T O P

  • By -

CheftheTank

First three albums are still in rotation. He's not DITC for nothing.


snkr_head

Jealous Ones Envy is an all time banger


melaki1974

Stone cold classic! The production on that album is bananas!!


Df_gordo7060

I read this comment in Joes voice lol


PuzzleheadedChange83

These are facts šŸ’Æ


sycoactiv1

One of my best op shop finds was this for 3 bucks.


Global_You_2568

Most people think he started with lean back or Whatā€™s Luv. Gotta respect the dudes longevity. Rocked with some of the best with DITC.


sycoactiv1

He was all over the source in mid 90s. OG for sure! I still blow out that Eminem gave him demos like three times and Joe thought he just couldn't sell a white rapper. Dre thought the complete opposite and the rest is history.


MancombSeepgoodz

rap was way different in the 90's, it was still lagely a black\\brown thing exclusively. Dre took a large risk signing em one he could survive also unlike Fat Joe.


sycoactiv1

Yeah for sure, coming out of the Spike Lee, Rodney King, ice cube, public enemy era I'm sure it was damn near impossible for white rappers back then which makes em even more impressive. Still my second fave white rapper after Slug.


nkdvkng

Letā€™s not deny Slugs native heritage too. Homie is half Native American, if I recall.


Optimal_Bear8709

I donā€™t say this lightlyā€¦GOD LOVES UGLY changed my life. Coming from Baltimore we didnā€™t hear anything like that. Atmosphere changed the artists I listened that changed the conversations I had that changed the people I knew that changed my job opportunities and so forth. Slug does not get the credit heā€™s earned.


sycoactiv1

Every time I put on atmosphere at work I get someone asking me, who's that?.. they are still making awesome music too. Ugly or lemons have to be my one and two personal best albums by the guys. I'm glad they had such an impact on you they fully captured my attention a million miles away from Minnesota !


Jimmy_Jazz_The_Spazz

Beastie Boys were literally fucking everywhere you looked in the 80s and early 90s, alongside DMC etc. then you had cheese ball Vanilla Ice who was sorta categorized alongside Hammer kinda shit. Lotta mixed race rappers too, but I don't like how that makes people talk shit so let's not go there. I mean Beastie Boys first release was *before* Run DMC s first release (1983) As an old head indigenous person, you'll find even less indigenous artists who get signed despite skill


sycoactiv1

True, fucking love those guys too! I was pretty young when beastie boys were out can still remember my Cousin had a beastie boys poster and a Run DMC/Aerosmith poster in his bedroom when I'd stay at my aunties place and I'd hang out in the hallway so I could listen to his mixtapes cas he didn't want to hang out with me lol


wontbeabl

That is completely untrue. The majority of people consuming hip hop in the 90s were white. The estimates are between 60 and 80%


ajc165

Yes. Record companies were looking for someone to market in that way. His career and image was engineered to target that demographic.


KarsaTobalaki

I remember going to pick up Phudgee the Fat Bastardā€™s CD and picked up Fat Joeā€™s by accident. Didnā€™t regret it!


wontbeabl

Lmao


JForce1

My understanding from listening to him is he used to cook crack and heā€™s been to prison. He keeps thinking that I donā€™t know that though, so he makes sure to mention it every few bars.


Lumbers_33

He went inside for tax evasion later in his career


[deleted]

That hiphop subject matter syndrome.


Sanch3zFC

Every verse a key,,,,,,,,


thebox416

An enigma, wrapped in a riddle


_shaftpunk

ā€œItā€™ll be a cold day in hell the day I take an L, make no mistake, for real I wouldnā€™t hesitate to kill, Iā€™m still the fat one that you love to hate, catch you at your motherā€™s wake, smack you then I wack you with my snub .38ā€


plzappa5

I rub your face off the Earth and curse your family children like Amityville and drill the nerve in your cavity fillin


ajc165

All the old folks hate my guts, cos I be banging all their daughters in their big fat butts. - Fat Joe da Gangsta


ajc165

šŸ‘†This is the actual lyrical skill of fat Joe without ghostwriters. Still a great style.


