AMG Review of 51/50 Ratchet

Jason Birchmeier
All Music Guide

51/50 Ratchet, the major-label debut of young Shreveport, LA, rapper Hurricane Chris, features his breakthrough single, "A Bay Bay," and a bunch of songs that are very similar in style. No other song here can match the chant-along catchiness of "A Bay Bay," though "The Hand Clap" comes fairly close. Both songs are produced by Phunk Dawg, who knowingly sticks to the same winning formula that resulted in innumerable Southern rap hits in 2007 (e.g., Soulja Boy's chart-topping "Crank That"). The one song on 51/50 Ratchet that breaks from the snap-rap mold is "Playas Rock," a Mr. Collipark production built atop a sample of Earth, Wind & Fire's "Love's Holiday."