Fabolous: still monotone, still loves to spell his name, still one too many slow jams.

The Brooklyn rapper hasn’t changed much since his 2001 debut Ghetto Fabolous. But like they say, if it ain’t broke don’t fix it, so Fab’s back with another impressive album.

From Nothin’ to Somethin’, his fourth album, delivers nothing unexpected. Fab hasn’t forgotten how to craft a smooth song for the ladies (”First Time”) or how to boastfully declare his greatness (”Return of the Hustle,” “I’m the Man”). But, it appears he now needs extra help to do so.

Fab’s style has often been best complemented by guest singers, but it seems he went overboard this time. From the third song on, he’s got a guest on every track.

And look at who’s featured: Akon, Ne-Yo, T-Pain, Lloyd and Rihanna, among others. Do these names look familiar? Have you seen them somewhere, like say, the top of the current charts?

‘Loso (as he’s been calling himself lately) just hand-picked the hottest artists in the game right now. So, what’s wrong with that? Ne-Yo, an incredible talent, does his thing over the woozy strings on the Timbaland-produced “Make Me Better.”

But Fab tries too hard for a hit on the supposed future single, “Baby Don’t Go.” T-Pain’s digitally-altered voice, which has no staying power in the music industry (at least let’s hope it doesn’t), sounds weak over the hand claps and chimes, courtesy of Jermaine Dupri. Fab’s clearly been tuned in to the radio lately, but such obvious mimicry falls flat. It’s upsetting when Dupri says “Fab, we gonna have to make to dance this song.” Right, because these days you can’t have a single without a simple dance to go along with it!

Akon’s a very capable singer/songwriter/producer, but unfortunately sounds the same on every song on which he guests. The hook on “Change Up” could easily be mistaken for “Cross That Line” or “Soul Survivor.” Additionally, the concept has already been used - by Fab himself - on Street Dreams‘ “Change You or Change Me.” Still, he provides clever lines like, “Them other niggas, be full of themselves/ Get money and disappear, try to pull a Chappelle.”

It’s punchlines like that which made Fab a mixtape star before he even released a major-label album. Fans who feasted on such bars couldn’t help but be disappointed with the gradual decline in their frequency.

Fabolous just doesn’t sound quite as hungry as he once did; however, he shows more personality than usual on this disc, even if the side of him he often displays is pure contentment. On “Gangsta Don’t Play,” featuring Junior Reid, Fab rides the uplifting organs with ease, spitting, “I’m from the era of the shootouts for drug spots/ Happy to be here so I smile in my mug shots.”

It’s not until From Nothin’s last song that Fab explores some original subject matter, though. With longtime pal Lil Mo’s assistance, Fab delivers verses from the perspectives of a young, single mother in jail for killing her baby daddy’s new girlfriend, a depressed soldier questioning war and a lonely fan who can’t decide whose side to take in his parent’s upcoming divorce. It’s no secret Fab’s not at his best tackling deep subjects, but the effort is commendable.

Those who have followed Fab’s career from the beginning realized a couple albums ago that he wasn’t ever going to make the jump from star to superstar. He’s consistent though, and listeners know what they’re going to get. The high-quality production on his last album, Real Talk, arguably made it his best. He didn’t go after quite as many big-name producers for this project, however, and it shows.

by Andrew Kahn

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