Shanetron - Smoke & Mirrors

Split tracks, revised album art.

Download/Stream Here.

Tell your friends the boys are back in town.

There’s an EP on the way with a special announcement.

Joell Ortiz - Nissan, Honda, Chevy Ft. Jim Jones

When I lived in Chicago, I loved being able to go to 7/11 in the middle of the night for a couple cans of Drank or a gallon of milk, or whatever junk food I was craving while I was trying to scare an opportunity for work up. There was this one guy who worked over-nights, and would always play something nice on his iPod. He definitely appreciated lyrical artists, he loved the new Eminem album, and we even had the same thoughts on Slaughterhouse: Joey’s over rated, Crooked-I is alright, Royce is great, and Joell is nice.

I’ve been on a Joell kick lately, and I loved this freestyle, and I loved how Jimmy jumped on it with a nice verse (especially for Jimmy, but then again, Jimmy’s been on lately, just look at Blakroc), so here’s the video.

Also, Dear Hustle, Exhibit C, Exhibit H, you get the point.

Jay Electronica walking through New Orleans

It’s so mind boggling to think that, in America, there is a whole section of an entire city displaced. It really paints the picture of Exhibit A, which is added at the end.

Sidenote: How cool is it that Jay lit a cigarette, took a drag, and gave it away to somebody in the audience? It wasn’t the first time either! He split a bottle of Jack with an audience during his recent outing in London.

One of the most amazing things about Biggie’s music was that it was incredibly versatile.

Take Juicy for example:


On Ready To Die, it was a feel good hit, a retrospective story from crime to hip hop, his big pop “get”. It was the least depressing song on the entire record (he ended his first record with the song Suicidal Thoughts, in which he ends up committing suicide on the record, after all). Back in 1996, it was pure magic.

Fast forward to 2002, five years after BIG’s death: Bad Boy fell off, Eminem had blown up, Nelly was relevant, and BIG’s Brooklyn alumni, Jay-Z had made “it”. Obviously, BIG was still missed, and he was remembered, especially by Jay-Z, but specifically on A Dream:


On A Dream, Jay-Z gave us an introspective look on the pain of missing his old friend. Biggie’s first verse from Juicy is sampled here and used in a way that greatly pays homage to the G.O.A.T., where Jay shows that he’s learned from BIG’s mistakes, and understands the pitfalls to a luxurious lifestyle. At this point, BIG went from sounding like a hit party record to a bone chilling prophecy, with the same verse.

In 2006, sampling hit the fan with Girl Talk. The thing about mash ups are that, sometimes they work very well, when both samples go together harmoniously, while most do not, and Girl Talk examples this on Smash Your Head:


In the beginning of the track, there are a lot of hard hitting, nearly dissonant sounds. Then, “it” happens. The great contrast that changes the meaning of the whole record. The Biggie sample (Juicy!) pops up, and then Tiny Dancer pops up, and it becomes a magical party record.

The same verse goes from being a feel good radio hit, to a chilling prophecy, to a party record. What other rapper has ever achieved that through remixes after death?

Rest In Peace Christopher Wallace

Here are some old Bad Boy tapes. Expect more Biggie commentary later.

Bad Boy Vol I With DJ Clue
Bad Boy Vol II With DJ Doo Wop
Bad Boy Vol III With DJ Stretch Armstrong
Bad Boy Vol IV With DJ S&S

Lil Wayne is finally in jail.

I was questioning my concern over this rapper going to jail: why do I care so much? Why do I care if the rapper who said he’s in the “all black Maybach, I’m sitting in the asshole” is going to jail?

I have an answer, and it’s this:


Lil’ Wayne - Amen

This song is what officially set off my care for Lil’ Wayne. It gives off that feeling of running on empty, enduring too much, but wanting to go on. It was emotionally relatable for me at the time, and it clicked with me in an exact moment: I was in a car, getting emotional over the loss of a friend, as my mom called me the moment after Wayne rasped “And I don’t never wanna see her (my mother) mope for me”. It was realizing that Wayne shared the same thought I had that made me fall for his music and what he had to say.

“Real rap” indeed.

KiD CuDi - Pursuit of Happiness

“I’ll be fine, once I git it. I’ll be good”
-Keith Buckley

This video > that video, mainly because this video is way more conceptual, and this video doesn’t feature Drake’s pause worthy faces, and this video features MGMT and Ratatat.

Even if this is still a “stoner” (SIDENOTE: I get it CuDi, you like weed, and Snoop and Dr. Dre cosign, but I’m more interested in hearing about your sleep patterns/dream cycles and relationships with people after spending a lot of time “trying to make it”), it’s still way better conceptualized than the lavish slow-mo party, with the “i’m so high i’m having an out of body experience” end.

I am so glad Reflection Eternal is coming back, because Talib hasn’t sounded as good since.

chirpinhard:

I don’t usually care what Perez Hilton has to say but this is important.

“Rapper J-Kwon, probably most known for his 2004 single Tipsy, has reportedly been missing for almost a month.”

terrysdiary:

Lil Wayne