"The Jump Off" and it has Noreaga thinking that it's funny that he finally made a solo album. It's just him talking over a sample of mob-like violins. It's cool because he wants to take hip-hop back to the street. At the end, he whispers "Thugged out entertainment... whut. whut.."

The first real song is a posse track called "Banned From T.V." which features Styles and JadaKiss of the Lox, Cam'ron, and Big Pun.. This is a dope ass song! The beat is quick along with the sample which seems somewhat computer or keyboard influenced. Everyone flows dope, quick and in a completely hardcore manner. Big Pun shines bright but Noreaga steals it at the end. "On the realness, I'll never do a song with you, even if your baby moms f*ck the crew!" It's a long and hard track to open the album in a refreshing way.

The next song is called "I Love My Life" and features Carl Thomas doing an R&B hook. The beat is probably one of the thickest on the album but the voice of Thomas and the chorus is so corny and annoying that the soft sound it just..... sucks.... It's cool because the song is about loving your life and Noreaga admits that he use to sell drugs and hustle. The hardcore lyrics are there but the music and the blatent commercial R&B hook makes the song sound weak.

The next song is the very dope "N.O.R.E.", the title track which introduced the album to many first time Noreaga listeners. The title stands for "N*ggaz on the run eating". You have to admit that it's original. The beat, the melody and Noreaga's rhyme are all dope. Trackmasters produced this jem. The only problem is that the radio version has different lyrics from the album version. Noreaga's flow is completly original, rugged, and thugged out... "It's like a gun trilogy, blast strategy, whut!?! Norega lay up like your magesty!" It's one of the dopest, tightest songs on the album.

The "Hed Interlude" has Noreaga getting a blow job. The noises he makes are funny but this should not have been a whole track. They could have snuck it in hidden at the end of the previous song.

"Hed"  featuring Nature is a pretty cool song but not one of the coolest on the album. He has some help with the chorus: "Doggie style was my favorite position. Until I flipped it, dead sh*t, got on some hed sh*t... gimmie some hed, gimmie some hed." Hey... who doesn't like hed?

The next song "It's Not A Game" has a haunting/spooky quality. The chorus is done by Maze. Everything is tight... the rhymes, lyrics, and the beat. The chorus is cool too: "It's not a game, n*gga! We move in and move out. Most n*ggaz try to follow the route but they can't see what we see, thugged out, like where ever we be, M.A.Z.E., N.O.R.E" This is definitely a hardcore song worth hearing by anyone who loves that east coast thugged out hip-hop!

"Fiesta" features Kid Capri and is basically a party-get down song. It has a female vocalist singing "All night!" but her voice is kind-of drowned out which is cool. Kid Capri just yells in the background "Come on! Noreaga!" The beat is not the dopest but it has a cool fill in with a quick roll of congos... "40 Island" features Kool G Rap and basically is about "Rikers Island", which is repeated in the chorus. It's a pretty cool song but it doesn't shine as bright as the others. It's a little too long and the beat is a little too slow and sluggy.

The next song is completely horrible. It's called "The Way We Live" and it has Chico Debarge. This is no doubt.. The WORST song on the album and possibly the WORST hip-hop/rap song that I ever heard minus anything by Puffy. The beat is very slow and has Chico moaning and singing throughout the whole thing. Noreaga even sounds weak because he's rhyming about how much he loves his woman and how he's sorry for all this crap he did. This song doesn't fit on the album and is almost an insult to the true hip-hop heads that purchased this album and it actually makes the hardcore level of this album decrease.... AGGHHHH!!!

"Animal Thug (Interlude)" is a short  skit where they make fun of some iraqi delivery person. It's kind of funny but a little racist in a way.

"The Change" is more like a filler song where Noreaga says that you can catch him on the internet at "WWW.NORE" which is NOT a true url so don't even try. If you were going to put a url in the chorus, at least make it a working one! The beat's cool and the lyrics are hardcore. The song is tolerable but just not one of the dopest.

"Superthug" is one of the dopest songs on the album filled with energy and Noreaga bugging out yelling "Whut! Whut" in the background. The female vocalist is drowned out SINGING "Whut! Whut!" in the background. The chorus also uses a melody from Blondie's "Heart Of Glass" but has different lyrics: "This is the life of a superstar. Fly ass b*tches and a million cars. Got to get the cash though it's live or die. Capone-N-Noreaga, the limit is the sky" Even though this song has a female singer in it, it's a dope song and one of the dopest on the album. Noreaga's rhymes on this album are wild as usual. "We light a candle, runs laps around the English channel. City slicker, got country grammer!" The commercial appeal mixed with the hardcore of this song will have this song played out sooner than a Busta Rhymes song. Still, it will be regarded as a classic joint in the years to come.

