Bow Wow: New Jack City, Pt. 2

Ask the kid from The Sixth Sense. It’s hard to shake an innocent image. Bow Wow knows the feeling. New Jack City, Pt. 2 is his seventh CD, and folks still expect to hear cute, “106 & Park”-ready anthems. Well, folks, Bow is 22 now. On tracks like the T-Pain-aided winner “She’s My,” the young man brags about getting ladies moist. “Shake It” and “Pole in My Basement” don’t tread any new lyrical waters, but thumping tracks from Swizz Beatz and Drumma Boy can make a grown man sigh with neck aches. When Bow Wow isn’t trickin’ ’cause he’s got it, he provides such occasional coming-of-age moments as “Get That Paper” and “Sunshine.” A few more of those would have really sold his maturity story. Still, Bow and reconciled executive producer Jermaine Dupri make it plain on NJC, Pt. 2, their days of kidding around in the studio are long over. 3 stars