January 13-19, 2005
musicpicks
Having flaunted her tough side for so long, Jean Grae has earned enough hardass cred to drop her guard for a minute. And so she does, right in the middle of This Week (Babygrande), her third solo joint. The soul-baring "Supa Luv" tries a little tenderness; "Give It Up" comes off so sweet, you could be forgiven for thinking she's gone totally soft. And then "Whatever" brings her back to the ring, where she throws jabs over a tinkly piano riff: "I'll lick off the potshots and cut your dick off / And sell it like it's porn to the pawn shop." No disrespect to the sly wordplay of "Give It Up," but Grae's peerless when it comes to lyrical castration. Nothing on This Week is as epic as "Hater's Anthem" (from The Bootleg of the Bootleg EP) but "Not Like Me" is the boast of the year. With a vocab as solid as brass knuckles and the stamina to back it up, Grae lands her punches with a satisfying snap.
Thu., Jan. 13, 9 p.m., $12-14, North By Northwest, 7165 Germantown Ave., 215-248-1000.
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