"The Story" is much harder and rough than the previous. They claim that they "Strong Arm!" The melody feels very mafioso and almost sitar-like. It's a slow, spooky rough song which is also very strong. Dope, definitely dope.

"Mathmatics (Esta Loca)" is a dope, dirty, party call-response song where Noreaga uses his latino heritage. The beat and the piano loop are catchy and completely dope! This is one of the dopest songs on the album too. "Esta Loca!", Noreaga shouts and gets shouted back. This song would sound awesome live but because of the dirty lyrics in the chorus, you probably won't see it on Mtv. Still, this is another classic jam.

Next, Busta Rhymes and Spliff Star have a guest appearance on "The Assignment" which has a looping bassline and an Isley Brothers sample. This is a dope song too! Busta's rap is filled with energy which adds a rough and not silly quality to his rhyme. Spliff doesn't shine as bright as the others ("I'm thugged out, bugged out!") but he's tolerable because his voice is so rough. It all adds to the hardcore atmosphere. As Noreaga yells "Whut Whut!", Busta Rhymes does the chorus "Spliff Star! Busta Rhymes! Noreaga! Thugged Out!" No, it doesn't rhyme but it's still a cool song.

"Body In The Truck" which features Nas is probably the tightest and dopest songs on the album. The beat is like a rim-shot beat and the melody is added with keyboards.Overall, the song has a spooky but slick atmosphere. The dopeness is provided by Nas and Noreaga because they go back and forth like a conversation. It's all hardcore because the song is about how Noreaga killed somebody, stuffed the body in the trunk, and has to dispose of the corpse. "Got a body in the trunk so what's it gonna be.A N*gga laying dead because he came for me" Nas and Noreaga prove to the world on this song that together, they make a dope rhyming team... It's a great hardcore way to close the album off. Though that was the last real song, there are two more tracks...

"One Love" is just a long phone conversation of Noreaga talking to Capone while he's in jail. It shows the reality of streetlife and the price of having a gun. (Capone is in there because of a gun charge). Parts of the song could be used for scratches by djs. It's not the most pleasent thing to listen to because it's so long but it makes you feel for both of them.

The "Outro" uses the same music from in intro "The Jump Off" and has Noreaga saying once again that it all comes from the "streets". That makes any hardcore hip-hop head feel good.

Overall, this is a dope album and it would be perfect if "The Way We Live" and "I Love My Life" weren't on it. I could even deal with "I Love My Life" but "The Way We Live" is just so horrible that I can't even stand to listen to it! The rhymes are all dope, sometimes a little too simple, but it's made up for Noreaga's original delivery. Even the "Whut Whut!" doesn't get annoying. The songs have specific meanings from oral sex on "Hed" to murder "Body In The Trunk" and picking up women "Mathmatics (Esta Loca)". Noreaga brings a fresh feel to hip-hop which will be copied  Rza's style is now.. The album does flow nicely too with the exception of those two bad songs I mentioned before. Besides those two pieces of garbage, the other songs are not wack nor are they boring. The tempos, themes and guests bring a nice diversity to the album which is both influenced by African American culture and Latino culture. The beats aren't as thick  and full as they should be but Noreaga's wild style, flow and lyrics make up for it. All of the songs (minus the two I mentioned) are all hardcore to the fullest with strong beats.. the beats just aren't thick and full... they are more hard and sharp. Production wise, Noreaga picked the right people: Swizz, EZ Elpee, Poke & Tone, SPK, Marley Marl. There is not much, if any at all scratches and slicing up of records which is definitely brings the album down. The absence of it is very evident to the lovers of dj-ing. Hardcore wise, Noreaga brings it rough and tough and completely... thugged out. Talk of guns, women, weed, money, and murder all bring the gritty reality of the streets to the record. The hardcore level is weakened by the one obvious sell-out commercial song "The Way We Live". Just because it sounds so weak and the lyrics are so nice, it sounds so out of place like it shouldn't even be there. Once again, the album would be perfect without that song! Noreaga did make a dope, debut album which will not only get tons of radio airplay but build a respect in the hip-hop industry. The roughness and thugged-out appeal becomes universal when Noreaga mentions "we're all thugs!".. and he's not talking about nice-family appealing BONE but drug dealing, money making, sh*t talkin', hustlers. From cracks to wax, Noreaga truly came a long way.. So Noreaga is on the run and he's eatin. He'll probably have a full belly for a long time. Thugged out entertainment... you know the deal.
Beats: 8/10,
Lyrics: 9/10,
Album Flow: 9/10,
Production: 9/10,
Originality/Creativity: 9/10,
Hardcore Rating: 8.75/10
[ Overall Rating: 8.8/10 ]