At midnight last night Logic dropped another song, this time featuring EDM producer Marshmello, presumably on the boards.
The song, titled "Everyday", comes only a few short days after the release of another Logic song, titled "44 More", which is a follow up to a song Logic featured on his mixtape Bobby Tarantino, aptly titled "44 Bars". There is no rumor as to if the newly released songs will be featured on any new projects from Logic, but I will keep you posted if any news pops up. You can check out the Logic and Marshmello collaboration "Everyday" below.
Fresh off of the follow up to his underrated Paranoia; A True Story EP, Dave East came back even harder with P2 in January, and now he's returned with a song for those who need to, for lack of a better phrase, get their shit together.
We all know those "Peter Pan's" who need to grow up, and Dave bring them to light in quite the gangsta manner on his new single. Dave's storytelling ability is highlighted again, just as it was on P2 with wildly descriptive tracks like "Corey" and "I Found Keisha", which both keep the great storytelling ability without being too overbearing in getting to a point. Check out "Peter Pan" below, and if you haven't yet, be sure to check out East's newest project, P2, which is available everywhere, and definitely worth the listen.
Last night on Twitter, Crooked I tweeted that today at noon, fans would be receiving a very special treat from him, and a couple of his friends to boot. Today, he did not fail to deliver on that promise.
As a part of Statik Selektah's new collaboration album with a team of talented emcees and producers known as "Forever M.C.", Statik dropped one of the stand out cuts on the album, featuring lyrical emcees and rap juggernauts Royce Da 5'9, KXNG Crooked, and DMX. "King Kong" will live on the star studded album from the underground producer, which has no official release date yet, but is available for pre-order on iTunes. You can check the new banger out below.
A few days ago (February 1st) Royce Da 5'9 and DJ Premier made their long awaited return as PRhyme, and dropped their first single (titled "Era") to their upcoming album PRhyme 2 featuring East Harlem,New Yorkemcee Dave East.
The track will live on PRhyme 2, which is set for a March 16th release date, and to go along with the song, Royce and Premier managed to grab East for the music video, which you can check out below. Who's excited for the return of PRhyme?
(*I do not own this video, song, or the rights to them*)
Philadelphia native Dayne Jordan returned to the music scene today with his new single, titled "Enormous". The track finds Jordan flexing his lyrical muscles over a bouncy track that is sure to light up speakers anywhere. Along with the song, it appears Jordan also released the music video to accompany it, which you can check out below.
"Enormous" is definitely a change of pace for a prototype emcee like Jordan, whose use of jazz instrumentation normally dominates his songs, but it's nice to see him feeling himself and seemingly building up confidence, and ultimately starting on the right foot towards a new project. It's certainly been a minute since we've heard any new music from Jordan, who's last project came last year, In Transition. There's no word on if Dayne is releasing an album just yet, but I shall keep y'all posted. Check out the video below.
(*I do not own this video, song, or the rights to them*)
Dr. Dre's protégé Jon Connor decided to return with a vengeance on January 8th, with a single aptly titled "I'M BACK". The only information given on any upcoming projects from the Detroit emcee in the song is the intro given by Dr. Dre; "the album is Vehicle City". Will this be the title to Jon Connor's long awaited Aftermath debut LP? I suppose we'll see, and seeing as Connor's music releases as of the last few years have been scarce, a release this early in the year could mean that Dre and Aftermath are pushing hard for Connor's debut LP to finally see the light of day. Enjoy the song below, and keep look out for any Connor releases in the coming months. Could Connor be Aftermath's next Kendrick? The theory may not be too far fetched considering the man's lyrical talents. Check out Connor's new song below, and be on the look out for new Connor in the coming months.
Brooklyn and Yonkers based emcees Fabolous and Jadakiss have showcased a respectable history of chemistry on tracks, including Fab's famed underground Soul Tape mixtape series as well as other guest appearances dating back to 2002 (on the Blade II soundtrack, oddly enough). Seeing the two on a track always meant you were in for a lyrical onslaught of double entendre's and straight bars, and their latest offering is no exception to their collaborative efforts. Here, I'll be discussing a couple of the highlights of their album, Friday on Elm Street.
Gritty, Back And Forth Cypher-Like Verses
Just like what happens on seemingly every Fabolous and Jadakiss track, Friday On Elm Street is another example of them murdering tracks, and by no means does it get repetitive. With Fab as Freddy and Jada playing Jason, whether it a smooth soul sample ("Theme Music") or a thunderous banging anthem for the "real niggas" ("Stand Up"), Jada and Fab bring more bars and less bullshit throughout the album. "Theme Music" is a fun standout from the album, a fast-paced jazz influenced cut that shows Fab and Jada feeding off of each other's energy from verse to verse. No track is used as filler, and it's almost safe to say that no single LINE that each rapper spits is used as filler. Each line, and every bar is basically a lesson for the new school, in lyrical ability and in mindset, and the lyrics cut hard like a knife with a sledgehammer attached, whether they be to provoke emotion or just to hype you up in the club or in the car.
