Though 50 Cent recorded Before I Self Destruct before Curtis, the former was briefly canned while he engaged in a SoundScan showdown with Kanye West. With that feud behind him, Before finally gets to see the light of day. Sadly, 50 never really managed to shake off some of the dust this album gathered while it was sitting on the shelf. Here's my take on Before I Self Destruct.

Album art © Shady/Aftermath/Interscope

This isn't the coming out party Wale had in mind. Despite heavy promotion and big name collaborations, his Interscope debut, Attention Deficit, only managed a measly 28,000 units in its first week. Those numbers were only good enough for a #21 spot on the Billboard 200 Albums chart.

Eminem has fans in every area code and professional field, from movie stars to pro wrestlers. Take WWE's Ted DiBiase Jr., for example, who told MTV.com that listening to Eminem's music makes him angry. "I'm a fan of all music," DiBiase said. "I'm not just saying that. I like the pop music that comes out. I live in Mississippi, so I do like the country music. I'm a big fan of the Kings of Leon. I really dig their music. I work out to Eminem and stuff. He gets me going in the gym. He's got some good lyrics, and he gets me a little pissed off. That's what I need to push some weights sometime."

I know exactly what Dibiase is talking about. A combination of Em's lyrics and Dre's hard-hitting beats usually makes for great workout music. Here's a great workout playlist, if you're into that sort of thing.

In his Geto Boys days Bushwick Bill was the mastermind behind some of the most disturbing lyrics hip-hop has ever witnessed. He was a walking horrorcore genre. The little big man says he's now walking with Christ and has a gospel album to show for it. Bill's new album, Testimony of Redemption, arrives December 1st, 2009.