Hi-Tek has expanded his portfolio since creating classics with Talib Kweli and Mos Def. On this sophomore release, he demonstrates why artists as diverse as 50 Cent and Common have enlisted his production skills. Hi-Tek’s beats sound as soulful behind Bun B and Devin the Dude as they do backing Nas and Common. On “Josephine,” Tek gets eclectic, with Ghostface dropping the similes, while his father, mother, and uncle-as the Willie Cottrell Band-play the blues. But it’s when he’s reunited with Kweli, on “Can We Go Back,” that Tek shines by showing listeners he hasn’t forsaken his roots.