Chingy

Hate It or Love It

3/5

Key Tracks: Fly Like Me, All Aboard (Ride It)

Of the two choices given in the CD’s title, ‘Love It’ wouldn’t describe my reaction. Most of the tracks lack any creative originality, and the lyrics are far too repetitious. With Ludacris as one of the executive producers and also lending his voice to Gimme Dat, I would have expected more than the sleeper that this CD is.

However, I managed to unearth a couple of pearls. Fly Like Me features the vocals of Amerie (1Thing), a talented beauty we should hear more of. All Aboard (Ride It) is a really decent club track that prompts you to bump and grind on the floor. Unfortunately, the rest of the album is uninspiring and gives the eject button new importance.

I’d like to see Chingy return to the success formula that gave us Jackpot. It had fun, romance, and respectable backbeats that you could either drive or dance to. Whether you “Hate It or Love It”, Chingy’s latest effort will most likely leave you yawning.

+Arlie MacGregor
July 10, 2008