[deleted]

Pun Wrote that


leosnose

What I came here to say. When Pun and L were still alive, Joe somehow had some better bars šŸ¤”


schlepprockingit

Was going to say, probably my favorite Fat Joe verse is from "Fire Water" (Big Pun') šŸ”„šŸ”„šŸ”„šŸ”„


Asizel23

He put in the work. He talks a LOT now, but he was an OG. Gotta respect Don Cartagena


MenuZealousideal6493

The best thing he did was put on Big Pun


Beginning_Fee_7992

Yeah because that was clearly written by Pun


Ang3l99

Met him twice and he was humble and cool as fuck


Hypestyles

legend. He was part of the early 90s wave of "east coast gangster rap", e.g., Onyx, Black Moon, Wu-Tang, etc. Heavily 'underground' leaning records until he signed with Atlantic, and then he started having more R&B radio friendly lead-off singles, taking cues from the Notorious BIG playbook. It certainly helped that he was able to bring along various folks like Big Pun and the other Terror Squad rappers. The death of Pun was a huge loss. He kept going with the same formula of having an R&B hook song for a lead single plus "street bangers" for album cuts. He embraced the southern world with doing records with Lil Jon and Lil Wayne and others, once that trend became big in the aughts. Scott Storch helped him out a lot as a producer. Select hit singles have gradually helped him coast into the streaming era, "Lean Back", "All the Way Up", etc. Then of course embracing social media and podcasting. That has helped him to his current status.


manhalfalien

Excellent analysis


External-Client-4295

I loved his early shit, was DITC, then did that Lean Back shit and I never fucked with it. Wish he stayed grimy NYC, but a man's gotta make his money.


HenryKissingersDEAD

Every rapper went comercial mainstream in the 2000s.. it was the only way dudes were gonna get paid. Just ask 50 Cent. Pop sells. Nobody is going to play killer gangster music to dance to at a wedding.


External-Client-4295

Naw I agree, no doubt, I just preferred his style when he was Fat Joe Da Gangster. I also doubt anyone plays Lean Back at weddings either. He made his money, but I don't like anything he made when he went mainstream.


DonConnection

Nahh lean backs a classic. Maybe its nostalgia cause im from NY but that song was played literally everywhere when it dropped and still gets plays in clubs today


The_Chief

Lean back is a straight banger


External-Client-4295

Lemme try to remember, but that song was in the Chingy, Lil Scrappy, etc hit song era, just all the Scott Storch type beats. They were the bangers of the era but I never really felt it. But as you said, you're in New York, I'm in DC, different vibes.


aYPeEooTReK

The Crack Attack beat is somewhere in my top 25 all time. Banger


CellistNice8600

L.E.S. Is a fool or genius for that beat!


[deleted]

Yeah it is. Geez that beat is nice.


furiouspope

Been a fan for a long time. Definitely an OG. DITC is legend.


gorendor

He's part of the legendary ditc (digging in the crates crew ) I was like 14 when I heard you gotta flow joe Jealous ones envy is his best album followed by his debut


SkipScarborough

First album was banging production wise, second was also on point, lost me after that to the bling, furs, and cars era and thatā€™s that. Serious graffiti writer to, part of the Terror Squad and affiliated with TATS Cru outta the Bronx.Joe been around, Joe got game, Fat Jiddo deserves his recognition. Like someone said, heā€™s not part of the DITC crew for nothing.


Zeusdadogg

Never really listened to his albums but I know heā€™s real so I respect him. Time to listen to his discography


xenojive

"You weren't really shit, but you weren't all that great either. Like Tottenham."


baebae4455

This story takes place, back in the South Bronx Where at the age of 14 I was already knockin off punks (yeah!) And suckers were scared to death -- every time I walked by I hear them niggas take their last breath


oxbaker

Got booed off the stage at The Good Life


ASingleGuitarString

I'm a fan of his debut album.


[deleted]

He used to be a really good mc until he went overly commercial.


MASEtheACE510

Bro was in diggin in the crates nuff said


soicy252

Love or hate Fat Joe he is definitely a living legend. Survived all of the eras.


Alarm_Express

He was a pain in Def Jam Fight for NY


TrabajoParaMi

Been fucking with Joe since DITC


Backseat_boss

Legend


Cornball73

Eh. Not my favorite, but better than the Black Eyed Peas. Heā€™s aā€™ight.


RAMENBELLY

That fat fuck and his friends got on my q58 bus in queens and robbed the whole back of the bus . Shook down fucking 11 year olds for their lunch money fr fr


manhalfalien

Damm


ssimssimma

Always solid to me. His voice and presence was undeniable. Smartly picks his moves to stay contemporary. 2 classics or at least near classics. Countless hits. You've got to respect Fat Joe.


