Webbie Savage Life (Chopped & Screwed) CD

In the wake of Lil Jon and the explosion of crunk, producer/rapper Trill came onto the scene, first as part of the trio Trillville, and then as label head/producer. In the latter guise, Trill ushers Webbie onto the national stage with SAVAGE LIFE. The young rapper's debut album is a mixture of crunk-style production, gangsta themes, and Dirty South attitude. The complex verbal dance of some rappers is not for Webbie, though. Instead he keeps his flow straightforward and his wordplay concise. SAVAGE LIFE's subject matter will be familiar to anyone who's listened to Trillville or Lil Jon; such perennial themes as women, street life, and the pursuit of the gangsta lifestyle dominate the album. Though there are guest artists aplenty (Mannie Fresh, B.G., and others) the mixture of sparse beats and Webbie's singleminded, insistent rapping style are what made SAVAGE LIFE a success and a representative snapshot of the crunk sound circa 2005.

Webbie's whiny voice is all the easier to take slowed down by Michael "5000" Watts on his fair chopped and screwed version of Savage Life. With the original album being an empty study in cockiness, there's not much to hope or look for in its screwed and chopped version. Watts chops up the choruses where you would expect and barely touches the faders or phasers, but with his announcement on "Full of Dat Sh*t" that "this one goes out to all the smokers and drinkers man," don't expect anything but a druggy party anyway. Hearing "Give Me That"'s clumsy chorus at the slow speed makes Webbie's snide delivery all the more sleazy and Watts fractures "What Is It" into a hypnotic herky-jerk, but everything else is by the numbers and more for Webbie fans than screwheads. ~ David Jeffries

This is an example of the Southern Rap "screwed" mix style.

Personnel: Webbie (rap vocals); Lil' Boosie, Mannie Fresh, B.G., Big Head, Bun B (rap vocals).

Recording information: Studio 7303, Houston, TX; Trill, Baton Rouge, LA.