Surprisingly not self-destructive

After “Curtis” versus “Graduation” turned sour for him, there hasn’t been much coming out of 50 Cent’s camp. His latest album, “Before I Self Destruct,” is minus the fanfare and build-up that “Curtis” had, and “Fiddy” actually brings fans his best album since “Get Rich Or Die Tryin.’”

“Self Destruct” is a return to his roots, showing a rough-around-the-edges growl over heavy beats and a deliberate flow about his gangster roots and his inability to like people. While this makes for inherently stale material, the album never loses steam.

But the album has to sell, so 50 has his obligatory few tracks about the bedroom, collaborating with crooners R. Kelly and Ne-Yo on “Could’ve Been You” and “Baby By Me,” respectively. However neither are throwaway tracks and allow for a nice change of pace.

This is the kind of trend that fans have hoped to see from Jackson and he delivers. His aggressive style is as rugged as ever and fans are sure to enjoy this vintage 50 work.