Forgive me for being lazy ... I couldn't think of something to post today, so I am using a cheat sheet and sharing this Crossword Puzzle from Dr. Dre. Here's their blurb, "If there's one thing Dr. Dre loves more than blazing up a fat sack of chronic, it's doing a fat-ass crossword puzzle. Relive the glory days of Death Row Records by answering these fun-filled questions. Now y'all beeyatchez got 30 seconds to answer deeeeeez muthaf#ckin questions, so let the games begin!" Question 5, Down: Eazy looked like one? Answer: Penguin, lol. That's some cold shit, huh Dre? Anyway, have fun filling it out and seeing how you do on the questions... I included the answers below if you're usure...
10 minutes of absolute BARS from the legendary Black Thought of The Roots. Last year, I touched on Funk Flex's freestyle series after Joe Budden was up at Hot 97. There's since been a few other dope freestyles, but none have shifted perspective and made fans rethink their T5DOA and had artists questioning their pen game as much as Black Thought's freestyle. There's so many quotables to shine a light on here, but some of my favorites are: "Gun fire and flares, sirens glare / I'm in a iron chair where people who care don't get the lion's share / When I don't give a f#ck then I ain't fair" and "Same cadence as D.O.C. pre-accident / Maybe my acumen's on par with Kool G. Rap and them / Give me the proper respect, mothaf#cka, we back again..." and "Go through the vein to the brain, fabulous and strange / My journalistic range is a catalyst for change / It got anybody that listen pissing flame / And ’cause the Hall of Fame got so many missing names." Black Thought blazed the mic up at Sway a couple months back, he's at it again ... Rappers were put on notice, give Black Thought his proper respect and watch this freestyle below with a pen and a pad in your hand.
"I'm just like you, but dog I can't see it at all, shit / We never kicked it at all, we never pitched or kicked at a ball / Dog, you never taught me shit / How to fight, ride a bike, fix a flat, none of that sorts of shit," say Beans in arguably one of the best album cuts released on Roc-A-Fella Records. Beyond the punchlines and bar-heavy tracks that the State Property crew delivered on Hov's Dynasty compilation, it's when you dig into the lyrics on "Where You Have Been" that you discover the therapy that music truly provides many artists/fans. Like, where Jay-Z says... "You said that you was coming through, I would stay in the hallway / Always playing the bench (waiting) and that day came and went / FUCK YOU very much, you showed me the worst kind of pain / But I'm stronger and trust me, I will never hurt again / Will never ask mommy "Why daddy don't love me? / Why is we so poor? Why is life so ugly? / Mommy, why is your eyes puffy? / Please don't cry everything'll be alright / I know it's dark now, but we gon' see the light..." When Beanie Sigel and Jay-Z followed up the track on Beans' song "Still Got Love For You" off The Reason, it gave some reprieve, but the pain and darkness remained. Both songs are masterpieces but are so vulnerable that it seems fans champion them more behind closed doors. If they let you know anything, it's that struggle is real and you can overcome it. In their extensive catalogs, it's track like this I'm most thankful for... Now, if only Beans and Hov could fix their own fractured relationship, who knows what that'd bring next.
"Queens represent, buy the album when I drop it..." Extra P dropped those lines back in '93. And since that time, more than a few heads have been waiting for the opportunity to do just that. Earlier this year, Paul put out "Mad Scientist" and folks sighed with relief - surely an Extra P album would soon follow. Ah, but hold a minute. We gon' tease y'all a bit more. Lo and behold, here's another tight Extra P joint for ya to marinate on; that album's gonna be here a minute or so late. "I Justwannachill" should be the mantra for all these extra-hard acting/posturing hip-hop types. Over a smooth type groove - last heard on De La's "Dininit" - Paul lays out his '96 philosophy: "I don't wanna ill / I just wanna chill / And keep my hand around a hundred dollar bill;" now that's a philosophy that some of us need drilled into resistant domes." "I Justwannachill" is another solid installment from one of hip-hop's most talented, and coolest, practitioners. But Paul, lemme put it like this: drop the damned album already so we can buy it." - The Source, 11/96). Well ... "The LP" was to be the solo debut from Large Professor, but it was shelved by Geffen Records in 1996. There were copies of the album as "promo-only" in '02/03 when Large Pro regained rights to the album, but it wasn't officially released until 2009, about a year after he released his "Main Source" LP. Peep the visuals for the track below, and as always, MUCH respect to the legendary Large Pro!