Sampling Done Right
(*I do not own these songs, or the rights to them*)
If there's one thing that makes me bob my head listening to a masterfully crafted instrumental such as the ones on Friday On Elm Street, it's a perfectly looped sample. The "Soul Food" instrumental is practically food for the soul mixed with a nice POUND cake that the drums and 808s top off like whipped cream. "Theme Music" is like Fab and Jada taking the Delorean back to the funky era in the 70s (imagine Fab and Jada with full on fro's and printed jumpsuits), "Talk About It" with the wonderful Teyana Taylor on the hook begins with a wavy enough sound to put you in a trance (could be a sample or a synthesizer of some sort), as well as "All About It" with French Montana on the hook. Yes Friday On Elm Street shows almost every facet musically that makes a Fabolous and Jadakiss collaboration great, from the gritty bars all the way down to the grown up samples.
All around, Friday On Elm Street has a little bit of everything for the average, party listener, to the gritty hip hop heads who tune in for bars. Fab and Jada's old school values and brand of "teaching the new school the ways" shines through in a way that teaches, but never preaches. Their back and forth throughout the album makes for loads of entertainment and "did you catch it?" types of double entendres and metaphors, and their lessons imparted on the listeners some may view as "old-headedness", but other may view as great for having some old souls that can teach the young some lessons that they need to learn. Friday On Elm Street is scary not in it's samples or it's subject matter, but more in it's viewpoints on life compared to that of younger rappers/hip hop listeners... a refreshing difference.
Well, just in case you thought you had seen everything that the world had to offer, DMX wanted to reassure you that no, no you haven't, with his latest single. X partnered with Spotify for their Spotify Singles exclusive line of songs, and X offered an amazing take on a Christmas classic.
DMX's "Rudolph The Rednose Reindeer" sounds like Christmas in the Bronx, almost as if Christmas and the cast of Juice got together for a very hood holiday. X gave us a gift, like Christmas in New York, as if Christmas was a fresh new pair of Timbs, deadass my guy. X even added his signature ad-libs in the background to make it that much more... hype? Either way, you can get properly in the holiday spirit, and check out X's version of "Rudolph The Rednose Reindeer" below.
I'm mad at y'all. Seriously. How could you not tell me when something dope drops? I put my trust and faith in y'all! Almost 2 years ago, Kehlani blessed us with a random drop, and rummaging through a random Hip Hop & R&B playlist on Apple Music, I'm almost ashamed that, for the first time, I came across the gem from the Oakland, California singer and rapper.
Seriously though, I think my feelings are hurt. Tears almost came out of my eyes... tears of AWESOMENESS. If you haven't heard "Did I" from Kehlani, check it out below. I know it's almost 2 years old now, so why am I posting it? Because good music gets promoted. And, because I can.
It's been a minute since we've heard from talented Stone Mountain, Georgia emcee Cyhi The Prynce, but tonight we got a nice refresher. Earlier tonight, Cyhi dropped a new banger featuring his G.O.O.D. Music boss Kanye West titled "Dat Side". We've been waiting on Cyhi's debut album, titled No Dope On Sundays for awhile now,and thoughthere's still no set release date for it, "Dat Side" is rumored to be featured on the project, along with a slew of other songs Cyhi has released in the past months ("Legend", "Movin' Around" featuring Schoolboy Q, and "Nu Africa"). Cyhi has tweeted out that the album has been turned in and that fans should be hearing it shortly.
On yesterday's episode of Everyday Struggle, Joe Budden and DJ Akademiks finally (somewhat) tackled the ongoing beef between Birdman and Lil Wayne over the unpaid royalties and lack of Wayne's music being released, and they had an interesting announcement to make.
(*I do not own this video, or the rights to it*)
Whoa. If this statement that Joe has made about the Birdman phone call is true, then we could finally be getting some clear perspective and information about the Wayne/Birdman legal battle, though I (and you shouldn't either) will not be getting my hopes up. If we think about the last time some hip hop personalities attempted to question Birdman about Wayne, well... we could only hope this time it goes a little smoother. Although Joe is a truly outspoken individual in his opinions, could we see him act much more respectful and quiet if Birdman comes through Everyday Struggle? Will Akademiks be able to get his questions off without getting rattled? Lord knows it would be amazing to finally get some clarity about Wayne's indefinitely shelved music, but it all seems to depend on how Birdman is feeling that day. Until then, we can only speculate.
