Observations From Amine's Good For You

Admittedly... I've been sleeping on new releases, BIG TIME. Albums worth checking out this year seem to have been scarce. Though Jay dropped, Kendrick dropped, and Eminem is (rumored to be) releasing right around the corner, hip hop has been a little bit dry this year in terms of the big established names dropping, but one up and comer from Portland, Oregon is attempting to change that "up and comer" title to household name fairly quickly. His album Good For You had seemingly dropped out of nowhere and suddenly grabbed blogs by the throats with fun and vigorous enjoyment (kind of ironic how that works, isn't it?). The album's lead single "Caroline" has already been certified 3 times platinum by the RIAA, peaked on Billboard's Hot 100 at number 12, and even found Amine a record deal with Republic Records. See the damage a song can do nowadays?  Oh, the age of the single. However, single success does not impress me anymore seeing as anyone and their mother can do it nowadays... So what does this mean for Anime's Good For You?  Was it indeed Good For You?  I'll be breaking down a few of the high points of the project, below.


Hip Pop - It's Okay To Have Fun!


For so long I've bashed the one-track-minded (quite literally) artists of today that all sound the same and seemed to promote the same goals; platinum singles, auto-tuned filth and enough syrup to give Aunt Jemima a heart attack WITHOUT sipping any of it. But Anime's Good For You is a gasp of fresh air, almost completely drowning in the syrup before I'm able to sneak a nostril up and above the Codeine infested waters that are today's hip hop climate. Anime puts fun in every lyric, bouncing around on beats as if he'd just invaded a rich kid's birthday party and claimed first dibs on the bouncy house ("Hero", "Yellow", "Wedding Crashers", etc.). The "Wedding Crashers"' instrumental feels like you're dancing with Elmo and Big Bird all down Sesame Street with the rest of the kids off the block, and even Oscar's grouchy ass joins in (oh yes, it's that mood-inducing). His ode to the Spice Girls ("Spice Girl") is another fun one to reminisce to 90's pop to; the pure piano keys in the bridge build up to a gleeful flute followed by some lively drums that add the extra pop needed to round out the record.


Serious Undertones Darkly Shadow A Fun Loving Amine


On the surface, Good For You is a dancing field of daisies, an album that you'd pop in while wandering through a field of flowers with no worry of tomorrow. The lightheartedness and delightful weirdness of Amine is showcased in an ultimately stress-free environment that sets it's goal from the absolute jump of the record. The pop of each musical styling Amine offers properly backs him enough for you to understand that not every song on the album offers happiness, and that's okay. On "Turf", a sobering, somber number that is Two-Face to the rest of Good For You (Harvey Dent), Amine finds himself reflecting on his past, and realizing that home isn't for him, ultimately leading to his "moving out" moment. Just listening to the atmospheric pads surround the track sound eerily like finally taking a look around an empty house that you once called home, and finally walking out for good; like the last episode of Fresh Prince Of Bel-Air. "Beach Boy" is catchy in it's upbeat piano and spacey background "Oooooo's", but deceiving in it's message, like making your final thought a good one, reflective and subtractive of regrets, most notably in the end ("I don't know when I'm gonna die, my watch can't tell the time, hopefully there's some hope in me, I won't trip if it's meant to be").


(*I do not own these videos, songs, or the rights to them*)

Overall, Good For You is indeed... Good For You! Amine brings funk, positivity, realization, fun, and uniqueness in a heavily watered down genre. Amine's musical prowess is proven more in the fact that he wishes to use vocal tones and funk instruments to provoke more of a response rather than auto-tune and drug talk. His light-hearted attitude throughout the album (minus a couple of songs) isn't enough to make you want it to stop, using strictly positivity, but in different ways, and different places, different shades, and different spaces. His sense of humor, vocal range, and cool attitude shine throughout the album, and they make Good For You a must listen. Anime gives his very own take on girls, drugs, fun, money, deep thoughts, and much, much more; all of it being very good... and Good For You.                 
















 

              






               

Fuck Future: Feeling In Music Is Not Gone Yet (My Review on the Current State Of Hip Hop)

I know too many people that speak about their issues with no real human emotion. Too many times I've seen cases where people "cut you off" because of a minor disagreement, or a small fight that means nothing in the grand scheme of things. People grow up, they lose friends, they may no longer speak to family members because of a fight, and don't really care if they do or don't speak to people who have been in their lives for the entirety of it. What that says about these certain people is no matter, but I've always believed that the people in your life who truly mean something will always find a way to stay in it, and these people always hold relevance in your life.

