Metal Lungies

Black Moon and Smif N Wessun performing Enta Da Stage and Da Shinin with a live band this Friday. Classic indeed. Buy tickets here.

Another one from K. Sparks. If there’s one thing he has on lock, it’s beats. Last week’s track was produced by a guy out in Sweden and this one is laced by some guy from the Bronx called Fero Navi. Words from the man himself:

This record is laid back but still hits hard…I wanted to talk about issues in my community and still create a record that has a dope feel…Tina Quallo laced the hook and it’s a banger.

Download: K. Sparks feat. Tina Quallo – Never (produced by Fero Navi)

Via the QN5 Blog

The ever-underrated producer Domingo has a great story about the making of a Big Pun/Fat Joe/Shaq record, originally intended for Shaq’s 1996 album, You Can’t Stop The Reign. I’ll let Domingo take it from here:

Let me set the tone without the deff here..lol…It is around November 1996 Orlando Florida. I am in one of NBA’s most famous players of it’s times house recording for what would be his last solo album. Yes I am talking about Shaquille O’Neal. I had the pleasure of working side by side with him and this is one of the reasons I am always grateful for my career and that is was in my eyes a successful one.

Shaq wanted Big Pun and Fat Joe on a song for his “Can’t Stop The Reign” album and his manager at the time my homie Kevin Mitchell called me and told me Shaq wanted me to do that beat for that song and of course I said ‘Hell yeah!’ because I already knew Pun would kill that song. We all was flown down to Florida and recorded the song.

This song never made the album because of label politics and Shaq scrapped the song. The song has been unreleased and never heard for a very long time until maybe 3 years ago someone bootlegged it and put it out on vinyl. It is still a well sought after record on the net. So I decided to put my lil YouTube skills on a simple basis to work and make a video for the song.

Needless to say, this shit knocks. Grimy beat, killer Pun verse…hell, Shaq is a better rapper than half of these cats out right now. At the very least, better than Jeezy or Rawse.

Oh, and if anyone has an mp3 of this, put up a link in the comments or email me.

Whatever happened to that Twinz album, Puff?

Sucks I can’t make the NY show. Click on your city here to buy tickets.

Blended by Dub Floyd. Every Missing ELements track we’ve been posting, plus album cuts and rare tracks.

01. Missing ELements (Intro)
02. All I <3 feat. NAV (Prod. by Danksta)
03. The Itis (Prod. by 6th Sense)
04. Cant Call It (Prod. by Ryan Durkin)
05. Confirmation (Prod. by 6th Sense)
06. Keeps it Rawkin’ (Prod. by Rami Afuni)
07. We Gon Ride (Prod. by Rami Afuni)
08. Presidential Paradise (Prod. by BBoySpaz)
09. Cuz We Felt Like It (Interlude)
10. Human (Prod. by Kush Klien)
11. The Fabolous Life (Prod. by Rami Afuni)
12. The Equation (Prod. by Ryan Durkin)
13. Down?!?! (Prod. by Ryan Durkin)
14. Halle Berry (Prod. by Rami Afuni)
15. Loose Change (Prod. by Rami Afuni)
16. Sex Ed feat. T-Payne (Prod. by Rami Afuni)
17. Missing ELements (outro)
18. BONUS – Ama Tell It Like (Prod. by Rami Afuni)
19. BONUS – Folks Don’t Cost A Thing feat. NAV
(Prod. by Rami Afuni)

Download here.

Termanology has been getting plenty of coverage here at Metal Lungies. On Thursday night, he had a show for the release of his debut album Politics as Usual at the Knitting Factory. The album’s greatest strength looks to be its all-star production team. I mean damn, look at the tracklisting. Term is well-connected and so a lot of big people were in the building.

Doors opened at 9:00, but the show didn’t get started until about 10:45. The album played until Statik Selektah came out. He said what’s up and played a few songs off his album before bringing out DJ Premier. He was going to spin some records, but first he had to get his equipment working. The only concert I’ve ever been to where there weren’t any technical difficulties was Rock the Bells.

But the delay was a blessing in disguise. Waiting for a cable he needed before he could get started, Premier quizzed the audience on their hip-hop knowledge. He asked about Biz Markie and if anyone could do the Biz dance. A little person (that’s politically correct, right?) in the front row said he could and Premo brought him on stage.

He danced for a few minutes and elicited chants of “Go Tre,” his name being Tre. Peep the video. He came on later and knew the words to “Come Clean” and “One Day”. Much respect, Tre.

Bumpy Knuckles came out and stood around for a minute. It would’ve been cool if he beat someone down.

Premier played a lot of classic records. “NY State of Mind” got the biggest reaction. Lil Fame came out when Primo played a couple of M.O.P. joints.

Premo wrapped it up and Termanology finally came on stage with a bunch of his people. He ran through a bunch of songs, new and old. It actually felt like his set was shorter than Premo’s.

Statik came out for “Stop, Look, Listen”.

Fame came out again and rocked with Term. Term called him his twin. Can’t you see the resemblance?

Then a bunch of dudes came out and did a capella freestyles, including Percee P and Blaq Poet. Term tried to get Bumpy on, but he was nowhere to be found.

