Reggae's staunch ghetto realist works the border turf between Jamaica dance hall and New York City street rap, strengthening stateside alliances he forged in his 1996 My Xperience crossover CD. Riding hard on booming hip-hop tracks without compromising his reggae bellow or Jamaican identity, Bounty points the way to the stateside market only a few of his peers have reached. Although the lion's share of this set is bona fide reggae jams--with the best produced by Dave Kelly and Anthony Red Rose--it's the hip-hop flows that register. Proving that the link between dance hall and hip-hop is not through pop or R&B are the title track, with Noreaga; "It's a Party," featuring Cocoa Brovaz, Nona Hendryx, and Free and coproduced by Wyclef Jean; and "Deadly Zone," featuring Mobb Deep and Rappin' Noyd. You gotta come true to yourself and hardcore. --Elena Oumano