Fat Joe

Bronx's Fat Joe, a.k.a. Joey Crack, spent the earlier part of his career outshined by the more senior members of his Diggin' in the Crates crew. With members such as Showbiz & A.G., Lord Finesse, and Diamond D., the crew promoted an occasionally tired, true school version of hip-hop: beats, rhymes, and life dug from the gutter and the classic soul/R&B record bins. Fat Joe's early albums certainly follow this model. This is fair-to-middling '90s New York hip-hop, with a few exceptions: Represent put Fat Joe on the map with its minor hit, "Flow Joe," while Jealous Ones Envy contains the minor classic street anthem "Shit Is Real."

It wasn't until 2002's Jealous Ones Still Envy that Joe was able to escape the shadow of DITC or, even more significantly, that of his late partner in rhyme, Big Pun. Powered by two of that year's biggest singles, "We Thuggin' " (featuring R. Kelly) and the infectious "What's Luv?" (on which he takes a backseat to the Murder Inc. duo of Ashanti and Ja Rule), J.O.S.E. made Joe a household name outside the Bronx. The album's decided step up in production values allowed Fat Joe to swing smoothly between the club-oriented singles and more raw cuts like "Fight Club." Unfortunately, perhaps tempted to capitalize on his new success, Fat Joe rushed out J.O.S.E.'s followup, Loyalty. The single "Crush Tonight" tried to recapture the R&B crossover success of "What's Luv?," but it, and the album, didn't fare as well commercially. (CHRIS RYAN)

From 2004's The New Rolling Stone Album Guide