Celph Titled & Buckwild

Demigodz MC Celph Titled has been rapping for over a decade, but Ninety Ninety Now is his official debut. The Floridian MC is rather fortunate ― Ninety Ninety Now is produced entirely by D.I.T.C. producer Buckwild (O.C.'s "Time's Up," Black Rob's "Whoa") featuring unused beats recorded between '94 and '95. With the exception of the autobiographical "I Could Write a Rhyme," Celph does best when he has other MCs to play off his absurd style. "Swashbuckling" is a Demigodz posse cut with a beat change for each MC, while "Mad Ammo" finds Celph paired with F.T. and an on-fire R.A. the Rugged Man. "There Will Be Blood" is a D.I.T.C./Brand Nubian collaboration that finds Diamond D, A.G., O.C., Sadat X and Grand Puba ripping a dense, heavy Buck beat. Celph is a master of hilarious, proudly ignorant punch lines, from "appearing on more tracks than Dale Earnhardt's ghost" to ensuring even his "chicken breast got a bullet-proof." However, Ninety Ninety Now occasionally feels like too much of a good thing, as the bass-heavy beats and goofy punch lines start to blend together after 16 tracks. At its best though, it's manna for Big Apple rap fans.