Dem Franchize Boyz

When Jermaine Dupri promotes an artist or group, you can usually be assured that what he is supporting is high in quality. But with his latest find, Dem Franchize Boyz (Jizzal, Parlae, Pimpin, Buddie), the listener is left with a sometimes interesting, often tedious, attempt at a party record.

The first four tracks of On Top Of Our Game represent the strongest and most interesting third of the album. Beyond the hit single, "I Think They Like Me (So So Def Remix)," the other three tracks ("My Music," "Ridin' Rims," and "Bricks 4 the High") provide clever hooks, production with enough snap to break your neck, and just enough amusing lyrics to make the album entertaining. The beginning tracks are simply fun party records that are beat driven and lyrically complemented.

The most interesting track on the album comes courtesy of the most unlikely of guest appearances. While Jim Jones, Bun B, Trey Songz, and Three 6 Mafia are the most notable guest appearances, Damon Dash steals the spotlight. The former CEO of Roc-a-Fella Records adds his boasts of entrepreneurial success to the hook on "Bricks 4 the High." While Dash never says anything directly about the current Roc-a-Fella head (one Shawn Carter, a.k.a. Jay-Z), there is an undertone to his self-lauding that leaves the listener wondering if this could be the start of a huge label feud.

Sadly, the album takes a turn for the less interesting when the lyrics take center stage and the production moves to the back. The rhymes lack creativity and their subject matter is so limited that every song feels the same. From the redundant choruses to the grade school rhymes (i.e. "I am the man with the plan," "I am higher than a plane," "not like a Flintstone but I make the bedrock," etc.), the album's energy is completely lost by the end of the fourth song. By the end of the album you will find yourself disagreeing with their assumption that people like them and realize that people are just tolerating them. -- Jason Kordich

Jermaine Dupri inherited a wasteland, tumbleweeds and all, when he became president of Virgin's urban division. One smart, early acquisition was Dem Franchize Boyz, a group from Atlanta that had some independent releases and a minor national smash ("White Tee") to its credit. A remix of "Oh I Think Dey Like Me," originally released on the group's first album for Universal, was placed on the Young, Fly & Flashy compilation, the first shot from Dupri's now-Virgin-distributed So So Def label, released during the summer of 2005. Retitled "I Think They Like Me" and bolstered by appearances from Dupri, Bow Wow, and Da Brat, the track hit number one on the R&B/hip-hop singles chart and crossed over to the mainstream chart's Top 20. The group's rise coincided with the even greater success of "Laffy Taffy," from fellow Atlanta group D4L. And then, a rivalry took shape within the "snap music" movement. D4L claimed to be the originators of a two-step dance called the "doin' it" dance, and they might've even had some weight behind their argument since "Laffy Taffy" became such a phenomenon. DFB, who thought otherwise, followed "Like Me" -- a hype, relatively propulsive, and straight-ahead track -- with "Lean wit It, Rock wit It," a two-stepper with finger snaps that's neither as gimmicky nor as bizarre as the D4L hit. Where D4L chose to ride the spare, left-of-center sound of "Laffy Taffy" all the way through their own album, resulting in a hollow affair (reflected by severely underwhelming sales), DFB show up with a lot more to offer. Even without the reappearance of "I Think They Like Me," the group's first So So Def/Virgin album would be durable. Though it's not without a couple inane tracks, the sinuously hypnotic "Lean wit It, Rock wit It," as well as several energizing moments -- all made with booming machine beats, jolting synthesizer patterns, stabbing horns, and infections group chants -- make the album a strong one. Once again, Dupri proves to be a shrewd businessman. ~ Andy Kellman, All Music Guide