Still Pac Rises

Still I Rise is the Outlaws' first album and, as expected 14 of 15 songs feature their mentor 2Pac. The album went double platinum which was great for the Outlaws cause they left Death Row after this.
The album's greatness are the beats, which are great because the production is handled by the likes of Johnny J, Edi of the Outlawz and Big D(One of the producers on The 7 Day Theory) and it is the most suitable for Pac's flow.
The first track, Letter to the president, is the classical political Pac track, it features Big Syke from Thug Life, and has a dark feel to it. Pac's verse is on top and it's one of the few tracks where all the Outlawz have above average performances. Excellent beat. 5 Stars
The album continues with the self entitled track, Still I Rise. The beat keeps the essence of the original which i believe all posthoumous beats should. The major disadvantage is that Fatal's verse was removed and replaced by Young Noble's which is good but fades when compared to Fatal's. Khadafi puts a great verse and i truly believe that he is the best of the group and he would have become famous if he hadn't died(R.I.P.). 5 Stars
The original version of Secretz of War was one of Pac's best tracks but unfortunately the retail version is ruined mainly because of the beat and Edi's verse. Still, A flows from 2Pac and Khadafi. 3 Stars
The main single, Baby Don't Cry has a great old school beat and deals with rape victims. Great performances by both Outlawz, Edi and Young Noble. Pac's lyrics are fenomenal:
Now here's a story bout a woman with dreams
So picture perfect at thirteen, an ebony queen
Beneath the surface it was more than just a crooked smile
Nobody knew about her secret so it took a while
I could see a tear fall slow down her black cheek
Sheddin quiet tears in the back seat; so when she asked me,
"What would you do if it was you?"
Couldn't answer such a horrible pain to live through
I tried to trade places in the tragedy
I couldn't picture three crazed n***** grabbin me
For just a moment I was trapped in the pain, Lord come and take me 5 Stars
As The World Turns is a great track and has one of the best beats ever (courtesy of Darryl "Big D" Harper), but is damaged by Edi's mediocre performance. 4 Stars
Black Jesuz is probably one of the few track where Pac is outshined by someone, that being Khadafi. This track is a must for every Pac fan and everybody shines on this track that also features the only female Outlaw, Storm, who eventually left the group. 5 Stars
Homeboyz is a raw track that talks about loyalty and about how everybody needs his closest friends in one way or another.5 Stars
Hell 4 a Hustler features amazing production by Edi and is a flawless track, the only disadvantage is the removal of Khadafi's verse.5 Stars
High Speed and The Good Die Young are two deep, emotional tracks with great beats and above average verses. You have to listen to them to realise how great they are.Both are 5 Star tracks.
Killuminati sounds like a freestyle and has a G funk beat. It's not such a great track but it's not worth skipping either. 3 Stars
Teardrops and Closed Caskets is a very interesting tracks as every member of the group says two word s of the three verses that make one of the greatest ghetto stories ever. The fact that the track features the famous Nate Dogg on the hook makes this a highlight of the album. 5 stars
Tatoo Tears is a great track but original was better. 4 stars. I have doubts about what to think about U Can Be Touched. The beat is as good as the original and Napoleon raps Pac's verse from the original, with great intensity and passion. The bad thing is the fact that Edi has a worse verse then the one recorded in 1996 on the original version ??? 4 Stars
Y'All Don't Know Us shows the outlawz taking a shot at the type of "I don't give a ..." atitude Pac had but they fail so the track has nothing to offer and the beat is horrible.
As i said earlier, this is one of pac's best albums but i can't rate it 5 stars because it's also an Outlawz album and they seem incomplete on some tracks (especially Edi and Young Noble). It's still a great album but the removal of Fatal is easily noticed by hardcore 2Pac fans.