Trailblazin Ministries

Da' T.R.U.T.H. - Moment of Truth

Written by LaRosa Johnson
Saturday, January 01, 2005

Album Overview

You've been hearing about this cat for some time now and he's been making guest appearances on different albums; he even had an EP out. He has toured with Cross Movement and, as a result, has made a name for himself as one of the best up & coming emcees in Christian hip-hop, even hip-hop period. He first made his appearance on Cross Movement's LP Human Emergency on the track "The Light" with Ambassador and that single was blazin'! He's also made appearances on compilations like RockSoul's RockSoul Vol. 1. Do you know who I'm talking about now? The name of his EP was the Moment of Truth EP and had tracks like "Accept the King" and "Fourplay." He was also one of the featured emcees on Cross Movement's Platinum tour from back in 2002. Okay, if you don't know who I'm talking about, I'm talking about Da' T.R.U.T.H.! He's Cross Movement's protégé and after paying dues, he's dropping his first album titled Moment of Truth and this joint is hot!

The heads have been waiting a long time for this album to drop, but it's finally here. After spending time perfecting his craft and grabbing an abundance of knowledge from the Cross Movement emcees, Da' T.R.U.T.H., is ready to drop some Jesus-filled rhymes over some of the hottest hip-hop beats. With that being said, I present to you the Moment of Truth LP from Cross Movement Records.

Like everyone else, I was patiently waiting for this LP to drop because I know for a fact that Emanuel Lambert, Jr. is one of the hottest emcees out right now. After spending my hard earned money on this disk and waiting for it to come in the mail, I was more than ready to dive right into this project. After hearing his EP back in 2000 and his several guest appearances, I wanted to see how he had grown as an emcee and if he could really hold his own. To see the answer to that question, you'll just have to continue reading this review. Upon initially opening the CD, I must say that I'm very impressed with the packaging (which I always have been with any CMR release). The cover art is fresh and the booklet has full lyrics to every song, which I really appreciate CMR for doing on each of their releases. So moving right along, I pop the CD into my car stereo and let my ears have it!

The album starts & ends the same way: a cappella. It starts off with a smooth a cappella rap which moves right into the first track "This is for You." The beat on this track is sick and the lyricism shows that Da' T.R.U.T.H. is ready to bring it on this project. This is definitely the way that you want to start an album because he clearly set the tone & standard for the remainder of the album. And I must say that he doesn't disappoint with the remainder of the album. With DJ Official taking on the majority of the production duties for this album, he kicks a sick beat on "Please!" which features J-Silas from RockSoul. On this track these two emcees make their claim for wanting Jesus to be pleased with them. The hook for this song is a cut from Phanatik's "Start Somethin'" from the Holy Culture LP, and Official does a great job of scratching & working it into the song as the hook. Skipping over "Scent," "After Your Heart" is more of an R&P (rhythm & praise) worship track in hip-hop form. This is a heartfelt song with a great guitar riff in which Da' T.R.U.T.H. lets the Lord know that he's after His heart and not after His hand.

This next track is one that a lot of Christians can relate to, and I'm really appreciative that he put this song on his album. The name of the track is "My Story," and in this track Da' T.R.U.T.H. tells us how he thought his testimony wasn't that big of a deal, but then tells about his life and how Jesus being His Savior is his testimony. He lets us know that he was just an average kid who grew up in the church and was a Christian from his youth. This is the testimony of a large number of us in the church, and it lets us know that we do have a testimony, even if it's not hardcore. The next notable track is "The Jesus Anthem" which features Tonic and Phanatik of Cross Movement. The title of the song speaks for itself, it's the Jesus Anthem. Lyricism on this track is ill from each emcee, but the hook is less than desirable. Honestly, the hook sounds like something Tonic wrote and made sure was on the CD; it just sounds a bit corny the way they were chanting "Jesus." Regardless, it's still a great track, even if you just listen to the verses.

I think from this point forward, the tracks get hotter! "South Street" is probably one of my favorite tracks on this LP. Everything comes together on this track: the beat is sick, and the lyrics are more than on point: it's truth. And then "Satisfied" has the illest flow on the entire album; you can feel the passion that he puts behind his rhymes and to spit those verses it takes some serious breath control. "N.F.L." is another R&P type track featuring J.R. on the hook. N.F.L. stands for "New Found Love" and on this track Da' T.R.U.T.H. talks about how we've looked in all the wrong places for love, but then we've found our new found love in Jesus Christ. This is a very soulful track and is perfect for cruising down the streets with the top down.

We all know that Da' T.R.U.T.H. can get down, and that's exactly what he and Flame do on the track "Who Is That?," which is another DJ Official track. This is absolutely my favorite track on the entire LP; I simply love it! This is your typical dirty south track and Flame kills the hook. I just love how he rips it. Who is that making that noise?! Yeah, it's the Christians! Nuff said!

Heading into the homestretch for this album, we find a few more bangers that are worth mentioning. The first of those is a remake of the hit "Fourplay" from his EP. This is a great restoration of a hit, but I still think I like the original better. The only reason for that though is because I tend to always be a fan of an original over a remake. The track is then followed by a brief cut of one of Ambassador's sermons speaking on the subject of purity. And closing out the album is "Resurrection." Like I said earlier, the album starts and ends in a cappella. "Resurrection" is an entire track in a cappella in which he talks about the resurrection of Jesus Christ. I really dig this track, but it really makes me wonder how much hotter this track would have been if it had a sick beat behind it. Nevertheless, this track shows that he's dope and doesn't even need a beat to sound hot.

So, you want to know the verdict on this album? It's hot and it's truth! There are more than enough certified streetbangers on this album and you can see that Da' T.R.U.T.H. has definitely grown as an emcee and as a Christian. His wordplay is ridiculous; it's right up there with, if not better than, the Ambassador. If you look at "Christology" the lyricism on there was great in showing that you can rap about Jesus skillfully; "Moment of Truth" shows that you can have Jesus rhymes and still keep them relevant to today's issues. I think this is an album that everyone should have in their collection because this is one of those albums that we'll still be talking about years from now. I bet you, five years from now you'll still be bumping this in your ride. CMR (Cross Movement Records) is dropping heat! Be prepared!

Key Tracks

My Story, Please, South Street, Who Is That?, Resurrection