Search - Yo Yo :: Total Control

TOTAL CONTROL !!!!!!!!!

05/17/2002

(5 out of 5 stars)

"This album was and still is very underrated. Besides her breaktrough single"YOU CAN'T PLAY WITH MY YOYO" with a guest spot by Ice Cube and her appearance on the very popular single by the queen of dancehall, PATRA called " ROMANTIC CALL", here on the east coast ,this cd debuted quietly and then pasted.From what I here this set is bangin'.I have always enjoyed her rapping and stylish but striaght forward lyrics.Support Yo-Yo ,she and other female rappers.She has more good material to bring to the table. F.Y.I . I'm a 17 year old reviewer."

She May Not Be In "Total Control", But Still A Solid Album (

Chandler | Atlanta (College Park), Georgia | 05/11/2007

(3 out of 5 stars)

"After comming off an excellent You Better Ask Somebody back in 1993, Yo Yo drops her fourth album "Total Control". Only 10 tracks long, this album has a different atmosphere than her previous. On this album, she sounds more grown up and a little more mature when you compare them to some of her previous albums. There are some tracks that came from left field, and something I didn't expect to hear though.



Starting with the first track "One For The Cuties" with MC Lyte. Yo Yo and Lyte do lay down some good rhymes about looking for and finding men. In fact, expect a number of those "I'm-glad-I-have-a-man-to-satisfy-my-needs" type of song on this album. "Yo Yo Funk" is one of the best songs on the album as she and Battlecat lays down a nice funky beat to rhyme to. Next is the "Bonnie And Clyde Theme II" that features Ice Cube. Both rappers made the prequel to the song on her previous album. This version of the song has a funky Roger Troutman sound bassline towards it, and I actually this one better than it's previous. The next track is an upbeat "Steady Risin'" as she flows smoothly on the song. "Same Ol' Thang (Everyday)" has a nice beat as well by Tone Toven, as Yo Yo rhymes about getting a man in her life and has Dori singing the hook. "Tre' Ride" features MC Breed on the hook, and is a song about riding and bouncin in her car which I wasn't feeling too much, but it's still a solid song. "Body Work" features Teena Marie and is another song about getting a man in her life. "How Can I Be Down" features Ruff Dogg, and is solid boyfriend/girlfriend sounding cut, and has an upbeat Battlecat beat. "Thank Yo, Boo" is another upbeat song about gaining independance from a boyfriend, in which I find skippable. The final track "Yo Yo's Night" features Warren G., and could have been a good song, but her loud vocals make it skippable. If she would have rhymed in a softer voice, it would have been a real good track.



The overall albumis a solid but at the same time uneven. It has a lot of up beat production and mature type of lyrics, even though some of the subject matter may get repetative, and the fact there are a few hit or miss tracks. I would say out of the 10 tracks, about 6 or 7 of them I liked, in which I give this album a 7 out of 10. In this album, you will find Yo Yo to have a little more of a mature style, and not so much gangsta type tracks, as her last album has. This album is still better than some of the albums that came out in '96. If you can, I recommend that you purchase this album used. If you want to hear Yo-Yo at her full potential, I recommend you check out Black Pearl & You Better Ask Somebody. Peace.



Lyrics: B+

Production: B+

Guest Appearances: B

Musical Vibes: B+

Overall: B+



Top 5 Favorite Tracks:

1. Bonnie And Clyde Theme II (featuring Ice Cube)

2. Yo Yo Funk

3. Steady Risin'

4. Same Ol' Thang (Everyday)

5. How Can I Be Down (featuring Ruff Dogg)



Honorable Mention:

Tre' Ride (featuring MC Breed)"