Incredibly weird how these times roll around again and again so fast... I feel like I just did a review on last year's BET Awards (or maybe that was the BET Hip Hop Awards, I get them both confused way too often), but it appears that it's that time of year again, and the 2015 BET Awards certainly left people with many things to talk about, some good, and others questionable.
The performances were good, the awards were well deserved (some of them), and the honors were fantastic.
The performances weren't bad at all, if you could open up your show in the best way possible, who would you use to do it? The answer to that question is Kendrick Lamar. Kendrick set the tone of the show by opening it up with his very jazzy and turnt up TPAB jam "Alright" while dancing on a cop car. Is there any better way to tell people that "we gone be allRIGHT?" Absolutely not. Other key performances were Tyga and Chris Brown, The Weeknd brought along Alicia Keys for a song, Omarion performed "Post To Be" (although it didn't include my girl Jhene Aiko, so I was uninterested), Big Sean did a couple hits and brought out E40, some dude named Jidenna performed (by the way, who the hell is Jidenna?), Nicki and Meek put on a decent show, but the highlight performance of the night had to be the Bad Boy Records 20 year Anniversary performance. Diddy performed huge hits from back in the day and brought out Lil Kim, 112, Faith Evans, and how could you do a Bad Boy Records Anniversary performance without a tribute to the B.I.G(est) artist to ever appear on the label? You know they had to do it right.
The awards given out weren't horrible either, Nicki Minaj took home Best Female Hip Hop Artist, Kendrick Lamar took home Best Male Hip Hop Artist which was no surprise, I mean really, who did you expect (and while we're at it, who did you expect other than Nicki to take Best Female Artist)? Best New Artist went out to Sam Smith which was an interesting win seeing as he is not black, although it didn't matter as the always hilarious Anthony Andersen was there to collect the award for him (because Smith couldn't attend the Awards show), and also said he "accepts Smith as one of their own." Very classy move by Andersen.
Check out a recap and some highlights of Kendrick's opening performance below.
So how many people have heard of the gawd (don't judge me, I'm on this saying now, I feel hip saying it) Cyhi The Prynce? Nobody? A lot of people? Well he is just so awesome sauce that you almost want to dip beats in him and let him flow like water. He's all natural baby. I know all of these food references are pretty corny but you get the picture. Anyways, if you haven't heard of Cyhi you're about to get a nice introduction. Cyhi The Prynce is the best emcee you've never given the light of day. Being signed to Kanye's GOOD Music label, it's pretty easy to get outshined by names like Kanye, Big Sean, Pusha T, 2 Chainz, and others to name, but if you're Cyhi the Prynce, you're going in the right direction for sure, and let me tell you why.
Cyhi The Prynce, born Cydel Young in Stone Mountain, Georgia, is a conscious rapping, thought provoking sleeper pick for one of the hottest up and comers in rap right now. If you haven't heard about him, he's certainly done good things with tracks on his mix tapes, such good things in fact that Kanye felt the need to sign him to his GOOD Music label, and he has featured on a multitude of GOOD Music artists' projects, such as Kanye's highly acclaimed My Beautiful Dark Twisted Fantasy album and even made some appearances on GOOD Music's compilation album Cruel Summer. I didn't know this until I did some research, but a funny story about Cyhi is that Beyoncé herself actually recommended Cyhi to Kanye to sign him to his label. That's quite a cosign and certainly puts pressure on Cyhi to be great, but if anyone can handle pressure (besides Logic, get it? Never mind) it's Cyhi.
Cyhi's solo projects have been practically albums, and his Ivy League mix tape series has proven to be some of his best work as an up and comer. Ivy League Club and Ivy League Kick Back are arguably Cyhi's best projects as a whole, with some exciting features like Big K.R.I.T, Big Sean, Chris Brown, Schoolboy Q, Yelawolf and more. His flow and lyricism is one of a kind, his clever bars are matched by very few in the game today, but his ability to make great songs of all kinds is what gets the people's attention the most. Check out his song "Bachelor" below.
Cyhi is certainly dope and he makes great music, but the most interesting thing about him is that he hasn't yet put out a debut album, and being under Kanye's GOOD Music label you'd expect him to get some creative control. Cyhi has a lot of fans that are dying for his next project, whether it be another mix tape or an album, though an album is what fans have been waiting for from him for quite some time. It's hard to think that people will get bored with him before he starts to really build a buzz (that is if he already hasn't), but his lack of putting out music as of late isn't helping the case. Check out Cyhi and his mix tapes if you get a chance, and you can find his latest release "Credit 'i' Deserve" below.