It was great to have so many amazing dudes under one roof that night. It was very eventful and Termanology held it down. Lots of energy.

In a moment steeped in symbolism, Puff Daddy, maker of dumb little YouTube videos, walked his gold kicks into a pile of poop. That’s for the Duets album, Puff.

INF Daily via Nah Right

September 30th is a big day for hip-hop releases: Termanology, Heltah Skeltah, Murs and Large Professor! In anticipation of Term and Extra P’s albums, celebrate with some dope older tracks by both.

“How My Man Went Down In The Game” is a rare Main Source track, off of Wild Pitch Classics, a compilation of rare tracks and singles by the infamously corrupt label.

The Term track is off his 50 Bodies mixtape from 2007 (which recently got a sequel), and he kills a crazy Marley Marl beat, originally from Marley’s BBE album.

Download: Termanology – 50 Bodies

Main Source – How My Man Went Down In The Game

Via the Unofficial DJ Premier Blog

Laura Izibor is an Irish soul singer signed to Atlantic Records. DJ Premier remixed her track “From My Heart To Yours” for a single, which is how I found out about her.  Honestly, I think this is the best pop record Premo’s done. Feel free to prove me wrong, readers. Love how he worked a gong in there.

This is a great little soul-pop record and I can’t recommend it enough. Her voice reminds me a little bit of Emily King and Alicia Keys – anyone else hear it? Honey dip is mad cute too – holler at a blogger next time you’re in Canada.

Laura Izibor – From My Heart To Yours (DJ Premier Remix)

The candidacy of Senator Barack Obama has put the Hip-Hop community in a unique position to affect a national election.  What that position is, exactly, is unclear. Many have characterized Rap artists as petty agitators.  Know nothings, who talk for the sake of hearing themselves talk, and have nothing substantial to contribute to the political realm.  One of these critics is a writer for the popular conservative blog copious dissent.  Here, the writer criticizes Nas for his attacks on Fox News.  Next, he described Diddy as an idiot after viewing the artist’s rant on Sarah Palin.  This is the video made in response to Nas:

Let me make this clear: I hate the creator of this video with a deep passion.  I hate everything that he stands for.  I hate his derisive and condescending tone.  I hate the fact that he knows absolutely nothing about Rap music, yet acts as if he does.  I hate that his voice sounds like Ben Stein got castrated.  I truly hate him.  And so it makes it all the more difficult for me to concede that somewhere in that dark web of irrelevant, ignorant, conservative bullshit, the man may have point.

On the opposite end of the spectrum from those who find rappers completely illegitimate on an intellectual level, there are those who see hip-hop artists as effective agents of change.  Barack Obama himself has said he enjoys Jay-Z, and thinks American Gangster was sending an interesting message.  But more importantly there are thousands upon thousands who find hip-hop inspiring on many different levels.  The lyricism can be poetic, poignant, and emotional beyond the capacity of many other genres.  Harsh truths about social injustice are delved into without precaution.  People find hope in Hip-hop.  All of this may be true, but what does that mean for Rap’s potential to alter a national action–or even affect peoples political beliefs in the first place.

The American Prospect has an interesting article today entitled From Pop Charts to Politics.  The author makes the point that the mainstream nature of rap music makes it difficult for artists to have a legitimate affect on politics.  I would go further, and argue that Rap’s roots, the roots that allowed it to become mainstream in the first place, are constantly deterring the genre from having a recognizable position in political discourse.

Lets take a look at the basics of what makes Rap music popular.  I find that truly popular songs consist of one of three main subjects: 1) Money 2) Guns and 3) Ego.  Take “Swagger Like Us” for example.  That fits into both category one and three!  Pretty much every Biggie song ever made could be categorized this way, along with the majority of songs by Kanye, T.I., Lil’ Wayne, Dead Prez, Bone Thugs, Eminem, 50, The Game, and many more.  Im not  saying all rap songs are based on these premises, but the trend is so significant that one can’t help but notice that the roots of Hip-Hop’s themes are anything but kosher.  So, knowing this why would anyone take their political advice from a Hip-Hop artist?  This question will continue to be a barrier to Hip-Hop’s aspirations to be a more politically involved genre.

Many Hip-Hop advocates might mention the fact that one should separate Hip-Hop artists as people from their music.  They might say Nas should be able to criticize Fox News without the baggage of his music affecting the potency of his argument.  It’s a good point, but I would argue rap is distinct in this way.  Nas can’t separate himself from his music because, if nothing else, his Rap is personal.  He should be able to stand behind every one his lines, because he will be first to point out that those lines are who he is.  To seperate them is to discredit his music.  Bono can sing about death then hold a political rally to defend Darfur.  Nas, not so much.

Nas is a rebel of the street corner/ pullin a tec out the dresser/ police got me under pressure

What does this all amount to? Until Rappers can become truly popular without having to meet a certain “swagger” standard, or bash women, or have a certain number of kills on their rap sheet, Hip-Hop won’t have a fighting chance of being a recognizable political force.  Maybe one day the rules will change, and Hip-Hop artists will find more productive ways to express their frustration.  And then 50 and Kanye and Fat Joe and Masta Ace and everyone will have a big tea party and plant some trees.  One can only hope.

Download: Black Spade- Revolutionary Bullshit