Once upon a time, there was a rapper named Fat Joe who dropped a noted verse on the Diamond D album Stunts, Blunts & Hip Hop. Joe and Diamond were part of an underground elite New York group called D.I.T.C (Diggin' In the Crates). That was in the 1990's, when some of the grimiest and grittiest of New York rap music was churned. Whether it was the passing of fellow member Big L or just the industry going downhill, the supergroup seemed to have an unofficial disbanding as Joe started claiming The Terror Squad.

This brief glance at Joe's music career serves to highlight that he is capable of making classic street tracks as seen on songs from his earlier days and seen again on this new album with That White where he teams up with DJ Premier for the highlight of the album. Unfortunately, the rest of the material on The Elephant in the Room lacks that type of intensity; it seems that Joe is trying to find his second coming of Lean Back.

It's hard to dispel the notion that getting southern rapper Plies to lend a verse on Ain't Sayin' Nothin' is nothing more than an attempt to force a successful pop record. Even production duties lent by Alchemist on the KRS-One assisted My Conscience leaves much to be desired: the collaboration sounds great on paper but isn't executed very well.

The album has twelve tracks and accomodates 9 guest slots leaving less Joey Crack and more of everybody else that I don't care for. Even moments where everyone's favorite rapper Lil' Wayne helps (the chorus on The Crackhouse) are barely enjoyable.

Joe has his moments but they are too far and few in between to have a cohesive album. The reason why Lean Back was such a hit, was because it was a dope record that they put out but became bigger than expected. That's the key: Let the music happen. When you're trying to force the magic the results are similar to the The Elephant in the Room. Again, the album isn't all bad but lacking in replay value.