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Freeway - Free At Last
| Rapreviews | | Freeway has always been trapped in the chains of his own environment. The whiney-voiced emcee first made noise by debuting on the collabo track "1-900-HUSTLER", virtually stealing the show from the likes of Jay-Z, Bleek and Beans. He sure seemed to have a full head of steam, but somehow his solid Freshman release "Philadelphia Freeway" got lost in the mix somewhere between Sigel's "The Reason" and Ye's "College Dropout", and plenty Roc-a-Fella discs in between. The 2003 banger was shrouded in the shadows of the bigger names. They all have their place: Jay-Z is the pres, Bleek is the right-hand man, and Beans is the general, but despite Jigga's praises Freeway had no strong identity aside from adding his verses into others' product. Don't get it twisted--he is on one of the most prominent labels in the industry, so he is doing far better than most, but there has always been that glint of hope that he would be another one to fully realize the unrealistically high expectations of a man in his position. ...full text |
| | Allmusic | | Almost five years after releasing a near-classic rap debut, Freeway finally gets his second shot, and there's some unsurprisingly frank talk about his surroundings not being identical. Since Philadelphia Freeway's early 2003 release, there was the Damon Dash/Jay-Z Roc-A-Fella rift, so Free addresses that, despite it being old news. He was, after all, caught in the middle and did not switch labels. Then there's "It's Over," which could be the first track to mention the producer not responsible for its beat; in fact, both Just Blaze (who produced ten Philadelphia Freeway tracks) and Kanye West (who chipped in with two) are saltily put on blast for either not getting back or being too busy. Throw in a deepened relationship with 50 "Somewhat Responsible for Mobb Deep's Blood Money" Cent, who replaces Dash's role as co-executive producer, as well as what could be perceived as an enthusiasm shortage on the part of the Roc-A-Fella/Def Jam family, and Free at Last has all the makings of a disappointment -- a release destined to slide off everyone's radar within a couple weeks of release....full text |
| | Billboard | | This sophomore disc from Philadelphia's Freeway hits stores four years after the release of the gruff-voiced MC's much-admired debut. That's an eternity in rap years, but if anyone's in a position to capitalize on the frustration produced by music-industry politics, it's Freeway, whose music depicts the struggle of a good man caught in a bad situation. On "Free at Last," he demonstrates that being forced to cool his heels since 2003 hasn't dulled the rough edges of his appealingly hectic flow; check out "Roc-a-Fella Billionaires," a brash Broadway banger in which he compares stacks of cash with mentor Jay-Z....full text |
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