At this point it’s safe to assume that we pretty much know what an album’s gonna sound like if Rick Ross is on the cover. We may not know what bizarre boast is going to slip out of that rarely-closed area between beard and mustache at any given moment, but it’s more than likely going to be some sort of bizarre boast.
Although Officer Ricky has undergone a noticeable evolution throughout his past four albums it’s been minimal; especially when you consider a guitar-wielding Weezy and a Bruno Mars-collaborating Eminem are actual things that happened in hip-hop.
Rich Forever, the Teflon Don’s latest effort (and appetizer to delayed full course God Forgives, I Don’t), is further evidence of Ross’s consistent, expected output. The mixtape is filled with Ross’s prideful rhymes about drugs, cars and connections, delivered amongst those signature raspy huhs and over grandiose Justice League, Lex Luger and Lex Luger-soundalike beats. The Boss knows what works and he sticks to that proven formula.
Ross has also always been reliable for packing his albums with guest features, enlisting pretty much anyone who’s been near a Billboard chart lately to lend a verse. Rich Forever’s just a mixtape to briefly satisfy the hungry masses, and it features guest appearances from Diddy, Styles P, Meek Mill, Birdman, Kelly Rowland, Pharrell, Stalley, French Montana, 2 Chainz, John Legend, Future, Drake, and Nas.
Since it’d be pointless to go over Ross’s contribution to the mixtape— as I’ve mentioned, it’s pretty much what you’d expect (and that is, and has been, a good thing)— this article’ll break down Rich Forever’s guest appearances (7 unmentioned tracks feature Ross alone (well, one just features a British guy)).
“Holy Ghost” Feat. Diddy
Diddy is listed as a feature on this track but does about as much work as Otis Redding did on the Watch The Throne album. Ross provides both verses and the hook, while Diddy appears twice with a few choice prayers, stating “Father please protect me from brokeness / and Bitch ass n*ggas, bitch ass bitches too / Keep ‘em away” at the beginning of the song and “They hate but they don’t understand / Father forgive them / For they know not what they do” at the end. Not necessarily bad, but if a rapper is going to be listed on a track I’d at least like him to do some rapping.
“F*ck Em” Feat. 2 Chainz & Wale
The artist formerly known as Tity Boi kicks off the second verse of this anthemic fuck-haters trap-rap with a question that I truly wish I knew the answer to: “What you know bout walkin’ in the Gucci store and they salute?” 2Chainz continues with the over-the-top brags throughout the verse, but you gotta respect a guy that says, “My father figure was Too $hort.”
Wale’s career was arguably rescued by his signing to Ross’s MMG, who delivered the MC’s sophomore album Ambition last year. Wale pays his Boss back with a nice verse to finish the song.
Key Line: “Ridin’ five deep and I’m as dirty as them congressmen.”— Wale
“Rich Forever” Feat. John Legend
Grammy award-winning singer John Legend lends his voice to the mixtape’s title track, which sounds like a My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy outtake. Over cinematic strings Legend sings: “On the way we shed some tears / Every day we sacrifice / So we can be standing here / Oh what a hell of a life / Been winning so many years / And the future is bright / Now it’s very clear / That we gon’ be rich forever.” Legend’s smooth voice is a strong accompaniment to Ross’s reflective lyricism.
“Triple Beam Dreams” Feat. Nas
Over Justice League production Nas provides introspective contemplation on the moral dilemmas and self-deception involved with selling drugs: “I remember watching Scarface the first time / Look at that big house, that Porsche paid for by crime / How could I sell this poison to my peoples, in my mind / They dumb to destroy themselves is how I rationalize.” Nas timeless, old-school flow fits well over the hard-hitting yet still-relatively-subdued, Ross-style beat. This is one of the few songs on the album where both Ross and his esteemed guest stick to the subject at hand— the way they glorified drug dealing when they were younger— rather than resorting to braggadocio.
Note: I said I wasn’t going to talk about Ross’s lyrics but this is the opportune time to interject. In the “Triple Beam Dreams” chorus Ross raps, “Early nineties reminiscing when I had a pager / Triple Beam Dreams, now Pat Riley my neighbor.” On “F*ck Em,” he states, “Roll up and inhale / I live next to Denzel.” Whether or not that’s true, I love to imagine Rick Ross, Denzel Washington and Pat Riley all smiling and waving at each other when they go out to grab their newspapers in the morning.
“Mine Games” Feat. Kelly Rowland
Beyonce’s sister provides both the hook and the bridge on this R&B-style love song. She sings, “You don’t have to play mind games / Just tell me what’s yours is mine / Even when you’re far away / You come back to me every time / It’s just me and my babe at the end of the day / We ain’t gotta play no mind games.” Kelly reminds us what’s easy to forget with Beyonce and Blue Ivy dominating the media: the other Rowland can sing.
