Musically, Steal Hear is a bland mishmash of various hip-hop formulas. The production doesn’t help much, either. After opening with a short prayer, he attempts to deal with regret and contemplates what he would do with “one more chance.” While sincere, it comes off more daytime-drama than anything else. On “One More Night,” Coolio waxes reflective. The latter fares a bit better, with a mildly catchy chorus and some spitfire verses where Coolio shows rare vitality.Įven a self-ascribed gangster (delusional or not) needs to get sensitive sometimes. The former is stupidly repetitive, with a maddening sped-up voice sample acting as the sole hook.
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His lack of self-awareness doesn’t end with his delusions of “gangsta-ness.” On “Boyfriend,” Coolio raps “If I was your boyfriend / I’ll show you how to get buck / I’ll show you how to get sprung” - a decidedly creepy sentiment from a 45-year-old man with six children.Ĭuriously, the album’s two club songs, “Keep On Dancing” and “Dip It,” appear back-to-back on the album.
Needless to say, when he spits “I talk the talk and walk the walk,” it’s entirely unconvincing. About 15 years removed from Compton, he has recently immersed himself in a number of utterly wholesome endeavors, including the online cooking show “Cookin’ With Coolio” (serving up dishes like Coolio’s Caprese Salad). He even goes so far as to demand both coasts to “keep it gangsta” on the aptly named “Keep It Gangsta.” But he’s not fooling anyone. On the majority of the record, he boasts incessantly of his gangster status. Steal Hear oozes contradiction and finds Coolio in the midst of a major identity crisis. It sounds like even Coolio himself realizes the inevitable failure of his effort, spending the entire album spitting half-assed lyrics with a tired, nursery-rhyme flow. Steal Hear should be thought of as a pathetic attempt to reinvigorate a rap career that has been irrelevant for more than a decade. It’s true, Coolio has been around for years, but his musical career has been more or less dead since his hit single “Gangsta’s Paradise” earned him a Grammy in 1995.