Another one from Chico, who looks like he’ll have full support from Huntsville on his upcoming mixtape. On “6 Year Grudge,” he had the lesser known PT Prime Time and for “Re-Up,” he has the venerated Block Beattaz.
Reks is part of a class of rappers fervently trying to channel ’94 New York. Across the board, they do a satisfactory job of emulating their heroes. Reks displays a shade of the era’s technical chops, but he bleats tired street rap tropes without adding much of his own. “Why Cry” is a tour of a desolate neighborhood, complete with derelict buildings, ‘fallen soldiers,’ and crying mothers. It’s East Coast rap and that’s good enough for some, including me.
The great thing about these guys is they’re the only ones who get Alchemist, DJ Premier, and Fizzy Womack to produce their albums — all of whom gladly supply beats to the torchbearers of their sub-genre.
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Even though French rapper Venom sounds he’s doing an overeager Count Chocula impression and Blaq Poet’s verse sounds like it was recited from the back of a Hennessy label, the Premo beat makes all well.
via DJ Premier Blog
Sphere: Related Content“All of the Lights” is apex of Yeezy indulgence, so it needed a suitably coked up video. Hype Williams (who else?) took “All of the Lights” to mean constantly flashing neon lights and a daring display of Rihanna side boob. I think he interpreted correctly.
Update: The video is no longer available, probably because a British epilepsy organization said it could give people seizures.
Update: It’s back, but with a seizure warning.
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Oh shit, new supergroup. I imagine Pulled Over By the Cops came together kind of like the last scene in Pineapple Express.
Freddie Gibbs, Chip Tha Ripper, and Chuck Inglish from the Cool Kids plop down in a diner after a rigorous video shoot for “Oil Money.” They have a good laugh about Freddie’s Bill Simmons cosign and Chip regales them with Cudi coke binge stories. Then Chuck blurts out, “Can we be best friends? Just us?” A pause. Then Freddie says, “I think we should ALL be best friends!”
That afternoon, they record “Authority,” which turns out bananas.
[audio:http://www.fakeshoredrive.com/wp-content/uploads/2011/02/Authority-Prod.-Blended-Babies.mp3]
via Fake Shore Drive
Sphere: Related ContentNew York hip-hop lives. More food network rap.
This beat would make Lex Luger crawl under his bed and cry. Off O’Third’s upcoming Family Ties mixtape. Also in the pipeline are Zilla and Monster’s Coming Out The Red album, Zilla’s Zilla Shit mixtape, and his album Life As I Know It. I’m gonna need some new speakers.
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Rawse? Ehh. But it’s prod by Alchemist. Fuck it, let’s go.
The purist’s momentary dilemma
via Rick Ross
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It’s with a pang of guilt that I legitimately enjoy Asher Roth’s verse on this awesome bonus track from The Alexander Green Project. Kev Brown’s beat is thin and subdued, except for the occasional dramatic strings — perfect for a lyrical slaying. Kaimbr and Kev Brown teamed up for an album with a worthy concept: straight Al Green samples. I think this samples “Simply Beautiful,” previously sampled by G-Unit, but I’m not sure. The Alexander Green Project is out now.
[audio:http://www.foundation-media.com/mp3s/Kaimbr%20&%20Kev%20Brown-More%20Gritz%20(Gritz%20Remix)%20feat.%20Asher%20Roth%20&%20The%20Kid%20Daytona-DIRTY.mp3]
As with Strong Arm Steady’s last album, production is the main draw on Arms & Hammers. The group is always mentioned in the same breath as a monster producer. They had Pete Rock’s beat for “The Joy” before Kanye and DJ Khalil’s beat for “Talkin’ 2 Myself” before Eminem. But instead of the blessing of straight Madlib beats they got on In Search of Stoney Jackson, SAS got a varied but impressive range of heavyweight West Coast producers. Underground/indie/blog favorites like DJ Khalil, Jelly Roll, and Terrace Martin handle the bulk of production, but none of them reproduce the gritty underground magic of SAS’s work with Madlib. Gangbanging and calibrated DJ Khalil beats don’t suit Mitchy Slick, Krondon, and Phil The Agony as well as blistering, oddball battle raps and dusty, warped soul. Obviously, Madlib’s “Chiba Chiba Pt.2” is a highlight as would have been Jelly Roll’s “Hand Guns” had it not been cut. Game makes a memorable appearance on “Trunk Music” as if to show the guys how to successfully parrot West Coast cultural markers. Moral of the story? Madlib is a tough act to follow.
Arms & Hammers comes out February 22.
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