Game Documentary CD

Personnel: The Game (rap vocals); Faith Evans, Mary J. Blige (vocals); Eminem, 50 Cent, Marsha, Nate Dogg, Tony Yayo, Busta Rhymes (rap vocals).
Once the Game surfaced as a force in hip-hop, a big deal was made of his dance with death. Apparently he was shot five times. If you're scoring at home, that's four times less than label mate and executive producer 50 Cent. After the altercation that nearly took his life, the Game took a crash course in hip-hop and studied up on the master MCs from both coasts. Within a year of rapping for the first time, Dr. Dre took notice and was compelled to offer an Aftermath contract. The Game is also from Compton, just like his mentor, so guess where the allegiances fall? An N.W.A medallion hangs from his neck, an N.W.A logo is inked across his chest, and an image of the late Eazy-E is on his right forearm. If none of this makes it clear enough, the Game name drops beloved heroes -- including just about everyone ever connected to N.W.A, save for CPO -- with great frequency. The stage name, coined by his mother while he was an athletic youngster, is entirely fitting: verses are constructed with album titles, label heads are mentioned as if scholarly attention is paid to the industry's inner workings. And yet, this is hardly another Guerilla Black, an MC lacking originality. The Game's scope is obviously much wider, and he's no mimic; though he's still finding his feet as a lyricist, isn't as distinct vocally as 50 or Lloyd Banks, and nearly allows the gimmicks to overwhelm the skills, The Documentary is an excellent debut that also hints at a lot of potential. Dr. Dre and an all-star cast of fellow producers are in top form, Just Blaze, Timbaland, Kanye West, and Hi-Tek included, and none of the features steal any thunder from the star. The most remarkable aspect of the Game is how he can be such a blatant product of gangsta rap (okay, let's say fanboy) and leave a mark so fast. But, as he says in "Dreams," "Anything is possible if 50 f*cked Vivica." ~ Andy Kellman
On his official debut, THE DOCUMENTARY, Los Angeles rapper the Game (born Jayceon Taylor) observes he "was an ol' G in the hood" before he was 22. The Game has truly packed a lifetime of fury, chaos, and crime into his first years of adulthood, living life with a reckless passion. After a gunshot wound sent him into a temporary coma, he decided to put his agile mind to better use in hip-hop, and his complex, ferocious raps swiftly became mixtape staples.
After many twists and turns, the Game finally dropped the highly anticipated THE DOCUMENTARY as the first major hip-hop release of 2005, and it's quite an opening salvo. On the Kanye West-produced "Dreams," he displays a dizzying intellect, subtly working an apt quote from Nas into an imagined bi-coastal conference between Jam Master Jay and Eazy-E. (The track also invokes political figures ranging from Ronald Reagan to Huey Newton.) The Game's clearly been immersed in the rap world from an early age, and he tips his hat to both past masters and his contemporaries, many of whom appear on the record (Eminem, 50 Cent, Busta Rhymes, and others). THE DOCUMENTARY heralds a stunning new voice in rap by living up to its overwhelming hype.Rolling Stone (No. 967, pp.77-8) - 3 stars out of 5 - "[The Game goes] for emotional impact rather than dazzling wordplay or laughs..."
Spin (p.92) - "He holds his own lyrically against 50 Cent and Eminem while holding down beats by Kanye, Just Blaze, and the good doctor." - Grade: B+
Entertainment Weekly (p.82) - "[W]ith the brightest hip-hop stars aligning for him, the Game may have willed himself a popular masterpiece." - Grade: B+
Uncut (p.98) - 3 stars out of 5 - "[T]he dense, propulsive semi-orchestral Dre arrangements, studded with self-conscious NWA and Tupac quotes, make for a mostly rich and involving experience."