(*I do not own any of these songs, or the rights to them*)
Sometimes when you listen to your favorite hip hop jams, you get stuck wondering if this is all there is to it (that is if you get bored with your music rather quickly). Sometimes it may seem a little one dimensional, or it may seem as if your hearing the same messages and types of songs over and over again. Luckily rap has branched out over the past 20 years, and in the mean time it has produced some great singers, whether they be R&B singers, or just multi dimensional song writers. So I got to thinking about who some of the best singing rappers of today could be, maybe you'll agree, or maybe you won't (if not, let me know your choices on Google+ or Twitter @SuperNovaRover). Anyways, here is a short list of some underrated golden voiced rappers.
Logic
I've posted a lot about Logic in the recent months, but his recent rise in the rap game is undeniable (like his mix tape, get it?). Anyways, Logic is known more for his top notch produced tracks and his lyrical miracle type of raps he never has trouble displaying, but every now and then he shows signs of a good singing voice, especially in his song "Buried Alive" off of his recent Def Jam debut album Under Pressure.
Drake
Obviously Drake is probably one of the first couple of choices you'd think of when it comes to rappers who can sing, and his track record shows, although some may argue that Drake has always sung out of key and never displays skills like a real singer would. I'm not one to argue this at all, and his most recent album Nothing Was The Same definitely shows some of his versatility and singing skills, especially on the song "Own It."
Kirko Bangz
I've never been one to count auto-tuned out rappers as ones who can sing, but it's hard to argue that he doesn't let the pipes ring on one of his biggest hits "Drank In My Cup". Even though I really don't give much credit to the guys who make a career out of putting effects on their voices to make themselves sound good (*cough *cough T-Pain).
Eminem
Okay so maybe I post a lot about "Slim Shady" (call me a Stan, sure, I don't care), but Eminem can definitely sing if he takes the chance to. He's never been one to really give it the old college try and actually attempt to sing great on any songs, he might do it jokingly here and there, but he shows a decent voice on the sappy 'Stronger Than I Was" ballad off of the Marshall Mathers LP 2.
So those are just a couple of rappers who can sing (with or without auto tune usage, although I find it to be more raw talent when it's without it, obviously). I was going to include Chris Brown or maybe Trey Songz, but I find them to be more of R&B personalities anyways, seeing as neither of them rap as much as they do sing. Make sure you hit me back with your best choices of rappers who can sing on Google+ or Twitter (@SuperNovaRover) like I said in the first paragraph.
We all have our guilty pleasures, and being a regular listener of hip hop, the ones that come around can take any shape or form; for me, my guilty pleasure of late definitely has to be this gosh dang Schoolboy Q song "Studio." The guilt in me comes because I'm not a big fan of Schoolboy Q's entire catalog at this point, or even the "Studio" song as a whole, but I cannot STAND to hear that beat and not lean, jig, boogie, insert dance name here, etc. Studio is a banger as I've said in the past, and there are very few beats that come around that can make just about ANY rapper or singer sound good when they record over them (hell, if I had a chance I might even throw some auto tune on and pour my heart out). So I decided to take a look at the approaches that different rappers and singers have taken over this particular beat; introducing, the complete collection of "Studio" remixes (so far). (*Disclaimer: I do not own any of these videos, songs, or the rights to any of them or the artists*)
Schoolboy Q - Studio (Remix) ft. Nas
This remix I actually did an entire article on awhile back. Why? Um... because Schoolboy Q "Studio" Remix ft. NAS that's why! Is there really anything else I have to say? Oh, well, besides the fact that Nas mentions not only leaving his label Def Jam, but he also hints at having a new album AND having a new single dropping soon! Mr. Jones, please define "soon" though, because this dropped just about a month ago and we've heard NOTHING so far. I guess real G's move in silence. We'll find out soon enough I suppose.
Cyhi Da Prynce - Studio (Remix)
Cyhi is still somehow considered one of the most underrated rappers in the game, and his "Studio" remix is more proof to that statement. Of course being signed to GOOD Music it's hard to argue that it isn't difficult to stand out, but Cyhi has been paving his own way into stardom with great mix tapes like his Ivy League series and most recently Black Hystori Project. This remix comes from a mix tape hosted by DJ S. Whit and DJ Base, which consisted of exclusive tracks from Coz, Bas, Bizzy Crook, and more.
Consequence - Studio (Remix)
If you don't know Consequence, it's probably because you don't watch "Love & Hip Hop New York" (which isn't necessarily a bad thing). Cons has built a decent reputation even before that point, but his favorite thing to do recently is jump on remixes, and it shows with this one. I'll admit though, on this remix he got my attention with these lines: "So there's a goldmine livin on my hard drive, unreleased masters that might just get you hard time, I got vocals from Pharrell, two tracks from 'Ye, demos from Dilla before he passed away." Being an unreleased music fiend I have 4 words for you Cons; PUT EM OUT ALREADY!
