Pitbull has a lot of nicknames, most of which he bestowed upon himself. Mr. International and Mr. Worldwide are the most apt considering his latest record, Planet Pit, which is packed with electro-pop bangers chronicling the playboy’s worldwide philandering.
Pitbull
Planet Pit
Mr. 305 Inc.
In this rapidly globalizing world, the Cuban-American rapper surveys the planet and deems all borders permeable, using his international sex appeal and seductive Spanglish as a diplomatic tool to get in the pants of women all around the world. And one gets the feeling that nearly all the sweaty, cosmopolitan jams studding his latest party album would be welcome in any club or discothèque.
The entire album is like a fusion restaurant, as it samples beats and sounds from all over the world to create a multicultural sonic feast. Pitbull steers away from a virtual roll-call of rappers and pop stars on “Pause,” one of the sexiest songs on the album, and flies solo on this reggaeton track. Caribbean drums and electro-pop combine perfectly to create a spicy song, which has Pitbull switching back and forth between rapping in Spanish and English. It’s humid and hypnotic.
Enrique Iglesias lends a hand on “Come ‘N’ Go,” a song riddled with strange euphemisms for sex, like the inscrutable, 21st-century pick-up line “Mami you’re the internet / And I’m looking for a download.” But if one ignores the pair’s decidedly un-sexy boasting about their respective sexual prowess, the rum-saturated, top 40-bound track is perfect for after midnight. Pitbull handles seduction for grinding co-eds as he whispers “That’s right” over and over.
Despite a solid roster of hits on the record, Pitbull stumbles occasionally. The throwaway sing-along song “Something for the DJs” is pretty much unlistenable. Of course, the consummate globetrotting DJ and producer, David Guetta, joins Pitbull on this electro-house heavy song. Unfortunately, Pitbull’s creepy twist on childhood rhymes will leave listeners cold as he horrifingly implores “If you’re sexy and you know it clap your hands!” and asks “How much wood can a wood chop, chop / If a wood could chop, could chop would!” Despite the terrible lyricism, Guetta somewhat salvages the track with his universally appealing beats.
Slowing it down, Pitbull opens up on the requisite confessional “Castle Made of Sand” with Kelly Rowland’s soaring, but melodramatic vocal stylings and newcomer Jamie Drastik spitting a lack-luster verse. This song has Pitbull marveling at his own success despite his rough, childlike rapping, “If you know what I come from, know what I’ve been through / You think there should have been another outcome.” Even though Rowland’s pop tart singing undermines and clutters the song, it’s hard to resist a track where hyper-masculine Pitbull says, “Thank you mom for making me a man.”
As Pitbull says on the intro track “Mr Worldwide,” Mr. 305 takes on the world without forgetting his Cuban-Miami roots on Planet Pit. The rapper has managed to craft a sultry album brimming with slick production and club hits that will undoubtedly create the summer soundtrack for stumbling partiers.
Electronica fuses comfortably with bachata beats while guests such as Sean Paul infuse tracks like “Shake Senora” (also featuring T-Pain) with dancehall reggae. While songs like “Give Me Everything” and “Hey Baby” are already mainstays on pop radio, the album is littered with more inventive sleeper hits.
Pitbull’s latest may lack depth, but as a party album it is a variable melting pot that will undoubtedly impart the pop charts with some much needed culture. ¡Dale!