John Cena-You Can't See Me: The Album Revisted

Back in 2005, John Cena became one of the most popular wrestlers in the WWE.  The main reason he became so popular was because of his gimmick.  Dressed in baggy jeans, a throwback jersey, a backwords fitted hat, and a big ass chain. Not only that, but the dude rapped as well, John Cena was a grade A Wigga.  John Cena proclaimed himself the "Doctor of Thuganomics", and he let everybody know that he was about that "Word Life". I mean really you can't get any more wigga then that.

His rhymes weren't really that good, but they really weren't that bad either.  I have to admit the dude was pretty entertaining.  Every time he came out to face his opponent or bust a freestyle during a backstage segment or when he was coming down the entrance ramp, I can't even lie that shit was pretty funny.


Crazy thing about that gimmick was that it was lightweight true to Cena's character.  Coming from Boston, Cena grew up a rap fan. And the E was really smart to have him portray that Wigga charecter and got him over with the fans.  Cena was really over with that gimmick and the fans loved it, including myself.  I mean shit they gave that man his own custom made world title that had the logo spinning.  That was a championship that I bet Lil' Wayne wished he would have came up with.

 So it wasn't surprising that they took the gimmick a little further and had him drop a actually rap album.  Now of course the public, especially the hip-hop community, was going to be skeptical about this shit at first.  I mean shit do we have to remember the HORRIBLE raps from Hogan and the infamous Macho Man rap album?  I mean do they REALLY think that people are going to take a pro wrestler serious when he gets behind the mic booth? Apparently John Cena took the rap shit extremely serious, almost as serious as his wrestling career.  With help from his cousin Trademarc, Cena dropped his debut album (and most likely his only album), You Can't See Me.

Cena got a lot of help from some well known underground producers, including Jake One who produced the first track which is now his well known theme song.



Cena also got help from some well known underground rappers as well, most notably Freddie Foxx, who went with the alias Bumpy Knuckles.  Now THAT was random as hell because I didn't even think he would even think about getting on an album like this.  But he did, and he ripped it, and I hope that he got a pretty good pay check out of it.



Looking back at this album, it is still pretty good for what it is.  I mean if you turned this CD on without looking at the CD cover or knowing who the person was, you would think that this was a decent album.  It's NOT bad by ANY means, production wise it actually knocks on the headphones.  Rapping wise, Cena and Trademarc came with it, especially on tracks like the reminiscing record Right Now and the you-can't-help-but-nod-your-head joint Make It Loud.

Now one of my favorite tracks on this album is Just Another Day, a nice concept record that has Cena and Trademarc rapping about how different their lives are.  With Cena living the celebrity life and Trademarc living the struggling average joe life.  With production from Jake One, this track really showed that Cena was real serious about his rap skills.



Cena even showed off his laid back side and swag for the ladies too with songs like Summer Flings, Running Game, and What Now?  And he even showed off his gangster side with We Didn't Want You To Know the Big L sampled record like Keep Frontin'.  I mean seriously, if you go through this album you would kinda forget that this man is a professional wrestler.  He barely even mentions anything related to his wrestling career, and when he does its just half a bar.  John Cena really showed that he wanted to be taken serious as a emcee.

My favorite verse on this whole album is his last verse on the last track on the album entitled If It All Ended Tomorrow.  That verse really showed Cena's skill on the mic when it comes to story telling and it really showed on this record.

I want y'all to feel the realness, the truth in my words
I been quiet for too long, the truth should be heard
It was a while back, 10:20 in the morn'
Kat showed up on my lawn in the rug-ed uniform
Unexpected, there's a knock on my door
I met this fool in the club, I don' see him before
Open to greet him, but the second he sees me
His eyes buckle, his voice is uneasy
But it's cool, I ain't even catch it at first
I check his shoulder, homie's rockin a purse
Now I know something's tricky, but I'm already sitting down
Homie pipes up, you should hear what he's spitting out
Says I've been sleepin wit his wife
And he ain't the type of Kat to take that shit lightly
I made a move and he told me homie wait
Reached in his purse pulled a chrome 38
He asked me if I'm ready to die
Said he was gonna blow my brains all over the sky
Said he was leaving the country, and he's straight with the passports
Cocked the hammer, I'm thinkin my last thoughts
I'm in a bad way, nothing could save this.
I close my eyes hoping it's painless
Just waiting for the sound, ready to swallow two
But homie having trouble with his follow through
By a miracle, I avoided the chalk ground
Homie's confused, he just wanna be talked down
His wife was sleeping through town and he knew it
Picked me out of a crowd but couldn't do it
we squashed it, and as he's walkin away
I realize life is short so I'm markin the day
Now it's full speed ahead, I'll rest when I'm dead
And I could give a Fuck what the next man said
I live how I wanna live
Buy what I wanna buy
Do what I wanna do
Try What I wanna try
Fear nothing, take chances
Not afraid to fail, always makin advances
So when I ride on the Grim Reaper Highway
No regrets bitch, I did it my way..

 Now is that based on a true story?  Well shit, is Rick Ross really a gangster?  Did Jay-Z really lose 92 bricks? Who knows and who cares, that verse really showed that Cena had skill and if the wrestling shit didn't go his way, he really did lightweight has a career in rap.

When I look back at You Can't See Me, I gained a lot of respect for Cena.  I respected him for not making a mockery of the hip-hop genre, and I respected his courage to actually drop a rap album at the peak of his wrestling career that really could have backfired on him.  The production was on point, and so was his flow.  If he would have continued rapping, I wouldn't be surprised if he crossed over to mainstream and worked with other well known rappers.

7 years later, the John Cena we see now is a shell of his older self.  The wigga in him is dead and gone.  He don't rap no more, and when he does it just comes off as cornier then ever before.  And he is no longer the Doctor of Thuganomics.  Instead he is the leader of the CenaNation that consist of women and kids.  He no longer screams "Word Life!", instead he screams "Hustle, Loyalty, and Respect" whatever the fuck that means.  He is nothing more then a corny ass white boy and cradles more to the kids then to the average wrestling fan.  He pretty much became the modern day Hulk Hogan and it makes me sick to my fucking stomach.  As of right now, I hate his character with a fucking PASSION, and just wished he would just either grow some balls or just go away.  Either way FUCK the 2012 John Cena and ANYBODY that loves him.

 

Instead I'll remember the John Cena that was about that Word Life, the John Cena who felt more comfortable being Marky Mark 2.0.  The John Cena who would rather give somebody the F.U. then to give somebody an "Attitude Adjustment".  The Cena who would rather be respected as a rapper then as a superhero.  The John Cena that would slap the shit our himself if he ever saw him rocking this.  I'll will forever miss that Wigga that had a doctrine in Thuganomics...and this album is the only remnants of the Cena that I knew and loved.

~~Mr. Busby~~