Harlem World: The Movement : Music Reviews : Rolling Stone

Album Reviews

Give Puff Daddy protege Mase credit: He is trying to be his own man. His first non-Bad Boy Entertainment enterprise, Harlem World, features his twin sister, Baby Stase, and Blinky Blink (whom you may remember from the video for Blackstreet and Maya's "Take Me There"), as well as four other Uptown-based rappers. Toss in producers Jermaine Dupri, Track Masters and Deric "D-Dot" Angelettie, and there should be hell up in Harlem, right?

Nah, son. The disc's best song, a nifty uptempo joint called "I Really Like It," takes two hits -- New Edition's "Popcorn Love" and DeBarge's "I Like It" -- and makes them sound like, uh, Puff. That identity question haunts much of The Movement. The crew also recycles stale tales of materialism and hedonistic mayhem on cuts like the Latin-tinged "Across the Border" and the thumping "One Big Fiesta." Not exactly the formula for a Harlem renaissance. (RS 808)

KEVIN POWELL