If you'd like a copy of The Source's 12" review...
'Cab Fare' is an "unreleased" gem from the mighty Souls of Mischief crew, comprised of A-Plus, Opio, Phesto, and Tajai. Tajai did an interview where he said the members were fifteen/sixteen when they recorded the track! Wow. It's obvious that the Bob James sample would never be cleared, but thanks to the internet (and the Archives Inc. vinyl release), fans have been celebrating this track for many years. Souls fans wouldn't be wrong to feel like the label support was underwhelming for the group's sophomore effort No Man's Land... As an extension, songs not reachin' the same level of mainstream acclaim as "'93 til..." will be the catch-22 of the group's success. Fortunately, Souls have toured extensively as solo artists and alongside the Hiero family, and have more than enough gems to celebrate! Whether you've never heard it or it's one of your fav joints, revisit "Cab Fare" below...
8 is the eighth studio album from producer Statik Selektah. The album was released via Duck Down Music and Statik's label Showoff Records. The album features guest appearances from vocal artists, such as 2 Chainz, Action Bronson, Joey Badass, Termanology, Run The Jewels, The L.O.X., Wale, Royce da 5'9", Joyner Lucas, Raekwon, Mtume, Westside Gunn, Conway the Machine, Sean Price and G-Eazy. Statik is one of the most consistent, most prolific producers of our generation. Listen below...
Whether you listen to the album front to back or back to front, "Damn" is still one helluva album. It took me a minute to get to it - I like to wait for the buzz and smoke to clear so my view of the album isn't distracted by 'popular opinion - but, then it took me even longer to sit with it, so now new and Deluxe versions are hitting the stores. Arguably, they reveal a new flow and rhythm to the project and provide new vibes and intricacies that Top and Kendrick thought ahead to introduce to the LP. It's this genius way of approaching packaging and providing a full vision that makes Kendrick one of the most important artists of our generation. To have that in the mainstream is an incredible thing, because it will surely invite new listeners into the culture and helps validate some of the efforts of lesser known artist that are also pushing the envelope and creating new paths to success. Not to mention, it's great business sense: listeners stream it again, fans of physicals buy the album again ... it's a win on all fronts. The album features production from a variety of record producers, including executive producer and Top Dawg Entertainment label-head Anthony "Top Dawg" Tiffith, Sounwave, DJ Dahi, Mike Will Made It and Ricci Riera; as well as further production contributions from James Blake, Steve Lacy, BadBadNotGood, Greg Kurstin, The Alchemist and 9th Wonder, among others. Damn features appearances from singers Rihanna and Top Dawg signee Zacari, along with Irish rock band U2. You can stream the original LP, as well as the collector's edition below. What awards will "Damn." receive? A lot ... and it isn't even his best album! Damn.
With "A Common Wonder," Amerigo Gazaway brings to life an imagined studio session between Chicago's crowned prince of Hip-Hop, Common, and Motown legend, Steve Wonder. A return to the Soul meets Hip-Hop formula of his Marvin Gaye + Mos Def pairing “Yasiin Gaye,” Gazaway connects the dots between Hip-Hop and the genre’s predecessor with a musical history lesson told through the intersecting themes of Common and Stevie’s respective catalogues. As Gazaway puts it: “Stevie Wonder’s early use of synthesizers, drum machines, and samplers, in a lot of ways, paved the way for hip-hop and sampling. Part of my motivation for this project was to highlight those contributions.” Picking up where Common and Stevie’s 2016 “Black America Again,” single left off, Amerigo brings his imagined recording session to life with a slew of uncovered resources (including multitrack instrument stems, interview audio, and documentary soundbites.) Re-orchestrating deconstructed samples, the producer interweaves Common’s vivid wordplay and Wonder’s passionate vocals for a project that blurs the line between a “mashup” and a modern day duets album. Dig in...
