So out of everybody in Little Brother, I've been through a solo project from 2 of the members on this blog. I reviewed Connected back in 2015, a project from Phonte and producer Nicolay as the duo The Foreign Exchange. I reviewed 9th Wonder's Dream Merchant series just last Summer. But what about Rapper Big Pooh and his solo shit?
Although not really the star of the trio, Rapper Big Pooh is definitely not to be slept on. He definitely has his great moments on Little Brother songs, whether it's "Cross That Line" or "Tension", and he can certainly snap on beats when he's solo. In fact, he got a more consistent discography than Phonte (especially if we're not counting Te's Foreign Exchange work), dating all the way back to Sleepers, which is today's topic.
Recorded from late 2003 to November 2004, Sleepers served as Pooh's debut, coming a year after The Foreign Exchange's Connected and around the same time 9th Wonder released the first volume of The Dream Merchant. The 14-track album features production mainly from 9th and Khrysis, with Median, Joe Scudda, Phonte, O-Dash, Spectac and Murs providing guest verses.
Yes, Big Pooh isn't the best rapper out, of course, and was a little inferior when rapping with Phonte on Little Brother joints, but Sleepers is a nice 45-minute showcase of the fact that the Virginia native can really hold his own without his partner's presence, as he builds his chemistry with rappers like Joe Scudda & O-Dash over 9th Wonder and Khrysis production. The album title definitely does reflect most of the content, just some soulful shit to vibe out to, preferably during late nights. The album follows a theme of both insomnia and needing to wake up, with movie skits playing here and there throughout the project.
For me, the only forgettable track on Sleepers is the opening track "I Don't Care", my least played song and I always forget how it goes. No pun intended, but I actually didn't care about that song. But as soon as we get into "The Strongest Man", that's when the album gets real consistent from start to finish. Produced by the one and only 9th Wonder (and mixed by Khrysis by the way), it's a song that helps to set up the soulful knocking mood expected on the album; delivering bars such as "Got the whole game sprung, not fingers and toes/Everybody's all froze like heroin's in their nose/Addicts, I suppose say my product is lethal/My pen been compared to a hit of that diesel". Plus, it bangs hard as hell on my gym playlist, ha! "Heart of the City" is already one of the more introspective cuts on the album, as Pooh takes us on a trip to his hometown, painting a picture of the inner-city life struggle. "Just Friends" is a chill vibe, where Pooh tries to explain to a friend that he isn't looking for a relationship, and just wants to be friends with benefits. This line sums it up: "I just wanna be your friend with privileges/not talkin' on' the phone all night about, where I was or who unless we went out, don't fuss and pout/'cause you know how I do, always chill with the crew but make time for you". The song is pretty catchy, and I enjoy Pooh's delivery on his verses. Not to mention, the drums, courtesy of Khrysis, are harder than bricks.
Unlike Phonte's soulful, feel-good vibes displayed on his Foreign Exchange discography, Sleepers mainly consists of good old-fashioned hip-hop: straight bars and some good chemistry with most of the guest appearances on the album. It isn't that long into the album until Phonte jumps on a track with Rapper Big Pooh and "Every Block" is one of the funkier, feel-good joints on the album, beat courtesy of 9th Wonder. Both 'Te & Pooh deliver some solid verses, and although Phonte does his thing, Pooh slightly had the upper hand on this one, being one of his stronger Little Brother moments (yeah, I count this as a LB song even if it's on the Pooh solo project, haha).
O-Dash appears on two joints, which are some of the more introspective and personal cuts on the album. On "Live Life", Pooh, Dash & Spectac delivers some touching verses, with Pooh touching on his damaged relationship with his older brother. "My Mind" sees Darien Brockington provide a hook on the most beautiful song on the album, as Pooh & Dash rap about lost ones, whether family, friends or a partner. Dash even has his own interlude, appropriately titled "Dash's Interlude", where over Nicolay production, he provides a little 20 bar verse, which was pretty decent. "Scars" is definitely another highlight on the album as Pooh links up with Median & Joe Scudda for a slightly emotional cut to deliver some killer verses. Pooh did his thing but it's so hard for me to decide on who had a better verse between Median and Joe. Median was so amazing with his delivery, he floated hard on that beat. But Joe managed to hit deep with his verse, even letting the "Cut Me Deep" sample speak for him.
Sleepers is very notable for its production, carried heavily by 9th Wonder & Khrysis. Nicolay & Little Brother manager Big Dho both provide a beat each though. "Scars" is easily the best instrumental on the album, the way 9th chopped that Curtis Mayfield sample just amazed me. And then Rapper Big Pooh, Median & Joe Scudda's verses to top it off! "Between the Lines" is some feel good Summer type music, where Pooh keeps it simple, attempting to get his crush's attention with hints, but she's clearly not paying attention. Produced by Big Dho, "The Jungle" is basically just a sample loop, but it still remains such a smooth song on the album. The Murs- assisted cut "Now" serves as a 9th Wonder remix to an early song called "Keep the Bling", originally produced by Khrysis, and both Pooh & Murs do their thing on this joint, especially Murs. Speaking of Khrysis, he delivered hard with his production, with "Live Life" banging harder than a bitch, "My Mind" being the most beautiful song on the album and the drums on "Just Friends" hitting real good. The album finally concludes with "The Fever", where over a sombre instrumental from Khrysis, Pooh spits about him and his music being seen as the cure for the sick; coming with bars such as "They say the kid, yo it doesn't exist/I've been known to be prescripted, hand to hand to handle the fix/a contraband landed me on the list, want an issue, phlegm ripped tissue, I popped the cassette/diagnosed the disease that's been given to vets, I'm a hero outta town and come home to threats". It ends the album so calmly, adding on to the late night theme the album provides throughout.
Overall, Sleepers is a solid showcase of how well a rapper who was seen as the "weakest link" in the trio can hold his own on a full-length album for 45 minutes. No, it isn't as great as the feel-good vibes on The Foreign Exchange's Connected, and lyrically there are a lot more better moments on 9th Wonder's Dream Merchant series. And hell no, it doesn't hold up to most of Little Brother's projects from 2003-06. But Sleepers is still such a great album, consisting of good ol' regular hip-hop vibes and fire production. Pooh manages to show off much better moments solo than in LB, where most of the time, he completely pales in comparison to Phonte. But hey, at the end of the day, Pooh can still out-rap a lot of rappers. And this album is proof of that.
Recommended Tracks: "Scars", "Live Life", "My Mind", "The Strongest Man", "Now", "Heart of the City", "Between the Lines"
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