Bilal, 1st Born Second (2001)

Bilal, the funky R&B crooner whose style is in the same vein as artists like Erykah Badu, Common, The Roots and Slum Village, hits with a masterful debut album. Its impressive soul rhythms and production blend perfectly with Bilal's unorthodox singing style. Further helping this little known gem along are the impressive, well done appearances from Dr. Dre, Jadakiss, Mos Def and Common.

Bilal did get some radio airplay, mostly due to the notariety of rappers Dr. Dre and Jadakiss who featured on Fast Lane, an ode to street life and the perils that that life sometimes bring. However, the best song on the album, in my opinion, is absolutely Soul Sista. But other tracks also stick in my head like Queen of Sanity, For You, Love It, and Reminisce featuring Mos Def and Common. In fact, there are very few songs that lack replay appeal on this album.

This project is a medley of style and mood, blending hard core street sound with soulful funk and everything inbetween the two. This is an album that, unfortunately for no good reason, was slept on. Don't sleep on this if you are an R&B fan. Everything Bilal touches seem to have some abstract appeal to it and his album doesn't disappoint.

Rating: 9 Platinum Teefs
Copy or Buy: Uhm, tough call here but definately try it first. I, personally, would buy.