Rick Ross: Trilla

For those who don't reside in the state of Florida, here's a newsflash: Rick Ross is the rap-ruler of the southern state. Rumor even has it that his latest release, Trilla, sold over half its first day sales in the southern state alone. With his debut, Port of Miami (2006), producing a couple of banging singles -- "Push It," "Hustlin'" and "Blow" to name a few -- and selling over one million albums to date, his latest release has some high expectations to live up to. Though Trilla is not quite of the same caliber as Port of Miami, tracks such as "Boss," and the Lil Wayne, Young Jeezy and Trick Daddy-featured "Luxury Tax" leave the album pretty close to where Ross last left off.

The album starts off as hard as Ross usually does; and though the first track, "All I Have In This World," which features Mannie Fresh, doesn't display Ross' sporadic lyrical aptitude, the production is solid. The frenetic beat and infectious hook will definitely keep listeners tuned in. The next two songs have already taken over the south as instant anthems. His first single, "Speedin," features a hook from R. Kelly and has a distinct "cruising in your convertible with the top down" feel to it, while his second single, the T-Pain-assisted "Boss," displays Ross' song making prowess.

Next up is "We Shinin,'" where Ross extends his lyrical wordplay, but sticks to the same topics of jewelry, parties and bitches, which, unfortunately, extends to most of his songs' themes. His next song, "Money Makes Me Come," is very catchy, but it would have been better implemented with a much needed feature from Lil' Kim, Trina or any other female counterpart to really send the songs' message home. While the rest of the album contains a bevy of bland tracks -- "This Is Life," "This Is Me," "Here I Am," "Billionaire" and "Reppin' My City" -- Ross compensates with some incredible features. Jay-Z provides some much needed lyrical wisdom on "Maybach Music," while Lil Wayne (who actually goes hard for the first time in a while), Young Jeezy and Trick Daddy grace the aforementioned "Luxury Tax." Ross ends Trilla by discussing his family struggles on the surprisingly introspective "I'm Only Human."

Trilla is definitely an album worth listening to. While it lacks some of the flair from his first LP, he has enough typical Rick Ross bangers to make it a good listen. With producers like the J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League, J.R. Rotem and The Runners, it's no question that Ross' beat selection is generally what makes or breaks his albums. Trilla definitely has the beats, and Ross' hefty voice takes you on a ride into the heart of Miami. While his songs can be eerily similar at times, he, yet again, manages to put out a pretty good album.

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