“New Bugatti” Feat. Diddy
Diddy returns for this Auto Anthem. While Ross raps about about his new Bugatti and what it took to get that car, Diddy ignores the song title, instead referencing his own Blue Dot Ciroc and Sean John brands. Guess the business man’s gotta stick to his brands (can’t hate him for that).
Key Line: “Bought a vodka rum in London, cost a million pounds” —Diddy
“Keys To The Crib” Feat. Styles P
The Inkredibles produced what probably amounts to the album’s best track, a soulful, sax-sampling beat that allows Ross to make plenty of key—ki(lo) puns. Styles P takes a note out of Clipse’s book with his cocaine-riddled rhymes and similar flow. The guest verse doesn’t offer anything out of the ordinary, but it fits well with the song and is a nice break from Ross’s raps.
Key Line: “My only trending topic is the cash” — Rick Ross
“Last Breath” Feat. Meek Mill and Birdman
It’s fitting that Meek Mill is on a track with Rick Ross called “Last Breath,” because both of them rap like they just ran a marathon with Cuban cigars in their mouths the entire time. I don’t know what it is about Meek Mill’s flow, but I love it. It doesn’t really matter what he says, because it sounds cool no matter what. And I’m glad he made an appearance on Rich Forever.
Birdman provides a similar service as Meek Mill. No matter what the Cash Money co-founder says, he sounds like he means it, and it sounds badass. His fourth verse is also a great addition to the track.
“Off The Boat” Feat. French Montana
Frequent MMG collaborator and recent Bad Boy Records-signee French Montana lends his loud drug flow to this even-louder drug anthem. At least French Montana is using his drug money productively— “I’m talking 8 grand a piece, I’m on the floor with the Lakers / I’m talking 8 grand a seat, Louie sneaks with no laces” (although I’d take courtside Clippers seats and a pair of Jordans over that combo any day).
Key Line: “I get it fresh off the boat, I get it ‘cross the Atlantic / I just fired my banker, now I just rubberband it”— French Montana
“Ring Ring Ring” Feat. Future
Future provides an ultra-autotuned hook on this “One Call Away”-style song for the ladies.
“MMG The World Is Ours” Feat. Pharrell, Meek Mill, Stalley
Pharrell
I think Pharrell provides my favorite guest verse on Rich Forever. He begins with “They say Skateboard, you racist, you only hang with white Cubans / Nonsense, that’s the necklace ni**a, the light’s moving.” He then assures us he’s still a N.E.R.D. before playfully mocking Ross’s “9 Piece” by saying “I’m on my iPhone!” and punctuating it with his own Huh! Clever and well done.
Meek Mill
Meek Mill returns for another verse, upping his game from “Last Breath.”
Stalley
Stalley has a bushy beard and is on Ross’s Maybach Music label, but without those extra details it’d be tough to find comparisons between the Midwestern rapper and Ross. He’s got a higher voice and a more rapidfire flow, and though his subject matter is often similar to his Boss he approaches it in a different manner. Hopefully this verse will turn him on to all the Ross fans who’ve yet to discover Stalley.
Key Line: “They had me cutting through that field like a rushing Barry / Slammers play with hammers, had them birds but we don’t fuck with Larry.“— Meek Mill
“Party Heart” Feat. Stalley and 2Chainz
Stalley jumps from the last song’s last verse to this song’s first, referencing a new brand every five seconds over a throwback, funky beat from The Cool Kids’ Chuck Inglish.
2Chainz also returns during the last verse, and over this old-school beat the rapper sounds suspiciously like his aforementioned father figure “Too $hort.” This type of production fits the MC well.
“Stay Schemin’” Feat. Drake and French Montana
Drake comes straight out of the gate with indirect shots at Common (who retaliated with his own, more straightforward beef-y version of this track)— “It bothers me when the gods get to acting like the broads.” No matter whose side your on, you gotta admit that Drake has a point when he says “It’s feeling like rap changed, there was a time it was rugged / Back when if a n*gga reached it was for the weapon / Nowadays ni**as reach just to sell they record.”
French Montana returns with a much-less confrontational verse, using a lot of confusing numbers and rhyming “dog” with “dog” twice in a row. Fitting way to end the album’s features.
Overall, Rich Forever is a strong mixtape, especially for a full length album precursor. It’s what you’d expect from Ross, but, like I said, you never really know exactly what that means. Download it for free via LiveMixTapes.