The same exact thing can be said about music. It's amazing how people forget the power that music holds over one's life, it's a known fact that music changes people's perception of the world, and perception is everything. Allow me to say that again; perception is EVERYTHING!  How you perceive something is how you see it, and if something allows you to change your perception on something you see, then that can mean an array of different things (though we won't get into that). Perception is how you see something that scares the living shit out of you, how you see someone you've loved your entire life, how you see your goals and your future, or it can be something as simple as what a song means to you.

This past Wednesday, Joe Budden's very much anticipated album All Love Lost leaked, and if you were a fan scrolling through one of your favorite hip hop blogs looking for new releases, you could have scrolled right by the album stream and thought nothing of it, but I've always taken a liking to Budden's music and his ability to rap (beats on ALL are crazy, though some people will argue that Budden talks about depression/past relationships too much). I pressed play on the "All Love Lost Intro" and was immediately sucked into the world of Joe Budden, but the song that truly made me feel was "Immortal."

On "Immortal", Budden talks of his past drug addiction and getting through it, and if you know about Joe Budden, you know he's abused drugs for almost his entire career. Things like pills (from what Budden mentions is many, many types of pills including Percocet, and he even mentions some heroin use at points in his career) are things Budden abused constantly. But there is a line that makes you think in the song, and though hearing the line itself doesn't hit the ear right, Budden sounds so sure in a line leading up to the hook; "you can't kill something that's ready to die." This line is heavy in it's own right, but that line is followed up by a steroid-like strength hook (probably the wrong expression to use in this case, but oh well); "they say I'm in my own way, own way, and that's fine, I'm just living my own way, own way, like I can't die, they can remove my heart, my soul, might take it's toll, the air I breathe and the ground below, but no way, no way, let 'em all try, that's how it feels to be immortal, immortal, that's how it feels to be immortal, immortal, and that's how it feels to be immortal."

There's too much I have to say about that particular song, but Budden's entire album (All Love Lost) is something that hits you "right in the feels" as the kids say these days. Now what does the rest of hip hop have to combat that with?  Listen to this.

                                          (*I do not own these songs, or the rights to them*)

Hmm... I don't uhm... Fuck up some... commas?  Excuse me for not being as hip as I'm supposed to be (and granted I don't listen to any Future on the regular, and for good reason), but how does one "fuck up some commas"?  I'm curious, really, more than anything. What is the attraction to this?  Fuck up some commas that most hip hop listeners do not have to "fuck up." "Trap niggas" is definitely a title that people wish to attain; right?  It's so relatable to people to listen to "blow a bag" nowadays, huh?  I believe people have forgotten what quality hip hop music sounds like (something that you're able to listen to timelessly, and able to relate to forever).

So... what do I think?  I think the hottest rappers in the game right now should not be the hottest rappers in the game right now. Do you see yourself listening to Future's Dirty Sprite 2, 56 Nights, or even his Drake collaboration What A Time To Be Alive next year?  How about 10 years from now?  Do any of those projects still hold weight?  The incredible flood of hip hop music that has taken over this millennium needs to stop, and now (and not just Future, a lot of one hit wonders are killing hip hop, that goes for Rae Sremmurd, Bobby Shmurda, Migos, and almost the entire sub genre of "trap music"). I find it amazing that "Slim Jesus" is one of the most talked about acts in hip hop right now. What meaning does music have if you don't see yourself listening to it in the future (no pun intended, though I believe he chose the wrong name)?  Fix rap by putting out quality music, and not by putting out loads and loads of albums and mix tapes that will mean nothing in a year. Fix it by competing with the best, not because you want to make your money, but because you want to be BETTER than the best. If you're not rapping to become the best, then what are you doing it for?  Those are my thoughts on the current state of hip hop.           

         




   

 







      

BET Hip Hop Awards 2014: Award Nominations and My Predictions (Or Wishes, Whatever)

It's getting to be that time of year again, the time when your favorite rappers get snubbed for an award, and when they give way too much recognition to an artist that doesn't deserve it, and of course the time of year in which seemingly every year an award category is made up in which nobody cares about. Of course I'm talking about none other than the BET Hip Hop Awards. With Uncle Snoop hosting this year there's bound to be some entertainment, but sadly enough you almost expect disappointment in there somewhere. Not because of Snoop of course, but because it's an award show (nowhere near as bad as the Grammy's for rap, but still) and someone is bound to be angry over something. At this point it's just not knowing what it could be. But I'm not focused on that right now because recently the award categories have been set, and I NEED to give my opinion on (what I believe to be) the most important categories, who should win each, and why. (Note: again, these are my personal views and opinions on who should win, no matter how biased or stupid the reasoning might be.)