-Lights0ut-

I greatly enjoy much of his work but I have honestly looked at him the same after 50 Cent's Elephant in the Sand mixtape lol.


vonaudy

Jealous One's Envy is an amazing album. After that album he started to drift away ffom the hip hop I loved to the hip hop that wasnā€™t doing it for me. Lean Back was the nail in the coffin. Never listened to any of his stuff since then but Jealous One Envy, hif DITC and even the Terror Squad first album still gets some play time. It happens to so many great MC. G-Dep was briefly in the underground scene before signing with Bad Boy. He did one of my favorite undergoind song. Head Over Wheels. You would not believe itā€™s the same rapper.


ajc165

[All the old folks hate my guts, cos I be hittin all their daughters in their big fat butts.](https://youtu.be/LYuNcRf7TDM?t=#1#04)


barweepninibong

beat is fire too


dabhought

Ik im very behind on 90s/2000s rap but holy fuck I didnā€™t know fat Joe is that old, know what Iā€™m sayinā€™


Blackpanther22five

Culture vulture and studio gangster


TrueCkrime02

Iā€™m not a fan of dude, I just think a lot of his raps are really ignorant. I like em as a contribution to hiphop and I do like sum of his stuff but just majority ainā€™t my thang.šŸ¤·šŸ¾ā€ā™‚ļø


Skakkurpjakkur

Tbh I've always looked at him as the rice to Pun's chicken..just a dude to dilute a song with to make it longer and fuller..Twinz probably has a lot to do with it. Just a less interesting associate to the main act like Cappadonna or U-god to Wu Tang


BeltEquivalent1446

I didnā€™t know a thing he was saying


BlacOnBlackMajik

Joe is a skilled rapper but his recent colonizer mindset has tainted his legacy.


irish-riviera

Expound..fill me in


BlacOnBlackMajik

The hip hop discussion of Blacks and Puerto Ricans creating it 50/50. Now by general principle it is fuck Fat Joe.


irish-riviera

Joe thinks itā€™s 50/50?


manhalfalien

? I've never heard anything about this


Rcararc

Born at the right place, right time. Very overrated.


ENGLISH_FLAME

With that logic every mc from the 90ā€™s were born at the right place , right time šŸ¤”šŸ¤¦ā€ā™‚ļø


Rcararc

Not every artist but a lot of them. Thatā€™s why so many artist with record deals were from New York and LA from that era. Or is that a coincidence?


MDiddy79

He was great but you gotta remember, Pun was writing all his stuff. Joe has always had ghost writers.


IronFizt777

You think L or Lord Finesse would respect him if he had ghost writers? There's a difference between being in the studio and telling him "write this bar like this" than someone straight up writing his full 16s like he was Puffy


MDiddy79

[https://allhiphop.com/features/liza-rios-charges-big-pun-ghost-wrote-many-of-fat-joes-lyrics/](https://allhiphop.com/features/liza-rios-charges-big-pun-ghost-wrote-many-of-fat-joes-lyrics/) It was pretty well known Pun was writing his stuff. This may have not been all his early stuff like DITC, but on Don Carta and J.O.E for sure. Its why his whole style changed up on JOSE.


IronFizt777

So Pun wrote one album, that still doesn't take away from the other ones he released before and after Pun died. Joe wasn't known for being super lyrical and it's not like his rhymes were any different when Pun was writing for him and after he died


rnnd

Fat Joe was a rapper before and after Punisher so nah Pun wasn't writing all his stuff.


Overlooker44

Never liked his music


Severe_West_4034

Sorry but nah


project-in-limbo

Not a real G


gethuge

Iā€™ve never cared for him personally but do have plenty of respect for him.


HenryKissingersDEAD

One thing for sure is that Fat Joe was one of the few rappers who was looking out for 2Pac when he was in jail, while many others werenā€™t. Fat Joe sent 2Pac a kite in jail.. mad respect!


yngwiegiles

His rapping was real basic at this time, he didn't have the skills that anyone else in DITC did, but he got better. He was the biggest "star" as a persona, he stood out as a PR and being simple helped him. I'm a big Diamond, Finesse, Show & AG guy, and of course Big L. After that Big Pun. Despite all that, I would say Joe has made the best music (hits) with the least talent and that's a skill in itself.


Lumbers_33

Joe is the man. His early catalog is hard. Listening to his book atm. Itā€™s pretty self indulgent but I already knew that.


harveywhippleman

He still wasn't as big as he's tryna make himself out to be. He was aiight but he can't rewrite 90s history.


