Editor’s Note: The Albumism staff has selected what we believe to be 50 fantastic first solo albums recorded by artists who departed—or simply took a temporary hiatus from—their respective groups, representing a varied cross-section of genres, styles and time periods. Click “Next Album” below to explore each album or view the full album index here.
SCARFACE | Mr. Scarface Is Back
Rap-A-Lot/Priority (1991)
Selected by Jesse Ducker
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Houston’s Geto Boys were one of the first rap groups to wade into the uncharted waters of exploring the mental cost of the “gangsta” lifestyle. So it’s no surprise that with his first solo album, Mr. Scarface is Back, Brad Jordan a.k.a. Scarface showcased the good and the bad of the gangsta mentality. The subject matter of his debut opus vacillates from tales of invincibility and domination to feverish stories of his own psyche tearing itself apart to somber tales of loss and regret.
Mr. Scarface is Back may be a violent album, but it’s not fueled by violence for its own sake. Instead, the album examines the various repercussions of a life mired in violence. Scarface often effectively portrays a mind completely broken by the evil that surrounds him, much of it of his own creation.
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