About.com Rating

More than any artistic developments, stories of Chicago’s notorious drug and gun violence spill onto TV and Facebook newsfeeds. Nobody’s Smiling, Common’s 10th album in a 22-year career captures the zeitgeist of the city unfortunately labeled Chi-raq.

Albeit, as he mostly avoids blatant or subliminal shade-throwing and pseudo-pimp debauchery, the veteran MC’s present direction is not fully apparent.


The first few tracks sound like radio-friendly singles, which in the current music industry climate is not necessarily a good thing.  Interestingly, “Diamonds” featuring Big Sean contains an inexplicable shout-out to André 3000, “This broad from the DR said I was frío/that’s Ice Cold like Dre triple 3-0.” Right after, as if apologizing for the crocheted-pants phase of his career, he takes an oddly objectifying stab at ex Erykah Badu on the Jhene Aiko-assisted, “Blak Majik,” with the line “who in the game had the baddest h*es/n*ggas seen Badu’s ass and said “I seen what you was on.”

Surprisingly, there are no moments of reflection on relationships or introspection on the power of love. Instead we get “Hustle Harder” which is contextually a higher grade reboot of Webbie’s “Independent” about a focused, paper-chasing young woman “never getting gassed like a Tesla.” The guest verse from Chi-town’s Dreezy is worth the listen, even if she does sound like a lyrically stronger, less affected version of Nicki Minaj.

It’s a well-intentioned but clichéd nod to the ladies.

From the initial sounds of the album, the absence of longtime collaborator Kanye West is audible. No I.D. has returned to the production helm but his uncharacteristically sparse final product on Nobody’s Smiling makes you long for the wider sounds of classics, One Day It’ll All Make Sense and Like Water for Chocolate, where he pulled out all the stops.

All is not lost, though. The latter tracks, like the gospel infused “Kingdom,” remind us why we listened to Common in the first place – masterful storytelling and wistful insight. As a heartfelt homage to the architects of his sound – No I.D. and J.Dilla, “Rewind That” fully delivers. It is clearly the strongest song on the album bolstered by anecdotal gems that only he could share. “In Q-Tip's basement, I first met Jay Dee/I still remember the first beat he played me/He came to the Chi late three that was crazy/Didn't even know me and gave 'em to me for free.”

At this stage in his career, Common shouldn’t care if he loses anyone – they were never really involved to begin with. He certainly doesn’t have to pander to pop interests or mainstream sensibilities at all. He still has too much to offer, too much experience and too many resources to release a less than fully realized effort. 

Best Tracks:

• "The Kingdom"
• "Rewind That"
• "7 Deadly Sins"

Released: July 22, 2014

Buy on Amazon