2Pac - R U Still Down [remember me].....

[ImmortalOne]

Although it was released over a year after Pac's death, it showed that Pac was gone but not forgotten, by selling over 4 million copies in just 5 weeks......The material contained on this album are from before his Death Row days, most of the songs were recorded in around 94', and many of them appear to be what was the ORIGINAL Me Against The World.....if you remember, Pac switched up MATW completely because of Biggie's Ready To Die album......R U Still Down is the fruit of his labors that we never got to see, along with some unreleased tracks from the 2Pacalypse Now/Strictly days......this album, like Thug Life, is raw, pure Pac......Its a hardcore album that depicts Pac at a younger and less experienced-but more articulate age. The album is a double disc, but is fairly short for having 26 songs......The first disc is solid, though it has its missteps......The album starts off with the beautiful acoustic "Redemption", then jumps head first into the uptempo "Open Fire"........this is classic raw Pac......the self titled track is hot. Nice beat, catchy chorus, and Pac drops alot of personal lyrics......however, the true gem here is "Hellrazor", which is one of Pac's finest songs ever recorded. The piano loop and bass line is perfect, and Pac goes OFF on this track.....easily one of his most energetic and charasmatic performances......Thug Style is another on-point song about his youth....Where Do We Go From Here would have been better if it was an actual song. Its just an interlude, with Pac speaking about the corrupt system using a voice changer [he does this several times on the album]..Fuck All Yall is a nice track, Pac seems to do well over acoustics...Nothing To Lose and Lie To Kick It are good, but not great tracks......the version of I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto is much better on Disc 2......Let Them Thangs Go and Defintion Of A Thug Nigga are filler tracks.......ok, on to Disc 2....to me, this is better than Disc 1, because there are more strong songs, even though both discs have 13 songs each. Disc 2 starts off with the fantastic "Ready 4 Whatever".....this was clearly recorded during the Thug Life sessions....Pac and Syke do bids here. When I Get Free is a good track that can easily be overlooked. Pac uses one of those voice changers again, so his voice sounds deeper. The acoustic is again on point....Hold On Be Strong is another great track, classic inspirational Pac right here.....I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto, Do For Love, 16 On Death Row, and Nothin But Love are all great tracks as well, but the star here is the last song: Only Fear Of Death. This is one of the darkest most haunting songs Pac has ever made.....this woulda been beautiful on MATW.....classic......there are some missteps here as well though.....Losin It is a cliche concept song with mediocre guest appearances, When I Get Free II is basically a repeat of the original, and Fake Ass Bitches is simple filler material......Overall, this album has a very MATW type feel to it, but rawer. The production is on point, but Pac was far from his lyrical peak that he would see in his Death Row era.......song descriptions and ratings:

Disc 1

1. Redemption - very nice acoustic intro.....makes you think.
2. Open Fire - classic raw Pac over a sick uptempo beat....4.5/5
3. R U Still Down - Great song right here, alot of deep lyrics over a nice beat....5/5
4. Hellrazor - Where do you think I got my name?? Sick ass song, the gem of Disc 1, thats all that needs to be said......5/5
5. Thug Style - This is a MATW type song....Pac flows nice here, and the lyrics are on point....4.5/5
6. Where Do We Go From Here - shoulda been a real song, because the content is dope, but there's no rapping......3/5
7. I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto - I dont like this version at all....the beat doesnt go with Pac's lyrics.....2/5
8. Nothing To Lose - very fast paced song, sounds like something from Thug Life Vol.1.....good track, but not one of the best on the album.....3.5/5
9. Im Gettin Money - cliche filler song....the beat is generic as hell, and Pac's subject matter is nothing new or deep.......2.5/5
10. Lie To Kick It - duo with Richie Rich.....song about bitchez, but they did this better on AEOM with "Ratha Be Ya Nigga"......3/5
11. Fuck All Yall - I like this song....basically a song about friendship that didnt work....nice acoustic.....4/5
12. Let Them Thangs Go - another filler song....this sounds like it belongs on Strictly....Pac's lyrics are very average here though, and the beat is nothing special.....3/5
13. Defintion Of A Thug Nigga - this was on the PJ soundtrack......dont like this song very much.....bland production, tired subject matter......2/5

Disc 2

1. Ready 4 Whatever - after a poor finish for Disc 1, things pick up again with this song.....Pac and Syke rip it.....definatly a classic Thug Life song that never made the album....4.5/5
2. When I Get Free - great lyrics, awesome acoustic, and the voice changer adds to the effect of the songs....4/5
3. Hold On Be Strong - Classic Pac right here. Alot of inspirational lyrics, and the production is good this time.....5/5
4. Im Losin It - Filler track.....mediocre guest appearances, horrible production, cliche subject matter.......2/5
5. Fake Ass Bitches - ditto to above......2/5
6. Do For Love - CLASSIC....The beat is good, Pac drops some of his deepest lyrics ever, and it has one of the best voice samples ever.....5/5
7. Enemies With Me - Decent track....the beat is very bland though, and Pac only drops a short verse and talks at the end.........3/5
8. Nothin But Love - This song is HOT......very nice piano loop with a perfect bassline, and Pac drops some more nice lyrics....one of the best here.....5/5
9. 16 On Death Row - Wow......one of Pac's best penned songs ever.....the title is pretty much what is says.....the production is eerie, and that chorus gets stuck in your head all day.....great song....5/5
10. I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto - you've heard it on the radio a million times. Great song though.....classic political Tupac right here, and the beat matches the lyrics much better than Disc 1's version......5/5
11. When I Get Free II - take off from the first one, but the first one is better IMO......the beat is nice, but conceptually its the same as the first....3.5/5
12. Starry Night - just an interlude about how he cant be stopped...no rating.
13. Only Fear Of Death - Closing the album out with a bang.....one of the darkest and most haunting songs in Pac's catalouge......all kinds of references to death and suicide and God......just....wow.......5/5

