The South Florida native, Ace Hood, has a new mixtape out entitled The Statement 2. Ace has beens signed to the Dj Kahlid label We The Best ever since impressing the CEO with an off the dome verse to the producers hit I’m So Hood. Ace has had a lot to live up in the previous years and has released 3 albums in the past four years with the most recent Blood, Sweat, and Tears. With his new tape Ace is trying to capitlize on the success of his previous album which debuted at number eight on the Billboard’s Top 100 chart on the back of the hit single Hustle Hard.

Make no mistake about it Ace is hitting this tape with his ever present intense demeanor. His voice has vengeance in it, timing every line with malice. Coupled with the minimalist, industrial beats by The Renegades the motif reeks of chained fences and the streethop vibes of a few years back.

Though Ace definetly has talents as a lyricst, his tone is one dimensial. The songs and verses blur into each other; one after another sounding bleak and endless. After the third song it becomes clear that the album is going to have very little highs, Ace’s style just does allow for it. This could be overcome with a diverse production staff but Kahlid and The Renegades are the only producers of note throughout the tape. Tailoring the production to Ace’s voice style proves to be a big mistake. A breathe of fresh air on the beats would do a lot to provide replay value to a number of the sounds. It wouldn’t take too much, a few strings here and there would make a BIG difference.

The featured acts suffer the exact same fate as the producer. Only a few artists are seen with Busta, Yelawolf, and Rick Ross being the only of note. All these guest verses are as aggressive as Ace’s lines, succumbing to the limitations of the beats.

The one song that provides a nice change up is Forgiv’n which featured a sample of Nas’s Illmatic classic Memory Lane. The sample and the nicely sung chorus help to provide a soft contrast that is desperately needed.

Ace is hitting the same line that has won him fans before but continues to fail at showing any versitiality. This will end up being the young artist’sfatal flaw. I expect if Ace doesn’t team up with more creative producers and makes a conscious effort to provide some diversity his swan song is not far off.

Top Tracks: The Realist Livin, Forgiv’n, Be Great

Direct Download: Ace Hood – The Statement 2