Posted on 07/14/2009
Sona has an interesting background. An African-born artist, Sona’s first time rapping was when he and his brother beat Streets of Rage on Sega Genesis. They freestyled over the ending theme, rapping about anything that came to mind. His life was typical of many rappers: poverty stricken and crime filled. He eventually moved to the U.S., completed his college education, and started a record label. A background like this would seemingly make for an interesting album; unfortunately, things don’t always happen the way they should

As unflattering as the comparison may be, The Voice begins with “It’s All About the Money,” which may frame him as an uninspired Lil’ Wayne clone. Taking snippets from the O’Jays’ well-known hit on the hook, Sona’s flow is hard to call original, or even to compare to anyone else but Weezy F’s. The instrumental is one of the only selling points to the song. On “The End is Near,” Sona emulates Tupac Skakur in both tone of voice and flow, which isn’t too surprising, considering Sona views him as one of the greatest rappers of all time. The cadence of the song follows more of an African drum rhythm. “Monkey See, Monkey Do” takes shots at other rappers for being unoriginal, even citing Soulja Boy, Jim Jones, Ja Rule and MIMS by name, proclaiming Sona as “untouchable.” The rest of the album sounds just as unoriginal and uninspired. He even goes as far as to include a track called “Question Marks,” on which he instructs you to play it in reverse. Why would anyone want to waste their time doing that after hearing what the rest of the album has to offer?

Soma’s music comes from a different point of view than that of what you would typically hear in today’s rap music, but it shares similarities that are ridiculously close to those of other artists. While it’s a valiant effort from a diverse and unique background, it ultimately falls short.

-M. Antonio Silas