Joe Budden seems to be an enigma in the Rap world. Regarded by some as one of hip hop’s hidden gems throught the years, there are varying opinions on why Budden has never gotten the acclaim some feel he is worthy of.

His 2004 split with Def Jam Records and rumored deteriorating relationship with Def Jam president Jay-Z didn’t help matters and Budden instead had to wait patiently as he second release album was pushed back. He kept busy with a series of Mix tapes entitled Mood Muzik, and garnered somewhat of a cult following throughout the years, with many wondering if he ever would break through.

His forthcoming album, Padded Room, was to be released in October of 2008 but had since been pushed back to February 24th of this year, only to be leaked on the internet just recently.

24 Hour Hip Hop recently checked out some of the busiest message boards to get a feel for everything regarding Joe Budden. In their own words, this is was the everyday public has to say about the Spanish Harlem rapper, with some of the posts being directed towards the anticipation regarding Budden’s Padded Room and some posts revolving around those who have already listened to the leaked album as they offer up their personal reviews…

“Joey is the beginning of a new era. How much time is it gonna take for the world to realize that brothas like Joe are out there?”
 
“I haven’t listened, and there’s not much chance that I will. I don’t really care for dude. He CAN come correct sometimes, but he’s never really interested me.”

“I been screaming BUDDEN since ’03 dog. This nigga the best out point blank, period.”

“All u dickheads comparing this fag prodigy to joe dont know what the fuck hiphop iz. joe budden is a enigma. look it up. the only nigga dead or alive that can give the g.o.a.t. jay z a run 4 his money when it comes 2 lyrics. joe budden could easily be the second best of all time. do your research on em 2002 til now most consistent .”

“When i started to get hip to Budden i went through his catalogue and listened to mixtape tracks that came out before his debut and i was wondering why didn’t the growth come out that would’ve been a classic no doubt but Budden is a beast and he will get his recognition sooner or later.”

“I totally agree w/you…i have a feeling in the next 2 years that people will acknowledge this man…i am not going to front…i didnt start listenening to joe till MM3…thats when i got hooked and heard his entire catalouge..amazing writing..jay-z is one of my favorive rappers of all time..but jay didnt give this man a fair shake when he was president of def jam..joe is easily creeping up my fav 10..no correction.fave 5 list of all time..he has a cult following.halway house, padded room classics.”
 
“Download it to death. Don’t spend a cent. This shit is fucking awful. Career over.”
 
“I already listened to this shit 12 times, I still give it a 9/10.”
 
“It really is bad, terrible production.”
 
“From what I’ve listened to so far, this shit is fire…”
 
“Most excited I’ve been about an album in a long time. Any press is good press.”
 
“Garbage ass album. The fuck was he thinking?….Stupid ass better find some more people to give him beats for free. The shit he’s using now is mostly garbage or he either fucks it up with his flow.”
 
“Something’s just not right here. I’m not making excuses for Joe. If the album was shit, then the album was shit. And in my opinion, I wouldn’t go so far as to call it shit, but I was extremely disappointed. And this is coming from a huge Joey fan, not one of these dudes that are rooting for Joe to fail, or feeling immense happiness every time he “Misses the mark. But mark my words, there’s more going on here then we know. And I think it will come out in the near future. The fact that it dropped before it was supposed to (it didn’t just leak, it was in stores before its release date) shows that there’s more going on then meets the eye.”
 
“Personally i thought the album could’ve been much, much better with more accomplished beat makers…From the album name, i would’ve prefered darker, more organic/atmospheric beats over flashy, digitalized, techno influenced shit for the most part…Budden’s lyricism and delivery was on point throughout though…I gave it a solid 8/10. With better production, this could’ve easily gone 9+.”