E-40 is typically known as one of the West Coast's true rap legends. Having made tracks with virtually every West Coast rapper to ever achieve any sort of mainstream, E-40 was an underground sensation best known for his guest appearances on more successful rappers' records, and his unique slang; something that has, for the most part, been the fundamental foundation for the Hyphy movement. He never received his share of commercial success though; so he hooked up with often-maligned producer, Lil Jon, and released My Ghetto Report Card last year.

I didn't check out My Ghetto Report Card until this year. All the horrible reviews it received advised me to stay away from 40's newest effort. The first single(Tell Me When To Go) was pretty hot, but I thought an album full of similar tracks would be an experience I didn't want to journey down. Bored, and looking for something new to check out, I picked up E-40's Ghetto Report Card recently, and was pleasently surprised.

Tell Me When To Go is still a hot single, but definitely not the best cut on the album. In my opinion, that honor would go to the UGK and Juelz Santana assisted "White Gurl." While the recent overexposure of the 'white girl' slang had lead to numerous commercial emcees releasing tracks under this banner(Jeezy's USDA clique, Cam'ron), this is definitely the best of the bunch. Juelz Santana shows why he's one of New York's most promising young emcees, delivering a verse that makes great use of his unique wordplay. UGK really take this track to the next level, though; as usual, Bun B delivers a showstealing verse that rundowns the entire concept of the track without ever mentioning it by name. Pimp C's is less subtle, but his charisma makes his verse another highlight in this great posse cut.

Gouda is a great track that samples the Psycho theme song. While the track is far from horrorcore, the premise works well for another tight Hyphy track, and the two guests on the track(B-Legit and Stressmatic) both show some great promise. Sick Wit It II, featuring Turf-Talk(the creator of Part I) is another stunning Hyphy track, featuring some hot verses from 40. The intro to the album, Yay Area, is also a very innovative track that uses a Digable Planets sample throughout the entire song, creating the background for the track itself.

Rick Rock tracks like They Might Be Taping are only the icing on the top of this Hyphy cake. I know a lot of people are dissapointed with the new 40, but I'm personally a fan of this new side. While not every track on this album is an undisputed winner, My Ghetto Report Card still reigns as a top-notch album that was unfairly criticized last year. It's recommended for the collection.