Overall, R U Still Down is probably meant for hardcore Tupac fans than the casual listener.........still, there are plenty of gems here, despite some of the filler presented......I think this is one of the more underated albums in his discography.......its not a classic, but there are enough classic songs to make any Pac fan happy.....not including Makaveli, i would say this is Pac's best post humous release.....better than Still I Rise, UTEOT, or Better Dayz.....final rating: 4.25/5

[Lord Funk]

.....not including Makaveli, i would say this is Pac's best post humous release.....better than Still I Rise, UTEOT, or Better Dayz.....

yep. and you're right, Hellrazor is one of the dopest Pac songs EVER, period. What a beat, and that second verse has as much energy and emotion as anything he's ever made. Truly classic.

[_That_Cracka_J]

Dope review.....keep 'em comin'!

[smartass]

nothin to lose a 3.5? its one of his best fuckin songs.

[min0rity]

you gave def of a thug nigga 2/5??? and i'm getting money 2.5/5???LMAO...that songs is CLASSIC to the fullest...nothing to lose is a 5 too its one of the best....i re-review it for you dumbass

Disc 1


2. Open Fire - 3.5/5
3. R U Still Down - 4/5
4. Hellrazor - 5/5
5. Thug Style - 3.5/5
7. I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto - 3.5/5
8. Nothing To Lose - 5/5
9. Im Gettin Money - 5/5
10. Lie To Kick It - 3.5/5
11. Fuck All Yall - 4/5
12. Let Them Thangs Go 3/5
13. Defintion Of A Thug Nigga 5/5

Disc 2

1. Ready 4 Whatever - 4/5
2. When I Get Free - 3/5
3. Hold On Be Strong - 5/5
4. Im Losin It - 4/5
5. Fake Ass Bitches - 3/5
6. Do For Love - 5/5
7. Enemies With Me - 3/5
8. Nothin But Love - 4/5
9. 16 On Death Row - 4/5
10. I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto - ......5/5
11. When I Get Free II - 3.5/5

13. Only Fear Of Death - 5/5


overall = 4/5

[ImmortalOne]

you gave def of a thug nigga 2/5??? and i'm getting money 2.5/5???LMAO...that songs is CLASSIC to the fullest...nothing to lose is a 5 too its one of the best....i re-review it for you dumbass

Disc 1


2. Open Fire - 3.5/5
3. R U Still Down - 4/5
4. Hellrazor - 5/5
5. Thug Style - 3.5/5
7. I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto - 3.5/5
8. Nothing To Lose - 5/5
9. Im Gettin Money - 5/5
10. Lie To Kick It - 3.5/5
11. Fuck All Yall - 4/5
12. Let Them Thangs Go 3/5
13. Defintion Of A Thug Nigga 5/5

Disc 2

1. Ready 4 Whatever - 4/5
2. When I Get Free - 3/5
3. Hold On Be Strong - 5/5
4. Im Losin It - 4/5
5. Fake Ass Bitches - 3/5
6. Do For Love - 5/5
7. Enemies With Me - 3/5
8. Nothin But Love - 4/5
9. 16 On Death Row - 4/5
10. I Wonder If Heaven Got A Ghetto - ......5/5
11. When I Get Free II - 3.5/5

13. Only Fear Of Death - 5/5


overall = 4/5

dumbass?? Fuck you man. Im a Pac fan to the fullest, but jesus christ not every song he made was amazing.........

[On The Edge of Insanity]

It would actually give this album about a 3.5/5 at the most, cause I thought that this was mainly filler, and it is unlikely that he would have released many of these tracks had he been alive. However I would say that I would give Definition Of A Thug Nigga about 4/5, and I absoultely love the trading of lines between Pac and Richie Rich on the third verse of Lie To Kick It so that has got to be 5/5 for me. Good review though.

[teecee]

I was under the impression that most people considered Definition of a THug Nigga classic shit, but i guess not..........to me though, the beat Warren does on that is BANGING, i love that song.  I also like first cd version of "I Wonder...." better, and i think Lie to kick it is DOPE.  Thats another Warren beat, one that he used for 213 back in the day (you can hear Snoop rap over this beat on the intro of Every Single WEekend By Kam off the Boyz in the Hood sdtrk) and of course it is the same beat Dre would use for Snoops G'z and Hustlas- to me, that track is amazing as well.  

Best songs- R U Still Down, Hellrazor, Do 4 Love, Defintion, Gettin Money, Nothin to lOse, I wonder.., Fuck All ya'll, Hold On Be Strong............

a great album for sure, slept on because it lacks the commercial side of Pac, but definitely some of his best work

[Twentytwofifty]

I honestly can bring myself to give this album anything above a 6.5/10.

[Immortal]

Dope review.....keep 'em comin'!