Chamillionaire

Mixtape Messiah 2 (Chamillitary)

Chamillionaire’s road to a 2007 Grammy for “Ridin'” wasn’t always paved with platinum as the Houston rapper reiterates on Mixtape Messiah 2. “You wasn’t there when I was getting flat tires in the middle of nowhere ’cause I’m driving seven hours to go to a store that was buying 20 CDs. Seven hours for a $140, minus the gas … that’s $70 left to split, pimp.” Once an underground phenomenon, always a lyrical juggernaut, Cham’s redemptive take on “Hip Hop Is Dead” elicits memories of Nas at his Illmatic peak. Ever a diligent student of his craft, he convincingly impersonates 20 Screwston rappers, including Slim Thug, Big Moe, Lil’ Keke, and Trae on “Roll Call Reloaded.” A revamped version of “Ridin'” finds an ominous Akon considering that, “If they stop me, I might be going to jail tonight.” Latching onto instrumentals from the likes of UGK’s “The Game Belongs to Me” and Lil’ Boosie’s “Zoom,” Cham preempts any legal shenanigans with the release of MM2 as strictly a download (www.chamillionaire.com/mixtape).

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This article appears in March 2 • 2007.

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