If there is any hip-hop scene that would be well served by a conscious rapper, it would be New Orleans’. However, wearing the hybrid title doesn’t excuse one from the traditional question: Can you spit? On Self Determination, Truth Universal attempts to define himself as the KRS-One of the Crescent City: “We Boom-Bap, not rap to attract ladies / but to extract stacks and teach black babies.” On “Angola 3,” the album’s best song, TU tells the story of wrongfully committed criminals in the Louisiana prison. A great story that hasn’t been told enough, and certainly not rapped.

TUs other attempts at presenting conceptual songs miss the mark. “Feminine Melanin,” TU’s ode to black women is dull. “The Best Part,” dedicated to the birth of his daughter feels too much like Talib Kweli’s “Joy.” “Serve & Protect,” a cry against police harassment feels overdone and outdated. It seems as if a conscious rapper from New Orleans would have a gumbo pot of material.

The production on the album is definitely a strong point on its own. However, TU fails to take advantage of it, with “Across the grain like the Atkins Diet” being the best metaphor on the album. It’s good, but it’s not that good.