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Jackpot Review
04/22/2005 5:25 AM, AMG
A pop-rap sensation weeks before his debut album even streeted, Chingy didn't really need a solid effort to move platinum-level units, as his massive breakthrough debut single, "Right Thurr," was certainly enough in itself. The track borrows everything wonderful about Nelly's "Hot in Herre" anthem from the summer before: from the bouncy, bassy beats to the Southerrn dialect, to the get-naked-now overtness, to the downright teen pop palatability of it all. It's an instant party rap classic, for sure. The remainder of Jackpot is just as market-targeting, as the Trak Starz turn in one Neptunes-esque Dirty South production after another, but unfortunately it's not quite as rousing. The beats most often are thurr and so are the songs themselves, but Chingy lacks substance. He doesn't have a story and repeats himself over and over and over. To an extent, he compensates with plenty of style, often taking a page or two from Snoop Dogg's handbook to pimpadelic posturing. However, style only goes so far, and in the case of Jackpot, it doesn't quite go the distance of the album's relatively brief (for rap) hourlong playing time. In fact, Jackpot is more interesting from a production standpoint. The Trak Starz are the album's true stars: they produce every track but one and have a trademark sound that could make them the Neptunes of the southern Midwest if they could only sweeten up their hooks a bit. Even so, production alone doesn't make a rap album, especially when you have the same two guys producing its entirety. And again, while Chingy certainly has Southern charm and ample brashness, he's a middling rapper at best. Of course, you don't need to freestyle like Jay-Z, battle like Eminem, story-tell like 50 Cent, or preach like Nas when you're a pop-rapper. All you need is a novelty hit and some pizzazz. Nelly was proof of that, and in so many ways, Chingy has everything going for him that the self-declared number-one rapper did: a ridiculous, ubiquitous breakthrough hit and a fun, fleshy video to accompany it as well as a few similar follow-ups in the can and a strong major-label push. So, if you loved Nelly, you're probably gonna like Chingy. It's that simple, literally. ~ Jason Birchmeier, All Music Guide
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