazing after Issues until Loosen Control, where Snoop really surprised me with a great vocal performance... It has a real nice silky r-n-b groove that I enjoyed for some reason. This is followed by Back Up Off Me, a typical No Limit Soldjahs cut with Master P and Magic.

The last song is probably Snoop at his best, and it is called Yall Gone Miss Me. This reminds me a lot of the old Snoop and the chorus by Kokane is addictive. One thing was that Snoop needs to change his lyrics if he wants to stay relevant in the game. Been in the game since '93 and his lyrics arent as good as he started out. The only thing saving Snoop is his entertaining flow and laid-back delivery.

I was happy with Tha Last Meal in that, P let Snoop do his own thang for the most part by having producers like Dre and Meech Wells help him out.

Tha Last Meal is nothing ground-breaking at all, but it does have some very entertaining parts. I would buy it alone for Hennessy N Buddah, Set It Off and Lay Low. But like I said, his lyrics need a new direction or he's gonna be eating his last meal pretty soon in the rap world.

If you like Snoop, it goes without saying you should buy Tha Last Meal. If you're like me and don't have very strong feelings about him, borrow this and see what you think. Thanx for reading my review!

Peace


Recommended: Yes

Great Music to Play While: Hanging With Friends