Plies

It's hard to believe Plies is actually Da REAList, as he claims on his new album. In fact, since he announced that his next CD will be called REALer Than Usual, one can't help but speculate he's simply slightly more real than average. Or perhaps he's not real at all; a 2008 HipHopDX.com report showed he has greatly exaggerated his criminal bona fides. In any case, it's hard to take Da REAList seriously. When Plies threatens to "shoot you to death" on "Me & My Goons," for example, one is not exactly quaking in one's boots. And on "All Black," when he asserts that "somebody gettin' whacked," one suspects that probably just means, like, with a stick. That's not to say that Da REAList doesn't have some nice moments – "Family Straight" is genuinely touching. It's just that listening to it is akin to reading a James Frey memoir. 1 star.