Yung Chill: Stop Talking and Listen

Any time we got into trouble as a kid, we called our Uncle Rick. If the bully up the street took our bike, he got it back. If the schmuck bus driver made fun of our sweet rat-tail, Rick made him apologize. He was like a large, ill-tempered, sporadically incarcerated security blanket. Missouri City R&B rapper Yung Chill apparently is of the same mind, electing to make his debut LP a compilation featuring some very recognizable names.

Ironically, in doing so, Chill loses some of the luster off that diamond-encrusted nameplate he so often rocks. His natural capacity to spit is not in doubt, as Chill does hold his own with some of H-Town’s finest (Lil’ Keke, Chamillionaire, Kiotti), and at 21 he’s already a fine producer — “Posted at the Store” is a certified synth-funk winner. However, when you’ve got heavyweights like Trae da Truth, Bun B and Snoop Dogg acting as litmus tests, your lyrics are going to be overshadowed more often than not. For example, when Snoop drops a line like “See, I’m a real nigga like Frederick Douglass” two bars into a song (“Cruisin'”), he’s pretty much claimed it as his own. Still, if Chill heeds his own titular advice, Stop Talking and Listen could teach him quite a bit.