As I sat back and watched in awe at Eminem's scolding onslaught of Trump in his 2017 BET Hip Hop Awards cypher, I couldn't help but wonder what had brought him this far in such a storied, yet battered, bruised and beaten down career from fans, Stan's, and hip hop critics alike. The criticism for rape, assault, murder and every hot button issue dating back to Columbine that he's touched upon has been rightfully voiced, yet for some reason the idea of free speech still being a "thing" never seemed to cross the minds of MTV, VH1, or anybody covering Em for the sake of getting a news story out. No shade of course (though the forecast is looking rather Shady for the coming months), but all in all, the idea of Eminem ever "maturing" (whether it be in his mindset or in his content) never seemed to be a topic that people would ever touch upon or care enough about... it's sort of like a Family Guy or a South Park; people just started shrugging him off and chalking it up to "oh that's just who he is." But the line in the sand might have been drawn, and I'm not talking about the line Eminem addresses in his freestyle; is Eminem bringing us more mature content on his upcoming, yet to be titled album?
With Em's much talked about (and in most people's opinion, probably TOO MUCH) BET freestyle dropping, there wasn't really any sort of speculation as to what Em was going to address in terms of topics or subject matter, but since it's arrival, peoplecan't stop talking about it. In fact, to say that the freestyle was unexpected is an understatement. Em's track record in terms of political topics and hot button issues dates back to 2004 on his 5th studio album, Encore, on a track aimed entirely at then president Bush titled "Mosh", but that seemed to be the last of his political voice (minus a few Obama mentions in songs and cyphers that didn't hold any weight minus some ammo for a bar/rhyme). Knowing the meticulousness of a rapper of Em's stature, there really aren't many who plan out as carefully as Em; album releases given, even albums RELEASED without a care, music videos given with no sort of warning or preparation for, and tours merely tweeted/posted out with no sort of presentation or show; Em is the furthest thing from this type of rapper. Em is unleashing a full on, Battlefield sort of presentation for an album that people, whether they want to or not... SHOULD be paying very close attention to. And if you don't believe me... give a listen to what some (one) of hip hop's veterans (not to mention, somewhat of a Shady insider) thinks about Em's new "marketing strategy."
(*I do not own these videos, or the rights to them*)
And if that doesn't convince you (as if the next bit of information is going to sell it), check out my Google Plus post from earlier this year, dating back to July 6th!
Well that settles it! No, obviously I'm just kidding, but Joe's speculation did (in my opinion) bring a bit of validity to my statement from July. With Eminem's history of having used his platform to make political statements (though few and far in between), I do believe that 2017 is the year that Shady gets people (who normally wouldn't) talking again about the current state of the world... it's only a shame that it took Donald Trump being president to do it (yikes). Em's inspiration usually and seemingly comes from other great hip hop albums and songs that have impacted the world in some way, but looking around at the current state of the world, it's hard not to think that Trump would have impacted his upcoming album in some way, especially considering the history the two have. Eminem growing a beard for the first time in his illustrious 18 years in the spotlight is just because... he got lazy shaving? Casual fans may think so, but knowledgeable Em fans know better. The return of the blond hair for the Marshall Mathers LP 2 promorun in 2013 wasn't because Em was going through a midlife crisis (or maybe it was, but his hair is back to black again, so you can't tell me shit otherwise). Be on the look out, and pay VERY close attention to Em's next moves (unless it's another Pink feature, as Joe spoke about in Everyday Struggle, because that's just for business).
About 2 hours ago, Nanuet, New York wordsmith Bishop Nehru dropped some new heat on SoundCloud. Check out "Roam4AHome" below, produced by Ohbliv. No word on if the new song is off of any upcoming project from Nehru, though the description listed under the "information" on SoundCloud says the following; "Witness The Emperor. Prepare for the Reign." Is this a sign for a new project for Bishop?
In case you some how missed the talk of hip hop for the past 24 hours, Eminem appeared on the 2017 BET Hip Hop Awards last night, and absolutely went IN on Trump with a standalone freestyle that ran for roughly 4 and a half minutes. Em addressed the Donald's Twitter antics, his lack of effort into helping Puerto Rico, gun reform and many other topics, but it seemed Em was not done promoting new things.
Earlier today, Shady Records announced on Twitter and on their website (Shadyrecords.com) that they had just signed up and coming Compton talent Boogie, who has been an HHU favorite since his project The Reach was released in 2015. Shady Records and Boogie even celebrated their new deal with a freestyle that is only watchable online, and which you can view in the link below.
As far as the rumors for what to expect from Eminem's upcoming album, this cypher verse might be just a small preview of what to expect; will we be getting more political bars from the Detroit legend? The album is reportedly set for a November 17th release date, though nothing has been confirmed. You can check out Em's cypher verse below, as well as Boogie's cypher verse here.