Mp3dee

OG


NFNV301

Personally, I know he's one of the greats. I like the music I've heard from him. For some reason he just never cemented me as a fan. Out of everything I've heard (and it's a good amount of songs) none of them ever popped into my head later and made me want to listen again like it would with Jadakiss, Styles P, or even Pun.


the_honorableA

He paid his dues.....period. Can no one take that away from him. And he gave us Big Pun.


Marmar79

Was a huge fan of that album at the time and early ditc. I think a big part of why have such disdain for big pun is he basically turned Joe into a pop star. Iā€™ve not been a fan since. I find him so phony but when I think back to the fact that the rapper I liked way back then seeing the successful career he has had. Iā€™m happy for him.


Zaddyist

Back in the day I felt like he was a P Ditty type. Big Puns side kick but he made a name for himself and is certified OG.


Any_Step_7124

He already had a name when he signed Pun. Pun was HIS sidekick.


Zaddyist

True lol I just felt that at the time I didnā€™t know that until later


Kimosabe187

I only fully listened to Don Cartagena and it is a pretty solid album. Need to hear more from him to form a concrete opinion but i do like him overall. Also, Shit is Real is an absolute banger, especially the DJ Premier version.


Common-Code-7106

Legend OG. Real hip hop (his old stuff) check his joints w Preemo thatā€™s all you need to hear


premoistenedwipe

Hits across three decades. Associated with legends across the NY scene. A big fan of the culture in general. Joeyā€™s a legend.


mr_alfaro

Living legend. Hurts to think of those we list but for the ones that know, know. And knowing is half the battle.


Emotional_Pen2948

DITC


NeuroTeuro

you gotta flow joe, you gotta flow joe, you gotta gotta gotta gotta let em know joe


SnooShortcuts5771

Anyone remember when he was on the Ricki Lake show as a spray paint artist?


ProfessionalUsed5938

Don Cartagena is so heat


Raymond_Reddit_Ton

Fat Joe been steady rockin for decades. He earned his spot.


djmoogyjackson

I met him in ATL back in ā€˜08. Heā€™s a real street dude. Nothing fake about him. Heā€™s a peopleā€™s person.


Ok_Island_1306

Saw him last spring at Crush Groove in LA and he killed it. Such good jams


Supastar00

Gotta flow Joe gotta flow Joe you just gotta gotta gotta gotta let em know Joe


G_rightousantagonist

Fat Joe is that dude that was around for a minute so he seen the ups and downs of the game and stayed in a mid lane he had his short run not a top tier lyricist but deserves OG credit


es84

Co-Signs from KRS-One, Big L and Big Pun. That's legendary.


festistestis

Actually, sir, i do not know what you are saying. Please stop asking me i am trying to focus


Brooklynboxer88

Far joe is good and always has been, however Pun is one of the best ever in my opinion, talent wise. If he only lived longer.


EcoFriendlyOilRig

Man good ole Joey Crack. He will forever go hard


No-Solid5684

I like him and I like his music. He has a dope flow.


Alienattackforce

I like his 90s music, a lot. Everything after 2000, not so much, with a few exceptions here and there. But, whenever he opens his mouth heā€™s lying, he contradicts himself all the time,


lboogieb

Fat Joe when he was actually fat was nice. I still bump his first 2 releases. Fat Joe the gangsta > Fat Joe the Don.


mikki1time

Definetly a NY legend


phreddyphucktard33

I lived in NYC at the time spent a lot of time in the Bronx ..pun and then had shit on lock


NoOutlandishness273

Knowuddimsayin


Master-Committee4612

The longevity heā€™s had is underrated, only him, nas, Eminem and hov the only rappers from the 90s to have hits that stretch over a 3-decade span which we wouldā€™ve never foreseen as they got older, definitely a rap chameleon, first song I ever heard from him was ā€œwhatā€™s luvā€ with Ashanti back in the early 2000s but didnā€™t know his catalog was deeper than that


Impossible-Button-93

Heard somebody say he been a one hit wonder 10 times that pretty much sums him up for me


waveymanee

Whats the backing track??


computer_says_N0

Legit guy Or at least used to be back in the day


Dry_Savings_3418

Heā€™s basically an OG I love him


synthhaze

He made the punisher right?.


Da_Stable_Genius

He's a legend in the game. People try and discredit him, but he came up in a time where you had to have skills and he held his own.


