This is a remixed version of NoYork!, I guess? Tasteless artwork aside, I actually like this a lot more than the original because the beats are so far left. Half of them sound like they were recorded through a McDonald’s drive-through intercom, which can be grating for some, but I love it in this context: an alternate reality version of NoYork! where Blu has nothing to do with Warner Bros. and he’s still hurtling deeper down the rabbit hole after Below the Heavens. For all his ups and downs, Blu still has a unique brand of psychedelic rap that keeps getting more potent.
Big K.R.I.T. has condensed a career’s worth of work into three mixtapes. If K.R.I.T. Wuz Here was his humble debut and ReturnOf4Eva was his star-studded follow up, then 4Eva N A Day is his high level concept album here he shuns famous features and keeps it super personal. In the Behind the Music version of K.R.I.T.’s life, this would have spanned ten years, six Grammys, two divorces, and a DUI. That’s actually not quite the case for K.RI.T., who has yet to drop his major label debut. 4Eva N a Day is K.R.I.T. ascendant, turning from raucous trunk rattlers to deeper reflections on the traditions surrounding his Pimp C/Willie Hutch derived organic funk. His old school car gets a humble ode. Wah wah guitars are abundant (a staple of country rap tunes, DJ Burn One once told me). Strippers. Beyond that, K.R.I.T. gets elbow deep in the moral juxtapositions on his album cover. Forget a debut album with Def Jam’s fingerprints all over it. I’m content with another three mixtapes.
Yo! I have a flight to catch in about 4 hours, yours trulyis goingback toSXSW. I’m currently shaking with anxiety, as there is so much to do so much to see, that I have oodles of content from last years SXSW that I never got to share with y’all (stay tuned I’ll probably crack open the vault real soon).
Incase you are curious are/or going to be down there, here are some showcases that caught my eye/people forwarded to me:
American Express has cut a fat check to live stream Jay-Z performing songs live from the famed Austin City Limits. Hov will perform songs as selected by twitter (HOLA HOVITO, PLEASE!!). I’ve watched a few Hov streams in my internet life time, and all of them have been pretty noteworthy (and a lot of rappers can take note). Lastly, you’ll be able to watch the show from a choice of 3 different camera perspectives.
Those who picked up Neek The Exotic and Large Professor’s Still On The Hustle last year know that Extra P’s talent has endured over the two decades since Breaking Atoms dropped. Cormega’s Mega Philosophy will also get the full Large Pro treatment and hopefully source some better rhyming than Still On The Hustle. “MARS” is a great start and marks the formation of one of the more promising and realistic rap supergroups of late. I think you can count on these guys recording more often than Center Edge Territory and with better output than Slaughterhouse. What happened to that Curren$y, Wiz Khalifa, Big Sean mixtape?