Who Blew Up Award:
Iggy Azalea
Migos
Rich Homie Quan
Schoolboy Q
YG
Young Thug
Iggy. What's next? Oh am I supposed to elaborate? Is there any elaborating needed for this particular category? Not really. Not only did Iggy's lead single "Fancy" get certified double platinum by the RIAA, but she BROKE BILLBOARD RECORDS as the first artist since The Beatles (yes, those Beatles) to have their first two Billboard entries hit number 1 and number 2 simultaneously. Did anyone else on that list even have a number 1?  Doesn't matter, moving on!

Hustler Of The Year Award:
Dr. Dre
Drake
Jay Z
Rick Ross
T.I.
What exactly are the details on this award? How does one become the "Hustler of The Year"? I suppose only a hustler would know. This award strikes me as odd, but noticing the common denominator in this list would be that most of them have become successful entrepreneurs. Not saying that I can detail piece by piece what Rick Ross and T.I. have done so importantly entrepreneur-wise this year, but in my opinion this one comes down to Dre and Jay. And Dre wins of course, I mean come on, 3 billy for selling a headphone line?  Does it get more "Hustler" than that?

Best Collab, Duo, or Group:
Eminem ft. Rihanna - The Monster
Future ft. Pharrell, Pusha T and Casino - Move That Dope
Jay Z ft. Justin Timberlake - Holy Grail
Schoolboy Q ft. BJ The Chicago Kid - Studio
YG ft. Young Jeezy and Rich Homie Quan - My Hitta
This one might be a bit closer than some other categories. Being the Stan that I hate to admit I am, I'd like to see Em take this one home, and Rihanna is huge everywhere, but I certainly could see either Jay Z or Schoolboy Q win this one as well. That Studio jam had me bumping it since the video came out, and I didn't even listen to much of Oxymoron. Same goes for the Jay and Justin song; didn't listen to much of the album, but the song bumps. Props to the producers on both of those cuts, but if I’m picking a winner in this category, I’ll go with Schoolboy Q and the Chicago Kid.

Best Live Performer:
Drake
Jay Z
Kanye West
Kendrick Lamar
T.I.
T.I. being on this list confuses me... I mean I can't knock the guy, nor can I compliment him, but the other four performers on the list I have seen (or could see) people vouching for. Drake has been the people's pick for some odd years now, Jay Z is Jay Z, and Kendrick Lamar is Kendrick Lamar, and Kanye creates an aura around his performances that can't be matched by anyone. Now the arguments that Jay and Kendrick are themselves might not be the best points, but there are MANY people who would do unspeakable things to see Kendrick (including myself) as well as a legend like Jay Z (who knows how much longer he has left?). But my pick has to go to Kanye on this one, simply because the mere pictures I've seen of his performances (creepy metal masks, bringing a faux "Jesus" on stage, many people say its like Kanye is looking in a mirror, hilarious right?) are unlike anything you could see anywhere else.

Lyricist Of The Year:
Drake Eminem
J. Cole
Jay Z
Kendrick Lamar
Nicki Minaj
This category is one of my favorites I'll admit. While I do like a good club banger I can party or bob my head to, the other half of it to me is lyrical capabilities. I enjoy sitting back and listening to some of the crazy metaphors Eminem can put together, as well as Kendrick's lyrical capabilities and Cole's great punch lines. I really couldn't tell you why Drake is on this list, he makes great music that people party to and vibe to even by themselves, but there's no way he matches up lyrically with Em, Kendrick, Cole, or even Nicki for that matter. My pick here is obviously Em, but if he doesn't get it (for some VERY odd reason) I see Kendrick taking this one home again.

Producer Of The Year:

DJ Mustard
Drumma Boy
Hit-Boy
Mike WiLL Made It
Pharrell
Timbaland
Interesting list here. Every one of these producers had at least one (probably more) smash hit that you couldn't go a day without hearing on the radio. My personal favorite was Hit-Boy's masterful production on Drake's "Trophies" banger that came out at the very end of 2013. It seems that Pharrell and Timbaland are always in the running for best producer of the year, but as much as I hate to do it I have to go with Mustard winning this one. Too many hits. Jeezy's "R.I.P", B.o.B's "Headband", Ty Dolla Sign's "Paranoid", YG and Drake's "Who Do You Love?", and that's not even scratching the surface.

