Def Jam is that last place you should check for R&B, but Chrisette Michele, who has provided hooks for Nas, Jay-Z, Game, and Rick Ross, gives an emotional and extremely polished performance on her new mixtape. “Black Boys Still Die” is as powerful as the title suggests and “Its Not You Its Me” is a lighthearted funky breakup song. She also accommodates different generations of hip-hop fans with awesome renditions of Wale’s “90210” and KRS-One’s “Step into a World.”
Last night I had an ‘oh shit’ moment similar to the first time I heard Yelawolf. Milwaukee rapper/producer Juiceboxxx sounds like the rebellious offspring of a Beastie Boy. As far as I can tell, he communicates exclusively in all caps. His new tape Journeyman from the Heartland is, in his words, “10 TRACKS OF EXTREME RAGING AND REAL LIFE SITUATIONS BUT DON’T WORRY IT IS ALSO A LOT OF MOTHERFUCKING FUN.” The beats are all over the place, but it’s all dope. There’s an amazing Block Beattaz track, some rock stuff, some electronic, and a track with a TLC sample that shouldn’t work, but does. Right now he’s touring Japan. As soon as he gets back, I’m going to ask to be his roadie.
YOUNG JEEZY NEEDS TO WRITE A SONG ABOUT DEALING DRUGS USING ONLY EBAY POWER SELLER TERMINOLOGY. A+++ WOULD BUY AGAINSun Oct 24 14:32:39 via webJUICEBOXXX
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Stones Throw’s newest podcast is a mix of completely original material from London producer Paul White. Paul sounds exactly how you would expect a Stones Throw-affiliated producer to sound. He’s got Madlib’s head-scratching samples and the electronic inclination of LA’s beat music scene. Skip to 20:42 for his remix of MED’s “Classic” which sounds like a Jaylib leftover. Only real heads need apply.
Blood Bros (DJA and Dirty South Joe) have created the soundtrack to your next arduous challenge. They compiled the greatest moments in 80s action movie soundtrack history for a mix that will get you pumped in times of adversity. Now go chop some firewood!
Chicago duo The Paxtons have relocated to New York and are back with a new mixtape. They’ve wasted no time joining NY’s legacy of lyricism with eye-watering flows that would make Twista do a double take. The beats are half original, half borrowed from the likes of Diplo, The Neptunes, Dam Funk, and Chuck Inglish, but the guys are at their best over their own production. The title The Manhattan Project refers to The Paxtons’ intention to annihilate the competition, but given the sorry state of NY hip-hop, the task may have been easier than they expected.
Chase N. Cashe is best known for co-producing Lil Wayne and Eminem’s emo soiree “Drop The World,” but he first caught my ear on FKi’s “Weed & Arizonas,” whose artwork credited him as “Chase and Cashe” and made me think he was two people. But the beats on the upstart producer’s new tape are clean and crisp enough for the radio, yet weird enough to dwarf the routine backdrops of today’s commercial rap. Chase N. Cashe has a polished sound worthy of rap’s upper echelon hitmakers like Boi-1da and J.U.S.T.I.C.E. League.
If his 27 track mixtape was overwhelming, you might fight Chip Tha Ripper’s new EP From Me, To You easier to rock with. Chuck Inglish of the Cool Kids provides slow, deliberate thumpers and Chip Tha Ripper cuts through the haze with a husky flow. Kid Cudi meets Rick Ross. There’s a great “Fat Raps” remix that makes Asher Roth shake the fratboy image for a minute and sound more than tolerable. Chip’s album Gift Raps drops later this year.
Koncept takes it back to the essentials on Playing Life. He assails the listener with the contents of an extremely refined rhyme book over classically boom bap production from his underrated Brown Bag AllStars crew. Damn, remember when dudes could rap like this?
It took me a minute, but I can now confidently call myself a Freddie Gibbs fan. You can only avoid the deafening consensus of the hip-hop blogs for so long. Gibbs & company sell a determinedly bleak, glamor-free brand of gangsta rap reminiscent of the survivalist mentality of 2Pac and the Outlawz. Equipped with an agile flow and an excellent ear for beats, Gibbs has no trouble delivering a tape that’s great from beginning to end.
Str8 Killa No Filla is the mixtape. Str8 Killa is the EP, which drops Tuesday.
Update: Here’s the untagged version of the mixtape minus the songs that appear on the EP. Yay for not having duplicates in iTunes! Grab it at The DJ Booth
