1. Ready Set Go
2. All The Way Turnt Up (feat. Soulja Boy)
3. Show Out
4. Sexy Girl Anthem
5. Yes Girl (feat. J. Holiday)
6. One Night Stand
7. Employee Of The Year
8. I Be Shopping
9. All I Know (feat. Jared Evan)
how has Interscope mishandled Roscoe Dash’s career so badly? Ready Set Go! has freshly leaked as of Sunday, and it only features nine songs, making it more of an EP than an album. That’s not the real problem though; Roscoe’s debut has been pushed back since March of this year, despite the fact that he’s scored two hits and assisted Waka Flocka on his own, and yet they’ve still yet to pull the trigger on the kid, I suppose because ringtones and endorsements are more beneficial to them then actually putting out an album (and, with the promotion they’ve given him, it certainly wouldn’t do good numbers). What’s the latest release date for Roscoe Dash’s debut? March 29th, 2011.
Yet here it is, in digital form, which means unlike Lil’ Wayne’s Rebirth (which managed to survive a very similar fate; I guess Universal’s just terrible at product control?), this album will more than likely be genuinely shelved, never seeing the light of day, and destroying yet another pop-rap savant from breaking beyond his niche audience. It makes me wonder if Nelly were a young artist today, if he would share the same fate? With the exception of Flo Rida, who really doesn’t make pop-rap so much as he does robotic dance hits (or at least he did before he lost his relevancy), pop-rappers are frowned upon in today’s musical climate, for one reason or another. Similar ATLiens like Yung L.A. and J. Futuristic have both had their careers derailed by label politics, and both are making terrible music at the moment. As far as I’m concerned, Rosoe’s far more talented in this realm of music than both of them, and deserves better than a potentially-shelved nine-track album that doesn’t even include some of his better songs from the past year, yet includes all of his singles.
Soulja Boy, Roscoe’s closest peer and label-mate, has suffered similar set-backs with his DeAndre Way, but that’s finally dropping on the 30th of November, and has gotten some genuine publicity and backing. I think the only reason Soulja Boy has prospered in his career where his peers have fallen is his tech-savy, and self-promotion, otherwise Interscope would’ve tried to bury him after SouljaBoyTellEm.com (and they essentially DID try to bury him, iSouljaBoyTellEm hardly got any promotion and only caught on after the right singles were finally pushed). I don’t understand what Jimmy Iovine’s problem is with pop-minded rappers - I suppose he figures since they really aren’t very trendy at the moment that it’s best just to dump them. I only say this because Interscope’s most successful artist, Eminem, changed his direction completely on Recovery, probably partly due to the fact that white-music (for lack of a better term) is what’s popular right now, and rappers must follow this code or get shelved. Roscoe didn’t.
At least unlike LeLand’s album, this one actually slipped through the cracks - either that or Roscoe or his people leaked it themself - and it’s honestly kinda great for what it is. The singles are still great - All The Way Turnt Up being a great getting-ready for the club-anthem, Show Out being a great track to stunt to, and Sexy Lady Anthem being the essential single for the ladies. The R&B features could’ve been done without - Roscoe can sing himself, and their presence isn’t neccessary, but both songs are alright. The tracks where Roscoe is left on his own to ride KE’s triumphant horns and synths is where Roscoe shines the most.
Roscoe Dash should’ve had a prosperous career. Fuck Interscope.