Album Of The Year:

Drake - Nothing Was The Same
Eminem - Marshall Mathers LP 2
Rick Ross - Mastermind
Future - Honest
Schoolboy Q - Oxymoron
Yo Gotti - I Am
In terms of sales, this list isn't the most impressive. Only two of these albums have gone at least platinum, (Nothing Was The Same doing so for Drake and Shady's Marshall Mathers LP 2 has gone double platinum) but all of these albums are critically acclaimed obviously (or else they probably wouldn't be in this conversation). Although in the past 10 years or so, album sales haven't really been the greatest for any hip hop artist other than Eminem, Drake, Kendrick or Nicki. In fact, they are the only hip hop artists to receive a platinum plaque for their efforts in quite a few years (I thought I read at least 10 somewhere, I don't remember at the moment). But regardless of sales, I don't see anybody but Eminem or Drake taking this one home. The years both of them had were incomparable to anyone else.

I'll stop with the predictions right about there, although there are many more awards and nominations to get to, the ones I listed just seemed the most important (to me, at least). Check out the rest of the awards that will be given and their nominees below.

Best Hip Hop Video:

Drake - Worst Behavior
Future ft. Pharrell Pusha T & Casino - Move That Dope
Iggy Azalea ft. Charli XCX - Fancy
J. Cole ft. TLC - Crooked Smile
Nicki Minaj - Pills N Potions
Wiz Khalifa - We Dem Boyz
Made You Look Award (Best Hip Hop Style):

A$AP Rocky
Jay Z
Kanye West
Nicki Minaj
Young Thug
Best Hip Hop Online Site:

AllHipHop.com
Complex.com
HotNewHipHop.com
NecoleBitchie.com
RapRadar.com
WorldStarHipHop.com
Best Club Banger:

Future ft. Pharrell Pusha T & Casino -Move That Dope (Prod. by Mike WiLL Made It)
K Camp ft. Lil Boosie, YG & Too Short - Cut Her Off (Remix) (Prod. by Will-A-Fool)
Migos - Fight Night (Prod. by Stack Boy Twaun)
Wiz Khalifa - We Dem Boyz (Prod. by Detail)
YG ft. Jeezy & Rich Homie Quan - My Hitta (Prod. by DJ Mustard)
Young Thug - Stoner (Prod. by Dun Deal)
Video Director of The Year:

Benny Boom
Chris Robinson
Director X
Dre Films
Hype Williams
DJ Of The Year:

DJ Drama
DJ Envy
DJ Khaled
DJ Mustard
DJ Scream
Best Mixtape:

Action Bronson - Blue Chips 2
Fabolous - Soul Tape 3
Migos - No Label 2
Rich Homie Quan - I Promise I Will Never Stop Going In
Wiz Khalifa - 28 Grams
Best Featured Verse:

B.o.B - Paranoid (Ty Dolla $ign ft. B.o.B)
B.o.B - Up Down (Do This All Day) (T-Pain ft. B.o.B)
Drake - Who Do You Love (YG ft. Drake)
Kendrick Lamar - Control (Big Sean ft. Kendrick Lamar & Jay Electronica)
Pharrell - Move That Dope (Future ft. Pharrell, Pusha T & Casino)
Track Of The Year:

Cut Her Off (Remix) - K Camp ft. YG, Lil Boosie & Too Short
Move That Dope - Future ft. Pharrell, Pusha T & Casino
My Hitta - YG ft. Jeezy & Rich Homie Quan
Studio - Schoolboy Q ft. BJ The Chicago Kid
Worst Behavior - Drake
Impact Track:

Common ft. Vince Staples - Kingdom
Lecrae - Nothin
Lupe Fiasco - Mission
The Roots ft. Patty Cash - Never
Talib Kweli ft. Abby Dobson - State Of Grace
People's Champ Award:

Drake - Worst Behavior
Future - Move That Dope ft. Pharrell, Pusha T & Casino
Iggy Azalea - Fancy ft. Charli XCX
Wiz Khalifa - We Dem Boyz
YG - My Hitta (Remix) ft. Lil Wayne, Nicki Minaj, Meek Mill & Rich Homie Quan

I also remember reading that Murda Mook and Snoop D-O double G plan to bring battle rap to the show. What else could this possibly mean besides them taking the contestants from Total Slaughter and putting them in the cyphers? No confirmed details yet on who will be included, stay posted on those details, assuming they will be released as the date nears closer. The BET Hip Hop Awards are coming October 14th! Whose ready?