Bishop Lamont

Dogg Food. Get Rich or Die Tryin. Chronic 2001. Straight Outta Compton. The Marshall Mathers LP. Doggystyle. The Documentary. 100 Miles N Runnin. No One Can Do It Better. The Eminem Show. The Chronic…

Because of his list of credentials, when you're working with the Good Doc, you simply don't have any excuses. Getting a chance to work with the most innovative man in music, possibly ever, is something that can either make or break your career.

He's been there, done that, and more than anything…he knows how to make a hit record. He also knows how start legacies.

So, if you're his hot new prospect, you better bring your 4.0 game. The man's responsible for three out of the five of the most renowned rappers in the world today, and he's in the midst of a making the most anticipated album of all time. That said, the Doc is definitely in the operating room, getting a new apprentice ready for the masses.

His newest creation, the bionic man from Carson, CA, is Bishop Lamont.

In the W, dude's got more buzz than a trashed bumblebee.

Everywhere else, though, not so much. What I'm wondering is…how and why not?
With a really unique flow, smart lyrics, and a hip-hop dictionary as his mental, his talent is nothing to scoff at. His last mixtape, Nigger Noise, was undeniably banging and his collabo-tape with Black Milk, Caltroit, also seems very promising. However, I'm yet to hear one of his songs that really shows why he's capable of being the next Snoop or Slim.

Bishop recently released his street single, "Feel On It,” the first official cut from his Aftermath debut, The Reformation, but unfortunately I'm not sure it bolsters his cause.

While it's somewhat catchy, and has a few lines that made me smirk, it's definitely not going to blow on the FM. It's also not going to make me, or anyone for that matter, believe that Bishop is "the next big thing." Now, I know it's only a street single, but I'm far from sold.

Where's that proper introductory track like "Deep Cover,” "Guilty Conscience,” or "Westside Story"? That song that will turn heads as it bangs out your ride? Where's that would-be classic, that will outlive the rapper in question, and cement a legacy amongst the greats? Where's that banging Dr. Dre beat when you really need one? No offense to Focus, but it's not here.

If Dre really wants to put this guy on, he needs to lend his magic touch. As The Game knows, without actual Dre-caliber material, you can only claim you're the Doc's utensil of choice for so long. Eventually, there either has to be "In The Club” or there's just going to be another rapper added to the Punchline Posterchild list.

For the sake of Bishop, and hip-hop in general, I'm counting on the former.

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