Purple Haze

Having won the attention of the masses with the success of “Hey Ma,” Cam’ron took advantage of the public goodwill and used 2004’s Purple Haze to let it all hang out. He never made an album that was more indulgent or more fun—as if the pink-saturated cover art wasn’t indication enough. “Killa Cam,” “Harlem Streets,” and “Get ‘Em Girls” made brilliant use of bizarre samples, and the creativity only seems to spur Cam’s imagination. And while he got weird, he still managed to create street anthems in the form of “Get Down,” “Down and Out,” and “Dip-Set Forever.”