Album Review: Diddy - Dirty Money "Last Train To Paris"

Album Review:  Diddy-Dirty Money   Last Train To Paris

64:36     Explicit Content

A year after moving his Bad Boy label from Atlantic Records to Interscope, Diddy is back with Last Train To Paris. The album features his new group, Dirty Money, which consists of female vocalists Dawn Richards (of Danity Kane) and Kalenna Harper. The hour-long train ride is loaded with the collaborative firepower of Grace Jones, Swizz Beatz, Usher, Chris Brown, Lil’ Wayne, Justin Timberlake, Bilal, Notorious B.I.G., Rick Ross, Trey Songz, T.I., Wiz Khalifa, Skylar Grey, and Drake. In an early MTV interview Diddy expressed that this concept album puts him in a “vulnerable” position, showing emotional elements of his persona that few have seen in his musical career.

Right from the first track, you get hit with a brand new sound that fuses electronic synthesizers, Euro-pop style, and techno house rhythms. ‘Yeah Yeah You Would’ also gives you a nice cameo from R&B veteran and icon Grace Jones.

The trio comes together in ‘I Hate That You Love Me’, a dance tune that lures you in with its enticing instrumental. Swizz Beatz struck gold with the production of ‘Ass On The Floor’. The value is not so much in the lyrics as it is in the upbeat tempo that gets your feet moving.

Usher seduces the audience as he slips his sly innuendo into ‘Looking For Love’. The mesh of funk and fantasy in the beat draws you to this ballad about envy and lust.

For all those anxiously waiting to see if Diddy would drop an old-school Bad Boy style track on the album, look no further than ‘Someone To Love Me’. He is calling out to all females, in search of a woman to accept him for his imperfections and his relentless drive to dominate the game. This is worth listening to.

Justin Timberlake’s FutureSex/LoveSounds influence is channeled into ‘Shades’, with its innovative sound accompanied by keyboard synth. JT and Lil’ Wayne both deliver clever verses and make this extended interlude work for the album.

Of course, no Diddy product can go without a tribute to his main man in the sky, the late Notorious B.I.G. 'Angels' samples a Jay-Z instrumental and also features the lyrics from the B.I.G. song ‘My Downfall’. Rick Ross is honored with the introductory verse.

Popping bottles seems to be Trey Songz’ forte, seeing as he is featured in yet another erotic club banger, ‘Your Love’.

Even with three years of preparation for this release, it’s sad to call out the less than par tracks – ‘Strobe Lights’ and ‘Hate You Now’.

In April 2010 ‘Hello Good Morning’ hit the airways, posing as the first hit of the anticipated album, only to receive mediocre success on the musical charts. The electric bounce in this song did serve as a segue to several remixes with artists like Rick Ross, Nicki Minaj, and notably London MC Skepta.

Heavy emotion is pumped into ‘I Know’, a song of genuine sorrow and a crying plea for forgiveness. It is a great collab with Chris Brown, Wiz Khalifa and SeVen (of RichGirl).

If you happened to watch the 2010 American Music Awards, then you would have been graced with the public debut of ‘Coming Home’, arguably the best and realest song on the album. Diddy takes a moment to reflect after his period of soul searching and is ready to step forward, putting his mistakes in the past. Skylar Grey offers her beautiful vocals on the chorus.

The final track, ‘Loving You No More’, is an R&B ballad that capitalizes on the theme of love gained and ultimately lost.

It is evident that Diddy is taking chances and stretching the Hip-Hop genre into unfamiliar territory. He does it very well, and that is why he will forever be in the top tier of producers in the game.

Ackrite Academy Rating:   4 Fingers