In Brief

* * * Various artists, “Poetic Justice” soundtrack, Epic. Janet Jackson, the movie’s star, isn’t on the soundtrack--but she’s not missed. The gems outweigh the misses on this star-studded rap-R&B; collection, which runs the gamut from grisly gangsta rap by the Dogg Pound and 2Pac to Mista Grimm’s rollicking pot-smoking ode to a dreamy Stevie Wonder ballad. Also includes strong contributions from Naughty by Nature, Babyface, TLC and Tony Toni Tone.

New albums are rated on a scale of one star (poor), two stars (fair), three stars (good) and four stars (excellent).