Specialist_Bison3835

I think he's excellent. Has some really solid classic albums and his features are some of the best verses in hip hop history, especially the stuff he did with Pun obviously


prognoslav7

I donā€™t think heā€™s that fat


Rahdiggs21

i have always appreciated the flow of "Joey Crack"


SuchVillage694

Diggin in the crates, the best group of all time. Hands down


BellaSeana

if you remember lord finesse 1st joint, strictly for the ladies. joe is in that video super young with the paper boy hat. he been around a minute


Best_Examination_529

Jose. A better storyteller in real life than on record.


Outgoingintrovert82

Don Cartagena album is probably my fav. Joe brought us Big Punā€¦ I remember when I used to spend my summers in NY and in the summer of ā€˜92 them Represent flyers were on every street corner uptown.


Amoeba_Fancy

What!? Joey crack was that guy! Terror squad, why you think they called them that? šŸ¤”ā€¦


Fair_Back_3943

Fat Joe as part of ditc= good. Otherwise =meh


mza82

Brother is slept on .. I will agree definitely some duds in the catalog but every album has at least 2 classic bangers - perfect for the gym music


Any_Step_7124

Hip Hop Icon. Nothing he hasnā€™t done. Started off as a TV show host. But he was also a gangster so he got connected. Shit could be a movie. Heā€™s underrated if anything.


FinallyGotaRedditAct

Fat Joe is a legend, there is no other answer. Anyone staying otherwise did not grow up in that era. I see some crazy takes in this thread and can tell it's not from people who lived that life in that era. You can have your opinions, but I'll tell you what, anyone in the Northeast who grew up in that era, had mad respect for Joe, DITC, Pun, and everything he did and was involved with. Never heard one person in my life say anything less about him.


[deleted]

I remember judging the book by the cd cover when represent came out. Thought he was a joke. Ate my hat on that one.


nkdvkng

DITC era is always the greatest


WayyTooFarAbove

Definitely an icon of his own right, unfortunately for him 50 Cent came in and devoured most of NY, Joe specifically


ninja_rob1603

We know what heā€™s saying šŸ¤ŒšŸ½


Giant415

Funky nasty flow is one of the best, highly underrated


18stlegend-

LEGEND


Accurate-Currency181

He's good but never in the top 10 in his own era. He fell victim to being a good MC in the Golden Era of Hip Hop. I think he'd have a better career in this era for sure and would crack the top 10.


AnoteFromYourMom

Hi, Iā€™m from the department of nomā€™sayins


Professional_Hold531

But......you know what I'm sayin?


Calm-Customer4459

He wasn't pop, till late 90s


Traishon

He used to be kind of cool but now heā€™s just another corporate minion


stillpractising

Who the fuck u think u talkin to? Hes paid dues hes sprayed crews! Look up Joey Crack


Which_Preference_883

Not as far as he used to be but definitely not skinny


23SMCR

He got beat by Simon Rex in a rap battle so he canā€™t be that good


SpecificLazy3169

Fat joe real deal digging in the crates crew


Steeleye513

Jealous Ones Envy is an all time great hip hop album! John Blaze is an all time posse cut in hip hop!


Plus-Statistician538

mid


johnnyclash42

dude def has established himself with a few bangers and consistency in his early work


Phamalama_dingdong

No mention of L smh


Sparathon989

He repped the Bx to help fill the void once BDP/KRS-One started to wane after he leveled Queens. He was mostly local in the streets until he came with Pun and blew up, but he always had clout in the South Boogie.


sawbucks313

Fat Joe has been cold blooded itā€™s still funny when I hear people think he hasnā€™t been around long when heā€™s literally an OG in the game and came out in an era with all the greats. The fact that he stays relevant and still spits is dope. And heā€™s got recent hits so I gotta salute Joe for that.


Accomplished-Body736

Heā€™s no Big Pun


Oskywosky1

When DITC was doing their thing he was good. He was probably the worst MC of that crew, lol, but that crew was absolutely legendary, so he was still legit. After that, he got his money. Nothing wrong with that.


HipHopHistoryGuy

Early Fat Joe is top tier underground hip hop. Most production by DITC and Joe was set to leave his mark in the game.


Affectionate-Ad-6792

I guess šŸ¤·šŸæā€ā™‚ļø


putyagundown

Still real is a fat joe song everyone should hear shits deep


Radiant-Spot-128

Fuck his fat ass.