The World Is Yours

The biggest change Scarface made for his second album was the decision to bring aboard N.O. Joe, the producer who would go on to guide the sound of Texas hip-hop in the 90's, and whose partnership with Face continues to the present.The World Is Yours is the rapper’s first attempt to formulate his own funk sound. N.O. Joe makes the beats slower and thicker, and the pace here is less frenetic than on the first album, reflecting the growth in Face’s stature. The tone is still furious, and you’d be hard-pressed to find a rap song from 1992 that packs a punch as forceful as “Lettin’ Em Know,” “The Wall” or “You Don’t Hear Me Doe.” The subtle sonic embellishment of The World Is Yours is met with Scarface’s deepening approach to writing, particular as it relates to his perspective on death. “The Wall” shows the rapper split in two as he experiences his own suicide from the perspective of an outside observer. Face’s preoccupation with death would become the hallmark of his career, but it is his fearless and innovative approach to psychological self-examination that puts him a category all by himself.