Twista's The Day After: A Review

Twista's The Day After begins with a female reporter saying that Twista was in a car accident. "Apparently, he went kamikaze," she says "The big question is, will the rapper survive?"

After the success of the Jamie-Foxx, Kanye West and Twista feature Slow Jams, the quick-tongued Chicago rapper, determined to capitalize on his newfound visibility, released a star-studded and uneven album full of street records and shameless crossover attempts. That record, the 2004 LP Kamikaze made a big splash with platinum sales. So, it is a good question as to whether, after going all out, Twista could continue to capitalize on his newfound fame with 2005's The Day After.

It is a largely uneven debut that makes some of the same mistakes of its predecessor. The album is no less star-studded than Kamikaze, which featured Kanye West, Ludacris, T.I., Eightball, and Roc-A-Fella artists Memphis Bleek, Freeway and Young Chris, among others. This record features no less than Mariah Carey, Snoop Dogg, Juvenile, Jamie Foxx, Lil Kim, Pharell, Pitbull, and Trey Songz, among others. The beats range from the Midwest fare of Toxic to the drum-heavy stylings of Scott Storch to the airy minimalism of the Neptunes. And like Kamikaze it is clearly designed to sell, as it is full of potential singles.

The lead single Girl Tonite, featuring Trey Songz was clearly crafted for radio, as it is rather generic. The album has stronger singles than this, such as I'm a Winner or the aforementioned Lavish, but unfortunately for Twista fans, the album largely eschews the kind of rapid-fire street tracks for which he is known. Winners include the first two tracks of the album - both hard-hitting street records, the surprisingly inspirational Pharell and Twista collaboration Lavish and Chocolate Fes and Redbones which recalls Adrenaline Rush's Feel So Good.

Heartbeat and Holding Down the Game (which an unnamed friend calls "some original school Twista [music], some Chi-Town player [music]" on the track) are likely the best tracks on the album though neither are radio records. Both mix screwed vocals with some of the fastest verses he has ever rapped, particularly on Heartbeat. Holding Down the Game is pure cruising music, a mellow and infectious street anthem that oozes charm and charisma.

But unfortunately tracks like these are few and far in-between, The Day After favoring generic crossover fare, like the Mariah Carey feature So Lonely, or the weak When I Get You Home (A.I.O.U.), featuring Jamie Foxx and Pharell. It's an overblown album, with a few really bright spots, but if you like Twista when he's firmly in his comfort zone: making catchy Midwest street tracks and club records a bit too rough for radio play, then this album is not for you.

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