Chinx Drugz - Studio (The Yaymix)
Chinx Drugs takes a stab at the banging beat on the official "Yaymix". If you're new to Chinx Drugz like I am, he is a member of the French Montana led group Coke Boys, and not having heard much of him before, I must say he lays down a decent verse on this remix. I can't say I'm a fan of the Coke Boys (or anything French Montana), but if I could point out something about his verse that stood out to me, it's probably his quick flow.
Plies - Studio (P-mix)
Plies takes a different approach to the placement of his verse on his Studio "P-Mix", instead of opening up the song with his verse, he takes the normal guest verse route and goes after Schoolboy's first verse. Honestly I can't say I'm feeling Plies' remix of the song, mostly in part of barely being able to understand what he's saying in his verse. I haven't listened to enough of Plies to form an overall opinion, but based on this song I probably wouldn't want to go back and listen to more of his music.
Chris Brown ft. Trey Songz - Studio (Remix)
This is definitely a different twist to Schoolboy's hit song, this time Chris Brown and Trey Songz decide to jump on the beat, and Breezy even customizes and remakes the hook himself. I've really never listened to Chris Brown regularly, but this remix definitely does RnB fans justice, and obviously the beat is always going to be enough to make bass heads tremble. The artwork for the song is also really cool, the way they got both of their faces mixed together into one so perfectly is great, but it's also hard not to notice the "TRGA BRZY" label. Do the two RnB juggernauts plan to release some sort of collaborative project together soon? Only time will tell I suppose. Anyways, the 3 mixed together (although I personally didn't hear much of Trey Songz on the track) are a perfect blend, and a great tool to get your girl in that certain type of mooooood (*deep radio DJ voice*, I could definitely be a talk show/radio host given the right voice tools).
So that is a brief collection of "Studio" remixes made up until this point (if I've forgotten any other good ones let me know), which one is your favorite? If there is anyone else who you'd think could make this beat sound any better than it already does (which could be a very hard thing to do at this point) who would it be? Let me know your answers to these questions on Twitter or Google+.
50 Cent, along with Eminem, led an era of hard hitting, chart topping, heart stopping rap. Maybe not so much heart stopping, I just thought it sounded cool to rhyme. Now I don't want to sound old, but this is the 50 I miss. Not just 50 Cent, but being backed by as powerful of a group as there was back in their heyday, G-Unit was the group to take out of the number one spot for a decent number of years in the early 2000s. Now it seems they want to recapture the times that they once enjoyed at the top...but is it too late for them to do so?
The hip-hop world has been abuzz with a number of G-Unit tracks leaking as of late, all remixes up until the most recent track "Come Up." Their track record since the beginning of the year has led to remixes of Chris Brown's "Loyal," YG and Drake's "Who Do You Love," Future's "Move That Dope" and a few more. The crowd reaction up to this point has been pretty good, but will they be able to keep up the buzz in time for their projects' release this year?
Yes, I said projects' as in plural, supposedly the Unit has plans for not only a comeback album, but also a mix tape to come shortly before the album as well. The first place they really made noise with their reunion if you remember was during Hot 97's Summer Jam of this year back in the beginning of June. They took the attention of over 50,000 people in East Rutherford, New Jersey, and even though many fans believe the rest of G-Unit to have just been "hype men" to 50 Cent during his performance, they certainly stole the show from a very star studded line up that included other names like Nas, Nicki Minaj, Drake, Lil Wayne, Jhene Aiko, and many more.
Game has also voiced his opinion on the reunion. He recently stated in an interview this year that he thought the reunion was "cool" and is "very happy for them," especially for his still long time friend in the group, Young Buck. He also said this about the reunion in an interview with Power 106 FM; "With all the money he got, he (50 Cent) don't need music no more. He's giving Banks, Yayo, and definitely Buck, because that's my partner, a chance to get back out there and do shows and make more money. G-Unit the name will pack a building and they get to split that up and I think that's cool. That was my first and only thought about it."
So it sounds as if Game is happy for the reunion, but probably doesn't want anything to do with the group after his and 50's falling out awhile back. I'm sure if the fans had a choice, Game would be there with all of them sharing the glory, but if we know Game is going to do one thing, it's voice his opinion rather clearly. So what do you think of the reunion? Do you think it's for real, or is it just another scheme for 50, Yayo, Banks and Buck to get together and make more money off of each other? I'd personally love to see them share more success together and make good music once again, but the opinion of the masses is what counts! Let me know what you think of the reunion on Twitter (@SuperNovaRover) or Google+ (Geoffrey Guy). G-g-g-g-g-g-g- u-NIT!
