This came out in 2000 – or at least that’s when I got it. Here’s what I said about it back then (with some minor editing):
Just like the world it chronicles, rap is very often a gang culture.
Like crime bosses, successful rappers and DJs have their crews — typically made up of family, friends, employees and supporting players hoping to ride their coattails. DMX has his Ruff Ryders; Snoop had his Dogg Pound; Master P has his No Limit Soldiers. But Baton Rouge rapper Young Bleed is one of a rare breed these days — a man without a posse. His aptly named sophomore disc My Own is ample proof he needs no help: The beats are big and phat, the bass comes in huge slabs, the keyboards are sharp and sinister, the samples are innovative, and his mushy, motor-mouthed style and hard-boy raps put him in the same sonic league as P or Juvenile. But the sad truth is, next to all the cross-promoting crews and labels out there, Bleed’s worthy offering will probably fall through the cracks. It’s like they say: One is the loneliest number.