(*I do not own these videos, or the rights to them*)
It's been 3 long years since Big K.R.I.T.'s last solo LP (unless you count It's Better This Way which dropped in 2016, but I certainly don't consider it an album if I can't find it on Apple Music), and fans have been frothing at the mouth at the thought of what K.R.I.T. is going to do next. And now with the release of the upcoming album's (titled 4eva Is a Might Long Time, keeping with the "4eva" theme that K.R.I.T started in 2012 with his album/mixtape 4eva N a Day) 2 lead singles, "Confetti" and "Keep the devil Off", it's harder than ever to know what to expect from the Mississippi native. Will he keep with the funk-infused, "trunk music" narrative that we've come to know and love him for? Or will K.R.I.T. find a new calling? 4eva Is a Mighty Long Time indeed, and I think K.R.I.T is already dropping signals to the people that they should take any past information of what they THINK they know about K.R.I.T... and throw it out the window. Regardless of what I expect (or think we'll hear) from K.R.I.T.'s album... below I'll be listing what *I* would LIKE TO HEAR on the project.
Classic, Sub-Utilizing K.R.I.T. Production
If it ain't broke, why make an attempt at fixing it? K.R.I.T has flourished in the trunk banging sub-genre (no pun intended) since his inception in 2010 (Krit Wuz Here), and since then K.R.I.T. has been a go-to rapper/artist for people to listen to for guaranteed, quality trunk thumpers and head bobbing. And the most impressive part of it all? K.R.I.T. produces every. Single. Track. He produced every track on his major label debut LP Live From The Underground, as well as 10 out of 15 songs on his sophomore effort Cadillactica, so at this point it's probably safe to say that K.R.I.T. has solidified himself as one of the most potent and underrated producers in the game. K.R.I.T's producer prowess and love of the "wah wah" effect is what has kept his music held to the high standard that it is, and pushed him to the tier of rapper that he is considered today. Although K.R.I.T.'s reputation as a producer is solidified, it might be safe to say that he is leaning towards more outside help on the production side of things. With Raphael Saadiq having assisted on Cadillactica, which had it's quick hits of soul and funk-infused vibes, is 4eva Is a Mighty Long Time the album in which K.R.I.T broadens his horizons into territories much larger than just hip hop? Only time will tell.
Hip Hop Titan Responsibilities & Actions; Calling Out The Bullshit
At this stage in K.R.I.T.'s career, as multi faceted and layered as he is, people should expect nothing less than K.R.I.T. broadening his horizons and taking a completely different lane in an attempt to escape his musical comfort zone (I'm not saying he needs to go full out Kanye, of course). But K.R.I.T also holds responsibilities in holding hip hop to a much higher standard, not to mention a much higher standard than it has been as of the "mumble rap" era. On his emphatic response to Kendrick's now infamous "Control" verse "Mount Olympus", Big K.R.I.T claimed the crown with a song, then made his case to snatch it up, with the release of Cadillactica shortly after that in 2014. J. Cole did it on "Everybody Dies", Kendrick (allegedly, and sort of subliminally) did it before the release of DAMN, and now it's K.R.I.T.'s turn to talk his shit again. As little as you see or hear his name mentioned in best "current" rapper lists, and as little as people speak of K.R.I.T in general, one thing is for sure... K.R.I.T. is never NOT taken seriously as an artist, but more importantly, as an emcee. K.R.I.T raps with the best of them, and he's proven that he can time and time again.
Those are just a few of my wishes from K.R.I.T's new album, if I had listed all of them we'd probably be here for a couple more hours. Just off of a few listens from the singles, you'd think K.R.I.T was headed in the general direction of a K.R.I.T album; real emotion and feelings mixed with smooth funk and as the kids say, "baller ass etiquette" made to sound crisper and cooler than the crack of a Sprite on a hot summer day (just kidding, the kids don't say that, probably). To the average non-conspiracy theorist, the title 4eva Is a Mighty Long Time probably wouldn't mean anything besides keeping the narrative going with K.R.I.T's history of the "4eva" story, but I believe there's more to it. Could the album title lead to K.R.I.T's wishes of fulfilling his past claims of wanting to make "timeless music" and ultimately push him to be one of the greats? It's no secret that K.R.I.T's goal in music is to make music that people believe can withstand the test of time (after all, K.R.I.T is an acronym for "King Remembered In Time"). Who's to say that K.R.I.T's new album isn't a play in the complete opposite direction of the "microwave era"?
Also addressing the double album track list (which is available on Apple Music and online everywhere); the intro song of the first album is titled "Big K.R.I.T". The intro song of the second album's title? "Justin Scott"; K.R.I.T's real name. Is the album a representation of who Big K.R.I.T is as a rapper, but also a representation of who Justin Scott, the person, is? I can't answer these questions until we hear the album, which is set to arrive on October 27th. You can enjoy both of the lead singles below, and be sure to comment and connect with me about what you think the album will bring.
(*I do not own these songs, videos, or the rights to them*)
