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Chamillionaire – Ultimate VictoryAlbum Review by:
Jason Fleurant
Wednesday, September 19, 2007
 They say revenge is a dish best served cold, so that means Chamillionaire’s foe must suffer from frostbite. Or at least suffer from something to that icy effect if you will. After touching a level of success no one was expecting or was willing to believe from him (platinum album, multi-platinum ring tone sales, and a Grammy), Cham is back. His sophomore album is here and he is ready for the victory lap.
Coming out the gate though this time around started a little rocky. Chamillioniare released a single called “Not A Criminal” featuring Kelis to generate some kind of buzz, but even after releasing a remix it seem to flop. Everyone was questioning the Houston resident, believing he had fell to the enviable sophomore slump. Not one to fall back and fold to pressure, Cham bounced back on the J.R. Rotem produced “Hip-Hop Police”. Assisted by legendary storyteller extraordinaire Slick Rick, the high pace track finds Chamillionaire touching on the subject of Hip-Hop being under surveillance. Using clever word play as he describes being hounded by an detective “saw the Meth while I was Inspecting your Deck/ saw you was Ridin’ Dirty/ when I looked at the rest/... in the car, we confiscated The Chronic/ and The Clipse/ The Diary that you had/ and all your Blueprints”.
The album comes out swinging on it’s opener “Mourning News”, where a news reporter speaks on varies issues going today only to be interrupted by Cham’s rapid fire. Taking aim on the current full blast banishing Hip-Hop has taken via the media with “Voice perfect for CNN, but knew Larry King wouldn’t hear it through/ Bill O’Reily’s an idiot/ he ain’t the only one with an opinion fool/... you get on TV and get at me/ then I’m a get on a CD, and get at you” or speaking on the mind set of blacks toward education with “and when your black and educated/ your own people say you ain’t black, man/ maybe black in your appearance/ but really whiter than Batman/” , he digs deep into a variety of subject matter. Continuing the more conscious vibe on “Evenig News” and “Bill Collecta”. The later finds the duo of Cham and Bone Thug’s rhymer Krazie Bone reuniting to capture the same magic as on “Ridin’”.
The album captures a plethora of emotions and concepts. A stand out is “I Think I Love You” where Chamillionaire divulges on his love/hate relationship with money. Taking it to the next level in the third verse, where he tells a tale of a brother going bizzarick over his money falling into his sibling’s hands. “Come Back To The Streets” finds Cham warning those calling him out in there rhymes not to take him lightly “these boys is cartoon characters, to much imagination/ it’s a little too much animation/ callin’ me cause, cause they know/ Cham can erase ‘em”.
No Chamireillion doesn’t not deliver a classic a undeniable classic, falling short with such cuts as “You Must Be Crazy” or his adventure into the new rock-n-roll phase with “Rock Star”. The track isn’t bad, nor is “You Must Be Crazy” they just don’t seem up to par when your listening to “Standing Ovation” or the Devin The Dude featured “Rocy Road”. This is personally when I like Chamillionaire the most. When he’s more introspective, “Rocy Roads” reminds me of a continued version of Sound Of Revenge’s “Rain”. As “Standing Ovation” has Cham flowing over a roaring crowd about his struggle to become the success he is today.
Respect must be given where respect is due, and Chamillionaire has earned it. Proving he’s a man of the people from releasing free mixtapes, to even cutting down cursing in rhymes to ease the tension (which you don’t even notice him not doing) Hip-Hop has been receiving. The album is definitely worth picking up if your into just some dope Hip-Hop music. There is something there for everybody if you’re a hustler, lyricist, or groupie. Chamillionaire has taken it upon himself to show there is so much more to The South and Hip-Hop in general and definitely succeed. From the clever wordplay of rapper names in “Industry Groupie” to the laid back picture perfect “Utimate Vacation”, Chamillionaire has given 100 percent into making an actual good album. Something that is rarely seen in this day and age.
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