Download the 3000 and 9 Shit mixtape here

Always moving music in a new direction, Jermaine Dupri brought together a motley crew of hip-hop/R&B fellas (Singer/songwriter Johnta Austin, rapper Nelly, R&B stars Trey Songz and Usher, Producer extraordinaire B. Cox, and new comer named Tyrone 'InTYnational' Davis) to form Ocean's 7, a swaggerific crew in the likeness of Sinatra's Rat Pack. Always dressed to the nines, these fellas bring style and creativity to 3000 and 9 Shit, droppin a compilation where nearly every track can be blasted for the summer. Overall this project presents the more stand-up sides of all the fellas, dabbling in arrogance but mostly fighting the stigmas that hold some of them back as underrated artists.

After Jermaine Dupri introduces The 7 with a short synopsis of the team's formation, Johnta Austin and Trey Songz flex their swag on Ain't I, throwing some smooth vocals on this sampling of Yung LA's club banger. Not to be completely excluded by his mentor, Bow Wow jumps on the single Too Much Swag, which features a killer verse from Songz, who also goes hard alongside Nelly leading I Need That Girl. Every brutha wants that chick that fits into his lifestyle so this song was crafted to seek out that 'fly mans reality, broke mans dream'. No mixtape is complete without a few subliminals, which is why Where's the Love (sampling Jay-Z's cut of the same name) is totally appropriate for this mixtape, giving JD and Johnta room to go full force on all the detractors from his movement, including some big names involved in his recent departure from Def Jam. Cleverly sampling Kanye's infamous line from Jeezy's Put On, Owe Me Sex is a see-me-now shout to the females who underestimated and missed out. It's Amazing samples Kanye's Amazing and is a refreshing bit of real talk and perspective from the fellas on the music industry, politics, and the world. What's really amazing is that this song is gospel truth, callin out fake trapstars and phony jewelry flashers who use the frugality of the hip-hop lifestyle to gain notoriety. While I appreciate the use of Kid Cudi's high charting single Day and Nite, this song is the one disappointment - JD is the only one on this track and he doesn't rock it as hard as the other cuts. However, Vegas Baby is the song that brings it all together and should be the theme song for Oceans 7. It has the party vibe and is the one track where everyone weighs in.

I think this crew serves its purpose well – 3000 and 9 Shit introduces some and reintroduces others to the realm or relevance and builds anticipation for the forthcoming projects of all of its members. It really makes me interested to hear some of these collabs on the projects coming up. Sure it's a bit cocky and highly energetic, but no movement in history ever made progress without confident energy. It's free, it's hot, give it a listen...