Does T-Hud spit hot fiyah?

I have to admit, I didn’t give MC Troy Hudson much of a chance. When T-Hud’s Back on the Block, Vol. 1 mixtape showed up in the mail a while back, I was ready — like anyone who knows the history of athletes-turned-rappers — to pop in the CD, have a laugh at some cornball lyrics, take the free t-shirt and never think about it again.

Turns out I was wrong. Not saying T-Hud is the next JR Writer in the booth, but he’s a welcome exception from some of the musical nonsense that’s been put out by pro ballers with enough cash to finance a hip-hop side job.

“I’m not doin’ this s*** on no other level than the best,” T-Hud boasts on the Back on the Block intro before going into the title track. Doing his thing on the mic since his college days at Southern Illinois, the 10-year NBA vet takes his craft seriously, which is the first step in standing out from his peers like Shaq, Ron Artest, Tony Parker, Desmond Mason, Kobe, A.I. and the rest. This mixtape is a preview for T-Hud’s debut album, Undrafted, which drops in May on his own Nutty Boyz Entertainment label.

T-Hud’s flow is solid, a Midwest rapid-fire style (he’s from Carbondale, Ill.) similar to Chicago cats Twista (who’s featured on the mixtape), Crucial Conflict and Do or Die. On this mixtape he mixes it up a little bit, too, slowing down to ride the beats on tracks like “Shoulder Lean,” “Chevys Ridin’ High” and “Snap Your Fingers.” He sounds comfortable on the mic and especially shines on “Freestyle,” “Killa Noize” and “I’m a Gangsta,” among others.

Overall, T-Hud’s best effort is probably “Jealousy,” where he talks about going back to his ‘hood and dealing with the fame: “They say I owe them / I don’t owe ‘em s*** / I owe myself ’cause I made me this.” T-Hud’s lyrics are strong on this one and he’s talking about something he can obviously identify with.

Then there’s the other subject matter. While it’s boring to go the Deion Sanders route and only rap about money, partyin’ and bulls***, some of T-Hud’s material raises a skeptical eyebrow. On “Gang Bangin” he shouts out “I wanna see gang signs in this b****!” before dropping lines like “My steel won’t jam up / If it do, I can knuckle / I’m putting my hands up” and “In my Hummer I got heat / ’cause I’m picking my grams up.” For real? Keeping it true to how you came up and your block is one thing, but it’s different when we know you spent your morning at shootaround, not in the kitchen.

Another noticeable flaw is T-Hud’s voice. When someone like Cam’ron or Lil’ Wayne or Rick Ross hops on a track, you immediately know it’s them. For whatever reason — no fault of his own — T-Hud doesn’t have that. Sometimes it takes a minute before you’re sure it’s definitely him rapping and not a guest MC.

On the whole, though, the T’Wolves gunner turns out a solid effort on Back to the Block. One of the best things you can say about a part-time MC is that he isn’t embarrassing himself, and T-Hud certainly qualifies there. We’ll see if he can keep it up when the album drops …

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