Bun B

Sonically, II Trill is all over the map, alternating between bluesy, organ-driven soul to handclap-happy club bangers to elastic synth funk. A lesser emcee might have trouble harnessing the chaos, but Bun's sneering baritone projects a Zeus-like authority, and he instantly becomes the focal point of each track here. Hearing Lil' Wayne and Bun trade lines on "Damn I'm Cold" is historic, while the soaring "If I Die II Nite," featuring Young Buck and Lyfe Jennings, is both epic and intimate, couching its devil-may-care, "real trill n*gg*" braggadocio in the pathos of vulnerability.