A well-known veteran of the New York mixtape scene, Joe Budden was no rookie when he recorded his self-titled debut album. The Jersey City rapper had worked the mixtape circuit relentlessly, freestyling over all kinds of beats, everything from Timbaland ("Work It") to the Neptunes ("Grindin'") to the usual East Coast fare. His workmanlike presence earned him quite a reputation, among the leading mixtape DJs like Kayslay and Cutmaster C as well as among the scene itself, and led to his eventual signing by Def Jam, an increasingly conservative label that generally only deals with long-established artists. But all of this fanfare belies the fact that Budden is far from your typical East Coast rap sensation and is actually quite noncommercial. Unlike, for instance, 50 Cent, another rapper who initially made his name on the mixtape scene before debuting in 2003 with much fanfare, Budden doesn't rap about guns, drugs, or violence; furthermore, he's ...