Big Noyd

Are there any old school enthusiasts out there that remember Big Noyd from the "Recognise and Realise" days? With dope beats and grimy flow, Noyd secured his spot in the rap game alongside fellow Queensbridge emcees Mobb Deep, back in the early '90s. Noyd is definitely better than your average emcee, but years later he still relies on guest spots from Mobb Deep to complete his latest album, On the Grind. And with Prodigy and Havoc appearing on eight cuts, it's hard to tell whose album this really is. Each track blends into the next, without much lyrical diversity or variance in production. He's still rapping about the same thing he's always rapped about: bling, bitches and thug shit and oh yeah, how dope he is. This album was made for the hustlers, gangstas and hoods, but at least Noyd's boasting about street life and experiences that are true. But with Havoc producing six of the tracks on this album (which is also questionable, considering some of the Mobb Deep releases that have come out in the past), this album doesn't really offer up anything new. Big Noyd is still a gritty, underground Queensbridge emcee putting out Mobb Deep collaborations — On The Grind is not terribly bad, but nothing exceptional.