Yung Berg Look What You Made Me CD

After a string of club-bangin' singles and successful mixtapes, the Chi-town rapper known as Yung Berg drops his long-awaited debut album, LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME. Showing versatility, Berg presents an even mix of R&B-tinged radio-friendly tracks and thugged-out ghetto anthems--he busts out a melodious flow through the vocoder on "The Business" and does his best to mimic fellow Windy City native Twista's break-neck delivery on "Where Do We Go." Heavy on guests, LOOK WHAT YOU MADE ME features appearances by Trey Songz, Lloyd, Casha, Amerie, Collie Buddz, and Eve.

On Look What You Made Me, the cocksure Yung Berg repeatedly mentions Jay-Z, Biggie, and Pac, but he certainly won't be mistaken for any of them. He apes Jay-Z's delivery quite a bit but his swagger and style is more Nelly and when it comes to lyrics, he's serviceable, not stunning. Put it this way, Look What You Made Me is his first full-length -- following his Almost Famous EP by just over a year -- and he's already used the word "Sexy" in the titles of two of his singles, but they were huge, hook-filled singles, both included here, surrounded by more of the same. "The Business," "Manager," "Do That There," and almost everything else that isn't marked "Interlude" would work just fine on urban radio. Add "Sexy Lady" and "Sexy Can I," plus a platinum dreams guest list that includes Ray J, Twista, Lloyd, and Eve, along with producers Rob Holladay and Mr. ColliPark, and the album is as sweet as candy, even when it's trying not to be sugary. From the confrontational album title to the cuss words, Berg is working to shake the pop tag and turn it hardcore with a baller stance that isn't so much embarrassing as it is uninteresting. The "I'm in touch with the streets"-type boasts just get in the way of the pop-rap excellence which has already earned this young artist his own imprint from Sony. If Berg stops thinking of himself as the next Jay-Z he might see what Sony sees and have a much better shot a becoming the next P. Diddy. After all, "Where Do We Go" takes an Alan Parsons sample and canes it to death, a perfectly Puffy moment if there ever was one. [A clean version of the CD was also released.] ~ David Jeffries

Amp - Amended Produc

Recording information: 11th Street Studios, Atlanta, GA; Chalice Studios, Los Angeles, CA; Circle House Studios, Miami, FL; Doppler Studios; Levcon Studios, Hollywood, CA; Oceanway Studios, Hollywood, CA; The Fire Department.

Illustrator: Shah Wonders.

Personnel: Wah Wah Watson (guitar, background vocals).

Audio Mixers: John Frye; Ari Levine; Manny Marroquin; Leslie Brathwaite.

Billboard (p.41) - "Matters of the heart get attention on horn-laden single 'Sexy Lady'....Throughout, Berg never loses his appeal."
XXL (Magazine) (p.131) - "Alongside production partners Rob Holiday and JFK, Berg's nimble flow complements the album's well-knit pop melodies."