Pedagree :: Flood the Blocc – Volume 1: Make Bread

This is not good. Imagine Lil Wayne attempting to replicate T.I.’s country drawl over Juicy J’s most forgettable throwaways, and you’d come somewhere close to this record, a clumsy stumble through the most irritating clichés in Southern rap. It’s all here, from the “I’m legit, I push rhymes like weight” drivel of “Trapstar” to the Three Six aping hook of “Fuc Da Lamez” to the pseudo-bounce of “Kiss And Don’t Tell” and the chopped and screwed quasi-UGK psychedelia of “Hand On Da Woodgrain.” I really wish I could say something positive about this release, but absolutely EVERYTHING on this platter has been offered in a far more sumptuous, attractive fashion by more accomplished emcees. Of course, if you’re searching for half-baked T-Rock/Twista emulation (the absurdly-monickered Criz Da Crook on “D.O.A.”), Hot Boyz impersonation and Hypnotize-Mindz-without-the-menace production, look no further than this mixtape.

I really hate to throw salt on Pedagree’s hustle, especially if he has indeed ceased his drug-trafficking operations to pursue a rap career, but this kind of redundant plagiarism is nothing short of reprehensible. If I were you, I’d seek out some old Hawk or E.S.G. instead.