Nineteen cuts long and teeming with guest stars--Jay-Z, Lil Kim, Nas--the second album from hip-hopreneur Sean Combs is a sprawling, colorful tapestry with something for everyone: hard-core braggadocio, clever sampling (Christopher Cross pops up), label-conscious odes to celebrity life (Miramax and Bentley get name checks) and a few songs made for the dance floor. But the spiritual musings of the title cut and the chill of death blowing through Pain, the album's gripping cautionary street tale, show Puffy grappling with something deeper: the conflicting demands of two worlds.
--By David E. Thigpen
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