Humility is not DK’s strong suit, but to his credit he has a pretty entertaining rationalization for why no one should take offense when he calls himself the best rapper alive: "If I was workin’ at McDonald’s, y’all wouldn’t be so mad if I said I’m the employee of the month." And at least some of his bravado is earned with a fluid, confident flow and inventive lyrics. On "If Not Me Then Who?" DK parodies the limited vocabulary of other rappers over one of West’s chipmunk-soul productions: "Insert the word dough or somethin’ ’bout clothes/ And this is how all of you flow." He might have a bright future ahead of him, but King Me’s best track is the one DK recorded when only 17. On "Observing the Night," a young DK strings together a long sequence of vivid street imagery with the stunning focus and prodigious talent of a pre-Illmatic Nas.